What "Saving Mr Banks" attempts to do, then, is find the source of such rich source material. The year is 1963, the author: PL Travers (Emma Thompson), a cold-hearted woman who only agrees to sell the rights to her beloved book on the condition that they do it "her way," meaning: no animation, and no singing. It looks like we're in for a bumpy ride...
Apparently, her books have been plaguing Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) for years, 20 to be exact. He's written her every year, trying to secure the film rights, and Travers ("please, please, Mrs. Travers") has repeatedly denied him.
The marvel of "Saving Mr Banks" is the feeling of the genuine. We see her sit in on the script revision sessions, where she is pitched everything from costumes to song ideas. She insists on tape-recording every session, and only when she feels content will she sign the papers to make Mary Poppins a reality. The fate of the film is in her tightly-clenched fists.
We see Disney, in an iconic performance by Hanks, as a man who clearly knows how to charm his way into a deal. He's Walt Disney, afterall. However, for reasons he can't even begin to grasp, he is unable to win over Mrs. Travers. To her, Poppins will be just another brick in the Disney legacy. For Disney, himself, it's a promise to his children.
Emma Thompson, who I haven't seen in a good performance in a while, is perfect. She is highly unlikeable, but as we get to know her, and her childhood, we begin to see the humanity in her absurd reasonings (she will not have pears present in her hotel, and there can be absolutely NO color red in the picture. Period). It's a marvelous role, simple, taught, and expertly acted. I would be surprised if this Oscar-winner did NOT receive an Academy nomination this year.
Same for Hanks, who at times is indistinguishable from the real Disney we know from video clips and photographs. He is a businessman, yes, he smokes, he flirts, but in the end, he is still a father trying to fulfill his own dreams, perfectly summed up in a scene between he and Travers in which we hear about Disney's childhood in rural Missouri.
The film is not without flaws, and for me, we are trudgened with extended flashbacks to Travers' childhood in Australia. Her father, a drunk, and her mother, a seemingly unhappy woman who begins to lose grip of her own home. Yes, I know we are trying to figure out why Travers is such an unhappy woman, but the awkward transitions between past and present are more jarring than anything. Of course, being produced by Disney, the film at times feels self-congratulatory, and we wonder what PL Travers would think of the adaptation of her own story to the big screen... Perhaps she would find that Disney, once again, white washes everything under a blanket of fairy dust and happy endings.
We are treated to a fabulous score by Thomas Newman (always an Oscar nominee....) and the set pieces are truly fantastic (both in Australia, London, and Los Angeles). Truly though, the strength of this film is in the two leading performances. John Lee Handcock (director of "The Blind Side" fame) is not necessarily a director one would call 'subtle,' but he manages to yield some great film moments. Perhaps they made the film simply to boost "Mary Poppins" sales on its 50th anniversary, or perhaps the story behind such a marvelous film was too good to pass up. In no way does "Saving Mr Banks" surpass its subject film, but it is still a well-rounded and entertaining movie, nonetheless.
(Awards potential: Best Actress (Thompson), Best Supporting Actor (Hanks), Best Costume Design, Best Art Direction, Best Original Score)
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