‘Goodbye Christopher Robin’ has plenty of jagged twists and turns

‘Goodbye Christopher Robin’ has plenty of jagged twists and turns

The trailer for “Goodbye Christopher Robin” contains sun-dappled visuals of a lush forest and a sparkling stream, glimpses of stuffed animals with names such as Eeyore and Piglet, and a father with a warm smile telling his son, “We’re having fun and we’re writing a book.”

Yes, indeed, the father is one A.A. Milne, creator of “Winnie the Pooh,” and the little boy is called “Billy Moon” by his parents, but has the Christian name of Christopher Robin.

The narrator tells us that after a great war, it was as if nobody could remember how to have fun again — until Milne shared Christopher Robin and Pooh with the world.

“And then, just like a tap you’ve turned on, happiness came pouring out,” says the narrator.

You’d think this is a sweet liveaction fairy tale about one of the most beloved children’s fiction characters of all time.

You’d be wrong. “Goodbye Christopher Robin” is a film of rough edges and jagged twists, at times beautiful to behold, but more often shot in jarring closeups that make Christopher Robin’s parents look like the villains in a gothic horror film. It is filled with repeated audio cheap tricks, with everything from an unleashed champagne cork to popping balloons to a backfiring car triggering severe post-traumatic stress disorder reactions from Milne.

At one point, Milne (Domhnall Gleeson) and the young Christopher are in the woods when a swarm of bees causes Milne to recoil in horror at the memory of the flies buzzing about in the trenches. He gets lost in a flashback to the horrific 1916 Battle of the Somme, terrifies his boy and comes very close to physically harming the child.

That’s one rough journey to Pooh Corner.

COURTESY OF DAVID APPLEBY/TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM Domhnall Gleeson and Margot Robbie in a scene from the film “Goodbye Christopher Robin.”