Review: Pan
Never has a spectacle been less spectacular and more hollow than Joe Wright's Pan. The film purports to chart the origin story of Peter Pan and, by association, that of Captain James Hook. Yet the trajectories of Peter from wartime orphan to augured messiah and Hook from gruff wisecracker to vengeful villain are mere blueprints that never fully develop due to the relentless bombast in which they're encased.
It is worth remembering two things about Wright. he discovered Saoirse Ronan who, at the age of 13, made a remarkable, Oscar-nominated debut in Atonement. Levi Miller, who plays Pan, is a notable find. The Australian easily conveys the sense of mischief that is an integral part of the character's DNA as well as the sadness that undergirds his determination.
Wright is also heavily influenced by British director David Lean, a man known for the sweeping yet intimate gesture. Up until now, Wright has been able to execute that gesture with a confident hand. One sees it in the unfustiness of his period romances Pride and Prejudice and Atonement, the fractured fairy tale that was Hanna, and even in the the theatrical trappings of his Anna Karenina. Like Baz Luhrmann, Wright is a showman - perhaps a slightly less imaginative and unbound one, but a showman nonetheless.
Pan possesses a multitude of problems, starting with a fundamentally unsound premise that is dressed up to such a degree that the flaws are all too readily apparent. Do we really need to know how friends became enemies? Are we truly rooting for Peter to embrace his destiny as Pan? These are obvious arcs whose explorations are limited, and neither Wright nor screenwriter Jason Fuchs find new angles to unearth.
Wright obviously tips his hat to visual effects visionary Ray Harryhausen, not only in the two extended stop-motion animation sequences but also in the design of the birds that populate Neverland. Yet the overall effect is rough and unfinished - one feels as if the wires are visible, the seams too transparent, the back projection pronounced. For a film that spends very little time on the ground - the camera is restlessly and relentlessly swooping from one vertiginous shot to another - there is little sense of awe and wonder. All magic has been drained from a film that should be predominantly about magic, whether it be that of flying or the magical powers of self-belief.
The art direction is a mishmash of other films - a little Pirates of the Caribbean here, a little of Superman's Fortress of Solitude there. That extends to the characterisations as well - Peter comes off as a hybrid of Oliver Twist and Harry Potter whilst Hook is obviously modeled after Indiana Jones. As Hook, Garrett Hedlund...what is he even doing and why did Wright not tell him to stop? Hedlund seems to be channeling John Wayne, Indiana Jones, The Big Lebowski's Dude if he were fresh out of rehab, and Jack Sparrow. It is distracting to no end and frequently cringe-inducing. Let's not even dwell on his vocal intonation which is all asthmatic Pacino. Rooney Mara, whose casting as Tiger Lily was the source of much controversy, smiles. It's a wonderful, dimpled smile and one that should be seen more often on-screen. There's not much for her to do as Tiger Lily except overcome a cumbersome headdress and some arts and crafts costuming. She does, but she is woefully wasted.
The sole saving grace is Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard, the pirate leader of Neverland who kidnaps orphans and puts them to work mining the pixie dust that keeps him forever young. This is a man whose story is most worth telling - charismatic, formidable, intelligent, brutal, with a love that turns to poison. The best moment of the film is its quietest. After the discovery that Peter can fly, Blackbeard brings the boy to his quarters. Even before the reveal of the prophesy that a half-fairy, half-human child will be his downfall, Jackman's eyes as he gazes upon Peter conveys the sorrow, vulnerability and even respect of a man who has come face to face with his fate.
Pan
Directed by: Joe Wright
Written by: Jason Fuchs; based on characters created by J.M. Barrie
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Levi Miller, Garrett Hedlund, Rooney Mara, Nonso Anozie, Adeel Akhtar, Kathy Burke, Amanda Seyfried, Cara Delevingne
