Disfigured child abductor Peter Pan (Martin Portlock) kidnaps a young boy named Michael Darling (Peter DeSouza-Feighoney). Soon after, he comes for Michael’s older sister Wendy (Megan Placito). She then must rescue her brother before the evil Peter takes them both to “Neverland” forever.
Set in the same shared “Twisted Childhood Nightmares” universe as Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (which I assume will eventually lead to an Avengers-style team-up at some point), Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare is a mess. For some reason, in the early scenes, Peter Pan looks like Tiny Tim dressed up as The Crow, which I’m sure isn’t quite the way J.M. Barrie originally imagined him. He also lures kids in a manner that is not too different than Pennywise. All the clown imagery makes me suspect that this version of the character is less inspired by Peter Pan and more of a cash-in on Art the Clown.
What’s odd is that later in the film they drop the Art the Clown shtick as Peter dons a blank, expressionless mask and starts driving around in a work van kidnapping “lost boys”, effectively turning himself into a low rent version of The Grabber from The Black Phone. Why did the filmmakers get so hung up ripping off current releases instead of relying on their public domain mascot? It’s probably due to the fact that the character of Pan doesn’t really lend himself to a horror flick. Even then, they should’ve at least tried to do something novel with the concept. Unless you count the scene where Peter shoots “pixie dust” (heroin) into his arms which makes him “fly”.
Maybe it wouldn’t have even been a problem if the movie had been… you know… good. However, it makes Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey look like Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey 2 in comparison. (A character is seen wearing a Blood and Honey T-shirt at one point.)
Oh, and did I mention that Tinker Bell (Kit Green) is Peter’s trans companion? (“I’m a fairy!”) Wow. The briefly seen, terribly underutilized Captain Hook character is a big letdown too. Maybe they were saving him for the sequel. I won’t be holding my breath for that one, that’s for sure.
The gore is the sole saving grace here. We get a foot being cut in half, scalping, neck gouging, a knife through the chin, arm hacking, finger biting, and eye gouging. You may be gouging your own eyes out before it’s over.
this wasn't that bad.
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