| Hook | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster byDrew Struzan | |
| Directed by | Steven Spielberg |
| Screenplay by | |
| Story by |
|
| Based on | Peter and Wendy byJ. M. Barrie |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Dean Cundey |
| Edited by | Michael Kahn |
| Music by | John Williams |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | TriStar Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 142 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $70 million[2] |
| Box office | $300.9 million |
Hook is a 1991 Americanfantasyadventure film directed bySteven Spielberg and written byJames V. Hart andMalia Scotch Marmo. It starsRobin Williams asPeter Banning / Peter Pan,Dustin Hoffman asCaptain Hook,Julia Roberts asTinker Bell,Bob Hoskins asMr. Smee,Maggie Smith asGranny Wendy andCharlie Korsmo as Jack Banning. It serves as a sequel in a modern day setting toJ. M. Barrie's 1911 novelPeter and Wendy, focusing on an adult Peter Pan who hasforgotten his childhood due to his high-powered lifestyle. In his new life, he is known as Peter Banning, a successful but career-minded lawyer who neglects his wife (Wendy's granddaughter) and their two children. However, when his old archenemy, Captain Hook, kidnaps his children, he returns toNeverland to save them. Along the journey, he reclaims the memories of his past and develops full emotional maturity.
Spielberg began developingHook in the early 1980s withWalt Disney Productions andParamount Pictures. It would have followed the Peter Pan storyline seen in the 1924silent film and 1953animated Disney film. It enteredpre-production in 1985, but Spielberg abandoned the project. Hart developed the script with directorNick Castle andTriStar Pictures before Spielberg decided to direct in 1989. It was shot almost entirely onsound stages atSony Pictures Studios inCulver City, California.
Released on December 11, 1991,Hook received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the performances (particularly those of Williams and Hoffman),John Williams' musical score, and the film's production values, but criticized the screenplay and tone. The film also received five nominations at the64th Academy Awards. Although the film was a commercial success and become thefourth-highest-grossing film of 1991, it failed to meet the studio's expectations. Since its release,Hook gained a strongcult following, and it is considered by many to be a cult classic.[3][4][5]
Peter Banning, a workaholic lawyer fixated on success, has a strained relationship with his wife, Moira, and their children, 11-year-old Jack and 7-year-old Maggie, due to his constant absences and broken promises. During Christmas, the family travels to London to visit Moira's grandmother,Wendy Darling, who cared for Peter as an orphan. When Peter loses his temper with the children for interrupting a work call, Moira scolds him, reminding him how fleeting their time with the children is. During a dinner honoring Wendy’s work with orphans, the children stay home with her old friend, Tootles. Returning from the event, Peter and Moira discover the children are missing, with a note left behind signed byCaptain James Hook.
Wendy divulges to Peter his true childhood identity,Peter Pan, and urges him to return toNeverland to rescue his children because only he can. Having no memory of his childhood, Peter does not believe her until the fairyTinker Bell arrives and flies him to Neverland. In the pirate town, Peter confronts Hook, who fails to recognize his once formidable rival. Hook challenges Peter to fly and save his children, but Peter fails. Dismayed at how pathetic Peter has become, Hook orders his execution, but Tinker Bell convinces him to give her three days to train Peter for their final battle.
Peter is brought to theLost Boys' hideout, now led by Rufio. They mock the grown man before them until the group ultimately recognizes him. They begin training Peter, urging him to abandon his uptight adult demeanor and embrace his imagination. Meanwhile, Hook's first mate,Smee, suggests turning Peter's children against him. Maggie resists, but Jack, hurt by Peter's broken promises and failure to save him, begins to side with Hook.
While infiltrating the pirate town, Peter sees Jack playing in a baseball game organized by Hook, who has taken on a fatherly role. Devastated, Peter returns to the Lost Boys' camp with renewed determination. His shadow leads him to the ruins of Wendy's house, where he remembers his past: as an infant in the early 1900s, he ran away from his mother, fearing growing up and dying, and was brought to Neverland by Tinker Bell. Visiting his family later, he found they had a new child and assumed they had forgotten him. Peter met Wendy, who fell in love with him, but as she aged and started a family, Peter fell for her granddaughter, Moira, and remained with her. Recalling Jack's birth as his happiest memory, Peter regains his powers and ability to fly. That night, a heartbroken Tinker Bell confesses her unrequited love to Peter.
