Parents' Guide to

Peter Pan

By Nell Minow, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 7+

Stereotypes mar otherwise jaunty Disney adventure classic.

Movie G 1953 76 minutes
Peter Pan Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 7+

Based on 57 parent reviews

age 6+

Terrible

It's full of racism, sexism, and bullying. The depictions of Native Americans are extremely offensive. I really wish I had read the reviews here before watching it with my kids.
age 4+

Enjoyable but is a bit dated.

My daughter watched this at 2 and really enjoyed it. She wasn’t scared by anything and keeps asking for it again. She didn’t really understand or get the story line and in someways I’m glad she didn’t because I prefer shoes with better female representation, as this is an older movie the depictions are dates as well as how Native Americans are represented. I would choose to show this when your child is too young to catch on to this or old enough to discuss it.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (57 ):
Kids say (52 ):

The animation in this film is as lively as its energetic hero. Peter Pan's scenes set in Victorian London are beautiful, and the shift in perspective as the children round Big Ben and fly off to Neverland is a magical moment. Most kids see Peter as that wonderful ideal, a child with the power to do whatever he pleases for as long as he pleases, which still offers a wonderful sense of escapism many decades on.

The story has moments that are whimsical but odd: The Darlings' nanny is a dog, Peter loses his shadow, and the Lost Boys have no parents (and, unlike Peter, no special powers or fairy guardian). Some kids may find this engaging, but some may find it troublesome or worry about what happened to Peter's parents -- or be upset by the parting that comes at the end. There are also lots of racial and sexist stereotypes that haven't aged well and mar this classic adventure.

Movie Details

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