Hurry! Catch this 97% Rotten Tomatoes family movie hit before it leaves Netflix

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An unmissable family comedy with a close expiration date

Paddington
(Image credit: StudioCanal)

One of the most revered measures of movie quality nowadays is the trusty Rotten Tomatoes score, and finding one that reaches beyond the 95 per cent mark on the audience and critic rating scale on your chosen video streaming service isn't always a walk in the park. But if your chosen service is Netflix and you are in the mood for a fun family favourite this weekend, we have the perfect – or at least 97 per cent-perfect – pick for you: Paddington.

With a whopping 97 per cent Rotten Tomato score, and due to leave Netflix by 14th October, Paddington has been around since its release in 2014 and is a must-watch for those who haven't been blessed with the bear's screen presence. It is also a great time to revisit it, considering the third movie in the trilogy is being released in November. Indeed, Paddington 2 is also currently on Netflix, with an even better rating of 99 per cent, setting subscribers up nicely for the third instalment before it hits cinemas.

Paddington on London Underground holding a small dog

(Image credit: StudioCanal)

Fun for now

A fun, entertaining and emotionally heavy animated live-action that will likely bring tears to even the hardiest viewer in the family, Paddington is imperative viewing – and there is no time like the present to right the wrong of not having seen it yet.  Remember, Netflix users, you have only three weeks.

This movie not only commands a super rare 97 per cent Tomatometer score but also has a very high audience rating with an 80 per cent Popcornmeter level too.

Featuring the voice of Ben Wishaw (Skyfall, Perfume), it tells the tale of the beloved bear Paddington who makes his way to London in search of a new home. What ensues is an endearingly charming and creative adventure tale that combines Stuart Little-reminiscent havoc with humour.

Despite Paddington being a massive hit, it was outdone in terms of ratings by its sequel, the fittingly named Paddington 2, which has a 99 per cent Tomatometer score and an even higher audience rating than the original too.

It seems like the sequel will outlive the original's presence in the Netflix catalogue, so you have a bit of time to emotionally recover from the first before you tuck into the second. That said, both will likely move about in anticipation of the third release in the series, Paddington in Peru, which is out at cinemas on 8th November. The first two instalments will likely be in high demand leading up to that time and therefore exclusively on rental. So consider this your heads up to get acquainted – or reacquainted – sooner rather than later.

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Luke Edwards
1 Comment Comment from the forums
  • simontompkins
    Absolutely - a splendiferously wonderful film packed with charm. There's an idea in film making about showing and not telling and both the Paddington movies are marvellous examples of that.
    Perhaps when we encounter new people, often from strange lands, who themselves seem very different from us, our first response is one of seeing with our preconceptions rather than being open to the wonder of how new people in our lives can open our hearts and minds to enrich both.
    There are all kinds of statistics available to show how immigrants are less likely to use public services, more likely to be employed, be younger and pay proportionately more for things like hospitals and schools but I suspect an afternoon watching the Paddington movies has a more profound effect that any amount of dry information.
    Not just one for the kids but for adults too - After the all the father of the house is less than generous about welcoming Paddington and the journey of the characters in the movies - well you'd have to have a hard heart indeed not to have a lump in your throat at some point watching.
    It's also got the most marvellous performance by Hugh Grant - forget doing King Lear at the RHS - Grant's role really is one that actors would happily push their fellow actors out of the way to get (If they could get away with it :)
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