A true story about the author of the popular book about Winnie-the-Pooh and his son, whom he incorporated into this fairy tale. A film about how parents, in their quest to build their prestige and fulfill their dreams of popularity and success, can very easily ruin their child’s life and bring him to the brink of death.

The film recounts the early years of the author of the Winnie-the-Pooh books following the end of World War I. Alan Alexander Milne (Blue) is haunted by nightmares from the horrors of war he experienced. He must struggle with these mental health issues for years to come.

Seeking greater peace, Milne moves with his wife Daphne and son Christopher Robin to the quiet countryside, where he also hopes to find inspiration for his next book.

Milne doesn’t come up with the idea for a new book until he begins telling stories to his son Christopher—stories that would go on to become globally successful children’s books. The father, seemingly more unwittingly than intentionally, gradually turns his son into a tool for building his own success.

With the assistance of his emotionally distant wife, Daphne, they turned Christopher into a trained monkey. Despite his parents’ emotionally deficient relationship with their son, little Christopher at least received love from his caring nanny, Olive.

The popularity of Winnie-the-Pooh and Christopher Robin—who becomes part of the story—turns against young Christopher during his adolescence and early adulthood in the form of ridicule and bullying. Eventually, Christopher decides to volunteer for World War II, believing that doing so will help him regain his shattered self-esteem and honor.

The heroes of the film are Christopher’s loving nanny, who raised him to be a sensitive young man, and Christopher himself, who rejects wealth and prestige, preferring instead to lead the peaceful and modest life of an ordinary person.

Historical / Family / Biographical

United Kingdom, 2017, 107 min

Crew: Simon Curtis

Cast: Domhnall Gleeson, Margot Robbie, Kelly Macdonald, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Stephen Campbell Moore, Will Tilston, Alex Lawther, Nico Mirallegro, Geraldine Somerville, Bentley Kalu

Parents Guide

About one instance of a married couple kissing. During a dance, Blue’s wife’s cleavage is slightly more exposed; later, there is one instance of a dress revealing her shoulders.

Several brief glimpses of World War I combat scenes that regularly flash through Blue’s mind.

One instance of the word “damn” being spoken.

Wine is consumed at a dance ball.

Blue’s wife screams during Christopher’s birth.

For most of the film, the viewer is confronted with the overly cold, even depressing, attitude of the self-absorbed parents toward their son Christopher.

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