David Lowery Promises Peter Pan And Wendy Isn't As Dark As It Looks
David Lowery's "Peter Pan & Wendy" has been a long time coming. Principal photography wrapped in 2021, while reshoots were completed in early 2022. The COVID-19 pandemic obviously played a role in delaying the film's production, but Disney has been a tad skittish about its release. The movie was greenlit as a Disney+ exclusive, but, unsurprisingly, the studio saw theatrical potential in the "Pete's Dragon" director's second remake of a Mouse House classic.
Alas, Disney reverted to a streaming release for "Peter Pan & Wendy," and, given the film's considerable budget, this is one of those moves that makes you wonder if the studio isn't completely on board with the tone Lowrey has struck. "Pete's Dragon" was an earthy redo of a slightly dated live-action/animated family flick, and it managed to connect with its simple tale of a lonely boy and his fantastical friend. Lowrey imbued his movie with a cloudy, coastal charm that recalled everything from Michael Powell's "The Edge of the World" to Bill Forsyth's "Local Hero." It was thrillingly distinct from its source material and soulful in a strangely guarded way. There's heart there, but Lowery doesn't believe in big gestures. He wants to move you, but he's not going to go for the emotional jugular like Steven Spielberg did with his early, crowd-pleasing triumphs.
Lowery's "Pete's Dragon" had the benefit of being a remake of a one-off. He wasn't up against a century-plus of lore like he is with "Peter Pan & Wendy." When people think of Neverland, they think of a brilliantly bright landscape, an Eden-esque getaway where you'll never get old and you won't ever die. Judging from the film's trailer, Lowery's Neverland is a rainswept island of chilly exteriors and dank caverns. Has he drained J.M. Barrie's world of its vivid essence?
Bringing Neverland down to earth
Lowery is serving Disney here, but they've clearly given the indie auteur of "Ain't Them Bodies Saints" and "A Ghost Story" a good deal of leeway to make the property his own. The London scenes in the trailer are sparkling and wondrous, while Neverland is in all earth tones. This isn't a bad thing at all, but there has been a knee-jerk reaction to the marketing materials from Pan fans who grew up on the Disney animated movie and Spielberg's garish misfire "Hook."
Lowery knows what skeptics are thinking, and he wants them to know that his film is not some dreary reboot of a buoyant franchise. In an interview with SFX, Lowery assured viewers that his movie is an "adaptation of all the best parts of that film, with plenty of intervention and reinvigoration."
The movie will, of course, veer away from the culturally insensitive depiction of the horrifically named "Piccaninny" tribe. Lowery has also broadened the ranks of the Lost Boys to include people of, gasp, other genders!
A 21st century Pan
Still, it's the trailer's color palette that threw people, which Lowery insists won't hamper the swashbuckling fun of Barrie's yarn. As he told SFX:
"As a Peter Pan film, it's not going to surprise anyone who knows the original material. It's very fun and it's funny. If it's grounded, it's only because we were trying to shoot on location, build all of our sets, and have everything feel like a real place. I always value the idea that Neverland is a place that a child could actually get to. As to whether it's a dark and gritty version of Peter Pan ... it's not."
Lowery's previous five features as a director have earned him a load of trust. And regardless of your feelings about Disney as a corporate creator of art, it's encouraging to know that they've given him the keys to one of their most problematic franchises.
There's an innate joyousness to a well-told Pan tale. Disney's animated feature captured this, as did P.J. Hogan's hugely underrated 2003 rendition. Given that Barrie's work is in the public domain, the character can be reimagined every which way for as long as we're around to spin yarns. Here's hoping Lowery's movie is so good that we'll regret not getting to see it on the big screen.