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Eternal Youth: Peter Pan, again.
The kid may never get old, but his story sure does.

Starring: Jason Isaacs, Jeremy Sumpter, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Lynn Redgrave, Richard Briers, Olivia Williams, Ludivine Sagnier, Freddie Popplewell, Harry Newell
Directors: P.J. Hogan

Reviewed by Kevin Cunningham

THE PITCH: A kid who lives in a fantasy world whisks away a worldly girl to his own world. Again. IN OTHER WORDS: Which one of the other Peter Pans did you not see?

Peter Pan is nothing new. It's almost possible to have not seen it before, be it in Disney cartoon form or stage musical with a tomboyish girl awkwardly playing the eternal boy. This live version is nothing new, except for better special effects and one of the better 'flying' sequences in any film.

This film focuses on a charming Wendy, played by Rachel Hurd-Wood. She has the charming smile and bright eyes of a 12 year old girl, and carries the film with remarkable charisma. Of all the children in this film, she is the only one who seems truly taken by the fantasy world she's in. Peter, played by Jeremy Sumpter, is an appropriately rambunctious boy, but seems completely out of place in any scene requiring compassion and sentiment.

But, of course, any Peter Pan film needs to rest on the villainous shoulders of Captain Hook. In this case, it falls to the capable hands of Jason Isaacs, who does a good job of playing Hook and Wendy's father. Still, the script fails in finding a balance between the over-the-top villain of Hook and the subtle machinations of a truly evil man. Hook is too different a man when snarling at Peter and trying to seduce Wendy with offers of what she wants.

Unfortunately, this film falls flat in the face of other versions of the tale that have come before. On one hand, this film comes far too close to the animated version to appropriately entertain anyone who's seen the Disney version. On the other hand, this new version doesn't come close to providing the subtext provided in more interesting takes on the film, most notably Steven Spielberg's Hook. That film at least provided some sort of a new take on a story with plenty of subtext.

However, this is still a good movie for kids, especially since they haven't seen the other versions of this film before. Plus, the DVD comes with some of the better interactive extras that should keep all but the most restless of children entertained. For an extra 10 minutes, anyways.

Rating	Film:(3out of 4 stars)
	Extras: (2out of 4 stars)
	Overall: (3out of 4 stars)

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