Category Archives: Doc’s Movie Reviews

Bad Boys

Posted on by

Related image

Sick day.

I thought this would give me the opportunity to watch Bad Boys and Bad Boys II, preparing for Bad Boys for Life this weekend.  I had never seen either of these Michael Bay movies and I figured I needed to see them for the third film.

However, I am not sure that I can watch the second film because I am sick enough.

This was just stupid.  The story was ridiculous.  People do not talk like this.  It is loud, dumb and filled with Bay-isms.

I could not believe how much I hated this film.

Will Smith was good in this limited role.  Martin Lawrence was loud, obnoxious and clearly an influence on Kevin Hart because I have seen him play roles just like this.  Whatever positive could be said about this movie would be found in the chemistry between Smith and Lawrence, but a little of it went way too far.

What was the story?  It had to do with heroin.  Tea Leoni was here too for some reason.

The film was homophobic, misogynistic, violent all blended together.  I really disliked Bad Boys.  It makes me wonder if I should watch Bad Boys II or Bad Boys for Life.

stale

Related image

Just Mercy (2019)

Posted on by

Image result for just mercy poster

Here is the second 2019 film that was given its wide release in 2020. meaning that I had a chance to see it for the first time.

Just Mercy is the true story of Bryan Stevenson (Michael B. Jordan), a Harvard educated lawyer, who moves to Alabama to start up a group to try and provide justice for people convicted and awaiting execution on death row.  He met up with Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx), a man convicted of a brutal murder that he did not commit, but was railroaded onto death row because he was black and because the community needed someone to pay for the crime.

It is astounding that injustices like this case can go on in America and it truly highlights the issues we have in our judicial system when it comes to race.  How a man could wind up on death row with such a flimsy case against him is shocking and should be something that we all are ashamed of as Americans.  Because the case was so thin, the drama provided in this movie is top notch.  There is a sequence involving an electric chair execution that is just painful to watch.

Jamie Foxx is tremendous in his role.  He goes through the full ringer and the acting in the third act of the movie is some of the best I have seen from him in any movie.  Michael B. Jordan is solid as Bryan, but he is not at the same level in this movie as Foxx.  The secondary characters are well acted and provide a lot of balance for the film.  Brie Larson is good as Bryan’s aid/associate.

This is a performance heavy film, though there are strong moments throughout as well, including the aforementioned execution scene.  There are a couple of scenes where Bryan faces racially motivated situations that show how racism is embedded within our culture.  The fact that this was going on in the town where Harper Lee based her “To Kill A Mockingbird” and people kept referring to the museum dedicated to that book is one of the most ironic aspects of the film.

Just Mercy was better than I thought it would be, as I had heard some middling reviews of it.  Every review stated how good Jamie Foxx was in his role, and I agree completely.  The film ended with a statistic that for every 9 executions in this country there is one person released from death row who was falsely convicted.  That is a devastating stat and makes one wonder about the effectiveness of the death penalty.

4 stars 

Underwater

Posted on by

Image result for Underwater poster

For me, January 2020 is currently 0-2 so far.

The second movie I have seen in 2020 that was actually first released in 2020 (not counting 1917 or Just Mercy) was Underwater, a sci-fi/horror thriller film that takes place at the bottom of the ocean inside a subterranean laboratory.

At first, the crew believes that the lab is devastated by an earthquake, but, as it is crumbling around them, they realize that it is much more than an earthquake that they will need to survive.

While there is some tension involved, there are way more problems here than there are positives.

The biggest issue is that there were no characters with any depth to them (pardon the pun) at all.  The characters are as follows:  Kristen Stewart, the Captain, T.J. Miller, the black guy, the bearded guy and the other girl.  Their attempts at characterization included “you have a daughter” and the fact that bearded guy and other girl were a couple.  T.J. Miller carried around a stuffed animal and did his T.J. Miller shtick and that was about all.  Honestly, it became a joke to me as I was watching, using these names for the characters as they went along.

