In Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, beloved character Winnie the Pooh is transformed from a plump bear into a killer. Directed by Rhys Waterfield, the movie hit theaters on February 15, 2023. The cast is relatively unknown, most of the actors have only starred in a few minor projects. 

Christopher Robin meets a group of human-animal hybrid creatures in the 100 Acre Woods, including Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore, Rabbit, and Owl. Christopher befriends them, brings them food, and they all become very close. He then has to go off to college, leaving Pooh and the others without any food. Desperate, they resort to cannibalism, eating Eeyore, and needing to hunt for more food. 

Christopher returns to the 100 Acre Woods with his fiance in tow. Unfortunately the visit to see his old friends does not end as planned. The movie follows Christopher Robin and a group of college girls who must fight for their lives when they realize they are being stalked and hunted by Pooh Bear and Piglet. 

This movie was truly a disaster. Not only were the gory scenes so over-the-top and unrealistic that they were almost comical, but the plot was so shallow and predictable that it was almost insulting. The characters were one-dimensional and the dialogues was extremely cliche. There was no originality or creativity to be found in this movie, and it was just a complete waste of time. 

The film’s budget of $100,000 was clearly visible in different aspects of the movie, but it still managed to bring in a whopping $2.5 million at the box office. Despite this success, it could have done even better with a higher budget. 

If Disney owns Winnie the Pooh, how was Waterfield able to use the titular character?

On January 1, 2022, A.A Milne’s 1926 book Winnie-the-Pooh and its accompanying illustrations by E.H. Shepard entered the public domain, meaning they could be adapted by anyone—for free. Adaptations must remain true to the original work, and cannot introduce any elements that were not present in the original book. For instance, Pooh Bear cannot wear a red shirt, and Tigger cannot be in the adapted version as he was not in the original work. 

I am a big fan of horror, and I can handle a lot of death, but the way they killed the girls in this movie was too excessive. If they had a larger budget to create more realistic gore effects, it could have been done in a more convincing way. Unfortunately, it simply did not work. 

The movie was clearly a misguided attempt to combine a slasher movie with a beloved children’s character. The idea has potential, however, the execution was woefully inadequate. Not only was the move not good, there were also some downright bizarre moments, like when Pooh Bear karate chops a person’s hand off. Had the filmmakers taken more care in creating the movie, it could have been good. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, and the movie was an abject disappointment.