Hook

Rating:
Summary: A tear jerker!
Review: This is one of the most touching movies I've see so far. And I never cry when I watch movies! This movie made me cry and laugh. It was heartbreaking when Peter Pan forgot who he was and it was touching when he started to rememeber everything. The first time I saw Wendy I abosutly bawled my eyes out! The movie however is funny like when he first meets Tinkerbell "Firefly from Hell!!" and when he was learning to fly again "Oh I know I happy thought! Not being in this thing is a happy thought" All though this movie has a little bit of swearing and violence it's still a family movie. And I would watch it again.

Rating:
Summary: To see it will be an awfully big adventure.
Review: The subtitle to the play "Peter Pan" is "The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up". Spielberg's sequel could well be called "The Man Who Grew Up Too Much". The story of Peter Pan is reversed, as are many roles. Robin Williams has the easy task of playing the thoughtless parent, the moderate task of playing the grownup Peter Pan, and the incredibly difficult task of making the transition between the two believable.

Dustin's Hoffman's Capt. Hook knows, as do all of us who remember his soliloquy, that no little children love him. His concern with how he will be remembered, and with Good Form, ring quite true to the original. The character is suave, urbane, vicious, captivating, and ultimately tragic.

At first I was annoyed at the modern elements in Never-Never-Land, but I soon realized that they had to be there, as Never-Never-Land was always a compilation of everything Lost Boys found exciting. In the twenties, that included Red Indians, but if they were lost in the 1980s, well then, baseball and skateboards should be included. The original play was Edwardian, but the movie makes no sense unless it's updated.

The role-reversal and eventual re-reversal is fascinating. In the play, the same actor always plays both Hook and the thoughtless and cruel father, Mr. Darling. But here, Peter is the uncaring father and a corporate pirate, while Hook takes the children to Never-Never-Land. The lost boys are, at first, quarrelsome and threatening, while the pirates are a happy adventuresome lot, even sentimental in the lullaby sequence. But while the Lost Boys help Peter recover himself (and to recover their own innocence), Hook's attempt to win over Peter's kids is, in the end, a failure, and we are brought full circle. The final scene of the helpless Hook surrounded by Peter and his boys parallels the earlier scene of the helpless Peter Banning surrounded by Hook and his pirates. ("Somebody lend me a hand." "I already have.")

The movie has one major flaw - most people don't know the Peter Pan legend well enough to really understand it. Seeing the play "Peter Pan" won't help much, either, because there's a lot in the storybook "Peter and Wendy", and in the play's stage directions, that enhances the understanding of the movie Hook. In a scene usually cut from the play, Peter sacrifices himself for Wendy, and thinks he is about to drown. His line is "To die will be an awfully big adventure." Later, when Wendy and the Lost Boys are leaving Never-Land, Peter is left alone, slumped in his chair. The stage directions state that at this point, if Peter only understood a little more, he would say, "To live would be an awfully big adventure." Hook is the story of how Peter finally learns that to live is, indeed, an awfully big adventure. Along the way, he must also discover what a Happy Thought for a grown-up is, and that a man with no childhood is as incomplete as a boy who would not grow up.

The pretend-food that was always Peter's favorite kind of meal is used to excellent effect. I found the first moment when Peter's adult façade started to break down surprisingly believable. He is in an insult contest, and losing badly, until he finds the intersection between his grownup life and the childish contest. He wins with the biggest, most impressive insult, ending with "... don't mess with me, man, I'm a lawyer."

Maggie Smith's Wendy fills in the roles of both Wendy and Mrs. Darling from the play. Her concern with the night-lights is especially fulfilling. We are also re-introduced to Tootles, who was the Lost Boy who always missed the adventure, and so he does again. Several times in the movie, the first time I saw it, I mouthed the dialogue along with the actors, because I knew that after Hook said, "Prepare to die", Peter had to reply, "Dark and sinister man, have at thee." There's a brief appearance of Michael's bear and John's top hat, which they took with them to Never-Never-Land so many years ago. Lisa and Nana return (Nana IX, really), and many other details make it a wonderful reunion. Bob Hoskins's Smee and Julia Roberts's Tinkerbell are true to the original, and yes, she says The Line She Had to Say.

Yes, Peter Pan grew up. But he didn't do it when he became a lawyer; he did it in Hook.

Rating:
Summary: Nothing much compared to Peter Pan, but still...
Review: This movie was good, but it was a failure compared to Peter Pan. It was impossible for me to think of Peter Pan the way he was portrayed, and it didn't make sense that he would forget all about his past just because he kissed a girl. Each of the Lost Boys was an individual disaster, as was Julia Roberts as Tinkerbell. Peter Pan's story of running away at three or four made no sense, since he wouldn't be old enough to understand his mother or pull off such an escape. Still, the movie is good for younger children and answers the question: "What happened next?" It will grab the attention of all young movie-watchers and enthrall them throughout the movie, as it did to me a year or two ago.

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, Magical and Touching...
Review: Spielberg has managed to create a wonderful film here, despite what the critics say. It's true you need to be a kid at heart to love it... but once you're into it you'll be amazed at what you find.

A brilliant set makes for a real dreamworld in Never-Neverland, the star-studded cast makes for a very lively and utterly delightful performance while the film still also contains some meaningful moments. A terrific balance.

CRITICS!

Often reviews seem to find great fault with this film while acknowledging there's something there - but what do they say is wrong?

