Children will love it – alas: Peter Rabbit 2 reviewed

The cinemas finally reopened this week and what better way to celebrate than with Peter Rabbit 2? You’ll probably be thinking that there are plenty of better ways to celebrate than with Peter Rabbit 2, particularly if you saw the first Peter Rabbit, which was a travesty (I think. I slept through most of it). However, while this sequel has none of the smarts of, say, Toy Story or Paddington, the franchise is getting there. It’s certainly an improvement on the original (I stayed awake, mostly) and who knows, by Peter Rabbit 798, which seems inevitable, it may have actually nailed it.

The film is directed by Will Gluck, who co-wrote the screenplay with Patrick Burleigh. Gluck was also at the helm for the first film, which was heavily criticised for a general charmlessness and failing to capture the spirit of the Beatrix Potter books. Here’s what I wrote in my notes at the time, prior to nodding off: ‘Why is this Peter such a tool?’ Still, it did good box office, and children have loved it, which is all that counts.