The next day, Peter and the Lost Boys launch an attack on the pirates. While Peter rescues Maggie, Rufio is fatally wounded in a duel with Hook. Witnessing Rufio's dying wish for a father like Peter, Jack reconciles with his father. Peter prepares to leave Neverland with his children, but Hook demands a final battle, vowing to eternally stalk Peter's descendants if denied. With help from Tinker Bell and the Lost Boys, Peter subdues Hook, who feigns surrender. Hook tries to stab Peter, but misses and impales thetaxidermiedCrocodile that once ate his hand. The Crocodile appears to come to life, topples over, and consumes Hook. Tinker Bell then returns Jack and Maggie home while Peter bids farewell to the Lost Boys, appointing Thud Butt as their new leader. Thud Butt gives Peter a bag of marbles that belonged to Tootles, a former Lost Boy.
Peter awakens in London, where Tinker Bell tearfully bids him farewell. Transformed by his journey, Peter joyfully reunites with his family and discards his work phone. He returns the bag to Tootles, who sprinkles the pixie dust within on himself and flies off to Neverland. When Wendy observes that Peter's adventures are over, he replies, "To live will be an awfully big adventure."
In addition, a number of celebrities and family members made brief credited and uncreditedcameos in the film:[6] musiciansDavid Crosby andJimmy Buffett, actressGlenn Close, and former boxerTony Burton appear as members of Hook's pirate crew;Star Wars creatorGeorge Lucas and actressCarrie Fisher play the kissing couple sprinkled withpixie dust; two of Hoffman's children,Jacob and Rebecca, both under 10 years old during filming, briefly appear in scenes in the "normal" world; and screenwriterJim Hart's 11-year-old son Jake (who years earlier inspired his father with the question, "What if Peter Pan grew up?") plays one of Peter's Lost Boys.
Steven Spielberg found a close personal connection toPeter Pan's story from his own childhood. The troubled relationship between Peter Banning and his son Jack in the film echoed Spielberg's relationship with his own fatherArnold. Previous Spielberg films that explored a dysfunctional father-son relationship includedE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial andIndiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Peter's "quest for success" paralleled Spielberg starting out as afilm director and transforming into a Hollywoodbusiness magnate.[7] "I think a lot of people today are losing their imagination because they are work-driven. They are so self-involved with work and success and arriving at the next plateau that children and family almost become incidental. I have even experienced it myself when I have been on a very tough shoot and I've not seen my kids except on weekends. They ask for my time and I can't give it to them because I'm working."[8]
Like Peter at the beginning of the film, Spielberg has afear of flying. He feels that Peter's "enduring quality" in the storyline is simply to fly. "Anytime anything flies, whether it'sSuperman,Batman, or E.T., it's got to be a tip of the hat to Peter Pan," Spielberg reflected in a 1992 interview. "Peter Pan was the first time I saw anybody fly. Before I saw Superman, before I saw Batman, and of course before I saw anysuperheroes, my first memory of anybody flying is inPeter Pan".[8]
The genesis of the film started when Spielberg's mother often read himPeter and Wendy as abedtime story. He explained in 1985, "When I was 11 years old, I actually directed the story during a school production. I have always felt like Peter Pan. I still feel like Peter Pan. It has been very hard for me to grow up, I'm a victim of thePeter Pan syndrome".[9]
In the early 1980s, Spielberg began to develop a film withWalt Disney Pictures that would have closely followed the storyline of the1924 silent film and1953 animated film.[8] He also considered directing it as a musical withMichael Jackson in the lead.[10] Jackson expressed interest in the part, but was not interested in Spielberg's vision of an adult Peter Pan, who had forgotten about his past.[11]
The project was taken toParamount Pictures,[12] whereJames V. Hart wrote the first script, withDustin Hoffman already cast asCaptain Hook.[10] It enteredpre-production in 1985, with filming to begin atsound stages in England.Elliot Scott had been hired asproduction designer.[8] With the birth of his first son, Max, in 1985, Spielberg decided to drop out. "I decided not to makePeter Pan when I had my first child," Spielberg commented. "I didn't want to go toLondon and have seven kids on wires in front ofblue screens. I wanted to be home as a dad."[10] Around this time, he considered directingBig, which carried with it similar motifs and themes.[10] In 1987, he "permanently abandoned" it, feeling he expressed his childhood and adult themes inEmpire of the Sun.[13]
