Every Legend has a Beginning

Pan is directed by Joe Wright (Anna Karenina, Pride & Prejudice) and stars Levi Miller, Hugh Jackman (X-Men, Prisoners), Rooney Mara (The Social Network, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Garrett Hedlund (Unbroken, Tron: Legacy), Amanda Seyfried (Les Miserables, Mamma Mia!) and Cara Delevingne (Paper Towns, The Face of an Angel). "12-year-old orphan Peter is spirited away to the magical world of Neverland, where he finds both fun and danger, and ultimately discovers his destiny -- to become the hero who will be forever known as Peter Pan". Even though it is a Warner Bros production, will it live up to Disney's live action remakes?

I hate to say it but I will be joining the line of people who are panning this movie. Pan is the next entry into the 'dumb fun' movies of 2015 - joining Tomorrowland and Jupiter Ascending. However, I actually think Pan is probably the worst of the 3 movies. There are parts of this film that were very nice however the majority of it was just very messy and not too great. 

Pan was pushed back a few months due to more time needed to work on the visual effects - I really don't get why so much time was spent as the effects were nothing special. The only parts I liked were when the ships were flying over London - I hated when Peter began to fly (this isn't a SPOILER as we all know the story of Peter Pan), I hated the weird bird creatures and all of the flying ships that weren't on Earth were just awful. I also despised the out-of-space scene - there is no point even comparing it to Gravity, Interstellar or The Martian as it was just an amateur version. Like the movie, the visuals have hints of greatness but are generally just a mess. 

The acting for the film also wasn't actually that great either. I've heard critics say that they enjoyed Levi Miller - I must be an exception because I really didn't like his performance. I found his accent annoying and I just felt like he was reading a script rather than doing anything with it - another classic example of a child actor. Hugh Jackman was by far the best part of this movie - his character was actually quite funny and very charismatic. Amanda Seyfried was also good - however, I never really understood whether she was supposed to be English or American in the film. Rooney Mara was good in the film but I definitely think she should have the sense to not be part of a film where she will be playing a character who is supposed to be Indian - this is a horrible case of whitewashing and could be a reason for why this film is not doing well at the box office. I also don't understand why they paid to have Cara Delevingne as she has proven to not be a box office draw and literally has no dialogue - they could have hired a nobody on minimum costs. Garrett Hedlund also tried way too hard as Hook - he definitely didn't have any of the strong characteristics that the Hook we all know and love had. 

The biggest problem with Pan is definitely its script - the lines are laughable at times - for example 'I have your eyes' was the most ridiculous moment for what should be heartfelt. I also found the story a little generic - however, it was quite solid and worked well. I hated how the pirates sang Nirvana - I found it completely ridiculous. That moment where Peter pushes Saturn could have been a lot more effective but was just a bit stupid. 

Despite all of its flaws, Pan was a pretty fun movie to watch - it was actually quite humorous. It was also very bright and colourful and did have a hint of magic. The ending was a little bit of a letdown as the big battle wasn't that great.

Pan is not a good movie - it is tolerable and fun at times but is mostly very silly. The script is its major flaw with some of the most stupidest lines to come out of films this year. The acting is mediocre - the only standout is Hugh Jackman who shows he is a good 'character actor'. The visual effects are solid but not the best I have seen so I don't understand why so much effort and hassle was made. Pan is more dumb fun of 2015.

2.5 STARS

C

What did you think of PAN? Do you think Disney could have done a better job? 

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