Friday, December 20, 2013

Saving Mr. Banks

Once again, I'm wowed! (Is that a word?  It is now!) Wowed, wowed, wowed!

My husband and I had the opportunity to see Saving Mr. Banks.

What is Saving Mr. Banks?  Here's the synopsis:

"When Walt Disney’s daughters begged him to make a movie of their favorite book, P.L. Travers’ “Mary Poppins,” he made them a promise—one that he didn’t realize would take 20 years to keep. In his quest to obtain the rights, Walt comes up against a curmudgeonly, uncompromising writer who has absolutely no intention of letting her beloved magical nanny get mauled by the Hollywood machine. But, as the books stop selling and money grows short, Travers reluctantly agrees to go to Los Angeles to hear Disney’s plans for the adaptation.

For those two short weeks in 1961, Walt Disney pulls out all the stops. Armed with imaginative storyboards and chirpy songs from the talented Sherman brothers, Walt launches an all-out onslaught on P.L. Travers, but the prickly author doesn’t budge. He soon begins to watch helplessly as Travers becomes increasingly immovable and the rights begin to move further away from his grasp.

It is only when he reaches into his own childhood that Walt discovers the truth about the ghosts that haunt her, and together they set Mary Poppins free to ultimately make one of the most endearing films in cinematic history."


  Walking in, I had no expectations... I didn't know which way this movie would go. I was pretty sure I would like it, I'm a fan of Disney, but not sure that I'd love it.  Well, I loved it from the first.  It was poignant, it was touching, it was funny, I laughed, I cried!  Really!  I had to sit in the dark for a minute after the movie and compose myself. Ü 

Tom Hanks was amazing as Walt Disney and Emma Thompson should win an Oscar for portraying P.L. Travers.  Her delivery of those withering lines was amazing.  I loved the childhood memories juxtaposed into the current story.  I thoroughly enjoyed the journey as we all found out why Mary Poppins was so important to her and what the story is really about.  You know it's a great movie when the audience applauds after.  We did!

Go see this amazing movie!  I will see it again!  It's one of my new favorites!

Oh yeah, and for all you manly men, my husband thoroughly enjoyed it too!

Disclosure:  I was given the opportunity to see this movie for the purpose of a review.  The opinions are all my own and free of charge!