Peter Pan & Wendy, Disney’s new live action version of venerable story of Peter Pan, really should have been a theatrical release, over the Thanksgiving / Christmas season. A December 23rd release date, maybe. They could have made such a big deal out of this theatrically. Instead, we’re getting it pretty much now, relatively speaking, on April 28, direct to Disney’s Disney+ streaming service.

Advances in the science and technology of visual effects make the trailer for this wonderful story a delight to behold — but it’s not the effects that make the story. It’s the characters. In this version, Wendy just does not want to go to boarding school, and wants nothing to do with grow up. She wants everything to stay the way it is. It’s only when Tinkerbell visits her as she sleeps that the adventure begins.

Clearly Wendy Darling’s brothers John and Michael know the story of Peter Pan, and they delight to discover that the character from their favorite book is real. They travel to the magical world of Neverland with Peter Pan, where they encounter an evil pirate captain, Captain Hook, and embarks on a thrilling and dangerous adventure that will change her life forever.

The film stars Jude Law (Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore), Alexander Molony (The Reluctant Landlord), Ever Anderson (Resident Evil: The Final Chapter), Yara Shahidi (Grown-ish), Alyssa Wapanatâhk, Joshua Pickering (A Discovery of Witches), Jacobi Jupe, Molly Parker (House of Cards), Alan Tudyk (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), and Jim Gaffigan (The Jim Gaffigan Show).

Peter Pan and Wendy is directed by David Lowery from a screenplay by David Lowery & Toby Halbrooks (The Green Knight) based on the novel by J. M. Barrie and the animated film Peter Pan.

Peter Pan is one of those stories that gets told and retold again and again, because it’s one of the core stories of our modern mythology. The new film, judging from the trailer, will make a fine addition to J.M. Barrie’s legacy.

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