Although Walt Disney built his company based on the success of his cartoons, his company also produced many live action movies during the fifties and sixties. One of their biggest hits was Mary Poppins, a movie which I also loved watching when I was growing up. Who would not want to have someone in their home who was able to do the things she does? But with every movie, there is also a story about how that movie got made and in the case of Mary Poppins it was a very difficult one. Walt Disney loved the books about the character and had contacted its writer, P. L. Travers, to allow him to turn that book into a movie. She was very protective of the character she had created and refused Disney the rights, because she thought that a film would not do the books justice. For more than 20 years Disney kept trying to convince her he could do it. In Saving Mr. Banks we see that struggle of trying to secure the rights, but also the creation of a classic Disney movie about a magical nanny.
P.L. Travers is played Emma Thompson, who portrays her as a very strict woman who will not budge if she has something on her mind. It is her way or you can basically forget about it, which makes it very hard for Disney (played by Tom Hanks) to make her change her mind. That struggle has been brought to the screen in a great way and as the movie progresses you start to understand her reasoning, why she wants to protect her intellectual property. The reason is that this movie is not only about the making of Mary Poppins, but also about P.L. Travers when she was growing up and the things she went through, which had a big impact on her. Her father (played by Colin Farrell) is a dreamer who does everything for his little girl while also trying to hide some things from her. That storyline interweaves the making of the film which slowly pulls the viewer further into the world of Travers.
Although the two storylines did not seem to relate too much they each added their own flavor to the film. Had it only been about Mary Poppins, the movie would have been a lot weaker. Not that that part of the film is boring, far from it. It is great to hear all the classic Mary Poppins songs and get a (although fictional) look behind the scenes of a family favorite. As a matter of fact this movie made me rewatch Mary Poppins the next day, which is still as magical as I remember.
A thoroughly enjoyable film this one, even if it wasn’t quite the home-run people said it was. Loved Hanks (although he wasn’t in it enough) and what the hell does Thompson have to do to get an Oscar nomination these days?
I was not the hugest fan of Hanks in this one (maybe with his performance in Captain Phillips still lingering, plus the fact I did not get the feeling from seeing him compared to actually seeing Walt Disney, he just did not have that warmth).
Nice review man. Planning on seeing this one in the next few days. Had it in my sights on several occasions but always went and saw something else instead.
Thanks Keith. Will keep an eye out for your review!
I really liked the acting in this one but I thought it was truly too sentimental. A shame because with better direction this could have been much better.
Did not get that feeling of it being too sentimental. They did not constantly bombard the viewer with the background story of her growing up.
If it inspired you to rewatch Mary Poppins then job done I guess! Nice read my friend.
Yeah, it did manage to do that wonderfully. Nice to know that background story and rewatching it.
The film made me purchase “Mary Poppins” the next day.
I loved that they played the actual audio tapes of her consulting sessions with the filmmakers during the end credits.
Though not mentioned much, Paul Giamani’s performance was also very good, and he played-off Emma Thompson very well.
I watched it the next day, so can understand that. It makes me want to check out the documentary about the musical brothers…have not come around to it yet, but will.
Yeah, the audio tapes were cool.
Shame it was such a short role as he is an awesome actor.