#peter pan review
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hollywoodhandle ¡ 2 years ago
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‘Peter Pan & Wendy’ Review: Charming, Enchanting Yet Solid
“#PeterPanWendy is a charming, enchanting and emotional adventure that despite having some flaws, specially in the script, it manages to become a remarkable and entertaining live-action remake.​“ Read our review here:
Yes, more Disney live-action adaptations… another one, the last one we had was Pinocchio and we all know how that ended up being… a frustration for most of us, one of the worst Disney live-action remakes ever made… and now, over 7 months later, Disney is back for another real life adventure based on an classic animated movie, and this time is for Peter Pan & Wendy and I’ll start telling you that…
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filmmakerdreamst ¡ 11 months ago
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P.J.Hogan's 'Peter Pan' is still an underrated masterpiece 20 years later
Peter Pan is a live-action fantasy adventure film directed by P. J. Hogan that reimagines the classic story of Peter and Wendy. The screenplay was written by P. J. Hogan and Michael Goldenberg and was released in cinemas in December 2003. The screenplay is based on the 1904 play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Upand the classic novel Peter Pan by J.M.Barrie, which was originally published under the title Peter and Wendy.
The film tells the story of a young Edwardian girl, Wendy Darling (Rachel Hurd-Wood) and her two younger brothers John and Michael. On the night she is told she must grow up, a wild, fairy-like boy called Peter Pan (Jeremy Sumpter) flies into her room with his high-maintenance fairy Tinkerbell. When he learns that she tells stories, he whisks Wendy and her two brothers away to a magical Island called Neverland — where you supposedly don’t “grow up” — so that she can mother his henchmen, the Lost Boys. There she fights pirates led by the evil Captain Hook (Jason Isaacs), meets mermaids, dances with fairies, falls in love and grows up.
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I have strong family connections tied to Peter and Wendy and J.M.Barrie. My great, great uncle Nico was one of the sons of Sylvia Llewelyn Davies'. He and his other brothers "the Lost Boys" were adopted by J.M.Barrie; which ultimately inspired him to write Peter Pan. Nico’s daughter Laura — my cousin — who I met for the first time a few years ago, told me that she was flown to Australia for the filming of P.J. Hogan’s Peter Pan because she was J.M.Barrie’s goddaughter. She told me that she was thrilled with the cast, especially Jason Isaacs, who played Captain Hook and Mr Darling. She also mentioned that Jeremy Sumpter, who played Peter Pan, was a lovely boy. However, she said she was very surprised and sad that the film wasn’t a big success as she really liked what they did with the story. I have loved the fairytale of Peter Pan from a young age, and learning that I am literally part of the family that inspired the story was very exciting and I’ve only begun to internalise it more as I’ve grown older.
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When I was in my mid-twenties, I was diagnosed with a high level of Autism. One of my main symptoms was labelled “ageless”, which in simple terms means that one half of me is still a child that I can’t mentally leave behind. I can’t do many things that most adults can do, such as pay bills, drive a car, look after my own well being etc. I flap my hands when I get excited. I bounce. I sometimes speak in a baby voice. I overcommit to things I enjoy. I admit that it was hard to come to terms with the diagnosis when I first received it. But over time, I’ve come to believe that the two can coexist in a healthy way. I believe that I am an adult who is able to develop and grow while still carrying the child within me, and that this is not seen as a bad thing. I think Peter and Wendy can be seen as a reflection of that.
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I was first introduced to P.J. Hogan’s Peter Pan a few years after it was released (I was maybe nine or ten years old), and I absolutely loved it. It wasn’t only one of my favourite film adaptations, but one of my favourite movies of all time. What surprised me most about the film at that age was how dark and gruesome it was, and full of this underlying sexual tension that I hadn’t expected at all from Peter Pan. Even today, this film still has a special place in my heart. It is made with so much passion and love for the original text that I can automatically put myself back into the story. After watching the film again as an adult, I almost immediately opened my copy of Peter and Wendy and started reading. I would even go so far as to say that I prefer the film to the book. However, part of me wishes that the age rating had been set much higher, as the dark and gruesome moments were some of the strongest parts of the film adaptation. This is possibly why some critics and viewers had difficulty categorising the film at the time.
However, I often consider P.J.Hogan’s Peter Pan to be the same equivalent as Joe Wright’s Pride and Prejudice. (which came out a few years later in 2005, starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen). The film moves at the same dreamlike pace. It is light, dark, colourful and deeply romantic.
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I also often prefer P.J.Hogan’s Peter Pan to the 1953 Disney Animation of the same name, even though it’s the version I grew up with and liked. I find it much less straightforward and innocent. Also, the 2003 film is much closer to the original source material, which I loved reading as a teenager, and to J.M.Barrie’s original vision. The film manages to reflect the same intellectual subtext and depth of the novel while retaining the whimsy and magic.