The Never-kids apparently don't fit! Well see it for yourself, I'd like to know what they should look like?

Changing the story to some is unforgivable! There are alot of films where they change things or write a later on version (as Hook is to Peter Pan) and they are awful - total cringe films. The twist in Hook I very much appreciate however and I think it credits the original.

The acting is too plainand unlively! No way. I think here we come back to the type of film - it's a kid's movie! So change, and become like a child, then watch it... I'm sure you'll love it!

Rating:
Summary: You call this a movie?!!!
Review: Ok since when does Peter Pan grow up forget who he is and then have a wife, 2 kids, and a job?!! What was Robin Williams thinking when he signed up for this part? Did he acually think he would pull off being Peter Pan!! I was very dissapointed when saw this movie! First of all Robin Williams. He didn't bring out the childlike influence with Peter Pan. He looked lost through out the intire movie!! And when he said his lines he sounded like he was going to fall asleep!! Then there are the Lost Boys. Why wasen't there teens playing them instead of 8 year old kids that couldn't act if there life depended on it!! They amount of swearing that these kids really atonished me!! And for some stupid reason they were on skateboards and trashed talked through out the intire movie!! Dustin Hoffman. He is the worst Hook I have ever seen anybody play in my whole 16 years of my life!! First of all his acting was stale and sour! And at times he even overacted making me want to smack him because he was soo bad!! And just Robin Williams he looked like he was lost!!! And Julia Roberts as Tinkerbell!!! I can't describe how bad she was at playing this part!!! And one more thing was the amount of violence and swearing in this movie!! So if you have a little kid please don't make them watch this!!

Rating:
Summary: Saw it as a kid
Review: I remember watching this movie when I was six or seven years old and loving every second of it. I even went as Peter Pan for Halloween because of it. First, it's directed by Steven Spielberg, the best director of all time. It features many star actors such as Robin Williams and Dustin Hoffman, and it's overall a great film.

Basically the plot is this: Peter Pan grows up to become a lawyer, and when Captain Hook kidnaps his children, he is forced to go back to Never Never Land to rescue them. The problem is, he doesn't remember anything. This makes for some good comedy, along with some much-needed friction between characters. The battling is interesting, but not gory for small children, and at the age of 15, I still don't mind watching this movie. It's not a child's flick only...adults can enjoy it as well. No annoying Pokemon here.

Some reviewers said that this was too violent for children. I don't believe that. I think it's a good film about a classic character that children should see--however, there is some mild language, but nothing terrible.

Rating:
Summary: Pan's sequel?
Review: In essence, Hook is a visually interesting film. The Neverland backgrounds most of the time capture what you expect place to look like and are presented in a good colourful wash. But what continues to make this a poor movie are the performances (Robin Williams' kids stand out as the most irritating, with only Dustin Hoffman and occasionally Williams bringing any real life to the picture), and the grating insistence by Spielberg and his cohorts to make the most cloying, politically-correct film possible (for a man who founded his career on a movie about a rubber shark that goes around tearing all and sundry to pieces, this is a laughable course for him to be pursuing). But what stands out as one of the worst features of Spielberg's adaptation is his mis-reading of what Pan represents. Peter Pan is the spirit of youth within all of us, this dosen't mean that he needs to set a further example by growing up to face marriage and responsibility. If Williams' grown-up Pan had elected to remain in Neverland at the end of the film, this would have a far more accurate reading of adult human nature than that which Spielberg presents in this simplistic guide of what you have to do to deserve your slice of good ol' American pie. The values that Hook tries to encourage are ones that few kids or adults of Williams' age will sympathise with.

Rating:
Summary: Hook is a great movie
Review: Hook is an imaganantive movie for the whole family. The costumes and scenery in this movie are incredable! Robin Williams plays Peter Banning, an adlut Peter Pan that can't remember anything about Neverland until his kids, Jack and Maggie are stolen. Dustin Hoffman plays the evil Captin Hook. Julia Roberts play the fariy, Tinkerbelle. Steven Spielberg did himself a job well done!

Rating:
Summary: HOOK Leaves you Cold.
Review: One of the few disapointing films by Spielberg which stars Robin Williams as an adult Pan, who looks lost throughout the whole movie, Dustin Hoffman over-acts as Hook, and Julia Roberts as Tinkerbell (please). Never-Never Land looks like the backyard at a garage sale and the boys on roller skates are absolutely annoying. And the screenplay looks like it was written based on badly written DC comic books. It's rather interesting that Spielberg has not done a movie for Colombia Pictures since. Maybe this experience was one not worth repeating.

Rating:
Summary: Hi
Review: I always loved the story of Captain Hook trying to catch Peter Pan, but when this version came out! Well for once i really watned Captian Hook to win! Dustin Hoffman is truley wonderful as Captain hook! Robin Williams is a great Peter Pan... If you are looking for a movie that is going to take you a way for a few hours this is it.

Julia Robert is Tinkerbell with a horrible hair cut. But her acting makes up for a costume designers mistake. The lost biys are very very funny! This movie is a great date movie, because it will get you talking about past thoughts of this tale.

I highly reccommend this movie, esp the DVD version. It is clearer and crisper than before. Not to mention if you love a bit of the movie you can watch it over and over. It is a great movie... " bad form.... peter how did you fit into those tights again??"

You will love it!!!!!!!!!!!