Cinema: Saving Mr. Banks

Summary
Before Mary Poppins was brought to the Silver Screen and touching the hearts of children everywhere, there was the battle of wills to make it happen. Author P.L. Travers (Emma Thompson) butts heads with Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) in the production and adaptation of her story and characters. When the two reach an impasse, we discover that Travers regards Mary Poppins as more than just a literary character, and that Disney may have been mistaken that Mary Poppins did not come to save the children. She came to save Mr. Banks...
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When I first saw the trailer for Saving Mr. Banks when I watched Frozen back in November 2013, I was immediately curious; based on the "true" story of the troubled production of Mary Poppins? Tom Hanks as Disney? Delving into the psyche of author P.L. Travers? Tom Hanks as Disney? Tom Hanks as Disney? Showing the drama between Disney and Travers? Tom Hanks as Disney? You get the idea.

I admit that I would not put Mary Poppins as my personal favorite (That would be Bedknobs and Broomsticks) live action Disney film. But it's definitely among my top five and for good reason. As a kid I remember the songs, characters and Julie Andrews as Mary Poppins. But I think even then I knew that the movie had a much deeper meaning. I somehow knew that the core character of Mary Poppins was Mr. Banks and that he is the one that Mary Poppins helps. The last time I watched it as an adult was a few years ago, and I appreciated the movie even more for what it was.

With that in mind, like any great movie, it's hard to imagine that it supposedly had a troubled production. Saving Mr. Banks goes into said process. It is basically a dramatization of P.L. Travers butting heads with Walt Disney and the scriptwriting & songwriting over how her story and characters would be adapted onto the big screen. At the same time, the movie also delves into the childhood and troubled past of Travers that directly links to making of Mary Poppins.

Normally I am not one to watch dramas in the cinema. Cinema-going experiences for me are best for animated and action movies. The trailer and the premise really got me interested, so I waited impatiently for the film to arrive with slight expectations. So what did I think of it? I rather liked it. It was a good drama with a strong cast. There were a few issues though.

First, the two main leads. As you can guess from above, I really had my doubts with Tom Hanks as Walt Disney. Tom Hanks is a great actor and all but it just felt pretty surreal and sounded like something out of a comedy sketch show. Fortunately, he managed to pull off both sides of Walt pretty well. Hanks was able to portray Disney's lighter and fun side, a happy and giddy man-child that gave warm smiles and was friendly towards everyone he met. But he also got Disney's "darker side" down pat too. He smoked, he lied, he cheated, he had a subtle hit of greediness, and his determination knew no bounds. All around a great performance that ranks up there with his roles in Castaway, Forrest Gump, and the Toy Story trilogy.

Then there is P.L. Travers, played by Emma Thompson. I have not seen much of Thompson's work, but I heard she is a great actress, and this movie is no exception. Travers in real life was supposedly a very bitter, grouchy and clingy woman. Whether or not the portrayal of Travers in the movie was over-played for the sake of drama, I still felt Thompson did great. She was blunt, forceful, selfish and completely unsympathetic. Yet as we progress through the movie, we get to see her other side and we empathize with her. Thompson was at her best here when she portrayed Travers in every other emotion besides angry. When she was sad, you could just feel she was sad. When she was happy, you were happy too. Without a doubt, she did a great job.

Then we have the supporting cast. The only other two cast members I was familiar with was Colin Farrel (Minority Report) as the father of Travers, and Paul Giamatti (Saving Private Ryan) as Ralph the chauffeur. Both also did good in their roles, and the rest of the supporting cast also gave strong performances. Major kudos goes to the two guys who played the songwriting duo "The Sherman Bros", who originally created the iconic songs of Mary Poppins. The charisma of the two leads and the supporting cast is definitely one of the positives I can give about the film.

The story is where we get a little bit mixed though. The story is divided and juxtaposed with two parts: Travers & Disney with the production of Mary Poppins in the 1960's, and Travers' childhood in the 1910's. Everything in the 1960's was great and perfect, but the 1910's stuff...

