dabukaba — 10 years ago(March 29, 2016 04:04 PM)

I haven't seen this movie in over 20 years, but when I was a young child in 1993 and 1994 I would watch it over and over on VHS. I've always liked even then scariness in movies (so naturally starting as a teen I got into legit scary movies and that persists to this day), but every time I remember this movie I only have very unsettling memories of it, not in a fun way, just in a really off, unsettling way. Here's what I remember disturbing me:
The kids being kidnapped from the bedroom, when the mobile with star shapes above the bed slowly starts spinning and builds up speed and sound, then the grandmother opens the door and a lot of green mist comes in the room, followed by lots of screaming and I don't remember more specifics (suppressed memories?) except for the fact that they're forcefully taken by invisible forces. But then I remember the parents arriving back to the house and seeing the front door glass shattered so they're laughing turns to panic and when they go into the house the wall going up the staircase has wood torn off and the grandmother is shrieking "The children were SCREAMING!!!" Creepy much?
The pirate on the ship that kicking and screaming gets thrown and locked in a wooden box through which giant black scorpions are put through the holes cue more screaming and understood death. I've seen horror movies less disturbing than this; off the top of my head I can think of 2 right now if you'd like random examples, 2 of my favorites, POLTERGIEST (1982) and FRIGHT NIGHT (1985) and I know that's definitely saying something because those both have a high disturbing-factor.
The "lost boy" having a long, drawn-out, dramatic, on-screen death scene after having been either slashed or stabbed (can't remember that detail). A bit much for me at the time.
When Peter first arrives back at NeverNever Land, he plummets underwater where a bunch of pretty young mermaids in clam shell bikinis take turns kissing him passionately. So a bunch of really young women are taking turns making out with middle-aged Robin Williams and he doesn't pull away or anything, I'm sure he's having a great time. Looks like the beginning of a scene in a porn movie. Wait a minute wasn't this supposed to be a kid's/family movie?
The set design of NeverNever Land is creepy somehow in its bright colors and fakeness, like they were filming on a stage with theater props it reminds me of THE WIZARD OF OZ and part of why that's another movie I always found oddly strange and eerie.
Am I the only one?
"You think I'm happy I got a phone call saying I had to come bail you out of prison for stealing hot dog buns!?!"