Magical Realism
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Peter Pan was a perfect blend of fantasy and realism. A lot of media these days focus too much on “realism” and make their sets and CGI look bland and washed out. It’s a common myth these days that no one likes whimsy anymore; it’s somehow seen as too childish. As a result, much of the magic of fantasy is lost. But in this Peter Pan, a lot of colour was used in the set design and cinematography. Everything was so brightly and colourfully lit. Most fantasy films these days, including the new live-action adaptation of Peter Pan and Wendy on Disney+, are all so gloomy and dark. You almost have to light up the screen to make out the actors’ facial expressions or what’s happening in the scene. But this film understands that a viewer who watches fantasy wants to be swept away, but also wants a certain amount of believability. Although the film contained a good amount of darkness, it did not shy away from being cartoonish either (which I think was partly inspired by the Disney animation), i.e. characters blushing or bouncing on the clouds.
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The design of Neverland was breathtaking. I think the CGI, although criticised by some, made the island and creatures look more dreamy and fairytale-like. It was a good combination of CGI for the landscapes and real backdrops for the jungle, so there was enough magic and believability to transport the viewer into the story. A bright colour palette was used for the landscapes, while down-to-earth colours such as browns and greens were used on the ground, such as in “The Lost Boys Hide” under the tree, to give a sense of realism. The costume department also reflected this, from the majestic reds and blacks of the pirates, to the earthly colours of blue and red for the Native Americans, to the natural greens and browns of the Lost boys. I noticed that the colours in Neverland were used as a contrast to the Edwardian London back home, which is realistic but dull compared to the island.
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One aspect I liked was that the lighting on Neverland always changed depending on the mood of the scene- unlike the naturalistic lighting on Earth. It was almost as if the island was a living being. For example, when there was a fight on the ship, the lighting was red. When Peter took Wendy to the mermaids, who were scary and frightening, the lighting was dark and blue. This created a surrealistic atmosphere, almost like a fever dream or a kind of nightmare.
Sometimes the environment changed depending on Peter Pan’s mood in the respective scene. I particularly liked how Peter Pan influenced the weather on Neverland. Just his mere presence when he flew to the island changed the entire atmosphere in an instant. His feelings also determined whether it was summer or winter. In other words, its suggested in the film that the longer he has been there, the more the island has become a part of him, so that he can no longer leave it. It’s almost as if the island has transformed him into a magical being.
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The exuberant musical score by James Newton Howard: I’ll never forget that. I think that was one of the first movies I saw where I actively noticed the music because it was so brilliant. Even today, the “Flying” soundtrack still gives me goosebumps. It perfectly encapsulates the whimsy, joy and imagination of Peter and Wendy. I loved that there were always different variations. One of my favourite pieces from the movie is ‘Fairy Dance’, which starts off cheerfully and moves up and down depending on the characters’ conflict/what they’re saying in the scene.
Cast
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The cast of this film adaptation was magnificent. The look of all the actors not only matched the book description, but also the mood, especially with the Darling family. One of the standouts was Olivia Williams as Mrs Darling. She captured the gentleness of the character perfectly. I also loved the new addition of Aunt Millicent, played by Lynn Redgrave. She fitted into the story so well that I was surprised not to find her in the novel. She had the perfect amount of ridiculousness and hilarity that suited J.M.Barrie’s style.
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One particular member of the cast we can probably all agree on that was perfect, was Jason Isaacs, who played both Wendy’s father Mr Darling and Captain Hook. He was certainly a star in this film for sure. I just can not think of anyone who could play him better, especially in a live-action film adaptation. He was particularly good in the role of Captain Hook. When I first saw the film as a child, I did not know that Captain Hook and Mr Darling were played by the same person until my dad pointed it out to me because he was so good. I loved how they portrayed Wendy’s dad as shy and reserved, as opposed to Captain Hook who was flamboyant and sinister. Mirror versions of each other in different realities — that’s a common theme throughout the film. As Captain Hook, Jason Isaacs perfectly captured the essence of viciousness, deviousness and brutality that was necessary for the character. But also the deep loneliness and frustration behind it all. I have seen a quote that was supposedly cut from the film (and never should have been) that provides so much context for his hatred of Peter Pan:
“Imagine a lion in a cage and into that cage flies a butterfly. If the lion was free, it would pay no heed to such creature. But the lion is not free…and so the butterfly drives him slowly insane.” — Captain Hook
They did a really good job of showing how Peter Pan and Captain Hook are mirror images of each other. Peter Pan is a child who secretly wants to be an adult, while Captain Hook is an adult who secretly wants to be a child. Both fight each other for different reasons, but the goal is the same. For example, there is a great scene towards the end where Captain Hook uses his wits to defeat Peter in a fight. Here it becomes clear that there is deep symbolism for the inevitability of adulthood and the loss of childhood. Jason Isaacs really showed off his acting talent here. I liked that he wasn’t portrayed as a “dumb villain”, which he easily could have been.
There were also some great performances among the adults. Most notable was Richard Briers as the ‘pirate’’ Smee. But the child actors, especially the lost boys, really held the movie together. Their solid performances made it so believable that the island was ruled by children. I loved Theodore Chester as Slightly. He was very charming and funny in that role.
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Another member of the cast I thought was brilliant was Carsen Grey, an indigenous actress of Haida descent, who played Princess Tiger Lily. I liked that they let her speak her ancestral language, Mohican, in this film. Although this film came out in the early 2000s, it is the only version of Peter and Wendy in which Native Americans are neither erased nor white-washed even though the representation is far from great. Considering how they’re treated in the novel, it’s perhaps for the best overall that they limited some of their scenes. However, I liked how firey she was in this adaptation and not the damsel in distress she was portrayed as in the Disney animation. I think it was a wise decision to cut the infatuation she had with Peter Pan, as it was really just one line in the book that would have added unnecessary drama, and all in all, it would have fallen short if all the female characters were jealous of each other.
