Peter Pan 2 : Retour au Pays imaginaire

Others have bemoaned the lack of creativity or the re-hash of the original story. What did they expect, Peter Pan goes to law school? My 8 year old was bouncing with excitement by the end of the movie. I found the CG animation of the Pirate Ship over London to be in

the best of the Disney tradition. They leave you guessing up until the very end as to whether Peter Pan is real or if both Wendy and her daughter dreamed him. Look for one goof: The truck (2 1/2 ton Army truck) bears a United States white star when it picks up and drops off Dad, who is obviously a British soldier/airman. Though theoretically possible, it is highly unlikely that there was an

American Amry truck in London as the U.S. did not actively enter the war unitl January 1942 and the Blitz had been going on long before that. Forget the critics - go see it and take the kids.

"Peter Pan In Return To Never Land" is Disney‘s animated sequel to their truly classic 1953 adaptation of J.M. Barrie‘s beloved children‘s story. Time‘s moved on since the first movie and although Peter Pan never grew up, Wendy did. It‘s now World War Two and an adult Wendy is living in London, still telling tales of Peter Pan, Captain Hook, Tinkerbell and all the other inhabitants of Never Land to her two children; Danny, an awe struck little boy and Jane, a more cynical, pragmatic older girl who has no time for fairytales. However when Hook flies his sailing ship to London, kidnaps Jane and takes her to Never Land, she soon wishes she has paid more attention to her mother‘s stories.

With a budget of a ‘mere‘ $20M the film was produced by Disney‘s TV animation department (who have previously toiled over ‘straight to video/DVD‘ sequels for other Disney movies including "Cinderella," "The Lady And The Tramp," "The Lion King" and "The Little Mermaid"), but this was apparently always planned as a cinematic release. The film succeeds in combining the traditional feel of the original ‘50s animation with a more contemporary look, particularly for the intrepid young heroine Jane (whose modern looking bobbed haircut was actually highly fashionable during World War Two!). The use of computer generated animation does successfully enhance certain scenes, sometimes so subtly you don‘t even notice, and sometimes – in the case of Tinkerbell‘s magical pixie dust – to spectacular effect. However Hook‘s computer generated ship, while certainly impressive, unfortunately stands out uncomfortably from the traditionally animated environments that surround it. Overall though "Peter Pan In Return To Never Land" – only the second sequel to a Disney feature to be released on the big screen – more than deserves a cinematic outing, and will no doubt go down well with the latest generation of Disney fans, who have grown up with a VHS copy of the original at home.

Young Jane has lost her faith in imagination and Peter Pan with the outbreak of the Second World War II. With her father off at war and her mother distracted by childish stories, Jane feels she is the most mature, and is looking after her family as she promised she would. But after a falling out with Wendy, Jane finds herself on board Captain Hook's ship, heading towards the second star to the right. It's not until Jane let's go of trying to be a grown up does she truly find happiness and magic. The music throughout is very well written and while modernized does still replicate the feel of the original. Ultimately, I feel this was a great carry-on from the original with all the splendor of Neverland and the perils of the island shared between Peter and Hook!

I found this movie quite enchanting. It captured the spirit of the original quite well, and a reference to the original story that wasn't in the first Disney that was thrown in had me clapping until my hands were sore... But it wasn't applause. (I'll say no more, I don't wish to spoil the movie for anyone else.) And Jane was a great contrast to Wendy. I would totally recommend this movie to anyone who loved the first.

Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust!!!

The other day I decided to go for the Disney sequels, Peter Pan one of my top favorite Disney films and as nervous as I was to see the sequel "Return to Never Land", but I decided to go ahead and give it a look. You know what? It wasn't that bad, it was actually pretty enjoyable as far as Disney sequels go. I loved seeing the return of Captain James Hook, he and his sidekick, Smee, just cracked me up so badly in the first Peter Pan, they were back in Return to Never Land and are still crazy than ever. Despite the fact that the crocodile wasn't back, I would've loved to see that return, the octopus wasn't a bad addition. The jokes are still fun and the story is still magical. We got to see what life was like for Wendy when she finally had to grow up and had a family of her own.

Wendy is all grown up and has a family of her own, a loving husband, daughter, Jane, and son, Danny. Her husband goes to war and tells little Jane that she is in charge, so Jane takes that very seriously and acts as head of the household. Despite that she is still very young, she doesn't believe in Never Land and her mother's tales, but when Captain Hook thinks he grabs Wendy, he grabs Jane and takes her to Never Land to capture Peter Pan. Peter saves Jane and offers her to join the Lost Boys and hopes to restore her faith in his adventures and fairies, but all she wants to do is go home.

Return to Never Land is a fun Disney sequel that I have to admit that I was actually more impressed with. There are still a lot of great laughs and the story is still as adventurous as the first time when I watched the first Peter Pan. It was a little disturbing to hear the big difference of the voices, but I'm getting past it. After all, it's been over 40 years since the original Peter Pan, so I think it would've been hard to get the same actors. But I recommend Return to Never Land, it's a cute Disney sequel.

6/10