Saving Mr. Banks Review
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I don’t often go to the movies. Not because I don’t enjoy a good movie, but because I can’t sit still and watch them. I truly believe that everyone has some ADD in them, and this is where you see mine. I much prefer watching a movie at home because I can sit and sew as I watch it. I have to really want to see a movie to go see it at the theatre. Months back when I first saw the preview for Saving Mr. Banks I knew that it would be a movie I wanted to see enough to go to the theatre for. It was offically released on December 20, and since Jason wanted to see it too, I figured going to see it would be a great thing to do on our anniversary (December 23).
If you know me, or have read even a few of my blog posts, than you know that I am a huge Walt Disney fan. He ranks very high on my list of people I admire most, so I’m sure you can imagine how excited I was over the idea of seeing a movie that was about him! Yep, I had to see Saving Mr. Banks. Now the question you’re all asking…did I like it? Yes, I did like the movie, but it was different than I expected. I wouldn’t say that it’s a movie that I would want to watch over and over, but I am very glad I saw it, and I would happily watch it again.
Saving Mr. Banks is the story about how Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) came to make the movie Mary Poppins. It took him twenty years to get P.L. Travers (Emma Thompson) to reluctantly agree to let it happen. The story takes place in two different time periods because while it looks at the collaboration that went on for the movie it also looks at the life Travers had as a child and how it shaped her stories about Mary Poppins. It is a story based on both fiction and fact. The writers spent hours going through the Disney archives to get things as accurate as possible, but only Walt Disney and P.L. Travers know what was said during many of their conversations, and since they aren’t saying anything it was up to the writers to come up with the conversations.
I have already heard the word “Oscar” whispered about the film and I think it’s easy to see why. The movie makes you smile, laugh, cry, and think. The acting was absolutely fantastic. I can’t think of anyone better to play Walt than Tom Hanks, and Emma Thompson was superb. P.L. Travers required that all of the work time to be recorded on tape, and during the credits you get to hear a bit of one of the actual recordings. If you stay to listen to the recording you’ll be able to truly see what a wonderful job Thompson did in her portrayal of Travers.
Saving Mr. Banks is rated PG-13, and I agree with the rating. While it might be a movie about the creator of Mickey it really isn’t little kid friendly. You can now finding it playing in all major theatres .
I really want to see this – we are planning a night out in a few weeks and I’m going to push for this as our movie of choice (will hard to be convince the hubby, ha).
I got lucky because Jason wanted to see it too. In fact I first heard about the movie when he told me about it many months ago.
Thanks for the review. This is one of those movies that I really want to see AND at the same time, I’m not sure how much I will like it. You say it was different from what you expected – and I’m just not sure what to expect, so I have been unsure about it.
I’m sure I will watch it – but I think I will probably wait to see it on Netflix since I never seem to get to the movies anymore.
I expected it to be more about the making of the movie than it actually was. It was far more about Traver’s back story and how it shaped things. Truthfully the title is a bit misleading for that. I still really liked it though.
I would like to be at the movies at least 4 to 5 times out of the week. Not only do I hate to miss any current releases; I just like the escape of being in a darkened theater with no distractions for the better part of 2hrs. As a film blogger, I get to go see preview screenings for free! Unfortunately my day job is so far away from where the screenings take place, I have to miss a lot of movies due to time constraints and not wanting to spend a fortune in gas. This is why I missed Saving Mr. Banks. I’m still going to try to see it before the Golden Globes. Really liked your review, but on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being a great movie, sounds like you gave it a 3.
I’m not sure I’d say as low as a 3. Probably more a 4, to maybe a 4.5. I would have liked to see more scenes about the making of the movie (and with Walt Disney), but other than that it was really good.
Thanks for the clarification. Glad it’s better than a 3. Too bad it doesn’t have more making of elements though. I’d be curious about how they managed all those special effects way before we knew anything about CGI.
Now that would be cool to see! I have seen some videos that show a bit about how Walt Disney made the Alice Shorts which was when he first put a person into an animated sequence. That was many years before Mary Poppins though.
Hi! Found you at the SITS girls linkup. I recently saw and reviewed Saving Mr. Banks on my own blog (all Disney all the time). I agree with you – a new movie all about Walt Disney and how he turned his ideas/vision into reality would be awesome. Tom Hanks did a great job, I thought – even though it was just a supporting role for Emma Thompson’s fantastic P. L. Travers!
Happy New Year!
They did an amazing job didn’t they? Of course they’re both fantastic actors, so I’d really expect no less.
A happy New Year to you as well! Thanks for stopping by.
Sounds like a great movie! I also enjoy watching movies in the comfort of my house with our own snacks and kids (more affordable). We will wait until the movie is available to rent on Amazon!
I am the same as you when it comes to movies. I’d rather stay home and watch them from the comfort of my own couch with a blanket, my Labrador, and my own snacks! If it’s not a comedy, I have been known to fall asleep at the theater ( or maybe that’s just ALL the Harry Potter movies my husband dragged me to).
In any case, I happily went to the theater to see Saving Mr. Banks, and while I enjoyed it, I was hoping to learn a little bit more about Walt Disney himself. I would love to see a movie about How Walt created Disneyland and the story of HIS life. Now that I think would be excellent, don’t you agree? Actually, with all the Disney documentaries out there, there just may be one about that. If you know of one, let me know!
And Happy belated Anniversary Elizabeth!
I would love to see more movies about Walt Disney! I have seen quite a few documentaries about Walt’s life. One of my favorites was on the park DVD I got during the 100 years of magic celebration. You’re right that most of them don’t cover much about the creation of Disneyland. Someone needs to get on that!
That’s pretty neat that they use actual recordings.