Meanwhile, Paramount and Hart moved forward on production withNick Castle as director. Hart began to work on a new storyline when his son Jake showed his family a drawing. "We asked Jake what it was and he said it was a crocodile eating Captain Hook, but that the crocodile really didn't eat him, he got away," Hart reflected. "As it happens, I had been trying to crackPeter Pan for years, but I didn't just want to do a remake. So I went, 'Wow. Hook is not dead. The crocodile is. We've all been fooled.' In 1986, our family was having dinner and Jake said, 'Daddy, did Peter Pan ever grow up?' My immediate response was, 'No, of course not.' And Jake said, 'But what if he did?' I realized that Peter did grow up, just like all of usbaby boomers who are now in our forties. I patterned him after several of my friends onWall Street, where the pirates wear three-piece suits and ride inlimos."[14]
Many fans believedTom Hanks was Spielberg's original choice for the role of Peter Pan.[15] Hanks has debunked that rumour.[16]Kevin Kline was also considered for the role but was unable to commit due to reshoots forSoapdish.[6][17]Joseph Mazzello auditioned for the role of Jack Banning, but was turned down because he was deemed too young for the role. Mazzello was cast later as Tim Murphy inJurassic Park.[18]
By 1989, Ian Rathbone changed the title toHook, and took it from Paramount toTriStar Pictures, headed byMike Medavoy, who was Spielberg's firsttalent agent.Robin Williams signed on, but he and Hoffman had creative differences with Castle. Medavoy saw the film as a vehicle for Spielberg and Castle was dismissed, but he was paid a $500,000 settlement.[14]Dodi Fayed, who owned certain rights to make aPeter Pan film, sold his interest to TriStar in exchange for anexecutive producer credit.[19] Spielberg briefly worked with Hart to rewrite the script[8] before hiringMalia Scotch Marmo to rewrite Captain Hook's dialog, andCarrie Fisher forTinker Bell's.[20] TheWriters Guild of America gave Hart and Marmo screenplay credit, while Hart and Castle were credited with the story. Fisher went uncredited.
Filming began February 19, 1991, occupying ninesound stages atSony Pictures Studios inCulver City, California.[2] Stage 30 housed theNeverlandLost Boysplayground, while Stage 10 supplied Captain Hook'sship cabin. Hiddenhydraulics were installed to rock the set-piece to simulate a swaying ship, but the filmmakers found the movement distracted from the dialogue, so the idea was dropped.[21]
Stage 27 housed the full-sizedJolly Roger and the surrounding Pirate Wharf.[21]Industrial Light & Magic provided thevisual effects sequences. This marked the beginning ofTony Swatton's career, as he was asked to make weaponry for the film.[22]
It was financed byAmblin Entertainment and TriStar Pictures, with TriStar distributing it. Spielberg hiredJohn Napier as a "visual consultant", having been impressed with his work onCats. The original production budget was set at $48 million, but ended up between $60–80 million.[23][24] The primary reason for the increased budget was theshooting schedule, which ran 40 days over its original 76-day schedule. Spielberg explained, "It was all my fault. I began to work at a slower pace than I usually do."[25]
Spielberg's on-set relationship withJulia Roberts was troubled, and he admitted in a 1992 interview with60 Minutes, "It was an unfortunate time for us to work together."[26] In a 1999Vanity Fair interview, Roberts said that Spielberg's comments "really hurt my feelings". She "couldn't believe this person that I knew and trusted was actually hesitating to come to my defense... it was the first time that I felt I had a turncoat in my midst."[27]
| Hook (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Film score by | ||||
| Released | November 26, 1991 (1991-11-26)(original) March 27, 2012 (2012-03-27)(reissue)[28] | |||
| Length | 75:18(original) 140:34(reissue) | |||
| Label | Epic Soundtrax(original) La-La Land Records(reissue) | |||
| John Williams chronology | ||||
| ||||
Thefilm score was composed and conducted byJohn Williams and performed by theHollywood Studio Symphony. He was brought in at an early stage when Spielberg was considering making the film as amusical. Williams wrote approximately eight songs with lyricistLeslie Bricusse for the project at this stage.[29] Williams and Bricusse finalized it to five songs.[30] Several of these songs were recorded, and some musical segments were even filmed.
