Be honest. Doesn’t the mere hint of the whimsical Winnie The Pooh theme song transport you back to some of your fondest memories of childhood? Every time I hear Pooh’s chuckle or Tiger’s bounce it instantly brings a smile to my face. So I was excited to hear that after 81 years, a Winnie The Pooh sequel has just been released. This prompted me to wonder how a storyline could still be so successful after all this time. So many shows and books don’t last two months, nevermind decades. What is it about our friends in the hundred Acre Wood that makes them perpetually popular?
I think that a big part of its charm is the simpleness of it all. It takes place in a town with a population of just under a dozen characters. They live a humble life with dirt floors and widdled wood for furniture. Why, Pooh’s biggest extravagance is honey! I know that as an adult I have dreamed of living Pooh’s lifestyle more that once. No mortgage, no car payments, no keeping up with the Jones’. Just enjoying life as it comes one day at a time. Similar to their viewers, these characters are trying to figure out the world around them. Most often Pooh and friends are wrong on their first approach, but eventually they figure it out when they all selflessly work together. I think that this is the part that appeals to kids. I watch my son play with his friends on our cul-de-sac and they stop talking to each other if don’t want to play the same game. Kids yearn for that unconditional friendship that only seems attainable on TV. When you add to this the adventures that Pooh and his friends embark on and all of the silliness that occurs in between, its attraction is undeniable to growing young minds.
Recently Disney/Pixar director extrordinare, John Lasseter, announced news of a 2D Pooh movie set for release in Spring 2011. It will adhere closely to the original animation and storyline. Because Winnie The Pooh doesn’t need fancy animation or catchy punch lines to attract a crowd. All Pooh needs is a little nonsensical adventure and his friends.
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