To get a story about the origins of Peter Pan in "Pan" is exciting, but with over-the-top cartoony characters in a complex story it leaves much to be desired.
Not everything is bad in "Pan," as the scenery and cinematography is beautiful and colorful.
Peter, played by Levi Miller, is an orphaned boy who is tormented by the nun which runs the orphanage.
Miller is a delight as Peter. The complex emotions and growth of the character is well played and come across clearly.
Blackbeard, played by Hugh Jackman, sends pirates from Neverland to kidnap orphaned children to mine fairy dust from Neverland's core.
Jackman is good as he doesn't go too far with his character. His mannerisms and costume are cartoony enough while his lines are well delivered.
In the mines, Peter meets James Hook, played by Garrette Hedlund, who, after realizing Peter has the ability to fly, tries to use Peter to escape Blackbeard's mines and return home.
Hedlund is too cartoony as his line delivery and mannerisms are much like what you'd expect from acting out scenes while reading a child a book. It was hard to take him serious as he's childish, yet is also the character with one of the most mature parts.
The two aided by Sam Smeigle, Smee, played by Adeel Akhtar, manage to escape Blackbeard only to be captured by Princess Tiger Lily, played by Rooney Mara, and her tribe.
Mara is another delight to see. She's beautiful in her colorful costumes and still fierce in her demeanor. Her fight scenes are well played out and she is able to command the attention of the audience when she needs to be strong.
From the moment Peter is discovered to possess the pan necklace the movie becomes more serious, yet some characters continue with cartoony acting.
The story progresses well at a steady pace, but feels like it's a slow progression.
The ending is heartfelt and sentimental and a good payoff.
Overall, I give this film 3 out of 5 Popcorns. It starts off being many things, but not establishing a straight forward storyline. There's a sequence at the beginning where it seems like it will be a musical, but it's just one song. There is the cartoony aspect which kids may enjoy, but many of the kids in the theater were talking during the film asking their parents "What's going on?" or "What does that mean?" and even saying "I don't get what's going on.
