Saturday 28 December 2013

Saving Mr Banks - Phil's Five Words for Films

Saving Mr Banks Nothing wonderful ever comes easily and certainly not when you are trying to create a classic Disney film. Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks are both brilliant as they wrestle and haggle over the storytelling rights and the creative process involved in the making of 'Mary Poppins'. Thompson plays P.L Travers, the creator of the practically perfect nanny and she nails the part, giving the writer just enough warmth to balance her cynical hard edge. Tom Hanks plays Walt Disney, dogged in his pursuit of the permission to make the movie his way. The two meet in L.A in 1961 to discuss the production and Travers' remains unmoved and opposed to the Disney-fication of her characters. The music, which almost burst from the screen, is also a major part of the film, Jason Schwartzman and Ben Novak deserving accolade for their performances as the song writers for the 'Mary Poppins' film. Colin Farrell also appears in flashbacks to P.L Travers' childhood, playing her troubled father and a lot of the character development and exposition is done during these scenes, giving depth to the story. Paul Giamatti deserves a mention too for his role as the Disney driver employed to drive the writer around L.A. They strike up a strange but touching relationship. The film is nicely balanced, storytelling and sentimentality judged to Disney perfection and with so many strong performances on offer, the film flows beautifully. If you get any enjoyment at all from the brilliant 1964 Disney classic, then you will find plenty to love in this film about its creation. In my book, a contender for various category Oscar nominations especially for screenplay and music.

8.5 out of 10.
Cert PG (uk)
2013

1 comment:

  1. Good review Phil. There were many of times during this movie where it felt like it was going to get overly sentimental and cheesy, but somehow, the movie kept its head up and had me tearing up by the end. And reasonably, too. With no cheap-shots added into the mix.

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