Skip to main content

The Art Of Pan Book Review

the art of pan

The Art of Pan by Christopher Grove is one of those 'behind the scenes' books that will make you want to turn the pages and capture not only your attention, but your imagination too. You don't need to have seen the movie that the title is associated with to enjoy this well thought out book and the reason for this is the wonderful artwork that is between the covers.

The Art of Pan is a perfect visual companion to the movie packed with concept artwork and production notes that give you an interesting insight into how a movie is made and the work that goes in before a camera is set up.

the art of panForwarded by Joe Wright, the director of the movie, you can tell that this book has been put together with love and a whole load of pride to sit along side the Warner Bros. movie, Pan.

You get your usual character sheet pages along with costume designs and artwork for each character but where this book really excels is the concept art for the set pieces.  Each set piece is stunning to look at and reminded me of a number of movies and video games.  Harry Potter, Monkey Island, Pirates of the Caribbean and Steven Spielberg's 1991 classic, Hook all seemed to be of influence in the sets.  Even Indiana Jones sprung to mind when looking at some of the artwork especially the dust mine set.

the art of pan
The Art of Pan excels in its detail into the movie making process with insight from Jason Fuchs who was the screenwriter for the movie.  As mentioned we also get a foreword by the director, Joe Wright who explains the process of finding the right cast for such an iconic story.  Another introduction is by Garrett Hedlund who played Hook in the movie.  He recalls his first time on set and seeing all the pirates together.  A surreal moment.
the art of pan

For me though, it is the insights of the writer, Jason Fuchs who really paints the picture of how a movie gets from an idea to a blockbuster on the big screen.  He explains in the first few pages how he had the idea for a Peter Pan movie while on a malfunctioning Peter Pan theme park in London at the age of nine.

My father and I were in a flying pirate ship over a miniature London.  It was, to this day, the best twenty-five minutes of my life," recalls Fuchs, now twenty-eight.

Up  in the ride vehicle, with LED stars twinkling all around and Peter and Wendy flying five feet from his face, Fuchs started to wonder: How did Peter get to Neverland?  Why can he fly? How did he and Hook meet for the first time, and why do they hate each other so much?

"From that moment on, I desperately wanted to see a film that told the full story," Fuchs says.


the art of pan

His vision, along with the director and the other talent associated with bringing Pan to the big screen are all on show in this wonderful book.  As mentioned, you don't need to have seen the movie, in fact at the time of writing this I still hadn't seen Pan but it didn't stop me reading the book and appreciating the work and attention to detail evident in bringing the movie to life.  In fact the book made me smile and  I felt like a kid again when looking at some of the colourful double spread artwork.  Artwork you can stare at for ages and which will make your imagination wander.

the art of panThe Art of Pan will also make you appreciate that modern films are not all about 'green screen' and CGI.  Yes the movie has these things and some of the photos in the book will show you some of the green screen process.  But what it does show you is the collaboration of these tools with practical effects and how much model work, make-up, costume design and set pieces still need to be made to bring a movie full of magic and fantasy to the silver screen.

I love this book and any movie fan should get The Art of Pan.  It's an easy read and a perfect coffee table book to pick up and read in intervals.  Problem is, Christopher Grove has done such a good job that you'll likely read it in one sitting.  Highly recommended.

Rob Wainfur
@thebeardedtrio


the art of pan


the art of pan




The Bearded Trio - The Site For Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and John Williams

THE BEARDED TRIO ON FACEBOOK
THE BEARDED TRIO ON TWITTER
THE BEARDED TRIO ON GOOGLE+
THE BEARDED TRIO ON PINTEREST

CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON STEVEN SPIELBERG
CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON GEORGE LUCAS
CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON JOHN WILLIAMS

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Did Paul Freeman Accidentally Eat A Fly In Raiders of the Lost Ark?

The Famous Indiana Jones Fly In Belloq's Mouth Scene.  Did It Really Happen? I've always wondered if Paul Freeman unintentionally consumed a fly in this scene in  Raiders of the Lost Ark ?  It's the scene where Indiana Jones shouts down to Bellosh...I mean Belloq and threatens to blow up the ark.  Did a fly go in his mouth? I remember watching this scene back in the early eighties and my ten year old mind thought he definitely had a snack while filming.  I recall talking about 'flygate' in my school playground at the time and the general consensus with my friends was that Freeman definitely had a sneaky snack. Paul Freeman talks about the famous 'fly' scene in an interview with TheIndyExperience.com  and settled 'flygate:' This is a bit of a dicey question so don’t get too upset. (Laughs) A movie’s always got bloopers in it, some have a lot, and some only have three or four. And the most remarkable blooper was right before the opening of th

Star Wars VII Movie Poster - Every End Is A New Beginning

Star Wars VII Movie Poster Just saw this Star Wars VII movie poster on Kyle Newman's Facebook fee d.  The poster is by  Lyndon Berresford and Paul Bateman.  I am loving this.  Who do you think the two characters are?  Lando and Leia?  Han and Leia's children? Have you seen other Star Wars VII movie posters?  Let me know. Rob Wainfur @welshslider

Explaining That "Weird" Cut In Poltergeist. Read The Missing Scene

Why Is There A Strange Cut In The 1982 Horror Classic, Poltergeist? If you're a fan of the 1982 Horror classic, Poltergeist then you will be very familiar with that "weird" cut in the movie.  It's 32 minutes and 47 seconds in to the movie and the scene is where Diane is explaining the strange phenomenon that is happening in the kitchen.  First, she shows to Steve a chair scraping across the floor all on its own then she does the same with Carol Anne.  Steve leans up against the kitchen wall and is completely shocked at what just happened.  It's at this point Diane starts to explain the sensation of being pulled and then...A very abrupt cut.  One moment we are listening to Diane and suddenly it cuts to Diane and Steve at their next door neighbours door.  Why the sudden cut?  It's on the VHS, DVD, Blu-Ray and even the streaming versions.  Why does this awful and weird cut exist in the movie, Poltergeist?  Watch the clip below to see the cut: Well, the ans