PETER RABBIT (2018) Movie Review
1 Peter 4:13 - "Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world." (NLT)
A classic children's book is brought to life with Peter Rabbit, a story about three different households learning to coexist in one beautiful, little valley: a burrow of five rabbits, Brea the bubbly artist, and Thomas McGregor the closed-off control freak.
Before there can be peace, a violent feud must end. Peter harbors bitterness against Thomas for a crime committed by his uncle who kills Peter's father. Thomas' need for order and cleanliness drives him to resent the dirty creatures invading his garden. He locks every door around his home, garden, and heart in order to defend its value. He appears to them to be just as brutal as his great uncle.
Thomas sees every one of their shenanigans and learns a fast, painful lesson of what they of capable. Though his difficult life leaves him jaded and closed off, it also gives him a highly evolved insight. He sees everything the rabbits do. Unfortunately, it makes him look crazy and paranoid, but all he wants to do in the end is to protect his home.
Can we really fault him for that?
Proverbs 22:3 - "A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences." (NLT)
Tomas' neighbor Brea, on the other hand, has a very different view of the world. As an artist, she is an open, colorful, and unique. Her outlook of her furry friends is optimistic and incredibly naive. While Thomas sees everything wrong about rabbits, she sees all of their good while blind to their faults. Her love for them clouds her judgment. She even calls them "perfect creatures."
However, Peter and his family are far from perfect. In fact, they are wasteful, messy, violent, and extremely entitled. If left unchecked, they would not hesitate to pick the garden clean with no respect for the work it takes the McGregor to tend it. They operate under the assumption that McGregor should just hand them food at any time without earning. Brea enables this entitlement by pressuring Thomas to open his gates. Understandably, he refuses, and the battle begins.
These extremely violent rabbits embark on a campaign to either kill him or drive him out of the manor. They shock him repeatedly, cause him to fall off of the roof, and activate a severe allergic reaction. Because of Peter's remorseless assaults, Thomas is lucky to be alive.
Only when her home is destroyed (thanks to Peter's happy trigger finger) does she finally see the violent tendencies of those closest to her. Their battle for the McGregor manor gets out of hand leading to both physical and emotional damage. Brea's home and heart are crushed leading her to pack her things. She would rather run away than face the truth.
Facing the loss of the woman they love, Thomas and Peter learn to reconcile their differences and work together. Both must take responsibility. Both must apologize. Both must confess their sins and beg forgiveness. It is the only way to keep the three households united and happy. Thomas learns to open his heart and the garden. Brea learns to open her eyes. The rabbits learn humility and to accept their new neighbor as he is.
Romans 3:23 - "For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard." (NLT)
These three households find a way to balance each other. Thomas' insight makes Brea more reasonable while her love opens Thomas' heart. She learns to accept the faults in her neighbors, and he learns to accept the rabbits in spite of their faults. He lets them into the garden, but he still has rules. This is a compromise at its finest. Together, they fix the damage and embark on a happy existence by sharing the valley.
