Director: Joe Wright
By Alex Watson
You really want to love Joe Wright's movie Pan and on a technical level this is a beautiful adventure that brings the Neverland to life in a way never seen. Tragically underneath the dazzling façade lies a painful and very misguided picture. Wright who so wonderfully entranced in his film-making magic in Anna Karenina and Atonement feels literally all at sea. Despite Hugh Jackman taking large bites out of the scenery, this movie cannot make up for the lack of character depth which sinks this lifeless prequel to the mermaid filled waters below.
Peter Pan (Levi Miller) is an orphan living in London during the WWI, abandoned by his mother Mary (Amanda Seyfried) he still hopes to reunited with her some day. Snatched from his bed along with other boys by pirates and transported to Neverland. There he discover a land ruled with an iron fist by pirate Blackbeard who forces them to mine the land for fairy dust. Through random events he becomes acquainted with an ambitious miner, James Hook (Garrett Hedlund) and a warrior princess named Tiger Lily (Rooney Mara).
Possibly the worse crime about Wright's take on JM Barrie's world is that the story in Pan is so torn to pieces we have no idea what we are viewing? Hook in this one feel like a cookie cutter version of Indiana Jones (complete with Fedora hat) who is more of a jerk than a franchise changing villain. Peter Pan comes off as a rather smart mouth street punk. In the opening ten minutes we see Peter taken from London by a flying pirate ship that transports him to land where a crowd singing 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' by Nirvana greets them. Wires become frantically crossed and as annoyed parents stare at the screen is disbelief, your faith in this picture has disappeared before you know it.
From a cinema perspective the world is gorgeous to look at and the photography by John Mathieson and Seamus McGarvey injects some life into an otherwise dull affair. There are moments that give this movie some fun, Hook in this picture is afraid of crocodiles. Wright seems to have to keep us blind to the wreck that lies beneath the coat of gloss. Story wise there is little to really arouse the mind, although the side plot of why precisely Blackbeard wants the fairy dust so badly so give a darker undertone. Tiger Lilly is given little purpose in this movie and Rooney Mara in a one note role becomes wasted. Her headdress is interesting but they reduce Tiger Lilly to simply acting as a story-teller than a warrior princess.
This lack of development hinders the film and the splicing and dicing of ideas creates a whole new beast. Wright shows he has taken notes from the Avengers but having a finale based up in the air. After two hours of shifting in our chairs, finally we are given so vague entertainment as Peter leads the fairies in an attack against Blackbeard. Reaching this point takes sheer will power and as you often eye the exit door there is a blessed relief when the credits finally roll. Though your heart does sink when you realize that there will likely be another outing in the pipeline.
Hugh Jackman has a ball playing the theatrical Blackbeard, but sadly he feels so over the top that it feel his lid blew away long before. Although he does giving a decent campy menace, this is not one of Jackman's finest outings. Levi Miller does a good enough job as the young rascal Peter and his youthful sense of wonder enlightens things some. Garrett Hedlund on paper should have made a fine Hook, but his role is one that is criminally underwritten. Hedlund has some great moments of humour but enough to record the save.
Pan is an effort that wasn't entirely necessary from Joe Wright and despite some clever visuals we are left with a rather embarrassing picture. I can respect his want to bring a new spin on heavily adapted tale, but his jokey and strange approach to this prequel will only alienate hardcore fans.
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