Notwithstanding the constantly growing catalog of available content on Netflix Instant, I know there are a lot of people out there who feel like they can’t find anything to watch. With this periodic series – Netflix Gems – I aim to introduce you to movies, tv shows and documentaries you may not know are hiding in there. While Netflix is still lagging behind where I think it should be on new releases and current seasons of television, there’s a whole bunch of awesome there as well, so let's talk about it right here.
If you watch Once Upon a Time (like me!), you might be looking for more of J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan after the final 2 episodes of the season, which concluded last Sunday. Neverland, a Peter Pan origin story, which originally aired as a 2-night miniseries on SyFy in December 2011, is the perfect anecdote. Watch the trailer here.
The story follows Peter in Victorian-era London, the leader of a group of orphaned pick-pockets, whose mentor and guardian, James Hook, accidentally transports them all to Neverland.
{Charlie Rowe as Peter, a pretty fabulous child actor}
{Rhys Ifans as Jimmy Hook - you know where this is going, right?}
{Peter's arrival in Neverland}
{Captured by pirates}
{The Lost Boys}
{Neverland, in all its glory}
{Bob Hoskins as Smee; Anna Friel as Captain Elizabeth Bonny}
{Peter and Tink, voiced by Keira Knightley}
SyFy's reimagined fairy tale series, like this one - including Tin Man in 2007 and Alice in 2009 - skew a bit darker, so I wouldn't consider this family entertainment for wee ones, but older children should be just fine.
"All the world is made of faith, and trust, and pixie dust.”
xo. di.
P.S. Game of Thrones' own Tywin Lannister - Charles Dance - also makes a brief appearance in Neverland; his presence is always a treat.
*images via SyFy
