One of the most controversial films to come out from Disney during the 50’s was ‘Peter Pan’. Sure there was ‘Alice In Wonderland’ three years prior but it wasn’t as controversial as ‘Peter Pan’. Sorry, that should be “controversial” because it was only a small tiny group of people that complained about it many years later…as always.
Like with so many films from Disney at the time- especially their live action films- a vast majority of them didn’t go down very well with the audience and critics. It happened so much to the point that by the end of the 50’s Disney was struggling financially. However a lot of these films- especially their animated films- became cult classics many decades later. ‘Peter Pan’ was one of those films that became popular over time.
Based on the slightly darker book by J. M. Barry, it contained the typical Disney flair of so many of their older classics; great animation, storytelling and a good soundtrack.
Whilst being very familiar with ‘You Can Fly’ for years due to various ‘Disney Sing Along’ videos (anyone remember those?) and also being very familiar with its very famous deleted song ‘Never Smile At A Crocodile’, I wasn’t able to watch it fully until I was in my mid-teens. It was certainly worth the wait.
The story starts off with Wendy Darling looking after her younger brothers John and Michael whilst their parents are getting ready to go out for the night. Wendy also has help from their family dog Nanna. Her father Mr Darling comes in looking for a few more remaining accessories for his suit.
He's already stressed out because he and his wife are running late. However, he can’t find his cufflinks. John quietly asks Michael where the “buried treasure” is. Sadly, Michael doesn’t know where he hid it. John asks where the map is and Michael doesn’t know the answer to that question either. That is until Mr Darling finds part of his suit…which has the map drawing on it.
He is so angry that Mrs Darling has to try and calm Mr Darling down. It doesn’t work; Mr Darling is about to have a go at Wendy but trips over Nanna instead, sending the dog crashing into a pile of wooden bricks. Everyone is more concerned for Nanna than Mr Darling. ‘ “Poor Nanna”?! What about poor father?!’ he shouts angrily. Mr Darling has had enough by now; telling Wendy that she’s to leave the nursery the next day, he storms off, dragging Nanna with him to be tied outside for the night.
As I said earlier, when ‘Peter Pan’ originally came out, it was met with mostly negative criticism from the critics and audiences. It was basically yet another animated flop from Disney at the time of its release. However, I and so many others have enjoyed this film over the years and it didn’t deserve the hate that it got originally.
Everything is brilliant from the animation and storytelling to the soundtrack, including the iconic ‘You Can Fly’ scene. The voice acting from the cast- especially from the younger actors- is also brilliant.
Best to buy in its original format before current day Disney decides to think it a “great” idea to edit it or remove it completely for “problematic” reasons. Shame on them for running the legacy of ‘Peter Pan’ with that horrendous live-action remake coming out in April!
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