In this classic film by Walt Disney, we meet the Darling children: Wendy, John, and Michael. Wendy is the oldest and at the age of eleven, her parents have decided that she’s too old to sleep in the nursery. It’s to be her last night there and tomorrow she will move to her own room. All three children are devastated by this; every night Wendy tells them stories about the sprite Peter Pan, and if she’s not in the nursery any more, they won’t get their stories. What they don’t know is that one more person will be upset if the stories end, and that’s Peter Pan himself.
Every night, Peter flies to the Darling’s rooftop and listens outside the nursery window to the adventures Wendy relates to the boys. On this particular night, his shadow gets away from him and creeps into the nursery, and Peter must come inside to get it back. He is caught in the act by Wendy herself, who can’t believe that she’s really talking to Peter Pan. She stitches his shadow back on for him, and then breaks the sad news that there will be no more stories, as she’s too old to sleep in the nursery any more. Peter’s solution – come to Neverland with him! In Neverland, you never have to grow up, and then Wendy could tell stories forever. She agrees to come for a very short visit, and wakes up John and Michael, who are of course beside themselves at the thought of going to a place they thought only existed in Wendy’s imagination.
Tinkerbell, Peter’s pixie friend, is not amused. She’s secretly in love with Peter and he’s been making eyes at Wendy for several minutes now. Thus, jealousy is born (your basic love triangle) and she doesn’t want to take Wendy to Neverland. But you need a pinch of pixie dust in order to fly, so Peter grabs Tinkerbell, shakes her all over the Darlings, and off they go.
Pirates, Indian princesses, mermaids, and of course the rascally Captain Hook await them when they arrive. The boys can’t wait to go fight the pirates and they’d be content to stay forever, but Wendy’s heart is at home and even after conquering the Captain in a very exciting fight to the finish involving a hungry crocodile, she can’t be persuaded to stay. Everyone has to grow up sometime.
This movie is a great deal of fun, with all the action and adventure you expect from a Disney film. If it’s not already on your shelf, make plans to put it there right away.
Interesting side note: Wendy was voiced by Kathryn Beaumont, who also voiced Alice from “Alice in Wonderland” and has continued to provide that voice on “House of Mouse” as recently as 2004.
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