Saving Mr. Banks Rated: PG-13

Cat Says:

We've said it before here, we are a "Disney" family. I was born just a hop and skip from Disneyland and we've seen every Disney movie ever made. So I was really looking forward to seeing this one about the making of Mary Poppins. 

The trailers are a bit misleading, making you think that the movie is about Walt Disney but, in fact, this movie is about P.L. Travers who wrote the book Mary Poppins and the collaboration between her and the team who created the movie. Walt had a lot to do with that and Tom Hanks does a wonderful job with his portrayal but you see Emma Thompson and her amazing job of acting the role of P.L. (Pamela) Travers so much more. You see where the story of Mary Poppins came from, her childhood told in flashbacks as she struggles to "let go" of her precious Mary Poppins for the Disney treatment. The journey changes her life and you feel that change.

In the flashbacks you get to meet her father, played to perfection by Colin Farrell, her mother, played by Ruth Wilson to heartbreaking perfection as well as Annie Rose Buckley as her as a child. The story is a hard one which is what makes this movie more for older teens and adults than the little ones. This is a "Disney" film but not a cute happy fairytale. 

There are many laughs, mainly brought on by the team of Don DaGradi, played by Bradly Whitford, who was the screenwriter for the film as well as the songwriting duo powerhouse of Robert and Richard Sherman, played here by B.J. Novak and Jason Schwartzman bouncing off of the very staunch and proper P.L. and it is in those scenes where the magic truly is made.

The one role here that took my breath away was the one of the chauffeur, Ralph, played with such sincerity, warmth, love and humor by Paul Giamatti you will wish you could hug him yourself. He is P.L.'s driver the entire time she is in Los Angeles and these scenes are some of the most touching and heartfelt of the film.

I won't give away the ending except to say that it ends very well indeed and you will want to have a kleenex at hand for it. If I could give an 11 for a film I would. Instead I just give it the full 10 and urge you to get yourself to a theater to see it as soon as you can. It's a no miss event!

Tory Says:

I had no idea that there was a whole story behind Disney’s Mary Poppins film. Imagine my surprise when I first saw the preview for “Saving Mr. Banks.” I thought that due to the previews, it would be about Walt Disney trying to save his Mary Poppins movie by getting P.L. Travers to sign over the rights…in which case he would “Save Mr. Banks.” Wow…was I ever wrong and in a wonderful way!

This film for one thing, is not really about Walt Disney. It is almost entirely about P.L. Travers, her fear of letting go of the rights to Mary Poppins and what this character meant to her. It is an AMAZING story. I can’t stress enough how much people should watch this movie. Emma Thompson is a phenomenal actress but this one for me, really proves it. She has so much range!! Don’t get me wrong, Tom Hanks is wonderful as Walt Disney. He really nailed this performance but Thompson honestly outshines him.

For me, Paul Giamatti as her chauffeur driver for the week she is in LA, is my favorite character. He starts off as just this charismatic, funny driver but has a heart of gold and an entire back story. The relationship between them is wonderful…truly wonderful.

I dare you not to cry (or at least tear up) during this film. There are so many personal touches and moments in it, that you feel you really get to know the people being portrayed. You really understand why Mary Poppins was more than just a character to her and why it was so hard for her to let her “go”.

I don’t think children will enjoy this film because it has a lot of dialogue and situations only adults will understand. The humor is there but nothing goofy or silly for the most part. I don’t feel they would “get” the dry English humor. I’m about to be 30 and I think even 10 years ago I would have found this a bit boring…only because I didn’t fully know how to appreciate the “lesson” in this film. So I would say at least 17 and over. There is nothing crude or offensive just a lot of dialogue. I hate how it was marketed as a movie for the whole family…because it isn’t. Mary Poppins is but not this one. Still I give it an 8.5 out of 10.  A wonderful film that I hope is nominated and wins many awards this season!

Barbara Says:

How many wonderful things can I say about the movie ``Saving Mr. Banks''? Tom Hanks does his usual great job of acting and Emma Thompson is super as always. Colin Farrell was very good as the father who left such love and guilt in his daughters life that it took a film to open her eyes to it.  She fought Walt every step of the way on the making of Mary Poppins because of that guilt. Only when he came to see why she reacted as she did and said so to her did things change. Because he told her his story of childhood. Every bit as terrible as hers but he still loved his father anyway..as did she love her father even though he drank too much and could not hold a job. The acting in this film is top notch by all and should be put up at the awards. Too often though lesser films get the notice and these wonderful movies are over looked.  This is a movie for adults above 16 years though, as a great deal of it is about human relations. Just because it was about the book Mary Poppins does not make it a film for children.  There were two 7-10 year olds just down from us and they were restless not more than an hour into the film. So leave the kids with Gramma or sitter and take an evening for yourselves and enjoy a very good movie.  It is most definitely a 10.