SAVING MR. BANKS – The Review

By Melissa Howland

Originally reviewed: November 13, 2013

Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks shine in Disney’s new feature film SAVING MR. BANKS, a heartwarming tale about the making of the Mary Poppins film.

When Walt Disney and his daughters discovered the book “Mary Poppins” by P. L. Travers, they fell in love. Disney then made a promise to them, that took him 20 years to keep. He would bring Mary Poppins to life. What he didn’t expect was a stubborn writer with no intention of handing over her beloved nanny. When finally convinced to discuss the film, Disney and his team pull out all the stops to impress Travers enough to sign off on the film. What they didn’t bargain for was uncovering some of her ghosts from the past, or where the story of Mary Poppins actually came from.

SAVING MR. BANKS is a magical tale filled with heart. Thompson and Hanks are simply delightful as P.L. Travers and Walt Disney, and they play off of each other incredibly well. Thompson is marvelous as a cold, stern Travers. She does a great job of adding a softer side to her character, which is best displayed in the scenes with her driver Ralph, played by Paul Giamatti. The addition of Ralph to the story (which is admitted to be the only fictitious character in the film) allows the audience a glimpse of an adult Travers as she interacts with someone outside of the Disney madness. It gives her a sense of humanity, and gives the audience a reason to feel a bit more compassion for her, rather than only showing her as an uptight stick in the mud.

As for Hanks, he had the cheerful, wide-eyed characteristics of Disney down pat. His character is not the main focus of this film, so they didn’t dig deep into who Disney really was. Instead, they kept his character development rather shallow, allowing more time for the character of Travers to unfold.

Rounding out the film as Disney’s creative team were animator and co-screenwriter (Bradley Whitford), and songwriters Richard and Robert Sherman (Jason Schwartzman, and B.J. Novak), who aided in the agitation of Travers throughout their brainstorming sessions. These sessions added plenty of comedic relief to the film, and showcased a few unforgettable songs from the Poppins film.

The film looks absolutely stunning, and showcases some of the more beautiful parts of LA, including the palm trees, breathtaking views, and the Beverly Hills Hotel, which oozes old school elegance and class. We also get a glimpse of the Disney Studio grounds, which still look very similar to what they did back then. What really impressed me were the flashback scenes, showing a young Travers and the relationship with her father (played by Colin Farrell). These scenes were beautifully shot, and added a much-needed explanation to the behaviors of P.L. Travers in her adult life.

Overall, the film is heartwarming and enjoyable. Its  mission is to entertain audiences with an interesting tale about the making of a Disney classic. That is exactly what they do. This is a fun story about one of the most beloved movies (and books) in history. Having said all of that, director John Lee Hancock, and writers Kelly Marcel and Sue Smith certainly added a “spoonful of sugar” to make the tale more enjoyable, and a little less truthful. Everything that I have read about the real life Travers has blatantly stated that she was not happy with the film version of her beloved nanny. She felt that they ignored the hard sides of Poppins, she despised the animation in the film, and was not too fond of the music. Overall, she was not pleased.

While I enjoyed the film of SAVING MR. BANKS as a whole, audiences should know that it’s only loosely based on actual events. Go into this film looking for a good time at the movies. If you pick it apart based on the factual way the making of this film really went down, you won’t enjoy it.

OVERALL RATING: 3.75 out of 5 stars

SAVING MR. BANKS is in select theaters now – opens wide on December 20th.