In London in 1906, Peter Pan (Rowe) leads a group of thieves. His crew: Tootles (Ainsworth), Curly (Gibson), Fox (Macdonald), Twins (Patten), Slightly (Robinson), and Nibs (Willoughby), is comprised of orphaned boys. The boys work as a group, with Peter standing watch and using a series of whistle commands to signal the others. The boys all work for Jimmy Hook (Ifans), a fencer who has big plans for the boys. They are offered a big heist, which is supposed to change their lives. They are supposed to steal an ancient glass orb. Jimmy and the boys, except for Peter, touch the orb and are transported to another world. Peter successfully steals the orb, and learns that his friends are still alive. He taps the orb and is transported to the same place as his friends.
Meanwhile, Jimmy and the boys have been captured by a band of pirates, led by Captain Elizabeth Bonny (Friel). Captain Bonny takes an instant liking to Jimmy, and decides to keep him, while the boys are rescued by Peter. The pirates are trying to find the ultimate power source, which is controlled by the fairies on the island, and protected by the Natives. Peter and the boys befriend the Natives, particularly the chief's daughter Aaya (Kilcher). They learn that this world, they call Neverland, keeps people from aging. The boys just want to go home, and learn from Dr. Fludd (Dance) that there is a way to send everyone back to their world. The Natives are content to stay and the pirates refuse to leave without the fairies secret.
Beginning in 2007, SyFy revamped classic children's literature with a re-imagining of The Wizard of Oz. After the series was met with success, they tried it again in 2009 with Alice in Wonderland. When that series succeeded, they created a new series in 2011 based on J.M. Barie's Peter and Wendy (1911) story. The series serves as a prequel to Peter Pan, telling the story of how Peter and Hook came to Neverland.
There are so many versions of the Peter Pan story: plays, musicals, cartoons, live-action films, etc. Typically the Peter Pan role was played by a girl. In 1960, Broadway star Mary Martin played Peter Pan, the musical was reimagined in 2000 starring Olympic gymnast Cathy Rigby. The best known version is the 1953 Disney animated film. In 2003 they made a new live-action version of the show. And they made a sequel, Hook, in which Peter grows up and returns to Neverland as an adult. In 2004, Finding Neverland, about J.M. Barrie and his inspiration for the Peter Pan story. Obviously it is still a popular story.
The writers made the wise decision to make the story a prequel to the beloved Peter Pan tale. The story answers many of the questions you may have about Peter Pan: how did he get to Neverland, how did Hook get there, how did he learn to fly, etc? It was an interesting, science fiction take on the story... however, the execution was just o.k. The story drags in places and is too complicated (my description above does not even scratch the surface of the story) and some of the characters are a bit unnecessary. I applaud their imagination, but didn't love the story. The cast is good. Anna Friel was on TV's Pushing Daisies and has appeared in a few films. Rhys Ifans is always good, and it was interesting to see Raoul Trujillo in another SyFy miniseries (he previously appeared as Raw in Tin Man). I did not like the Tinkerbell (or other fairy) character... I love that Keira Knightley is Tinkerbell's voice, but they took away all the joy of the character.
Ok, but not the best miniseries. I look forward to seeing what story SyFy will adapt next (and if they follow the usual pattern, we should expect a new series in 2013).
Neverland (TV miniseries 2011) 240 minutes
Director: Nick Willing
Starring: Rhys Ifans as Jimmy Hook
Anna Friel as Captain Elizabeth Bonny
Charlie Rowe as Peter Pan
Keira Knightley as Tinkerbell (voice)
Raoul Trujillo as Holy Man
Cas Anvar as Starkey
Q'orianka Kilcher as Aaya / Tiger Lily
Charles Dance as Dr. Fludd
James Ainsworth as Tootles
Patrick Gibson as Curly
Lorn Macdonald as Fox
Thomas Patten as The Twins
Brandon Robinson as Slightly
Chase Willoughby as Nibs
Charlotte Atkinson as Tinkerbell
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