They also downplayed Tinkerbell’s jealousy in this regard, portraying it more as her trying to protect Peter Pan’s youth from romantic advances, as hinted at in the novel, and also being sad that Wendy is attracting all of Peter Pan’s attention. Ludivine Sagnier has, in my opinion, succeeded well in making Tinkerbell equally repulsive and endearing, as befits the character.
Wendy Darling
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Rachel Hurd-Wood was the perfect cast for the role of Wendy Darling.I was actually surprised to learn that this was her first film role ever, because she was a natural. She effortlessly possessed the same caring nature and charm that makes Wendy so endearing. She is exactly how I imagine the character when I read the story. When people talk about Peter and Wendy, they always mention Tinkerbell, Pan or Hook, but personally I am always drawn to Wendy. She is the real heroine of the story. After all, she was the main reason for Peter to bring her and her brothers to Neverland.
What always amazes me about Wendy’s role in the story is the fact that Wendy literally doesn’t spend much time being a “child” in the time she spends in Neverland. When she’s not escaping death at the hands of mermaids or pirates, she acts as a mother to the ‘lost boys’ and her brothers. She asks herself what she really wants from life. In comparison, she was allowed to behave more like a child at home in Edwardian London. Neverland is not a place where you never grow up. It’s the place where she chooses to grow up. Many people have described Neverland as a manifestation of Wendy’s subconscious as a result of trauma, and I’ve never found that to be more true in this adaptation.
One of the reasons why I think P.J. Hogan’s Peter Pan is the best adaptation of the novel is the fact that the film revolves around Wendy’s coming of age. I loved that they expanded on her love of storytelling and also gave her a tomboyish streak. Instead of just being on the sidelines, she’s able to get involved and fight pirates while retaining many of her feminine traits such as her maternal instincts and romantic feelings for Peter. She makes mistakes and sometimes gets dragged into things she knows she shouldn’t do. But in the end, she triumphs.
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In many film adaptations of Peter and Wendy that I have seen, Wendy is either only present in passing or not at all. Characters like Peter Pan, Captain Hook and Tinkerbell always take centre stage, which I think is a strange decision as they are part of Wendy’s story and not the other way around. Peter Pan is meant to metaphorically represent the childhood she does not want to give up (which is why the character is always played by a woman in the original play, as he is a mirror image of Wendy). And Captain Hook (J.M.Barrie also wanted him to be played by the same actor as Mr Darling) represents the dark side of her father, or rather what she imagines adulthood to be. This is particularly emphasised in this film adaptation because he is an important factor in her being told to grow up. The father, the concept of adulthood, and Peter Pan, her childhood, are at constant war with each other.
“You’re not supposed to be like Peter, who kept every good and bad aspect of being a child and can’t tell right from wrong. You’re not supposed to be Hook, either. He let go of everything childish and loving about him and became bitter and evil..You’re supposed to fall in the middle, to hold onto the things about childhood that make it beautiful — the wonder, the imagination, the innocence — while still growing up and learning morality and responsibility. You’re not supposed to be Hook. You’re not supposed to be Peter Pan. You’re supposed to be Wendy Darling.” — @maybe-this-time
The 2023 film Peter Pan and Wendy took a different approach, by making Wendy a kind of powerhouse who always saved the day and outshone Peter Pan overall. In my opinion, the 2003 film adaptation emphasised very well that Wendy really is the yin and yang. She's allowed to be romantic, be rescued by others and at the same time determine her own destiny and stand up for herself. Because that’s what her journey in the adaptation is all about. She is pressured by all the adults in her life to grow up. She allows herself to be seduced with the prospect of an eternal childhood by Peter Pan. Then she realises that it is not self-fulfilling. She is tempted by Captain Hook with the concept of adulthood. And finally, she finds a balance between these two extremes on her own terms. By the end of the film, Wendy has made her peace with growing up while still remaining a child at heart. That requires a certain mental strength that we should all strive for.
Peter Pan and Wendy Darling
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In most adaptations of Peter and Wendy, such as Hook and Syfy’s Neverland, the focus is on the title character Peter. In the more recent film adaptation Peter Pan and Wendy, the focus is on Wendy. This film adaptation of Peter and Wendy, on the other hand, sticks more closely to the original source material, as the story focuses on Peter and Wendy’s relationship. This is perhaps the reason why I always hesitate when I watch other adaptations, because these two characters are supposed to go together. It’s definitely a relationship that can be portrayed in all sorts of ways because they are symbolically the same person.
Although there is no romance between Peter and Wendy in either the original novel or the play, Wendy quickly develops romantic feelings for Peter which, as a prepubescent child, he does not consciously reciprocate as he has no concept of love other than that of a mother’s. Although Peter cares deeply for her, he ultimately only longs for her to be the maternal figure that is missing in his life. One could go into the symbolism that Peter and Wendy are one and the same, and that this is an expression of Wendy learning to love herself. But in a literal sense, J.M.Barrie had unintentionally created this very strong potential between the two characters. And I personally feel if your'e going to make an adaptation of Peter and Wendy that potential needs to be explored in some way, even if it’s not necessarily romantic.
