‘Pan’ lacks focus

By Alexis Malapitan

“Pan” incorporates live-action with enjoyable visual effects, but jars attention with its unclear focus.

After living in a London foster home for 12 years, Pan, played by Levi Miller, finds himself in a mystical land of adventure and fun as he meets new friends, Hook, played by Garrett Hedlund, and Tiger Lily, played by Rooney Mara. The three of them work together in effort to save Neverland from evil pirate, Blackbeard, played by Hugh Jackman.

The dark film is showered with fairy dust, mermaids and light. Never-ending action will keep you on your toes throughout.

Peter embodies an admirable, courageous and determined teenager who takes it upon himself to find his birth mother. Peter is overwhelmed and in disbelief that someone his age could be “the chosen one,” a person who holds the key to Neverland and protects it from pirates, however he handles this sudden responsibility with maturity and dignity.

Unfortunately, despite its enjoyable visual effects and action, “Pan” was not my cup of tea. The action kept me in suspense, but the movie was a little too fast-paced for my liking. The plot progression seemed rushed, and it was a little hard to follow.

The movie’s focus was unclear because it went from Peter craving to find his mother to Hook wanting to get with Tiger Lily to Tiger Lily trying to survive on the island.

Each scene was disconnected from one another and therefore lacked substance; I felt as if scenes came out of nowhere or were incomplete. In the very beginning of the movie, it was unclear to me whether or not the owner of the foster home sent Peter to Neverland or if he got there on his own.

The story of “Peter Pan” is a classic on its own. There was no reason for the director of the film to create a prequel to an already great story. The prequel has too much going on with no smooth transition separating the events. Each character’s objective – Peter, Hook, Tiger Lilly and Blackbeard – is unclear until the very end of the movie, which makes it difficult to follow.

Although I applaud Warner Bros. for trying to put a new spin on the Peter Pan story with a prequel, it wasn’t necessary. The movie had some unforgettable visual effects, a great cast and never-ending adventure, but “Pan” should’ve worked on its fluidity.