Fans of sweet Winnie the Pooh, get ready to shed hot tears over his lost illusions: children’s favorite honey-lover will turn into a bloodthirsty killer, in a new horror movie that promises to sacrifice the image of the little stuffed animal.
Far from the naivety of the tales of its creator, the British Alan Alexander Milne, or the likeable glutton popularized by Disney, the character now appears as a dangerous psychopath in Winnie-the-Pooh: blood and honey.
A veritable UFO, this low-budget production opening Wednesday in the United States promises to test the limits of copyright and trademark rights. And it already arouses the ire of many fans, outraged by this shocking reinvention.
“It’s crazy,” director Rhys Frake-Waterfield told AFP. “I received requests to arrest him. I received death threats. People told me they had called the police.”
Legal protection has expired
If the adventures of Winnie and her companions – Piglet, Eeyore, Tigger – have been the subject of a Disney license for decades, the legal protection of Milne’s first books, published as early as 1926, has expired.
Thus, the original character passed into the public domain, allowing for this nightmarish adaptation. The first images of the film, where a sinister Winnie and Piglet lurk in the dark behind a young woman lying peacefully in a jacuzzi, quickly set the internet on fire last year.
Initially promised a very modest theatrical release, this gory production, produced on a minimum budget of $250,000, has become a phenomenon that benefits from a world premiere.
The feature film is already on the screens in Mexico, where it raised more than a million dollars in two weeks. It could become one of the highest grossing films in cinema history, according to some experts.
Its director hopes to dethrone horror movies Paranormal activity, released in 2009 thanks to an investment of $15,000, and which launched a saga capable of reaping more than a billion box offices. “I really believed in this idea. Others didn’t (…) and now it’s working quite well,” smiles Rhys Frake-Waterfield.
unhealthy review
The expiration of the rights that allowed this unhealthy reform does not authorize all the extravagances. Because Winnie’s character has evolved over time and only the first version of him is in the public domain.
Therefore, it is impossible to dress the gluttonous bear in the red robe that he wears in the Disney movies. Likewise, Tigger, who later appeared in the books, does not appear in the film.
But beyond copyright, which prevents the unauthorized copying of a creative work but is limited in time, the feature film plays with trademark law. The license held by Disney, renewable indefinitely, prohibits launching a product related to Winnie and that could be confused with the original.
“It cannot be suggested that (…) the product is endorsed by Disney or affiliated or associated in any way, as Disney still enjoys strong brand protection,” explains attorney Aaron Moss.
“Very bad”
In this specific case, the production seems to be covered by the absurd idea of turning Winnie into a horror movie villain. “Not at all familiar”, the feature film “does not represent anything that (viewers) might expect from Disney”, estimates the council, and makes any possible resource from the American giant “much more difficult to affirm”.
“I want to get as far away from them as possible,” confirms Mr. Frake-Waterfield. The director wants “Winnie the Pooh to be big, menacing, scary, intimidating and horrible. I don’t want him to be small and cuddly and cute.”
The film, therefore, offers a dark setting. Abandoned by their friend Jean-Christophe, now an adult, Winnie and Piglet were left alone and returned to the wild. To the point of launching into a murderous madness.
Affirmed, this bad taste, however, seems to let people down. During a screening in Mexico City this week, many viewers did not appreciate the film, an AFP journalist said. Jonathan Ortiz, 32, found it “very bad.”
However, the reception of the film is no longer important. The hype is such that its director is already preparing a sequel, in addition to other horror films inspired by Baby AND Peter Pan.
Source: BFM TV
