This movie is a "retelling" of the classic story of Peter Pan. By which I mean they just made a bunch of stuff up and created their own thing. Here's a list of changes:
Peter: Now an orphan in an abusive orphanage. Is prophesied to save Neverland.
Neverland: An island floating in the sky run with an iron fist by new villain Captain Blackbeard.
Hook: No longer a pirate, now just another prisoner in the mines.
Indians/Natives/Tribe: Now multiracial, and with brand new customs. Like having their greatest warrior, their "Pan", fight whoever they think is the Chosen One.
Tiger Lily: Now an adult badass warrior.
Flying: Only Peter can do it, but he has to learn how.
Tinkerbell: Just one named fairy, plays a bit role.
Fairies: They're tiny, sparkly, and in motion look like fireflies or sparklers.
This is not a story about the Boy Who Never Grew Up leading the Lost Boys and Wendy on grand adventures through Neverland. It's a story about a regular boy in an orphanage who is kidnapped by pirates riding a flying pirate ship, who is taken, along with other boys, to a mine to become slaves mining for fairy dust so that Captain Blackbeard can live forever. Hook? He's just an adult prisoner who happens to have that name, and helps Peter escape. Wendy, John and Michael are nowhere to be seen.
The story, setting and characters are so utterly different that the movie works best if you throw away any expectations whatsoever of getting a Peter Pan story. Instead, you're getting an adventure of a regular boy who, rather than being the champion of this world, is just a newcomer who has to learn its odd rules. While he is an active character and does some heroic things, most of the heroics are being done by whoever he allies himself with: mainly James Hook and Tiger Lily. Ever want to see Tiger Lily perform a lot of well-choreographed ninja moves (my 7-year-old nephew said "She's a really good fighter!") against a bunch of pirates? As for Hook, he outsmarts and outwits everyone. Peter? Well, he's just an outsider navigating this mad world.
For what it is, I found it well done and rather enjoyable. It doesn't mess around - the stakes are high, there's some blood, and there's death - including of kids! Just don't expect anything remotely like the Peter Pan you're familiar with.
Film Works best if you pretend it has nothing to do with Peter Pan
This movie is a "retelling" of the classic story of Peter Pan. By which I mean they just made a bunch of stuff up and created their own thing. Here's a list of changes:
This is not a story about the Boy Who Never Grew Up leading the Lost Boys and Wendy on grand adventures through Neverland. It's a story about a regular boy in an orphanage who is kidnapped by pirates riding a flying pirate ship, who is taken, along with other boys, to a mine to become slaves mining for fairy dust so that Captain Blackbeard can live forever. Hook? He's just an adult prisoner who happens to have that name, and helps Peter escape. Wendy, John and Michael are nowhere to be seen.
The story, setting and characters are so utterly different that the movie works best if you throw away any expectations whatsoever of getting a Peter Pan story. Instead, you're getting an adventure of a regular boy who, rather than being the champion of this world, is just a newcomer who has to learn its odd rules. While he is an active character and does some heroic things, most of the heroics are being done by whoever he allies himself with: mainly James Hook and Tiger Lily. Ever want to see Tiger Lily perform a lot of well-choreographed ninja moves (my 7-year-old nephew said "She's a really good fighter!") against a bunch of pirates? As for Hook, he outsmarts and outwits everyone. Peter? Well, he's just an outsider navigating this mad world.
For what it is, I found it well done and rather enjoyable. It doesn't mess around - the stakes are high, there's some blood, and there's death - including of kids! Just don't expect anything remotely like the Peter Pan you're familiar with.