Prime Time: Postman Pat: The Movie (2014)

I don’t know why I decided to watch Postman Pat: The Movie this week, but watch it I did. Maybe it was my brain being more alert than ever to Royal Mail, considering how much time and space it has taken up on the news and TV lately (and this movie could have been very different if it reflected any real-life events), or maybe I decided to revisit a character I hadn’t spent any time with for about four decades. It was probably just my usual roll of the dice, consider my willingness to give anything a chance, but I wasn’t exactly over the moon as I pressed play.

The plot is enjoyably simple. Postman Pat (voiced by Stephen Mangan) is disappointed to hear that he won’t be receiving a pay bonus that he was looking forward to, which means no holiday to Italy for the family. He doesn’t want to let them down though, considering how keen they are, so he ends up entering a talent contest that could keep everyone happy . . . if he wins. His main competitor is a young man named Josh (Rupert Grint), managed by someone (Wilf, voiced by David Tennant) who isn’t above using some dirty tricks to ensure that his star client wins. Meanwhile, Edwin Carbunkle (Peter Woodward) has a plan to make the mail delivery system more efficient and profitable, all thanks to robot versions of Pat and his cat, Jess.

Being unfamiliar with director Mike Disa and writer Nicole Dubuc, Postman Pat: The Movie was a film I thought I might end up enduring, as opposed to enjoying. The characters and antics would obviously be aimed at a MUCH younger demographic (I know I can be accused of immaturity, but I am not actually as childish as I sometimes seem) and I figured that the animation would lack the polish and detail of the movie output seen from more renowned studios.

Fortunately, I ended up finding a lot to enjoy here. Yes, it is very definitely made for younger viewers (although none of them will laugh at how inappropriate it is to see Pat reading “The Postman Always Rings Twice” to his young child), but the enjoyably simple plot allows for a great mix of small and big gags in every main sequence. The animation may not be the very best, but it feels like a nicely updated version of the character and the world that he inhabits. Maybe this is just ported over from later TV episodes, or maybe it isn’t (I wouldn’t know as I haven’t watched it since the early 1980s), but it’s a good mix of the old and the new.

It’s also helped enormously by a voice cast all feeling perfect in their roles. Mangan is great as Pat, trying to stay upbeat even in the face of overwhelming odds, Grint is enthusiastic and pleasant as Joshua, and Tennant seems to relish arching his eyebrows and rubbing his hands together as he acts like the panto villain of the piece. As for Woodward, playing the more harmful villain, he delivers his dialogue with a cool hint of menace underlining almost everything he says. Susan Duerden and Sandra Teles play Pat’s wife and son, respectively, and both feel just right in their roles, and you get to hear Jim Broadbent, Ronan Keating (providing the singing voice for Pat), and a hugely entertaining Robin Atkin Downes, playing the talent show judge, Simon Cowbell.

I doubt I will ever watch this again, unless I am babysitting younger children in my home, but I enjoyed it while it was on. It provides a fun adventure for a beloved character without having to change or mutate the essence of the show, the whole community becomes involved in the unfolding drama, and there are good lessons learned before the end credits roll. I genuinely enjoyed it . . . although maybe that just shows that I AM as childish as I sometimes seem.

7/10

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