Julie Andrews recorded one song, "Childhood", at theSony Pictures Studios, so that Maggie Smith could lip-sync it on-set; it was meant to be sung by Granny Wendy to her grandchildren in their bedroom.[30] Two additional songs, "Stick with Me" and "Low Below", performed by Dustin Hoffman and Bob Hoskins, respectively, were also rehearsed.[30] These three songs were ultimately cut from the film, and instead were incorporated into the instrumental score. Two remaining songs survive in the finished film: "We Don't Wanna Grow Up" and "When You're Alone", both with lyrics by Bricusse.[25] The "Prologue" track later appeared in a commercial for the68th Academy Awards in 1995, and in trailers forMatilda (1996), another film by TriStar.[31][32]
The original 1991 issue was released byEpic Soundtrax.[33] In 2012, a limited edition of the soundtrack, calledHook: Expanded Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, was released by La-La Land Records andSony Music.[28] It contains almost the complete score, with alternates and unused material. It also contains liner notes that explain the film's production and score recording.
In November 2023, La-La Land Records announced a remastered and expanded three-disc ultimate edition of the film's score in its entirety, to be released December 1, 2023. The first disc includes the score presentation. The second disc features the additional musical tracks, and the third disc features alternate cues, source music, and Leslie Bricusse's songs.
Avideo game based on the film and bearing the same name was released for various game consoles in 1992.[34] Another game was released forpersonal computer andCommodore Amiga, and is apoint-and-click adventure game.
Spielberg, Williams and Hoffman did not take salaries forHook. Their deal called for them to split 40% of TriStar Pictures's gross revenues. They were to receive $20 million from the first $50 million in gross theatrical film rentals, with TriStar keeping the next $70 million in rentals before the three resumed receiving their percentage.[2]
Hook was released in North America December 11, 1991, earning $13.5 million in its opening weekend. It went on to gross $119.7 million in the United States and Canada, and $181.2 million in foreign countries, accumulating a worldwide total of $300.9 million.[35] It is the sixth-highest-grossing "pirate-themed" film, behind all five films in thePirates of the Caribbean film series.[36] In the United States and Canada, it was the sixth-highest-grossing film in 1991,[37] and fourth-highest-grossing worldwide.[38] It was the second-highest-grossing film in Japan, withtheatrical rentals of $22.4 million.[39][40] It ended up making a profit of $50 million for the studio, yet it was still declared a financial disappointment,[41] having been overshadowed by the release of Disney'sBeauty and the Beast, and a decline in box-office receipts compared to the previous years.[42]
Hook received mixed reviews upon release.[43] Review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes reports that 29% of critics have given the film a positive review, based on 66 reviews, with an average rating of 4.70/10. The site's consensus states: "The look ofHook is lively indeed, but Steven Spielberg directs on autopilot here, giving in too quickly to his sentimental, syrupy qualities."[44] OnMetacritic, the film has a 52 out of 100 rating, based on reviews from 19 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[45] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on a scale of A+ to F.[46]
Roger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times wrote:
The sad thing about the screenplay forHook is that it's so correctly titled: This whole construction is really nothing more than a hook on which to hang a new version of the Peter Pan story. No effort is made to involve Peter's magic in the changed world he now inhabits, and little thought has been given to Captain Hook's extraordinary persistence in wanting to revisit the events of the past. The failure inHook is its inability to re-imagine the material, to find something new, fresh or urgent to do with the Peter Pan myth. Lacking that, Spielberg should simply have remade the original story, straight, for this generation.[47]
Peter Travers ofRolling Stone magazine felt it would "only appeal to thebaby boomer generation", and highly criticized the sword-fighting choreography.[48]Vincent Canby ofThe New York Times felt the story structure was not well balanced, feeling Spielberg depended too much onart direction.[49]Hal Hinson ofThe Washington Post was one of the few who gave it a positive review. Hinson elaborated on crucial themes of children, adulthood and loss of innocence. However, he said Spielberg "was stuck too much in atheme park world".[50]
