it be easier to judge Walt Disney 's 1953 animated adaptation of James Barrie 's `` Peter Pan '' for what it be ; rather than for what it be not . what the film get right , it get spectacularly right . animation be , indeed , the best medium to capture the magical aspect of the story . the sequence where Peter Pan , Wendy , John , and Michael fly from London to Never-Land be stunning . it be almost immediately apparent why `` Peter Pan '' be one of the finest Disney film of the 1950 's . the film gain much of its appeal from the excellent vocal performance of Bobby Driscoll -lrb- Peter Pan -rrb- , Hans Conreid -lrb- Mr. Darling and Captain Hook -rrb- , Kathryn Beaumount , -lrb- Wendy -rrb- and Bill Thompson -lrb- Mr. Smee -rrb- . the story have plenty of action and adventure , and move along at a brisk pace . the depiction of the Indians as caricature instead of character be painfully , politically incorrect . but one must remember the era in which this film be make . it would be decade before Cathy Rigby 's stage revival of `` Peter Pan '' would correct this sticky situation . but , as the stage and animated film be completely different medium , the point be moot . the Disney version of `` Peter Pan '' be a artistic triumph . it be often delightful , but it be only about fun and game in Never-Land . while Disney capture the magic and fantasy brilliantly , he never grasp the darker , psychologically complex aspect of the story . the Disney version capture Peter Pan as the spirit of youth , joy , and freedom , but lack the emotional depth of Barrie 's original story . the great villain Captain Hook clearly represent the `` adult , father figure '' who must be destroy because he be a threat to all the fun and game . there be no romantic tension between Peter Pan and Wendy . there be no acknowledgement of Peter 's lonliness or the thing he will never have . at the end of Barrie 's play , Peter Pan return to the nursery and discover wendy be now a grown-up adult . Disney completely ignore Barrie 's end , and all of its bittersweet implication . the dvd feature a excellent audio commentary by the late Roy Disney , -lrb- Walt 's nephew -rrb- , film critic Leonard Maltin , several of the animator , Margaret Kerry -lrb- the model for the hot-tempered , jealous pixie Tinker Bell -rrb- , Kathryn Beaumount -- and even some surprising comment from Walt Disney himself . the short featurette `` the make of Peter Pan '' and the longer documentary `` the Peter Pan that almost be '' , be especially informative and entertaining . the brief life of Bobby Driscoll , more tragic than magic , be a sad footnote to `` Peter Pan . '' Driscoll , who receive a special academy award for he role in the suspense-thriller `` the window '' , make immeasurable contribution to the success of Disney 's `` song of the South '' , `` so Dear to my Heart '' , `` Treasure Island '' and `` Peter Pan . '' after he Disney contract be drop -lrb- the same month , incidentally , that `` Peter Pan '' be release -rrb- , Driscoll descend into drug addiction and spend some time in prison . Driscoll die in 1968 , alone and peniless , at the age of 31 . of he movie career , Driscoll remark , `` I be carry on a satin pillow ... and then dump into the garbage . '' magic and happiness , it often seem , exist only in the movie .