Peter Pan (2003)

Rated by martin on 20 Apr 2004 at 23:41

This is a glorious rendition of J.M. Barrie's classic. It's a visual feast of colours and scenery, with character portrayals that are believable and engrossing. On the one hand, it plays out as a classic make-belief adventure story, and on the other hand it exploits every metaphorical subtext the Peter Pan story provides: the hardships of growing up, the struggle between age and innocence, the blossoming of first love, jealousy and friendship. The strongest theme, though, is that of the complex relationship between a teenage girl and her father. This is treated beautifully by letting Jason Isaacs play both the uptight, nervous Mr. Darling (Wendy's father) and a splendidly debauched Captain Hook.

(If you're into in-jokes, look out for the nod to Jurassic Park late on in the film, with the parrot taking the role of one of the raptors. Hilarious.)