This is my problem with the movie. Her (slightly fictionalized) childhood was nice and added to the drama, but it often cut and weaved into the 1960's story when you least expected it. The movie was roughly two hours and fifteen minutes and whenever the story shifted to the 1910's, I found myself getting impatient and wanted the movie to get back to the 1960's and making of Mary Poppins. In other words, they inserted way too many 1910's moments. If they had lessened them slightly I would give it more leeway, but as it stood I felt they could have trimmed it down.

That being said, the ending of the movie does make the scenes all worth it and encapsulates Travers' character. So I guess its not so much the end result, but the process to get there. I also feel that, in order to fully understand and appreciate this movie, you need to have seen Mary Poppins. As seen in the trailer, there are tons of moments in the movie that either directly reference Mary Poppins the movie or are little homages. I actually saw this movie with a friend who had no knowledge of Mary Poppins, and prior to going into the theater I had to explain it. He later admitted that if he didn't know about Mary Poppins, he would have been bored. Perhaps those who seek drama may get a kick out of this movie, but it's certainly not friendly to those who have not seen Mary Poppins.
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Final Thoughts
All in all Saving Mr Banks was an enjoyable movie, bolstered by an incredibly strong cast, great drama, and a good decent half of the story. The other half of the story may be turnoff for those who are more enamored towards the actual making of Mary Poppins instead of Travers' childhood and may get bored by it. Whether or not the ending of the movies makes up for that is entirely up to you. I personally felt it was worth it, and I do not regret seeing it in the theaters.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Trailer Thoughts
Heaven is for Real: Looks like it's based off a book. Nothing much to say. People might enjoy it, but I won't watch it.

Need for Speed: I already watched this movie back when it was called "The Fast and the Furious".

The Amazing Spider-Man 2: I really, REALLY did not care for the first Amazing Spider-Man. This new one looks more interesting I'll give it that, but I'm still not watching. I washed my hands of Spider-Man movies after the trilogy with Tobey McGuire.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier- Massively excited. Liked Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World, so I can't wait to see the continuation of the "Phase 2" Marvel movies.

Muppets Most Wanted: Loved the previous Muppet movie and got huge laughs from that. This new one looks like it will top the previous movie in terms of humor, story and cast. Tina Fey and her accent was hilarious.

Maleficent: They showed the old first trailer, which didn't grab my attention when I first saw it in Frozen. But I'm already set to watch this after seeing the second trailer on Youtube.

COMING NEXT WEEK: Dreamworks' MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN

Cinema: The LEGO Movie

Summary
The protagonist of the movie is Emmet (Chris Pratt of Parks and Recreation), just your everyday, average LEGO figurine who loves being around other people but lacks notable special qualities. When he stumbles across a conspiracy to destroy his world and home, he is forced to become the savior of the universe and unites with other LEGO figurines Wyldstyle (Elizabeth Banks of The Hunger Games series), Vitruvius (Morgan Freeman), and even Batman (Will Arnett of Arrested Development) to foil the schemes of the evil Lord Business (Will Farrel) and his lieutenant Bad Cop (Liam Neeson).
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Ah...LEGO. I think every kid before, in, and after my generation has played with them in one form or another. Whether they played with the actual bricks and figures, watched LEGO cartoons on TV, or played various LEGO video games, those good old construction toys never let us down with their creativity. Of course for me it's been quite a while since I last played any of those, so when they announced a full-length LEGO movie to be released in cinemas, I was puzzled at what they could possibly do with the idea.

I had seen various trailers and didn't know what to make of it. At a glance it looked like a random, silly and stupid movie with jokes, the fun of different licensed LEGO properties being in the same movie, and random moments that don't really connect with anything or make sense. I decided to see it for the heck of it and went in with no expectations.

What I got was something completely unexpected: A really fun, good, and enjoyable movie that had more layers of depth to it than I imagined. At a first glance we've seen this story before; the nothing guy becoming the ultimate hero to save the universe. For me that is the only determent since it's forced to use a plot we've seen tons of times in other stories. But everything else is pretty solid.

