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A Reel Life film section

Issue: Summer 2003

Peter Pan (2003) movie review

Flights of Fantasy

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Three British children of a clerk are led off on a fantastic adventure by a mysterious flying boy, Peter Pan. They encounter pirates, fairies and lost boys before making their way home again.

Peter Pan is an enduring story, its title character is the boy who refused to grow up, a boy who can fly, who lives in a magical place, and who fights pirates with his friends. Film-makers return to this story regularly, each generation using it to showcase the latest cinematic tricks.

This latest version is glossy and very pretty, but the characters are shallow and they cut from adventure to adventure with no time for us to love them or hate them.

Movie Poster, Peter Pan, Festivale film review; 220x325

Movie poster, Peter Pan

I'm not sure what writer/director P. J. Hogan was trying to say using the same actor to play the mild-mannered father and nefarious Captain Hook, but it sends a worrying message (yes, I know there's precedent). A sad waste of the original material.

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by Ali Kayn
Due for Australian release December 2003
For credits and official site details, see below
Search Festivale for more work by the film-makers below.

See also: P.J. Hogan also directed Confessions of a Shopaholic ; My Best Friend's Wedding ; Muriel's Wedding ; Peter Pan (2003)

Just the facts:

Title: Peter Pan (2003)
Written by: J. M. Barrie (play); P J Hogan; Michael Goldberg (scr)
Directed by: P.J.Hogan
Running time: 113 mins
Rating: PG

The Players:

Official website:
IMDb entry

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