Peter Pan & Wendy is Disney(+s) latest live action remake of one of their classic animations. And an uncharitable read of it would be that it’s just a remake with a little extra girl power for Wendy and Tiger Lily. A more nuanced look would note how the first half seems like a pretty rote retread… after which the dark and brooding side of the film takes over and we get a nuanced and kind of sad retelling.

Yes, this film follows many of the familiar beats… the Darling siblings, Peter Pan shows up, shadows try to escape, Tinker Bell, believe you can fly, etc. The whole crew wind up in Neverland and contends with Captain Hook and his pirates.

The majority of this film comfortably settles into a fine version of one of these. A perfectly cromulent remake with updated effects and certainly updated cultural references (lookin’ at you Tiger Lily… actually played by a Canadian Cree actress).

But then there’s probably the reason Jude Law took the role of Hook. We get a surprisingly nuanced set of scenes where we learn more about him and his relationship with Peter Pan. It’s the kind of acting that makes you sit up and take notice. And if it’s a little dark for a Peter Pan remake, at least it gives us something different and thoughtful (and maybe even challenging) to watch.

I didn’t love this movie but I did love certain parts of it. In the long run, it IS a perfect fine version of one of these and it never quite escapes that. Certainly the actorly scenes with Jude Law (and how his character ends his stint in the film) have a genuinely emotional heart(break). And that’s good enough… certainly more than I expected.

Score: 79