Hook Movie Review

Hook (1991)

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Written by: J.M. Barrie (books, play), James V. Hart & Nick Castle (screen story), James V. Hart and Malia Scotch Marmo (screenplay)
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Robin Williams, Julia Roberts, Bob Hoskins, Maggie Smith, Charlie Korsmo
Rated: PG
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Plot
An adult Peter Pan must return to Neverland and reclaim his youthful spirit when Captain James Hook kidnaps his children.

Verdict
It's Spielberg, and as he often does he captures the childlike wonder and awe inspiring adventures for which he's so skilled. We also get plenty of touching moments as adult Peter Pan must re-discover his childlike wonder to save his own kids. The way into this is an adult that doesn't have time for games. The quintessential child grew up to be a boring adult that doesn't appreciate his own kids. By becoming Peter Pan again, he can save the day, his kids, and become a better father. Imagination is never really lost.
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Review
It feels like a story a child would imagine, and that's exactly the point. Peter Banning (Robin Williams) is a workaholic father more concerned with his job than his son. He misses his son's little league game, making promises he won't keep as it's clear this isn't the first game he's missed. The boy Peter Pan grew into the man Peter Banning. A man that's afraid to fly and yells at his son to grow up and quit acting like a child. He's even a merger and acquisitions lawyer, a modern day pirate taking over companies. This lays the in jokes on heavily. Adult Peter Pan is everything the mythic Peter wasn't. Initially we wonder how real is the Peter Pan myth in this movie.

Dante Basco, Robin Williams play Rufio, Peter Banning

After Peter's children go missing Granny Wendy tells him the truth. He is the real Peter Pan of the stories and Captain Hook (Dustin Hoffman) took his children. Peter doesn't believe it. That's a kids' story, but when Tinkerbell (Julia Roberts) returns to take him back, his excuses only go so far. Peter tries to apply logic to a ridiculous situation. It must be a hallucination.

Even in Neverland, he tries to make sense of the setting. He's an adult in a child's world and completely outmatched. The Lost Boys reject him, but we get a touching moment when one of them can see through the wrinkles and age, seeing that adult Peter is indeed Pan.

Robin Williams, Dustin Hoffman play Peter Pan, Captain Hook

Peter has to fight Hook to get his kids back. Tinkerbell has three days to turn this lump of an adult into the Peter Pan of old. While Peter makes some improvement, Hook becomes the father figure Peter's son Jack never had. That motivates Peter and he regains his imagination and his childlike qualities. Reborn as Peter Pan once again, he attacks Hook along with the Lost Boys. It's a calamitous battle, fueled by a child's sensibilities.

This is a completely fun adventure, and I don't think that's just nostalgia talking. The explores what it means to be a kid, an adult, and a parent. It's a difficult balance to strike, all the more erroneous that the prototypical kid Peter Pan became such a stodgy adult and boring father. This builds on the original story about a boy that doesn't want to grow up by creating a story about an adult that's lost his imagination.