Bangarang! ‘PETER PAN & WENDY’ tweaks classic story, adding a poetic and emotional hook

Preston Barta // Features Editor

PETER PAN & WENDY

Rated PG, 106 min.
Director: David Lowery
Cast: Ever Anderson, Alexander Molony, Jude Law, Alyssa Wapanatâhk, Jim Gaffigan, Joshua Pickering, Jacobi Jupe, Molly Parker, Yara Shahidi, Noah Matthews Matofsky, Caelan Edie, Sebastian Billingsley-Rodriguez, Kelsey Yates, Skyler Yates, Garfield Wilson, Florence Bensberg, Diana Tsoy, Felix de Sousa and Alan Tudyk

There’s no shadow dancing around the fact that we’ve had more Peter Pan movies than Spider-Man movies. But you haven’t seen David Lowery’s take, and that’s an interesting thought. 

Not only is Lowery a Dallas filmmaker, but he has a poetic perspective and quietly haunting approach that always ups the intrigue of his films. Whether it’s a man chasing honor across the plains and hills (The Green Knight), a boy trying to protect a misunderstood creature and make sense of his unique circumstance (Pete’s Dragon), or a silent spirit dressed in a white sheet traveling through our history from beginning to end (A Ghost Story), Lowery’s meditative style is a welcomed method – and it’s wondrously utilized in his Peter Pan & Wendy.

The essential narrative ingredients are here: Peter Pan (a well-voiced Alexander Molony) drops into the lives of three young siblings living in London – Wendy (a lively Ever Anderson), John (Joshua Pickering), and Michael Darling (Jacobi Jupe). Along with his fairy friend, Tinkerbell (Yara Shahidi of Black-ish and Grown-ish fame), Peter is looking for recruits to join his group of ragtag young kids in Neverland. In this enchanting place, children stay perpetually young. But when Peter’s nemesis, the pirate Captain Hook (an excellent Jude Law), causes trouble, the children long for their old lives.

One key shake-up to the recipe is how Lowery concentrates on the three core characters: Peter, Wendy, and Hook. Of course, they played significant parts in the original text and other films, but Lowery goes deeper into those relationships, especially between Peter and Hook. Rather than be a mustache-twirling baddie, Law’s Hook has an emotional draw that is the film’s heart. As a result, you better understand why Hook and Peter constantly engage in combat with one another and are misguided. 

All images are courtesy of Disney. © 2023 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Lowery focuses on the characters, not the visual boom moments. Although there’s an exciting cave sequence of swordplay and gator-sized thrills, Peter Pan & Wendy truly sings when the characters pause to reflect on their actions (or lack thereof) and fears. For Peter, it’s undoubtedly this concept of growing old and losing that sense of wonder and play. But then, Lowery and his co-writer, Toby Halbrooks, will drop a line like the one featured in the film’s trailer: “To grow up might just be the biggest adventure of all.” It’s an emotional blow that hits you across every age you’ve ever lived. You can feel it as an adult, longing to reconnect with your youth. And you can imagine your younger self feeling it and telling your older self, “Be OK with who you are.” It’s about having self-love as much as compassion for others. 

Another gratifying narrative amplification is Wendy’s involvement. As the title indicates, Anderson is the co-lead. As Wendy, she’s not afraid to challenge Peter and use her incredible powers of kindness. It certainly affects Tinkerbell and Tiger Lily (Alyssa Wapanatâhk), the warrior princess of Neverland’s Indigenous tribe. How that kindness propels them forward is moving and leads to memorable moments. Look out for scenes of healing with Tiger Lily and whispers with Tinkerbell.

Ranking Lowery’s work here with other Peter Pan films seems unfair because each vision has a different goal. Steven Spielberg’s Hook is an exceptional Lost Boys movie that asks what it would be like if Peter Pan grew up and forgot who he was. Benh Zeitlin’s underappreciated Wendy is fascinatingly raw and grounded while diving into children’s imaginations and complex emotions. Lowery’s film exists somewhere between those two interpretations, asking big questions while having fun in the process.

Peter Pan & Wendy is a meaningful bit of cinematic poetry that’s as vivid as its characters’ imaginations. Lowery sprinkles the classic tale with his own batch of fairy dust that’s monumentally satisfying and should see more stories from this Neverland.

Grade: B+