Hogan recognised this potential and developed the romantic elements, e.g. ‘the “thimble” from the novel, into a very real and tangible plot. In other adaptations, Peter and Wendy’s relationship is rather one-sided. But in P.J. Hogan’s film adaptation, however, it is not at all. Over the course of the film, Peter and Wendy fall deeply in love with each other.
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Rachel Hurd-Wood and Jeremy Sumpter had a remarkable on-screen chemistry for young actors, which helped give the adaptation its own identity. Whenever they interacted on screen as Peter and Wendy, it was — like the glittering pixie dust of Tinkerbell — simply magical. The off-screen chemistry between the two definitely helped make the romance so believable as well. When I was younger, I didn’t like romantic subplots in family films. I personally found that they clogged up the main plot because the “romance” tended to be very one-dimensional- but Peter and Wendy in the 2003 film version were simply enchanting.
In the original novel, J.M.Barrie alludes to the possibility of a romance between the two. In the film adaptation, they go all out. Their love story was written so beautifully and profoundly, while staying true to the original text and J.M.Barrie’s themes. This made the conflict hinted at in the novel of “staying in Neverland with Peter or growing up on Earth with Wendy” even more poignant and relevant, because in reality there was only ever one option. They couldn’t find a way to have both. That made the ending even more “heartbreaking” for me as a child, because even though they had the chance to be happy together, she couldn’t give up on growing up to stay. And he couldn’t give up being a child to leave, even though it was a natural progression for him.
Peter Pan
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Jeremy Sumpter delivered a fantastic performance as Peter Pan. Not only did he perfectly match the illustrations, but he also managed to perfectly capture the essence of the charismatic, mischievous little boy from the novel. What’s more, of all the versions I have seen so far, he is by far the most accurate, right down to the clothes made of skeleton leaves, the dirty fingernails, the feral mannerisms, the traumatised soul behind the charm and the downright creepy insinuations. By today’s standards, you could almost take Peter Pan for a grown man who consciously decides not to behave like this.
However, when I watch the film again as an adult, I can now understand why he has reservations about growing up in Edwardian England and would rather remain a “child” in Neverland forever. As Peter says in the film, “Would they send me to school? And then to an office?” I feel like most of us today have so many choices as we get older, but back then it was much more limited. The choices were very restricted in that “heterosexist” environment. You could only be a certain thing, and it was much harder to hold on to the pleasures of life. I can now also understand the initial reactions of Michael and John to Peter: He must have seemed scandalous to people at the time. His bright colours, his inappropriate clothing and his behaviour are repulsive to the boys, but Wendy is immediately fascinated and attracted.  I think it was a deliberate choice that he is the only character with an American accent to set him apart from the rest of the cast; to emphasise the wildness of the character and his non-conformity to the people of Edwardian London.
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Another small aspect I liked was the suggestion that the Lost Boys, although they lived with Peter and obeyed his commands, lived in constant fear of him and did not worship him as in other adaptations. (A fear that is justified as Peter tries to kill them more than once in the film). What the 2003 film adaptation captured perfectly about Peter's character was: how terrible of a person he really is. Peter Pan is a hero when he goes on adventures and fights pirates. You could argue — via the quote “Leave Hook to me” (which Peter says to her in the film) — that Peter is Wendy’s split self who can fight her father (Captain Hook) for her, just like antibodies do with germs when we can’t handle them ourselves.
However, when it comes to understanding emotions, caring about others, even his henchmen, the Lost Boys, and doing anything that inconveniences him, Peter Pan is possibly as bad as Captain Hook. This makes Wendy’s decision to leave him all the more powerful. Although she was initially seduced by his adventurous life, she soon realises that his “life” of joy and adventure is not fulfilling at all. Because in reality, there is no real joy. There is no real adventure. In reality, his life is empty because it is not earned. In addition, she realises that she is gradually losing her memory of the outside world, including her parents - a sign that she is “slowly awakening from the dream”. This leads Wendy to realise that she wants more than what he can give her in Neverland (e.g. romantic love) and decides to leave. Being alive means feeling, accepting and growing. However, as long as Peter remains a boy, he can never truly be alive. Peter Pan conveyed this important message, whereas earlier film adaptations, including the Disney animation, did not.
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One of the reasons why good adaptations of Peter and Wendy are so hard to come by, especially in this day and age, is not only because they adapt a performative story that exists in layers of subtext. They also work with a protagonist who doesn’t change. Who doesn’t develop in any way, neither negatively nor positively. Not even just physically, but also mentally. (Even Eli from Let the Right One In, the child vampire, changes in the course of the story). At the end of day, Peter Pan is ultimately there to serve someone else’s story. It works in a fairy tale format. But it doesn’t usually translate very well to the screen because it often leads to one-dimensional storytelling. Even if it seems so natural, it doesn’t come naturally.
