Directed by:
Steven SpielbergCinematography:
Dean CundeyComposer:
John WilliamsCast:
Dustin Hoffman, Robin Williams, Julia Roberts, Bob Hoskins, Maggie Smith, Caroline Goodall, Charlie Korsmo, Amber Scott, Laurel Cronin, Phil Collins (more)VOD (4)
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A high-flying adventure from the magic of Steven Spielberg, Hook stars Robin Williams as a grown-up Peter Pan and Dustin Hoffman as the infamous Captain Hook. Joining the fun is Julia Roberts as Tinkerbell, Bob Hoskins as the pirate Smee, and Maggie Smith as Granny Wendy Darling, who must convince middle-aged lawyer Peter Banning that he was once the legendary Peter Pan. And so the adventure begins anew, with Peter off to Neverland to save his two children from Captain Hook. Along the way, he rediscovers the power of imagination, friendship, and magic. (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
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A straight-up bad movie. All the things that Spielberg is faulted for (sentimentality, emphasis on family values, infantilism) are actually the cornerstones of the whole film here. Completely odd dramaturgy, which means that kids just don't get to see the passages that are more or less geared only towards them without fast forwarding. All the scenes are longer than they should be, the same information is fed to us several times through the film, and above all, it's all so unabashedly artificial that you feel more like you're watching strangers enjoy themselves on a ride at Disney World. Spielberg is apparently trying to create something like playgrounds into which he inserts a plot, but he doesn't know, or has forgotten, that the best children's games never took place in environments created for children, but instead in the real world, onto which you can pin any story you want if you don't understand it well enough. Two stars for Hook's double-tipped cigar.
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Yes, John Williams is repeating himself here. Steven Spielberg is incredibly sentimental - as always - but that doesn't matter because it's not about these two creators; it's about the incredible joy of being a child again for a moment, of being able to slip back into that green costume and just fly. If there was one movie I loved as a kid, it was this one. The magic is still there. I'm still excited about Neverland and would love to fly and eat with the characters.
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I wasn't expecting anything great, but I was still a bit surprised by its overall mediocrity; definitely the weakest Spielberg film I've seen so far. Yet I wouldn't completely dismiss it by any means. The main cast alone is a joy to watch, Hoffman and Williams in particular breath heart and soul into their roles, and it’s only thanks to them that the visuals don’t completely overwhelm the story. Spielberg obviously wanted to treat himself and made a very easygoing and cheerful adventure. It didn’t get a higher rating for me, but I will always remember it in a good way. 65%
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Even though Dustin Hoffman plays a purely negative role here, his character has incredible panache and his (in)sincerity is actually quite appealing. Robin Williams kind of goes by his standard. It's certainly not one of Spielberg's top films, but what I liked was the honesty and lightness with which the whole story is conceived. If Spielberg put that much ease and flair into all his films... well, who knows.:) As a filmmaker, Spielberg has my immense respect (for at least three exceptional films) and it should be noted that he has stamped his signature on this unpretentious diversion as well (though not as prominently, of course). Hook is the kind of classy fairy tale that, instead of fooling and corrupting children's aesthetic sensibilities, can offer some lessons that (at least from my perspective) are neither stupid nor naive.
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Unfortunately, one of Steven Spielberg's weakest films. The production design is truly stunning, the visuals are fantastic, and the whole thing has a very strong fairy tale atmosphere. Spielberg also plays masterfully with light and shadows and has a lot of fun with the camera. However, what he achieved in terms of visuals, he lost in terms of content.
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