Winnie the Pooh: Springtime with Roo

I've been a diehard Winnie the Pooh fan since birth (or close enough), and I refuse to grow out of the Winnie the Pooh franchise. I know it's for everyone and you're never too old for Pooh Bear, but I thought I'd still say that anyway. This isn't my #1 favorite Pooh movie, but it is a sweet and enjoyable movie regardless! I watch it every Easter and sometimes other times, and it brings nostalgia to me every time. There were already Pooh movies for Halloween, Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Valentine's Day before this came along, and it was high time there was a Pooh Easter movie.

For the longest time, I had no idea this was a parody of A Christmas Carol. It's very different from most other Christmas Carol parodies and adaptations I've come across, and it has more originality: it's about Easter rather than Christmas. Rabbit is Ebenezer Scrooge, Roo is Tiny Tim, Tigger is the Ghost of Christmas Past, the narrator is the Ghosts of Christmas Present and Future, and the rest of the characters are themselves. I like the idea of Rabbit being Scrooge because he's the main antagonist of the Pooh franchise and the closest thing to a villain that it has. I assume this was supposed to be an experiment to see if a Christmas-themed Pooh/Christmas Carol parody would work.

This is a fun and sweet story all about the appeal of Easter! It shows that Easter is all about having fun with your friends and family, hunting eggs, eating candy, and showing your pals that you care, with no limits or boundaries! Now that's festive! The characters have their own favorite Easter items that make the holiday more special to them; Pooh has an Easter honey pot, Eeyore has fluffy bunny ears, Tigger has an egg that looks like him, Piglet has a pink Easter basket, and Roo has his egg hunts. I like the idea of Rabbit being the Easter Bunny because he is a bunny, possibly the only bunny in the Hundred Acre Wood. Watching Springtime with Roo is like finding a colorful Easter egg in a hidden spot.

I love how Roo is portrayed in this story! Rabbit decides to cancel Easter and replace it with Spring Cleaning Day. As a result, Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, and Eeyore have an unhappy Easter, which makes Roo sad. Roo is not only sorry for himself but also for his friends. He realizes that the chance to show his pals that he cares and have fun with them has been taken away because of the removal of Easter. This is an unselfish way to feel! Coincidentally, I learned from the Pajanimals that feeling sad when a loved one is sad and trying to cheer them up are signs that you care about them. I never realized this till now, but the same idea is shown here. Roo's actions remind us that being a good friend means being there for others, especially when they need it most.

He handles the situation very well, especially for someone his age. He and Tigger do their best to fix everything, and the former encourages the latter to talk to Rabbit about the situation, and he (Tigger) does. Also, Roo is the first to realize that Rabbit is sad and misses his favorite day of the year deep down inside. The latter got his position as the Easter Bunny taken away, and the former recognizes that he (Rabbit) doesn't truly hate Easter. Roo uses his love and wisdom to help his friend overcome his fears of Easter and expresses willingness to do anything to make him happy again.

He (Roo) realizes that Rabbit, despite his actions, actually desires to be a happy, good guy deep down. This is sweet to see because he's giving the "bad guy" a chance, isn't mad at him, and recognizes that he's misunderstood. Roo and his friends make a new Easter Bunny hat for Rabbit because the old one got destroyed, which touches both Rabbit's heart and mine and brings him to tears. I don't think Roo being the voice of reason is out of place because little kids can be the voice of reason too. When I was little, I'd feel sad whenever a loved one was sick or sad and do the best I could to make others happy, and I still do. This isn't the only time he's the voice of reason. He also has this position in Pooh's Heffalump Movie. Who said that only adults could be the voice of reason?

The story is not only sweet, festive, and fun, but it also has heartfelt morals about sharing special days in special ways, being a good friend, and thinking of others. During the previous Easter, Pooh and his friends made mistakes but still had fun. Rabbit made too many rules for them to remember, which made the holiday harder and less enjoyable. He treated the day like a professional occasion instead of a fun holiday and rudely demanded his friends to decorate and hunt eggs his way. This led to them leaving Rabbit's house and Tigger becoming the new Easter Bunny. Tigger hosted a fun Easter egg hunt with no rules and without Rabbit, allowing Pooh and company to help Roo have a happy Easter, proving that they had good intentions and weren't trying to be jerks.

On the night of the present Easter, Rabbit has a nightmare about the next Easter, where everyone else in the Hundred Acre Wood moves away because of his behavior, much to his loneliness. When he expresses missing them, the narrator calls him out for thinking only of himself and not treating them like friends. This moment gives Rabbit self-awareness, shows that even the narrator recognizes his selfishness, and makes both of their emotions more powerful.

When the former wakes up the next morning, he gives his friends the egg hunt they were hoping for, makes a no-rules rule, gives them their favorite Easter items back, and promises to be a better friend moving forward. This transformation shows that Rabbit learned to be unselfish and more accepting of others' differences.

It's important to recognize that some individuals, including yours truly, feel more comfortable or empowered to do things differently than others, and the population of the Hundred Acre Wood is no exception.

Rabbit's realization that Easter should be a fun holiday is significant because he understands that he made Easter difficult for his friends the previous year and genuinely makes up for that. It's essential to recognize that when holidays are treated too formally, they can lose their spirit and become boring. Rabbit's commitment to making Easter enjoyable again for everyone shows his growth and understanding that the essence of these special days lies in sharing joy and togetherness with friends.

You're probably thinking, "It's mean and off-character for Pooh and company to leave Rabbit out of their Easter celebration" or something along the lines. Yes, they were mean to Rabbit, but he was mean to them first, and that's payback for it. Besides, they were tired of his bossy and selfish behavior, and I can't blame them. Rabbit is the one to blame for their behavior. Being a bad friend and not cleaning up your act can lead to losing friends and feeling lonely, much like Rabbit's situation.

