3 out of 10 stars.
Pan could be viewed not just as a bad film, but as a commentary on the current state of Hollywood's severe lack of creativity and originality. For every inventive touch the filmmaker's give this Peter Pan origin story, there are included alongside it at least three uninspired cliches. No matter how much I wanted to like this film, I could not see past all the poor filmmaking decisions and the desire the studio had to follow the current trend of superhero-type stories and 'fulfilling my destiny' stories rather than tell a true Peter Pan tale. In fact, they could have changed the title to 'Potter' and no one would have been able to tell the difference. Not one bit of this movie, other than a few names and locations, bears the slightest resemblance to J.M. Barrie's timeless tale. Instead, it just feels like another garish Hollywood moneymaking machine gone horribly wrong.
The movie starts with a woman (Amanda Seyfried) who, in stealthy ninja mode, jumps over the gate of a bleak London orphanage to drop off her baby. This baby's name is Harry, er, I mean Peter, and is destined to become "the chosen one." Flash forward twelve years and we are in World War II era London. No date, just "World War II" era London. Why the filmmakers felt the need to shift the time period from the early 1900's (when Peter Pan was originally published) to 1940-something is beyond me, except deep down I think I know; it was an excuse for flying pirate ships to have an air-duel with WWII fighter planes. But I digress. Young Peter lives a dull, dreary life under the rule of some decidedly heinous nuns, but soon begins to suspect something foul whenever boys begin to go missing from the orphanage. Pretty soon, the secret is revealed that Mother Barnabas and the sisters are selling boys to pirates, and due to his snooping around, Peter is next on the list. That's right. The nuns are greedy, stupid, and sell little boys to pirates. I suppose it would have been offensive to the public if any other religious group was portrayed in such a negative light. But Catholic shamming is just the start of this movie's problems.
Once the pirates sweep Peter away to Neverland, he is forced to mine for pixum (pixie dust, for goodness sake) so that the notorious and flamboyant Captain Blackbeard can smoke it hookah-style and stay young forever. Hugh Jackman does give a rather unusual and inspired performance as the over-the-top villain (He and Levi Miller, who plays Peter, are the best actors here). His entrance has been the subject of much talk, since he comes onto the screen leading his kidnapped charges in a round of "Smells Like Teen Spirit", of all things. This was actually a genuinely creative touch, if only for the fact that it was so random and anachronistic. The problem is that Blackbeard has no depth of character, and as such, Jackman has nothing to do except lead a chase against Peter and all those who try to help the lad fulfill the prophecy. The prophecy, I might add, speaks of a boy who could fly and will one day save Neverland from the rule of Blackbeard. This "chosen one" narrative device has been used countless times and by now just feels downright lazy.
Along the way, he meets fellow miner James Hook (a horrifically over-acted Garrett Hedlund), and Tiger Lilly (Rooney Mara) who help him find the fairy kingdom and the secret of his mother. James Hook is not yet Captain Hook, but a poor-man's Indiana Jones with a really bad voice. Most of the anticipation leading up to this movie's release was seeing how Hook and Pan become enemies. This is disappointingly never shown, but only hinted at for those sequels that are likely never going to happen. Also, Tiger Lilly is no longer a Native American, but a white warrior leading a multi-cultural tribe of rainbow-colored, all-accepting "Native Neverlanders" who directly contrast the cruel, judgmental nuns he escaped from. I could write a whole essay on the previous sentence, but we won't go there, because it's so stereotypical it's not even worth getting into. Religion is bad, not having religion is freedom. We've heard this song before.
Essentially, nothing in this movie feels like something that J.M. Barrie created. Gone is the childlike sense of wonder Neverland should provide, and in its place are grim CGI battle scenes. Also gone is Barrie's darker commentary on the nature of childhood, and in its place are...grim CGI battle scenes. Any plot development is rushed through so they can get on to the next action set piece. Yet despite the rushed plot, it still manages to feel slow because nothing happens that we want to happen. In fact, we never even get to the part where Peter decides to not grow up. This is once again just hinted at with less-than-subtle winks to the audience.
I can safely say that this is the most disappointing film I've seen all year. As a lifelong fan of Pan, I had high hopes that it might be a fun prequel. Sadly, fun does not enter into the scheme, and no amount of pixie dust can make this movie fly. The animated Disney film is iconic and endearing, though perhaps not tonally faithful to Barrie. The 2003 version with Jason Isaacs playing Hook beautifully captures the more complex themes of Neverland. Even Spielberg's bloated Hook has its charms. These three films will long outlast Pan, which like a lost boy, will undoubtedly be forgotten with the passage of time.
Along the way, he meets fellow miner James Hook (a horrifically over-acted Garrett Hedlund), and Tiger Lilly (Rooney Mara) who help him find the fairy kingdom and the secret of his mother. James Hook is not yet Captain Hook, but a poor-man's Indiana Jones with a really bad voice. Most of the anticipation leading up to this movie's release was seeing how Hook and Pan become enemies. This is disappointingly never shown, but only hinted at for those sequels that are likely never going to happen. Also, Tiger Lilly is no longer a Native American, but a white warrior leading a multi-cultural tribe of rainbow-colored, all-accepting "Native Neverlanders" who directly contrast the cruel, judgmental nuns he escaped from. I could write a whole essay on the previous sentence, but we won't go there, because it's so stereotypical it's not even worth getting into. Religion is bad, not having religion is freedom. We've heard this song before.
Essentially, nothing in this movie feels like something that J.M. Barrie created. Gone is the childlike sense of wonder Neverland should provide, and in its place are grim CGI battle scenes. Also gone is Barrie's darker commentary on the nature of childhood, and in its place are...grim CGI battle scenes. Any plot development is rushed through so they can get on to the next action set piece. Yet despite the rushed plot, it still manages to feel slow because nothing happens that we want to happen. In fact, we never even get to the part where Peter decides to not grow up. This is once again just hinted at with less-than-subtle winks to the audience.
I can safely say that this is the most disappointing film I've seen all year. As a lifelong fan of Pan, I had high hopes that it might be a fun prequel. Sadly, fun does not enter into the scheme, and no amount of pixie dust can make this movie fly. The animated Disney film is iconic and endearing, though perhaps not tonally faithful to Barrie. The 2003 version with Jason Isaacs playing Hook beautifully captures the more complex themes of Neverland. Even Spielberg's bloated Hook has its charms. These three films will long outlast Pan, which like a lost boy, will undoubtedly be forgotten with the passage of time.
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