Saving Mr. Banks

Cast of Characters:

P. L. Travers - Emma Thompson

Walt Disney - Tom Hanks

Ralph - Paul Giamatti

Richard M. Sherman - Jason Schwartzman

Don DaGradi - Bradley Whitford

Travers Robert Goff - Colin Farrell

Director - John Lee Hancock

Screenplay - Kelly Marcel & Sue Smith

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements including some unsettling images

      Academy Award winners Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks star as the iconic figures P. L. Travers and Walt Disney respectively in the making of one the most beloved Disney classics, Saving Mr. Banks.

      P. L. Travers (Emma Thompson) is widely known for being the author of the literary classic Mary Poppins. For nearly 20 years, Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) had been trying to earn the rights to her book in order to make a film adaptation - a promise he once made to his daughters. It turns out to be rather difficult as the stubborn Travers refuses to have her story turned into what she believes will be people prancing around in another one of Disney's musicals.

      Now after all these years, with no more book royalties coming her way and needing to keep her house, Travers gives in and flies to California for Disney's "last stand" to make one final effort to win over those rights. In doing so, Disney manages to find out the true meaning behind what the story was all about.

      Mary Poppins is considered by many, me included, to be one of the greatest Disney film classics, not only for it's heartwarming story, but also from a technical standpoint it was revolutionary in terms of combining animation with live action film. It also took home five Academy Awards, one of which was Best Actress for Julie Andrews. What many people might not know is how painstakingly difficult it was for Mr. Disney to get the rights from Travers to make Marry Poppins into a movie. The film does take a few liberties with what really happened. The real life Travers actually hated the movie, when it finally came out, so much she made sure no one involved with the film production had anything to do with the stage musical that was made years later. She also claimed to have been mistreated during the production. Of course, this movie is brought to you by Disney, so it's not like they're gonna move away from the opportunity to make this a feel good story in order to tell you the "hard facts". Despite the liberties they do take, I still found this to be an enjoyable experience. Director John Lee Hancock presents us with a beautiful stylized 60's L.A. setting that offers an insightful look at the way film studios often have to bang their head against a wall in dealing with the foot planted stubbornness of the authors, but also takes us back in time to Australia when Travers was a child. It's those latter moments with her father (played by Colin Farrell in one of his best performances), where she would eventually become inspired to create the character of Mary Poppins. I won't spoil the details of what happens during her childhood, but once you see it, you'll realize exactly why Travers was so stubbornly protective of the character she brought to life. Emma Thompson does a superb job as Travers in a performance that very well grant her a Best Actress nomination. No one can play proper, snooty, stubborn with a little dash of humanity better than Thompson. When it comes to Disney, who better than Hanks? Having already moved me earlier this year with his terrific performance in Captain Phillips, Hanks once again shows why he's one of the best, not just of today, not just of the past ten to fifteen years, but of all-time. It's not a full blown caricature impersonation of Disney in any way, but he still manages to embody the nature of Disney both as the lighthearted storyteller the fans knew him as, but also as the shrewd and ruthless businessman he had to be at times to get what he wanted (See if you can spot the map of Florida in his office with Orlando circled). Plus, as the story unfolds you'll come to find he and Travers weren't that different in terms of their upbringings. Along with Thompson and Hanks, we're also treated to a gifted supporting cast that features the likes of underrated character actor Bradley Whitford, Jason Schwartzman, B. J. Novak, Kathy Baker and a wonderful performance from Paul Giamatti as Travers's chauffeur.

      Like I said, it does take some liberties with what may or may not have happened, and there are moments where it clearly wants to play it "feel good" safe. That said, I still thoroughly enjoyed this "making of" film led by two terrific performances from Thompson and Hanks. It's not perfect, but it still offers a entertaining and heartwarming time that the whole family can enjoy this weekend. I give Saving Mr. Banks an A- (★★★½).

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