Parents' Guide to

Winnie the Pooh

By Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 3+

Adorable big-screen Pooh adaptation is short and sweet.

Movie G 2011 69 minutes
Winnie the Pooh Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 3+

Based on 46 parent reviews

Love T.
Love T. Adult
May 1, 2023
age 5+

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
Too much consumerism
meydiana.rizki
meydiana.rizki Parent of 17-year-old
April 5, 2021
age 4+

That Warm Fuzzy Feeling

Going to see this movie was like stepping back into childhood. I had the 1977 movie on VHS when I was young and I wore that tape out with countless viewings. I was also a big fan of the cartoon show than ran during the nineties and the many direct-to-video films that came out around that time too. So I already walk into this movie with nostalgia on my mind - knowing roughly what to expect, and the film delivers pretty much what you've seen before. It follows the structure of the 1977 movie mostly, telling three different stories over the length of the film. Which may have worked in 1977, but today if you cut the film apart into these three sections you could just release them as specials on the Disney channel. The voice work is as good as it needs to be. Jim Cummings is enigmatic as always and Bud Luckey is a nice addition as Eeyore. It's not Disney's best dubbing job but far from their worst. The film is far too short, there was definitely time for another story should there have been one. 70 minutes shouldn't really be acceptable for a cinema release, under any circumstances. All qualms I have with the movie are overshadowed by its innocence and joy. Children who go to see this movie may love it, but adults may love it more.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
See all 46 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Winnie the Pooh (voiced by Jim Cummings) loves his honey, but he can't seem to find any in the Hundred Acre Wood. On his search for the sugary treat, he encounters his mopey donkey friend Eeyore (Bud Luckey), who has somehow lost his tail. Pooh and his pals -- Piglet (Travis Oates), Owl (Craig Ferguson), Kanga (Kristen Anderson-Lopez) and Roo (Wyatt Dean Hall), and Rabbit (Tom Kenny) -- hold a contest to find Eeyore another tail, but there doesn't seem to be a suitable replacement. One morning, Christopher Robin leaves a note saying "Gon out. Bizy. Back Son," which know-it-all Owl presumes means that some creature called a "Backson" has somehow kidnapped Christopher Robin. That leads the animal friends to another collaborative effort to search for and save their human buddy -- but of course they're the ones who end up needing rescuing.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (46):
Kids say (42):

With its old-fashioned animation and easy-to-follow story lines, WINNIE THE POOH is one of those rare children's movies that's both simple and sweet. Like the beloved books on which the animated characters are based, there's no artifice or trendy references, just funny jokes (behold the comeback of the "Who's on First" routine), cheery musical numbers, and the occasional wink-wink to parents in the audience (who will laugh more than they ever thought possible in a Pooh flick).

Although the movie is really two intertwined vignettes (the pals search for Eeyore's tail and then try to trap the enigmatic Backson), at barely over an hour, there's no time for the plot to lag or bore even kids who can't read. That said, literate children will get an extra bonus of seeing how the characters form objects and words with the letters on screen, and adults will enjoy John Cleese's narrator, who talks directly to the enchanted animals. The Pooh is back, and thanks to sticking closely to A. A. Milne's roots, Disney has a winning little film for kids who love the fluff-stuffed bear.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the way the characters interact with the narrator and the words on the screen. How is this similar to the way the original books worked? Is it ever confusing?

  • Talk about personalities. All the animals have different personalities -- can you describe them? Do you know any people with similar characteristics?

  • Kids: Which character do you identify with the most? When you feel sad like Eeyore, what do you do?

  • How does this movie compare to other Pooh films and TV shows? Which do you like best, and why?

Movie Details

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