Is Paddington Bear scary?

On Saturday we decided to treat Tom by taking him to the cinema to watch Paddington.  Instead of going to the modern Vue in Lancaster we decided to go to the cinema in Skipton.  This gave us a chance to look round Skipton, believe it or not since we moved up here we haven't been.  We were pleasantly surprised, it is a nice place.  The high street is full of independent shops not chain stores, meaning window browsing was interesting.  I even found a fully stocked cake craft shop which was a bonus - just wish I knew what I was running out of - oh hum!  There were lots of interesting looking tea rooms and pubs with interesting names such as The Woolly Sheep.  We stopped in one for soup and a scone and then carried on around the town.  The town has a shopping mall - which is in a converted mill building and has been done very sympathetically - plus once again it didn't have any chain stores.

We found the cinema - it was a really old, traditional cinema - complete with dress circle which of course Tom wanted to sit in but it was already full and downstairs was empty, plus the screen was quite a way away from the upstairs seats.

We settled down and awaited the start, it took a while as we had to watch loads of trailers and then there was an interval for ice creams etc before the main presentation, just like in 'the olden days'.  Paddington Bear then started.  It didn't go well.  It started off with Paddington in Darkest Peru with his aunt and uncle, there was an earthquake, his house collapsed and his uncle didn't make it.  We had tears.  It took a while for him to get over it.  Then he wouldn't look at the screen and he refused to laugh at the funny bits (there were loads of funny bits!).  He said he needed the toilet, I took him, he cried in the toilet.  I tried to explain to him it would be fine, he wasn't so sure.  We went back in, he cried 2 more times!  He was the only child in a full cinema to cry at all.  I wouldn't say it was a success or that he enjoyed it - he really is a sensitive soul.  I enjoyed it, Matt enjoyed it, we liked the cinema, we'll be back but will have to find a even more child friendly show!