Review: Wendy

Image courtesy of Searchlight.

"Wendy" was obviously a labor of love for Benh Zeitlin, the director who blew audiences away - including me - eight years ago with his incredible debut "Beasts of the Southern Wild." The picture's flaws make it obvious that this was a movie that was long gestating in the imagination of its creator. There are certainly elements to recommend, however, the film feels like the equivalent of someone else telling you their dream, and it not registering in the way it might have had you dreamed it yourself.

Based on the story of Peter Pan (at least, to an extent), the film opens with young Wendy (Devin France) and her two brothers dreaming of escaping on a train that travels through their tiny town, where their mother operates a diner, in the same way that another boy fled the scene a few years before.

Once they do so, they meet Peter (Yashua Mack), a dreadlocked young man who claims that he never ages, and several of his pals, who whisk away Wendy and her brothers - Douglas (Gage Naquin) and surlier James (Gavin Naquin), two actual twins - to a mostly abandoned island that is complete with volcanic bursts of gas from the earth and a munificent creature known as Mother that lives in the water and appears to provide for the children, although we never learn many details about that.

Also on the island are a group of older individuals - mostly men - who were once Lost Boys themselves, but grew old quickly due to their inability to believe. An incident that appears to be a tragedy - we later learn otherwise - results in James losing his ability to believe and, in the process, losing a hand. I'll give you three guesses who he quickly grows up to be.

There are some breathtaking moments in "Wendy," mostly due to the swooping camera movements and lively score - and there's a lovely concept explored in the film's final moments that might have resulted in a better movie had it taken precedence throughout the picture, rather than being tacked on at the end.

Unfortunately, other less successful elements overshadow these bright spots. "Wendy" often feels a little aimless - it has a similar visual and narrative style to "Beasts of the Southern Wild," but that film used it to much greater effect. Secondly, I try not to rag on the performances of children too much, but in this case, there are several scenes that probably could have used a few more takes.

Also, while I love Terrence Malick films (certainly everything up through "The Tree of Life"), I can understand while people might get a little tired of the whispery dialogue and tracking shots that have accompanied his latest pictures. Now, imagine that times five, and you'll get a sense of how often there are scenes in "Wendy" of young kids running, jumping screaming and whooping - often in close up. Much of the film's running time seems devoted to this.

Zeitlin is obviously a filmmaker of prodigious talents. "Beasts" testifies to that, and at the time made him one of the most exciting voices among the new crop of American filmmakers. Much like Richard Kelly - whose first film was the mesmerizing "Donnie Darko," but whose second was the ambitious but very messy "Southland Tales" - Zeitlin's sophomore film feels like one made with passion, but less with purpose. It's not a bad movie - but considering the talent involved, it could have been much better and more focused.