John Williams's musical score was particularly praised, and is considered by many as one of his best.[51][52][53] However, the score notably failed to receive an Academy Award nomination (although Williams did receive a nomination for Best Original Song). FilmmakerJon M. Chu cited the film as a source of inspiration for the visual aesthetics of histwo-part film adaptation of the musicalWicked (2024, 2025).[54][55]
In the years since its release, Spielberg has admitted in interviews that he was not proud of the film, and disappointed with the final result. In 2011, he toldEntertainment Weekly, "There are parts ofHook I love. I'm really proud of my work right up through Peter being hauled off in the parachute out the window, heading for Neverland. I'm a little less proud of the Neverland sequences because I'm uncomfortable with that highly stylized world that today, of course, I would probably have done with live-action character work inside a completely digital set. But we didn't have the technology to do it then, and my imagination only went as far as building physical sets and trying to paint trees blue and red."[56]
Spielberg gave a more blunt assessment in a 2013 interview onKermode & Mayo's Film Review: "I wanna seeHook again because I so don't like that movie, and I'm hoping someday I'll see it again and perhaps like some of it."[57] In 2018, Spielberg toldEmpire, "I felt like a fish out of water makingHook... I didn't have confidence in the script. I had confidence in the first act and I had confidence in the epilogue. I didn't have confidence in the body of it." He added, "I didn't quite know what I was doing and I tried to paint over my insecurity with production value," admitting "the more insecure I felt about it, the bigger and more colorful the sets became."[58]
| Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | Best Art Direction | Art Direction:Norman Garwood; Set Decoration:Garrett Lewis | Nominated | [59] |
| Best Costume Design | Anthony Powell | Nominated | ||
| Best Makeup | Christina Smith, Monty Westmore, and Greg Cannom | Nominated | ||
| Best Original Song | "When You're Alone" Music byJohn Williams; Lyrics byLeslie Bricusse | Nominated | ||
| Best Visual Effects | Eric Brevig, Harley Jessup, Mark Sullivan, and Michael Lantieri | Nominated | ||
| American Comedy Awards | Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture | Maggie Smith | Nominated | |
| American Society of Cinematographers Awards | Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases | Dean Cundey | Nominated | [60] |
| BMI Film & TV Awards | Film Music Award | John Williams | Won | |
| Chicago Film Critics Association Awards | Most Promising Actor | Charlie Korsmo | Nominated | [61] |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Dustin Hoffman | Nominated | [62] |
| Golden Raspberry Awards | Worst Supporting Actress | Julia Roberts | Nominated | [63] |
| Golden Screen Awards | Won | |||
| GoldSpirit Awards | Best Edition of an Existing Score | John Williams | Won | |
| Grammy Awards | Best Pop Instrumental Performance | Nominated | [64] | |
| Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television | Nominated | |||
| International Film Music Critics Association Awards | Best Archival Release of an Existing Score | John Williams, Didier C. Deutsch, MV Gerhard, Matt Verboys, Mark G. Wilder, Daniel Schweiger, and Jim Titus | Nominated | [65] |
| Best Archival Release | John Williams, Mike Matessino, John Takis, Jason LeBlanc, and Jim Titus | Nominated | [66] | |
| Saturn Awards | Best Fantasy Film | Nominated | [67] | |
| Young Artist Awards | Best Family Motion Picture | Won | [68] | |
| Best Young Actor Co-Starring in a Motion Picture | Dante Basco | Nominated | ||
| Charlie Korsmo | Nominated | |||
| Best Young Actor Under 10 in a Motion Picture | Raushan Hammond | Nominated | ||
| Best Young Actress Under 10 in a Motion Picture | Amber Scott | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Young Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture | Charlie Korsmo, Amber Scott, Ryan Francis, Dante Basco, Raushan Hammond, Jasen Fisher, James Madio, Isaiah Robinson, Thomas Tulak, Alex Zuckerman, Ahmad Stone, Bogdan Georghe, Adam McNatt, René González Jr, Brian Willis, and Alex Gaona | Won | ||
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