However, this adaptation allows Peter Pan to grow. The writers expanded on the small aspect from the book, which is the moment when Wendy enters Peter’s life; he begins to feel emotions. Not just love. But anger. Fear. Sadness. Pain. Disgust. And above all: self-awareness. Almost like a version of puberty in condensed time, as if the change suddenly caught up with his body. When Wendy brings this up, Peter immediately rejects it out of fear. I think most of us can all relate to this when we were in the midst of growing into a young adult. We experience feelings that are scary and new, that we can’t yet fully understand or even want to. For Peter Pan, falling in love is exactly what he is afraid of: growing up and no longer being a child. This adds to an interesting conflict that arises between the two when she asks him to leave with her.
“The thing about Peter Pan is, he’s a coward. Had the chance of a lifetime and he bottled it. Just fucked off back to Neverland. All alone, forever he was, by his own hand. Poor old Wendy, she had to grow old without him.” — Skins, 6x07 “Alo”
In the original novel, the reason Wendy can’t take Peter Pan with her (apart from the fact that he refuses to grow up) is the same reason Lyra in His Dark Materials can’t take Pan — the animal manifestation of her soul — on the boat to the land of the dead. She has to split in order to grow up and leave a part of herself behind. She can’t keep both in order to move on. But that does not mean I always agree with the ending either. In which Peter remains a child and takes Wendy’s future descendants to Neverland and back to look after him. It leaves an icky aftertaste, but at least it fits in with the story J.M. Barrie wanted to tell.
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Even though the adaptation conveys the same message, that Peter Pan is the manifestation of Wendy’s youth, even to the end. In this version of Peter Pan, that is no longer the case. By the end of the film, the way he holds himself is different. The way he looks wistfully through the open window and solemnly says, “To live would be an awfully big adventure,” : a sign of self-awareness, while Wendy happily reunites with her family. So much so that Tinkerbell has to pull him by the hair to stop him from joining them and reconsidering his decision. Peter is now old enough to know that he loves Wendy. Maybe he’s also mature enough to know what he’s missing, but he knows he can’t have her the way he wants, so he does the most selfless thing he’s ever done in the whole film by letting her go.
There is no such conflict at the end of the 1953 Disney animated film. Peter Pan is described by Wendy as “wonderful”. In reality, everyone else gets their happy ending, except him, because he deliberately chooses not to. Peter Pan very much turns himself into a tragic figure because he is afraid of the most natural thing in the world. He is afraid of life. And I feel like this version of the story knew that and expressed it strongly, which makes me conflicted now as an adult. I’ve seen endings like this before, where two people fall in love but do not end up together because they grow apart or they are both interested in different things, and it’s very important to reach those points in different ways. It very much reflects real life and is also reminiscent of first love. How that love never really fades. It reminds you of simple times, even when you’ve grown up and moved on. That a part of you is still at that age when you look back on it. These endings happen because people grow — which Peter Pan does not.
“Peter in the books lives in oblivious tragedy. He may suspect that he’s not fully happy, but he tends to forget about it… yet this Peter doesn’t… Wendy leaving him and growing up to be a wife of another man is his unhappy thought…It’s the loss of innocence since Peter could not forget this…It’s the process of growing up…all but confirms that Peter’s character arc in the film is one of accepting the fact he too must grow up to be happy.” —  @rex-shadao
And I think that’s the real reason why his character is both the strongest and the weakest part of the adaptation. The writers didn’t make it clear enough that Peter Pan forgets in their version of the character. In the novel, Peter Pan forgets everything automatically, which is why he can exist in this limbo of childhood and not go mad. However, as mentioned earlier, this version of Peter Pan is old enough to remember and, more importantly, to feel. Even though he is the closest to J.M. Barrie’s original vision, unlike his counterpart in the book, he is capable of evolving. That’s why the ending sometimes feels strange to me as an adult.
It was hard to say why I had a strange feeling at first, but I realised that a lot of my mixed feelings stemmed from having seen the film adaptation fresh after reading the novel. Since Peter Pan fully reciprocates Wendy’s love in this version, he ends up being a different character than in the book, which is why I now disagree with them keeping the original ending instead of having him grow up with Wendy. It would symbolise that childhood can co-exist with adulthood, that you don’t have to leave a part of yourself behind. That you can be your true and complete self if you find the balance between the two extremes.
The original ending still works however, in all its bittersweetness. I know what it means and understand what it stands for. Wendy basically says goodbye to her childhood and promises never to forget it. There’s a reason it made such an impression on me when I was younger. It could just be because I’m trying to pick up all the pieces of my broken heart from the floor. But personally, as an adult, I just find it weaker compared to the novel. Sometimes I like to imagine an ending to this version of the story where Peter Pan comes back, having quickly realised that he has outgrown Neverland, but doesn’t meet Wendy again until they are both much older, at a time when Wendy is coming to terms with womanhood and the idea of marriage. Or she even meets his real earth counterpart (if we were to delve into the psychology of Neverland being Wendy’s dream). And their relationship is subjected to the natural test of time and growth.
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Peter Pan is an almost perfect adaptation. It matches the humour, the tone and the vision of J.M.Barrie. But I can certainly understand why the film didn’t do so well at the box office. In the month it was released, there was an unfair amount of competition, namely the film Lord of the Rings — The Return of the King. And as an adult, I can now understand why it’s not the film people think of or remember when it comes to Peter Pan adaptations. And it’s not just because it doesn’t fit the elfish, jolly trickster persona that Disney has created.