First, the setting and the world it takes place in. What sets this apart from other LEGO media with story is the fact that they know its LEGO. They know that this movie is about construction toys and they go all out. It takes place in a city, the Wild West, a medieval kingdom, etc. Practically everything that is not the sky or natural landscapes is completely LEGO. The animals are LEGO, the plants are LEGO, the water is LEGO, even lava is LEGO. It's 99% pure LEGO fantasy and it really sucks you in. It is this factor that really helps the movie and makes the story (at a first glance) unique. They know that it's a silly idea and silly concept and they don't take themselves way too seriously. When the characters are stuck in a situation, they know that they can get out of it; they can make anything out of LEGOs!

A motorcycle out of parts of a building, lampposts, trash cans and discarded wheels? Can do!
A submarine made out of ruined homes? Definitely!
Attaching a wagon wheel to the top of your head so it becomes a makeshift car wheel? Yes!

Secondly, the characters. None of the characters are out of place in the movie. They all play their parts and are completely memorable. Emmet is a positive upbeat guy that's content with being a face in the crowd, but he's willing to his best to save the world. Wyldstyle is your no-nonsense action girl that yearns to be the best. Vitruvius is your usual crazy cooky old wizard, Batman knows he's Batman and enjoyable overplays the character, and other characters like UniKitty, 1980's-something-space-guy, and Metalbeard all have their moments too. The villains too are enjoyable. Lord Business and Bad Cop are great villains but are not overly dark, moody or killjoys. They have their humorous moments too that actually make you sympathize with them.

And of course, being LEGO and having tons of licenses, they have a lot of fun with the characters and go nuts. If you ever wanted a movie with Batman, Gandalf, Milhouse, Michelangelo the painter, Superman, Abraham Lincoln, Han Solo, Speed Racer, Wonder Woman, Dumbledore, Shaq, and Michelangelo the Ninja Turtle, this is it!

Thirdly, the animation. Those who have read my past reviews on my Facebook may know that I usually don't care for animation. I'm not one of those folks that prefer hand-drawn over everything else and whatnot. For me, if it works, it works. And while it worked for me in this movie, I actually found the animation to be one of its strong points. A common misconception is that this movie is stop-motion. It's not, it's CGI, but the way it looks and feels, it might as well be stop-motion. Kudos to the animation department for going the extra mile to make it look like the actual toys are coming to life and movie around, while still have a bit of stiffness to it.

Lastly, the theme. This is where the movie really surprised me and where the major core of the story lies. In the movie, Emmet sacrifices himself to save his friends from death, and throws himself into a void. It is then revealed that the LEGO world, characters, story and himself is actually a vision of a young boy's imagination in real life. This boy is actually playing with his father's (Will Farrel in live action) perfectly made, by-the-numbers LEGO sets, which the father is aghast at. We can clearly see the focal point of the movie and the connection: the plot of Lord Business to superglue the LEGO world together and make everything perfect is an allegory of the real-life-father's desire to keep his LEGO sets untouched and according to set and instructions. The real-life-boy's desire to play with all of them and creatively make something new is exemplified in Emmet, who helps his friends and the LEGO world fight back by creating amazing objects out of ordinary LEGOs and from different sets all around.

The message boils down to what makes LEGOs fun to begin with: The ability to be creative and go beyond the instructions. You can be who you want to be, make whatever you want, create anything because your imagination makes you special. And everyone is special one way or another. The father sees this when his son is acting out the movie's story with various creations made out of different LEGO sets. In the end, the two reconcile and the father sees the error of his ways. It's a nice message that can hit home to both the child and adult viewers, in particular those who have played with LEGO.
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Final Thoughts
Aside from the old cliche of the nobody becoming a somebody, The LEGO Movie is just a really great movie. It's a movie that goes above and beyond a film about toy construction bricks, has a great cast of characters, amazing CGI animation, and has a large and surprising depth and heart to it that most animated movies wish they can have. If you have played with LEGO yourself, this is the movie for you. If you have a child who plays with LEGO, they will enjoy it. It's definitely worth your time and money. My personal cinema experience for 2014 so far is off to a good start.

****/5 STARS

Oh, and one final note. The McDonalds Happy Meal promotion for this movie is to give freaking drinking cups? FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIL!!!!!!!