Peter Pan (1924)
Peter Pan spirits the Darling children away to Neverland, where they join the Lost Boys and battle Captain Hook and his pirates, before Wendy chooses to grow up and return home.
Peter Pan was the first film adaptation of J. M. Barrie’s play, with Betty Bronson personally chosen by Barrie for the title role. Long feared lost, it survived through a print rediscovered decades later and entered the National Film Registry in 2000.
Background
Peter Pan was the first film adaptation of J. M. Barrie’s play, and Barrie personally chose Betty Bronson for the title role. Herbert Brenon directed the production. Ernest Torrence plays Captain Hook, Mary Brian plays Wendy, and Anna May Wong appears as Tiger Lily. The film was long thought lost; a print was later rediscovered, and it was added to the National Film Registry in 2000.
What to watch for
The film follows the Darling children as Peter spirits them away to Neverland, where they join the Lost Boys and battle Captain Hook and his pirates. Watch the flying scenes, which were a technical highlight of the period and show the production’s investment in effects. Bronson’s boyish, mischievous Peter sets the tone of the story. Notice the sets of Neverland and the pirate ship, and how the film moves from adventure to Wendy’s decision to grow up and return home. The ending is the emotional core of Barrie’s story, and the film lands it with a restrained, sincere tone. Barrie’s play had already been a stage success in London and New York before the film was made.