The film adaptation suffers more from what it doesn’t do — such as maintaining a stable tone and consistent editing — than from what it does. It’s one of those films that would have benefited from being much longer. That way, the inconsistent tone and some of the rushed parts of the adaptation would be much more balanced. It feels like it was missing an extra twenty minutes. For example, the film is narrated by an older version of Wendy, but without the deleted ending where it becomes properly clear that it’s her telling the story to tie everything together, the ending feels a little abrupt. Say what you will about Tim Burton’s adaptation of the Series of Unfortunate Events, but the audience could see where the film’s narration was coming from the whole time. I think if they knew the alternate ending wasn’t going to work (that scene is a classic example of something working well in the novel but not in the film), they should have removed the narrator altogether with the deleted ending and adjusted the film accordingly. They should have extended some scenes so that parts of the film weren’t rushed, such as the introduction, and the story would have been left more up to interpretation as there was no voiceover throughout.
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Despite its weaknesses, P.J.Hogan’s Peter Pan is still an underrated masterpiece 20 years later. It is an irresistible film that captivates and warms the heart. The film adaptation has certainly stood the test of time, staying true to the original while adding its own flavour to the story. It is full of magic, wonder and heart. It was clearly made by people who loved the origins of the story and explored where they came from, while also digging deep into the text to reshape the character arcs in a fresh and meaningful way. They succeed in capturing J.M.Barrie’s original message, which is that growing up is a natural progression of life, but that doesn’t mean leaving childhood behind entirely. That it is important to maintain a healthy balance between the two: Taking responsibility while appreciating the joys of life. From the vibrant colour palette to the goosebump-inducing music to the solid performances and gorgeous chemistry between Jeremy Sumpter and Rachel Hurd-Wood, my love for this adaptation will never end, no matter how old I am.
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not-wholly-unheroic ¡ 5 months ago
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Just finished reading H.G. Parry’s Heartless and OH MY GOODNESS. If you haven’t read it, GO READ IT RIGHT NOW. I think it’s safe to say now that it is officially in my top three favorite Peter Pan book retellings…maybe even my favorite…which is saying something. The absolute tragedy of both Peter and Hook presented in it is SO heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time. Neither is made out to be a true villain; rather, they are both deeply broken people who end up in a sort of hell of their own making. It’s a story about love and loss and friendship. It’s a story about death and life and growing up. About seeing the beauty even through the pain and how the power of stories can change the course of our lives. It’s about how fear can cause us to block out everything else—even the good in life—and sometimes cause us to inadvertently hurt those around us in our immaturity. It’s about forgiveness and hope for future generations even if your own story is ending. It’s about the selflessness required to be the adult in a situation, even if it makes you look like the villain. It’s just… SO. GOOD. It’ll probably make you cry but the ending isn’t one totally without hope or happiness. It’s…bittersweet and PERFECT. I think Barrie would approve.
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retropopcult ¡ 1 year ago
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Photographs of Disneyland by Loomis Dean, July 1955.
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thebirdsofgay ¡ 6 months ago
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Peter Darling, by Austin Chant
Book review time (some spoilers ahead):
HOLY SHIT okay so this is amazing for the following reasons:
1. Very gay
2. The concept of Neverland as an imaginary construct created by incredibly traumatized real people as a form of escapism yet also as a tangible enough place for real time to pass while they’re there is FANTASTIC and also horrifyingly existential
3. POSITIVE 👏 TRANS 👏 REP 👏
4. Holy shit the ending like?? Emotionally destroyed me????? I’m so fond and have so so many feelings this is lovely
5. The way that fairies exist as these strange insectoid creatures who recycle into the earth and ritualistically consume trees to drain their life-forces in this universe is absolutely fascinating but also kinda offputting, 10/10 we need more of the fae being fucking WEIRD in modern media
6. Also!! Physically disabled character because Hook canonically was born with one hand (and we LOVE matching the prosthetic to the aesthetic✨🏴‍☠️🚣‍♂️)!!!
7. Homoerotic sword fights.
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sojosotreiba ¡ 1 year ago
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Do you remember Peter Pan (2003)? I do, I do!
by Maria Isabel Nieves Bosch
The story of J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan & Wendy has been adapted many times in movies, from Walt Disney's animated picture Peter Pan (1953) and Paramount Pictures' silent film Peter Pan (1924) to live action films like Hook (1991), Peter Pan (2003), Pan (2015), Wendy (2020) and TV shows, such as Syfy's prequel Neverland (2011) and Peter Pan & Wendy (2023) on Disney +. Apart from these adaptations, a biopic titled Finding Neverland (2004) based on J. M. Barrie's life was also made depicting his inspiration for writing the beloved children's tale. Nevertheless, the character of Peter Pan first appears in an episodic narrative for adults in 1902 titled The Little White Bird. Professor Sally Bushell of Romantic and Victorian Literature at Lancaster University writes, "Peter is represented in multiple ways, with his identity morphing and changing across these works to a considerable degree."
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mystcldydrms ¡ 1 year ago
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hooked (never after series) - emily mcintire
review: 5 ⭐️
I absolutely devoured this book. it's so different to read a story about a villain as the main character, but I LOVED it. a lot of spice, but also love. it's quite violent as well, so please read the trigger warnings for this book. I still 100% recommend you to read this book/start this series. It's sort of a disney story retelling, however, the focus is kept on the villain. hooked is about james "hook".
