Paddington

He doesn’t have superpowers or pop-culture one-liners at the ready. And his movie doesn’t fall in line with the glut of hyperactive big-screen 3D cartoons assuming that children today have short attention spans and limited imaginations.

Rather, Paddington has the warmth of a grandmother telling a bedtime story, especially with a cute anthropomorphic teddy bear as its protagonist. This delightful live-action adaptation of the series of children’s books by Michael Bond has a relaxed pace that shows affection for both its title character and his audience.

It starts out as an origins story of sorts, as the film explains how Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw) grew up in the jungles of Peru and developed an affinity for marmalade, then was sent to London following a tragic earthquake, ostensibly to find a British explorer who befriended his family.

Once he arrives, however, Paddington discovers the big city is lonely and intimidating. He finds a temporary home with a kind family including a neurotic insurance adjuster (Hugh Bonneville), his artist wife (Sally Hawkins), their two children, and a resourceful housekeeper (Julie Walters).

The family agrees to help the bumbling bear — with his traditional button-down wool coat, floppy red hat, and battered suitcase — on his quest, even if it means putting up with his clumsy mischief. Among those who are less amused by Paddington’s presence are a nosy neighbor (Peter Capaldi) and a taxidermist (Nicole Kidman) who wants to add to her collection.

Although the British sense of humor might not always translate for small children on this side of the pond, they should still appreciate some of Paddington’s slapstick antics, whether it involves a mishap with a flooding bathtub or an elaborate chase through the London streets involving a skateboard, a pickpocket and a double-decker bus.

Yet the screenplay by director Paul King (Bunny and the Bull) retains an old-fashioned charm even amid its slapstick tendencies, and Paddington has plenty of nostalgic appeal for those familiar with the source material and its hand-drawn illustrations. The human interactions with the computer-generated bear are seamless.

Although the climax is predictable, King takes a gently amusing approach to suit this story that’s less fish-out-of-water and more bear-out-of-woods.

Rated PG, 95 minutes.