Additionally, Tigger feels bad when he realizes that their actions hurt him and tries to reconcile and reason with him, despite his failure to do so. Unfortunately, Rabbit stubbornly refuses to admit his mistakes and doesn't take responsibility for his actions until it is almost too late. This story beautifully highlights the value of friendship and the importance of being a good friend; it reminds us that our actions really do matter! The value of friendship is a common moral, but this is one of the few stories I've come across that shows the consequences of not being a good friend.

The songs are good. My favorite one is Easter Day with You because it's a bouncy, upbeat song all about the joy of giving to your friends, showing them how much you care, and throwing parties, which I can relate to. The lyrics briefly consist of "Bright and sunny honey of an Easter," but I don't know what that's supposed to mean. Is that when the sun shines brightly on honey on Easter? Sniffly Sniff is another one of the best songs. It's a song Pooh Bear sings about letting out a great big sneeze. I read in a comment on a YouTube upload of the song that only Pooh Bear can make sneezing into a song. I'm sure others could too if they tried, but I think the commenter was trying to say, "Who better than Pooh to sing a song about sneezing?" or "What better song about sneezing than this?" I couldn't agree more! I don't know what else to say about it.

"Springtime with Roo" is not without its flaws.

1) Rabbit can be quite unlikable at times, especially in this film, but it's likely intentional so he can learn from his mistakes. For example, he becomes upset when he thinks his friends aren't listening to him on "Spring Cleaning Day," even though they actually follow his instructions before the Easter celebration. He even throws them out of his house, which isn't very nice. On the previous Easter, he forced his friends to see the holiday from his perspective and didn't consider their feelings. However, I appreciate that the ending shows him redeeming himself and his friends giving him a second chance.

2) Tigger stole the eggs from Rabbit for his friends to hunt during the previous Easter, which seems unnecessary.

3) Christopher Robin is absent from the movie. If he were present, he could have provided new eggs, eliminating the need to steal.

4) In the nightmare sequence, the characters move away without telling Rabbit, which feels out of place. It would make more sense for them to warn him ahead of time.

5) Lastly, the title is somewhat misleading because it's more focused on Easter than on spring.

Despite these flaws, "Springtime with Roo" is a delightful movie that's perfect for Easter! I highly recommend it!

It is definitely not the best of anything to do with the immortal Winnie the Pooh, but it is a sweet and enjoyable movie regardless. The film is perhaps too short, and perhaps too quick in pace, but it is still very enjoyable and charming. The animation isn't too bad, the backgrounds especially are lovely, and the music isn't completely redundant either. It isn't phenomenal, but it is simple and memorable, which is good enough for me. I liked the story, it was a nice moral story with a sweet message, and the script was both touching and funny. The characters are still likable, Roo is very endearing here especially and the voice work is faultless. Overall, nice and charming without being the best movie ever, it is perfectly ideal for kids and if they like it at least Disney are doing something right. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Well, I'm not sure if the other person that commented on this movie watched the same one as myself. Granted, this film is geared toward children, however, it's message seems a bit off target, considering the subject matter.

To say this movie was something the entire family can enjoy together is to assume the parents have an IQ not much higher than that of their child.

But before I say anything, I'm not some religious nut.

The movie is loosely adapted from Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol". Had the central holiday in question in this movie been Christmas, it's message would have made more sense. However, it was Easter, and, according to the characters, Easter is the time of year when "we show our buddies that we care." Easter is about caring and sharing, not a religious holiday celebrating the death and resurrection of Jesus. In effect, the movie makes it explicitly clear that Easter isn't a religious holiday at all, but a time to celebrate the coming of Spring.

It seems to have been made in typical Disney fashion; sanitized and devoid of the true meaning behind the holiday, such as Christmas, which, as has been transformed over the years to be a celebration of Winter and, yet again, a time when "we show our buddies that we care", as opposed to its original context, that being a religious holiday to celebrate the birth of a particular religious figure.

Had Disney done the same thing to a Muslim, Jewish, or even Hindu holiday, I dare say there'd be quite the backlash and protest. However, it's just a Christian holiday and who cares if a few "believers" are even slightly taken aback by the warped rendition and interpretation Disney gives to their holiest of days.

Thankfully, my daughter is far to young to understand any of this and certainly too young to care. She just likes watching Winnie the Pooh bumble his way through life. However, with older children, I hate to sound conspiratorial, but honest to God, you really have to wonder: are the people who made this film trying to re-educate children? You can write it off as merely a fun movie for tots to sit and gawk at for an hour, but at the same time, you have to admit, children aren't entirely stupid. They understand a lot more than I think we normally give them credit. And I find it difficult to believe that of all the people who helped make this movie, from director to child psychologists, surely at least one of them had to have the same sense of it all as I did.

If I were you, I'd probably just skip this title in favor of getting some of the old Warner Brothers cartoons.

Quality of this movie may not be at the same level as the Pooh movies of the sixties and seventies, but it's still worth watching, little children will enjoy it, parents and grand-parents that take an interest in there children will take the time to explain the many lessons that this movie has to offer, including how friendship and love can bring people with different goals together, and yes the story is familiar and yes the true meaning of Easter is ignored, but that can give the parent the opportunity to tell their children, or grand-children the real reason to celebrate the holiday. Bottom line this is just a good funny movie, no nudity, foul language, or anything else that makes for a typical "family" Hollywood movie.

Another great movie about one of Winnie The Pooh's friend first in the year 2000 we got Tigger, then in the year 2003 we got Piglet and now in 2004 we are having a movie about Roo in this easter special time i have ever seen.