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backtoneverland ¡ 3 months ago
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By far one of the funniest pieces of lost boy merch I’ve found so far is these little cake decorations from France. More info abt them under the cut they’re so silly
Specifically these dudes are called fève and get hidden in cakes or desserts as a little prize or trinket for those who find them. my tootles figure came covered in cake batter so its safe to assume that these guys were used as intended.
extra pic of each + fast facts
these fève are from a peter pan/return to neverland set made in 2003 - the pic of the full set below is from this website. Its a cute set! You can probably get all of them from ebay or etsy
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I bought my three fève from French ebay and only had to spend like $15 for all 3? pretty good deal especially for lost boy merch
Each boy gets a name which I'm going to assume is their name in the French dub of return to neverland?
They're made of porcelain which is neat! Even though theyre a little horrifying looking I think they look really nice for what they are. Good details for tiny cake trinkets
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Overall I really like these fève! If youre looking for a funny inexpensive-ish way to build up a possible lost boy collection, i'd recommend these dudes
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the---hermit ¡ 2 years ago
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Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
This book aged so poorly it's painful. Let's start from the beginning, I've had this on my shelves for a while, and I struggled to pick it up for very personal reasons. I link this story with someone who hurt me very much in the past and so picking it up was a struggle because of the instinctive association I made. I decided enough was enough, and that since one of my goals this year is to take off as many books as I can from my unread pile I would read this. I opted for the audiobook version, and I am glad about it because I would have dnf-ed this so quickly otherwise. The fact that I was doing other stuff while listening to the audiobook made it more bearable. I remember not loving Peter in the animated adaptation, but the boy in the book is a nightmare. He is so annoying I am still asking myself how is it possible he is the main character of a book? Is he a loved character? Are there actually people who like him? He is so self-centered, rude and stupid? Also weirdly violent for a kids' book. I can't stand him. And the other character around him are unexplicably obsessed with him, I don't know how these children were even fascinated by him and did everything he said. From the very beginning he is clearly not the kind of guy you want to follow around. And then we get to the whole Wendy narrative. The fact that she is brought to Neverland to be their "mother" is already weird since we are talking about a literal child (if I am not wrong she is six years old at best). But let's look over it because children often play "family" as a game. Once she is there she is genuinely only doing motherly stuff, cooking, mending, whatever. And (spoiler, but the book was published in 1911 so I guess it's not a spoiler after all) at the end she is called to Neverland once a year to do Peter's spring cleaning? For real? And (spoiler again) not only she is happy with that but she condemns her daughter and her whole family line to that? I am shocked and not in a positive way. It was published in 1911, I get it, but it aged so poorly, there would be a lot more to say. Also I really can't stand Freud in general but I'd be kinda curious to know what bullshit reading of this story the guy would make cause there's a lot for him. Leaving all my ramblings aside, this was very bad, there's way better children's stories and classics in general, do yourself a favour and read something else. I have been told there's an interesting retelling of this story, and I am really curious to get my hands on that.
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bookishlyvintage ¡ 8 months ago
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The Last Lost Girl, Casey L Bond (out 05/24)
☆☆☆☆☆ || full review
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gay-strawberry ¡ 9 months ago
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hook and roc:
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winnie:
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winnie and vane | peter:
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roc:
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kas:
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vane | winnie and cherry:
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hook | roc:
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hook and roc:
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hook:
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tink:
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the rumors are true i read book 3 so heres part 4 of my vicious lost boys shitposts serie
(part 1) (part 5)
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inshellieslibrary ¡ 12 days ago
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Book Review📚
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latenightswaudiobooks ¡ 16 days ago
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The Never King
What it’s about: A Dark Retelling of Peter Pan where when the girl descendants of Wendy Darling all disappear on their 18th birthday. They always reappear but all are turned mad on their return. Winnie Darling is determined to not let it happen to her.
Pages or RunTime: 4 Hours 35 Minutes
⭐ Overall Rating: 6/10
🌶️ Spice Rating: 9/10 (First Smut Book I ever read/listened to and I was hooked but also shocked because I did not expect it)
Key Factors: Storybook retelling, dark romance, fantasy, morally grey characters/love interests, Polyamory, Smut, Swinging, Fairy Tale, Suspense, Big Plot Twists, fairies,fairies
Trigger Warning for this one!
‼️ Beyond Here Contains Spoilers ‼️
Favorite Character: The Dark One (I know his name but can't remember how to spell it but don't have the book with me and the internet is no help)
Least Favorite Character: Weirdly enough Winnie there were times I liked her but she also stressed me out so much.
Favorite Part: When TD1 is the one to save Winnie! It was such a big plot twist I was beyond shocked! He had been my favorite character all along the grumpy brooding character that you never thought would become a love interest. Then bam out of nowhere he is who I wanted with Winnie! I love the idea of them all just sharing her but the shadow is possessive and I think it actually stems from TD1 himself.
Least Favorite Part: The only part that actually triggered me and I completely hated because of it was the 🍇 I blocked out most of it. I couldn't wrap my head around the idea of Winnie liking it. (I understand and support any and all mutually consensual kinks and sexual experiences.) I couldn't get behind it myself simply because I put myself or at least try to relate to the characters in my books and I couldn't ever see myself getting behind that. So it's just a personal preference.
