Yes, 'Paddington 2' is the greatest film ever made
- The Rotten Tomatoes score for "Citizen Kane" has dropped to 99%.
- "Paddington 2," on the other hand, has a 100% fresh rating.
- Finally, the endearing movie has taken its rightful place above the greatest film ever made.
The memefication of "Paddington 2" reached new heights on Wednesday when news outlets noticed a change in Rotten Tomatoes' score for "Citizen Kane."
"Citizen Kane" - commonly considered the greatest movie of all time - previously held a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which meant all of the critics' reviews for the film were overall positive. But when a single negative review was added to the batch sometime in the last six weeks, "Citizen Kane's" score dropped to 99% - leading to its removal from the list of movies with a "perfect Tomatometer score."
But "Paddington 2," the 2018 modern classic movie about a London bear imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit, still holds its 100% rating, prompting declarations that there was a new greatest film ever made.
And you know what? They're right.
Why 'Paddington 2' is so universally beloved
Convincing someone who has never seen "Paddington 2" of its greatness can seem like a tall order, especially because appreciation of its emotional core requires you to have watched the slightly less-incredible (but still lovely) first "Paddington" movie.
"Paddington 2" has an earnestness and quirk to it, as if someone took the visual beauty of a Wes Anderson movie, soaked it in the tear-jerking magic of Pixar, and then sprinkled it with the theatrical comedy hijinks of old Hollywood.
The cast (Ben Whishaw, Julie Walters, Hugh Grant, and Brendan Gleeson, among others) is a perfect ensemble, bringing great heart to a forward-thinking story about found-families, broken systems built on inhumane treatment, and how kindnesses paid to others will often be returned tenfold.
Rewatching the movie, as I've done probably 10 times in the last three years, is like bundling up underneath a warm blanket with old friends. And I'm not alone in that love.
Already a masterpiece, the emotional resonance of "Paddington 2" was compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. At its core is a story about Paddington's homesickness, not just for the home he left behind for London after his uncle's death, but for his adopted mother-figure Aunt Lucy.
The yearning to share his life with her again, and to find his Aunt Lucy a birthday present that will show his gratitude for how she raised him, has taken on new meaning since the movie first premiered. Now most people can relate even more to the ache for our past lives, and for the comforting feel of your loved one's embrace after too much time apart.
Paddington's Aunt Lucy has a favorite saying that comes up in the movie: "If you're kind and polite, the world will be right."
After the trauma of the past year, it might be difficult to put your faith in these words. But the magic of "Paddington 2" is that it encourages you to believe in that optimism again.
But - injustice of all injustices - the 'adjusted' ranking systems for Rotten Tomatoes means 'Paddington 2' isn't officially the best movie on its lists
It needs to be noted that Rotten Tomatoes does have its own list of the best movies of all time, where "Citizen Kane" is sitting at #3, and "Paddington 2" is listed at... #59.
'The Top 100 Movies of all Time list is ranked by Adjusted Tomatometer, used in editorial lists and takes into account a number of factors including the number of reviews, the year of release, and the average Tomatometer scores of other films released contemporaneously," a source clarified via email to Insider. "It is primarily used when comparing or ranking films across several decades but is not the official Tomatometer score."
The Rotten Tomatoes list of "The 100% Club" movies is in alphabetical order, which means "Paddington 2" isn't crowning king there, either.
But in the hearts of all those who have come to know and love "Paddington 2," it will always be the best. Suck it, Welles.