Hook (1991)

Why so much hype?

One of my all time favorites.

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

When it was first released, this movie caught me at totally the wrong time. I was 15 and my taste in movies was changing, I was a Robin Williams fan (thanks to movies such as The Fisher King, Good Morning Vietnam and Awakenings) and I knew Dustin Hoffman was great due to the movies of his I had seen (Marathon Man, Rain Man, Tootsie and Midnight Cowboy) and based on the trailer, I was expecting something different to what was delivered. Dull, Bland, boring and (to steal a word from BobbyKlump) saccharine!! Spielberg's Daddy issues are right at the front and centre of this over long movie. Williams is your typical Spielberg Dad, in that he is absent (although he is present) with no time for his kids, as he is always at work. Or ignoring his kids whilst he deals with phone calls to do with work. When he is there he is usually snapping at them to shut up or grow up.It takes to long to get going, there are too many characters, too much bad acting (The Lost Boys are especially bad) and too many props. The whole thing looks like what it is, a movie set, right down to the unconvincing backdrops. Then there are the endings!! Not since LOTR: Return Of The King have I seen a movie with this many endings!! One after another. Farewells. Poignancy. Lessons to be learned. Speeches to be made. Tears to be shed. It is embarrassingly excessive.Of the cast Hoffman seems to think he is in a panto, Maggie Smith is a joy, I think the woman can do no wrong. Charlie Korsmo and Amber Scott (as the Branning children) are probably the best performers in the movie. Blink and you will miss Gwenyth PaltrowJulia Roberts was nicknamed "Tinkerhell" because she was difficult to deal with, a reaction to her working conditions of solitude and green screen. Production had to be temporarily shut down, when she fled California after calling off her wedding to Kiefer Sutherland. A furious Spielberg threatened to fire her if she didn't return immediately.Hook grossed $119 million at the domestic box office, to end 1991 s the 6th highest grossing movie!! Finishing behind T2, Prince Of Thieves, Beauty & The Beast, Silence Of The Lambs and City Slickers.

I have seen interviews where Spielberg looks back on this film not so enthusiastically, feeling the Neverland sequences weren't his best. Yea, not exactly perfect, but I'd have to say "Bullsh*t" if he, or anybody else, says this movie sucks. It doesn't. The positives outweigh the negatives: The fantastical music score by John Williams will pull at your heartstrings, the premise of Peter Pan leaving Neverland and growing up is an interesting one, and I'd say Dustin Hoffman (who is totally unrecognizable) and Robin Williams are outstanding as Captain Hook and Peter Pan.This was a childhood favorite of mine, I grew up with it, and even when I'm about to turn 25 in the next couple months, I STILL LOVE this movie. And it has appeared that I am not alone in this, as I've seen people come up and say how much they love it. Right now I'm watching it after so long and I had shed tears during the "There you are Peter" scene, man does time fly.But still, I say this is one of Spielberg's most underrated films, and if you need a big reason to watch it, watch it for John Williams' music score, it will take you into the film on an emotional level. I need to watch this with my nephew in the future.

This 1991 version of Peter Pan is still entertaining even today. That shows the critics where it stands. The film is way better than all the critics. Director Steven Spielberg is always coming with his style in introducing his characters for the first time in his movies. This time, he hints the audience with the hook for few scenes before revealing the antagonist Captain Hook. He even introduce the character of Rufio with an action rather than using dialogue concept.

I fondly remember watching and loving Hook as a kid, maybe 10 years old. But re-watching it was a more vivid experience than I expected. I FELT things I hadn't felt since seeing it so long ago. We get excited at that age, we fill in the gaps. We believe flying is possible, why not? As adults, I think we sometimes become more cynical, much like Peter Banning in the movie. That was the irony: this movie is nostalgic for me, but the way Spielberg directs it, the movie itself is clearly about those feelings of nostalgia.Peter Banning (Robin Williams) has forgotten who he is. As he discovers himself, I was realising how much this movie captured my imagination as a kid. I can now relate to Peter, perhaps more than to his children. Spielberg uses swelling music and close-ups to suggest profound things, as if we should be familiar with something - it creates this feeling of deja vu. For example, when the crazy old man says a riddle ending with "got to save Maggie, got to save Jack, Hook is back..." We feel like we should know what this means. It draws you in. The same for when Peter gets back to Neverland and everyone has sudden moments of realization when they recognize him. The filming exaggerates those emotions, paralleling my own memories coming back as I watch.I find Dustin Hoffman very funny as Hook. He openly hates the pirates who surround him, but they remain oblivious, taking his insults as merely playful. He is facing a midlife crisis. A proud, successful pirate but with no great enemy to battle. Where's the fun in that? He enjoys the sport in a good fight, which is why he seeks his old nemesis, Peter.The music by John Williams is among his best which is no small feat. It captures the feelings of loss and sadness that surround Peter's mysterious and forgotten childhood, the pure adventure of flying, fighting and crowing and other things.The child performances are of a high standard. Both Maggie and Jack come across as real, with mixed emotions. The daughter is more pure, loving her parents, wanting to be saved, being full of hope and strongly disliking Hook. Jack is more conflicted, being somewhat let down by his father being too busy for him at times. He goes through several changes of heart, many of which are quite moving. Hook can't corrupt the girl, but he comes close with the boy.Hook is more about emotions than the specifics of what happens and why. It's about rediscovering yourself and that place between dreams and reality which Tinkerbell mentions. It's about jubilation, finding your happy thoughts, reconnecting with loved ones, reassessing one's life. There are many moments of humour which I don't want to spoil. There are plenty of aspects of the plot which are silly and may not hold up to scrutiny but it doesn't matter. Hook isn't for everyone, but kids of all ages may well love it if the story suits their taste.