Favorite Quote: “Most men don’t realize this,” she said once, “but us girls, we have toolboxes too. Ours aren’t stuffed with hammers and wrenches and screwdrivers. We have these.” She gave her boobs a squeeze. “And this.” Then tapped at her temple. “And there’s no greater power than tits and brains, baby girl.”
I will read/listen to more in the series! I listened to the second one, but it was passive listening so I can't recall it all and need to listen to it again. I just have to be in the right head space and mood for it first.
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creamycaramelhoe ¡ 1 year ago
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I finished the book Hooked by Emily Mcintire and honestly I NEED MORE. I was down bad for mister James hook the ENTIRE time. He could hook me and I would simply say “thank you” like a good girl.
What had me flabbergasted was the SMUT! I ate it all up. The smut was a 5/5 🌶️ and the plot 5/5😋 was all was fascinating. I was intrigued by how the author used the characters and twisted them in some way. Also the peterpan references were phenomenal. There wasn’t a dull moment within this book and I have to say I think it’s my fav book this month.
Keep reading sexy mf’s <3
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💫A goofy AHHH review💫
hey guys it's ya boi Rusty here again!! and I'm here to review:
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Yes yes, I can hear y'all now saying "but it's made for kids" "bro why are u watching this" 🤓☝
Stop right there, bud. ✋
This show is pretty good so far, all things considered! I decided to watch it for the nostalgia (and for mah boi Smee ofc!)!! I watched this show a little bit when I was younger, so I remember it fairly well. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it isn't cringe! (Well, some parts are a little iffy but we'll get to that in a minute.) It's actually tolerable and even made me laugh at some parts!
💫The songs💫
The songs aren't that good, in fact their kinda cringe. (But ofc I gotta go easy on this show cuz yes, it is intended for little kids with no brain cells.) At the end of every episode (wich usually consists of two episodes ranging from 15 minutes long each, making up the 30 minute mark.) There's these two ideots called Sharky and Bones who sing a song, and it's cringe. The lyrics arent funny, and their singing isn't even that good. I get that the humer is supposed to have zero brain cells, but come on guys. U gotta try a bit harder than that. The background music for the episodes is ok, nothing I would casually listen to though.
💫The characters💫
We have a few new characters to add to the Peter Pan universe by the names of Jake, Cubby (WHY ARE THEIR TWO CUBBYS?!), Izzy, Skully, Sharky and Bones. (And Captain Hook and Mr. Smee of course!!) The character designs are good, they work well for everyone, except Hook. Hook just looks weird in this art style honestly. And at first I didn't like Smee's design in this, but it grew on me. (The og is still better though!) In fact, he might even look kinda cute! :D
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The voice acting for them is great too!! Its very expressive and something you wouldn't normally get from a kids show. The new voice actors for Smee and Hook almost sound IDENTICAL to the og's! There are some minor differences, but nothing to really make me get annoyed at. The animation is smooth and fluid too! I can tell that they used computer Riggs, but it's barely even noticeable! Which from what I heard, computer Riggs are pretty hard to do. So thats honestly impressive!
💫The insecurities of Jake and The Neverland Pirates💫
First off, I wanna talk about how Smee is portrayed. In the og movie, he's supposed to be a bumbling ideot (but a lovable ideot imo!). In this series, he seems to have a few brain cells, which I dislike. They didn't stay true to his character! Neither did they with Hook. He isn't that goofy anymore, neither is he evil, but he's in between. I can't really describe it, but something is off with his personality.
Like I said before, the music isn't very good, and neither is the pacing of each episode. It's inconsistent and feels too slow at times. The plot points for each episode are predictable too. The kids find something to play with, and Hook wants whatever it is and steals it and they take it back etc etc. The dabloons make no sense either! They collect dabloons each episode for their chest, but why?! What does it accomplish?! Maybe Im not smart enough to understand but that makes no sense to me. It's repetitive too, but not to the point where u want to shove a gun into the side of your head and call it quits. Like I said, it's tollerable! It does feel like Micky Mouse Clubhouse though (I HATE MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE.), but with Peter pan 💀
💫Conclusion💫
I like this show, and I think it's cute! It has potential!! Maybe just get rid of the repetitiveness and the cringe songs and it could be good! I reccomend this is you want the nostalgia from your chilhood (well technically I'm still a kid but whatever LOL)!!
That's my thoughts on this show! I haven't finished the first season yet, but maybe my views will change, but well see. But when they do, I'll keep u posted!! Thanks for reading this and I hope you have a spectacular day/night!!! I love you :D❤❤
(Oh yeah one last thing I gotta note is that Smee actually referred to Hook as "your greatness" 🤨 idk man..)
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whocanbelieve ¡ 2 months ago
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Book Review: Forever After
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Reccomend: 10/10
Loved it, the morals, the art, the plot, the concept.
Plot: 10/10
Entertained each episode and the overall direction it went.
Art: 10/10
Gorgeous, love the fantasy style.
Creativity: 10/10
Very original, never read anything else quite like it.
I liked the morals about self-determination, responsibility, and support systems.
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