BY CALLIE WRIGGLESWORTH
Any fan of the classic Disney film, Mary Poppins, will fall in love with Saving Mr. Banks which tells the unique story of how the beloved movie came to be.
Tom Hanks stars as Walt Disney and there couldn’t have been a better actor for the role. Hanks does an excellent job of portraying a happy-go-lucky Disney. The movie is based around the author of Mary Poppins, P.L. Travers, who is played outstandingly by award-winning actress, Emma Thompson.
Disney promised his children that he would turn their favourite book into a film, and for 20 years, fought with Travers for the rights to her story. Travers eventually agrees to travel to Hollywood from her home in London to meet with Disney to discuss making the film.
Travers is an opinionated, outspoken, confident woman who is not afraid to tell anybody how she feels. She appears somewhat cold and hard, having the audience wondering how such a personality could create such a treasured children’s story. She shoots down almost every idea that Disney comes up with from dancing penguins and singing to Mr. Banks having a moustache.
The movie takes you from present day, which was 1961, and flashes back to Traver’s childhood. As the movie progresses, the audience begins to sympathize with Travers and understand her character more.
Saving Mr. Banks allows viewers to experience an array of emotions. Though the movie is based around factual information, it is also very comical and will have you laughing out loud throughout. It brings tears of sadness and tears of joy and springs up memories for older audiences.
Fans of Mary Poppins will catch and appreciate the quirky references to the classic movie that are both subtly and obviously dropped throughout the film. They will also sing along with such favourites as Let’s Go Fly a Kite and A Spoonful of Sugar.
Audiences will find themselves rooting for both Disney and Travers. Although everyone knows Mary Poppins is a musical, there are, of course, dancing penguins and Mr. Banks definitely has a moustache, you can’t help but watch the movie with anticipation right up until the credits.
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