Based on the character that children around the world have watched and loved for years, Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey is a twist on the story of an innocent yellow teddy bear who plays with his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood and eats honey from jars. Director Rhys Frake-Waterfield turned Winnie into an evil killer in his new horror film.
The film, which came out on Feb. 15, received conflicting reviews. While some considered the film mundane and expected, others found it entertaining with a humorous twist on the original story. One of the most asked questions about the film was what these beasts are.
Frake-Waterfield explained more about the characters in a recent interview with Collider. In the new horror adaptation, Pooh and Piglet are more human-like than their characters in the original Winnie the Pooh story.
In the interview, Frake-Waterfield said, "This is actually Winnie the Pooh and Piglet going around killing people." He added:
"I hate this word and I might not be able to say it — anthropomorphic. Basically hybrids. Half-bear, half-man, and half-pig, half-[man]. So that was a decision because I really wanted them to have the ability to hold weapons. So if I made Winnie the Pooh just a bear, he's got paws. All he will do is go around swiping people and killing them, maybe bite them. But with hands it becomes so much more fun because he has weapons, he can drive a car, I can do all these really interesting things."
Frake-Waterfield continued to explain that Pooh is part human, part bear, and part stuffed animal. He said:
"Inside they are a mix of human and a kind of Pooh bear interior. So they've got the blood, the've got the guts, but there's a bit of fluff floating around as well. And there's actually a moment in the film, if you watch carefully … after [Pooh's] been hit by the car and he's slumped over it, you'll see Christopher goes to save Maria and then [Pooh] coughs and when he coughs, if you look carefully, fluff's coming out."
What is Blood and Honey About?
The film narrates the story of Pooh and Piglet after Christopher Robin (Nikolai Leon) abandons them. Pooh and Piglet are left to survive, so they turn feral. Pooh suffers extreme starvation, so he plans to kill and eat Eeyore. Pooh and Piglet become brutal and violent creatures who loathe humans.
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey is currently in theaters worldwide. With a microbudget of less than $100,000, the film has been a hit on the internet and in theaters. A sequel for the film is coming soon, and other children's shows might be the following horror adaptation projects by the director.