Bono was “raised by wolves,” and he has teamed with childhood friend Gavin Friday to make an adaptation of Peter & The Wolf. With beautiful artwork and great adaptations of Sergei Prokofiev’s musical arrangements, this version of Peter & The Wolf blends reality and fiction whilst bridging the gap between a boy's journey from innocence to experience.
Peter & The Wolf review
The film begins with Bono, as he paints on a canvas. It segues into a shot of Peter, who like all kids, is drawing on the fog on a car window. He lives with his grandfather, who is particular about what joys this boy is allowed to have.
Filled with angst that all teenagers have, Peter sits alone in his room. He spends most of his days playing with his cat, Pussy, and practicing his lassoing. It's no wonder why the singer of “I Will Follow,” a song that talks about “tearing the four walls down,” was attracted to this fable.
Thematically, Peter & The Wolf is an extension of Bono and U2's work, in a strange way. Fans of the Irish band are likely somewhat familiar with his relationship with his father. When his mother died, his family dynamics changed. Peter wants to do more in his life, and he goes through a situation that makes a man out of a boy. (However, Bono has sung that time “won't take the boy out of this man.“)
This story is about the bridge from innocence to experience, something Bono has tackled at length over the past decade. After all, Bono is the only singer to have a concert tour with a giant LED screen between the main and B stage that served as a metaphor for the journey from innocence to experience.
Gavin Friday narrates the short film, utilizing his signature gravely voice. If you've ever heard the 2018 remix of “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me,” a song originally written for Batman Forever, you know his capabilities. More so than the gorgeous art, he is the driving vehicle of Peter & The Wolf, and does so magnificently. It's like listening to an audiobook version of the story.
Then there are Bono's illustrations, which this Peter & The Wolf film is based on. U2 fans know that Bono is a talented artist, but he's known for his singing/songwriting. His illustrations are seen in his memoir, Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story, and were utilized as plot devices in his “Stories of Surrender” show. They're definitely more abstract, with the loose sketching look making Peter & The Wolf feel like a fairytale, not a storybook, if that makes sense.
These paintings are merely the start of the beautiful aesthetic of Peter & The Wolf. Each landscape looks photo-realistic due to what I have to imagine are real shots blended with artwork. Fear not — it's nothing like Who Framed Roger Rabbit. To make an odd comparison, it almost looks like The Amazing World of Gumball, another Cartoon Network project. Peter & The Wolf is obviously more artistic, but if you needed a surface-level comparison, there you have it. The black-and-white palette works to its advantage as well, almost creating the illusion of an old film.
But the titular wolf itself is presented well. Bono presents the wolf as something far more fantastical. It's more of an outline of a wolf than it is a real wolf (its eyes are x's and it has sharp edges). The wolf represents the fears that we have — “wolves come in many disguises,” Friday says at one point — and Peter has to decide to conquer that fear.
Behind all of the beautiful artwork is a wonderful score. Having heard Sergei Prokofiev’s original Peter & The Wolf musical arrangements, it's clear where the inspiration comes from. Friday and Maurice Seezer arranged this score, and did so by paying their respects to Prokofiev's work. But having said that, the works of Joe Hisaishi, specifically from Kiki's Delivery Service, live on in Peter & The Wolf. The usage of an accordion adds a European layer to the score akin to the aforementioned Studio Ghibli film. It's bouncy and fun, despite a rather grey (figuratively and literally) color palette. There's also folk elements in the music, with banjos being present at times.
Should you watch Peter & The Wolf?
Gavin Friday and Bono have pulled off a fantastic adaptation of Peter & The Wolf. It's faithful to Sergei Prokofiev’s original work, but the unique aesthetic thanks to the black-and-white color palette make it stand out. Yet again, Bono tackles the idea of a boy growing into a man. He's familiar with the general theme, which lends itself well to this project.
Oh, and an added bonus — the film ends with an original song co-written by Bono, Gavin Friday, and Michael Heffernan. The song, titled “There Is Nothing to Be Afraid Of,” is a throwback to one of Bono's idols: David Bowie. It's just the icing on the cake of a lovely short film.
Grade: A
Peter & The Wolf will be released on October 19 on Max.
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