Return to Never Land ** (2002, Walt Disney) – Classic Movie Review 1419

Directed by Robin Budd and Donovan Cook in 2002, Return to Never Land is an all too ordinary, flatly animated and unimaginative animated fantasy comedy-drama sequel to Walt Disney’s classic 1953 cartoon Peter Pan. Though technically American, the film’s produced by DisneyToon Studios in Sydney, Australia.

It provides an updated sequel to the story from Sir James M Barrie’s play about Peter Pan (voice of Blayne Weaver), the boy who flies to Never Never Land and fights pirates, which was one of their best. This time it is London in 1940 during World War Two and Wendy’s daughter Jane (Harriet Owen as the voice of Jane) is abducted to Never Land by the evil pirate Captain James Hook (voice of Corey Burton). So obviously it is up to Peter Pan to come to her rescue, though it turns out that Hook is trying to lure and capture Peter.

The animation looks plain and hurried, the yarn is thin and the voices are unexceptional, though entirely adequate. It is moderately enjoyable, but, with dreary songs, it’s not a patch on the 1952 original.

Return to Never Land is also known as Peter Pan 2 or Peter Pan 2: Return to Never Land. Though planned for DVD, the film was released in cinemas, opening third at the box office behind Crossroads and John Q. It took $48million in the US and $61 worldwide. With an estimated budget of $20million, it was already profitable before launching on its intended audience.

Peter Pan is loosely remade in live action by Steven Spielberg as Hook in 1991 and again as Peter Pan in 2003.

A series of direct-to-DVD prequels produced by DisneyToon Studios focusing on Tinker Bell began in 2008, with Tinker Bell and the Pirate Fairy released in UK cinemas in 2014. Johnny Depp plays Barrie in the 2004 biopic Finding Neverland.

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© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 1419

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