Saving Mr. Banks

 

Release Date: December 13, 2013

Watch Date: April 17 - April 19, 2023

"Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson bring to life the untold story about the origins of one of the most treasured Disney classic of all time, revealing the surprising backstory behind the making of Mary Poppins. Determined to fulfill a promise to his daughters, Walt Disney (Hanks) tries for 20 years to obtain the rights to author P.L. Travers' (Thompson) beloved book. Armed with his iconic creative vision, Walt pulls out all the stops, but the uncompromising Travers won't budge. Only when he reaches into his own complicated childhood does Walt discover the truth about the ghosts that haunt Travers, and together they set 'Mary Poppins' free."

    There's something magical about a moment in the past being captured in a beautiful way. It makes you look past the obvious moments of dramatization or inaccuracies, and let's you believe there might just be meaning and a message to your own life and your own difficulties.

    This movie, on it's surface, is capturing a moment in time. Classic Walt Disney, in his prime, trying to get one of his most famous films made, and the stubborn author who made it difficult. Walt is the hero. If you're a fan of Disney, which we clearly are, it can give you the warm fuzzies, make you long for yesteryear and a chance to see Walt strolling through Disneyland during your visit.

    At it's core, though, this movie is about coming to terms with your idolized parent. Seeing the flaws, and then accepting the moments that made you happy. To some degree it is a process every human will have to go through and it is depicted here beautifully.

    This was an extremely difficult watch for Bob, and I have never seen him react so viscerally to a character before. Through complete happenstance, we finished watching this film on the anniversary of his father's death. Not fantastic timing on our part. Also not great when the film is portraying the downward slide of an alcoholic father, an experience Bob knows all too well, unfortunately. 

    Knowing someone loved you, wanted the best for you, but couldn't care for themselves is a hard experience at the best of times. Watching the experience reflected back to you in a film while you grieve that same person's death?

    We had to pause this movie several times.

    But for possibly the first time in a long time, possibly ever, it enabled Bob to talk about his experiences, his childhood. To process it. He shared things with me that he never had before. That's the power of film, especially a good one, there's magic in it. Movies are more than entertainment. Movies can be emotionally cathartic experiences.

    I highly doubt that Bob will ever be willing to watch this movie again, but that doesn't make it a bad movie. Quite the opposite, it had such a deep and lasting effect on him that it would be like reopening a wound, one that he is not sure he'd ever like prod at again.

    So, if you want to watch an emotional movie, if you want to be transported back to the 'Walt' era of Disney, hell if you just want to walk through Disneyland with the man himself, then this is the film for you.