Kristen Stewart was fine and there was a spot near the end where she proved herself to be queen bad ass.  Stewart was easily the best part of the movie and she continues to distance herself from Bella Swan with every choice.

The setting was a total mystery because they spent almost zero time setting up the location.  I had no idea where we were at any point and it bugged me that this could have been a very frightening situation with a touch of world building.

Things were hard to see throughout and there were problems with the science of the whole thing.  The logic was way off (other girl apparently had never been in one of the diving suits despite working at the bottom of the ocean.  That seems as if it is a bit of a job requirement).

There were some interesting sequences of tension, but, since I did not know anything about any of these people (you’ve got a daughter!), I had a hard time caring at all.

I did think the ending was decent as they wisely focused on the main character, Kristen Stewart.  She was the one whom we had the most to connect to and she pulled off that epic bad ass moment just recently.

In the end, this is better than the last 2020 horror movie (The Grudge), but not by a ton.  Skip this and go see 1917.

1.75 stars 

 

1917 (2019)

Posted on by

Image result for 1917 poster

Every year there are a handful of movies that are released in 2019, but are not released wide enough for me to see until 2020.  I place those films on their own special list at the Year in Review in December.  I think I have found the film that will be at number one on that list.

1917 is a masterpiece.

Absolutely 100% brilliant from the start to the finish.  Director Sam Mendes (Skyfall, Road to Perdition, American Beauty) has created a film that is powerful, poignant, emotional and gorgeous (as well as sadly dour at times).

Two young British soldiers (Dean-Charles Chapman, George MacKay) are sent on a mission during World War I behind enemy lines to try and prevent other troops from being led into a German trap.

That’s all I’m telling you about the story.  It is such a wondrous film that you want to go in with as little prior knowledge as you can to really appreciate what the actors and the production team was able to accomplish.

Both Chapman and MacKay do outstanding jobs as the two young soldiers, determined to struggle to get the message through.  We learn about these characters through their dialogue and actions, amazingly showing us who these two men are without telling us in needless exposition.

The imagery of the war was breathtaking.  There are so many horrific images around here that there can be no mistaking the terrible price of war.  The entire trip is filled with tension and creates a distinct feeling of anxiety in the audience that you are never sure what is going to happen.

The story is simple, but the simplicity of the story is what made this so amazing.  It did not require plot twists and surprises because what they have is so powerful on its own.  Gigantic stakes in both emotion and physical.

Recently inducted EYG Hall of Famer Roger Deakins is utterly perfection in his cinematography in this film.  The shots are totally brilliant and tell the story in such an unbelievable way.

The one thing that I found a bit shaky was the whole “one-shot” technique that the movie was filmed in because early on in the film, I was looking for the places that were where the filmmakers would have the cuts.  That was a little distracting at times early and felt a tad gimmicky.  However, those feelings disappeared as we continued on into the movie and that technique helped create a distinct audience feeling that we were right there with the actors.  So while at first I was distracted, I get used to it and it really helps the storytelling.

1917 is a master class in technical film making.  It is also completely thrilling, emotionally compelling and beautifully shot movie that really should be seen at the theater.  It was one of the best movies released in 2019.  Now that it is released wide in 2020, do yourself a favor and go see this masterpiece.

5 stars

The Rescuers Down Under (1990)

Posted on by

Image result for The Rescuers down under

Following up the first Rescuers film that I watched the other day, this was the one I was looking forward to more.

I do not think I ever saw this one despite a definite pull for me.  Tristan Rogers voiced the kangaroo rat, Jake, and Rogers was one of my favorite people at the time.  He starred on General Hospital as Robert Scorpio and I loved him.  So hearing that he was voicing a character in the Disney film should have made me excited, but watching it today, there was nothing that I remembered.

Young Australian boy Cody (Adam Ryen) frees a golden eagle from a poacher’s trap, bonding with the bird in the process, but he winds up being snatched by the poacher (George C. Scott) in an attempt to get the location of the eagle’s nest.  Word heads out and eventually reaches the Rescuers in New York.

Bernard (Bob Newhart) is preparing to pop the question to his partner and love Miss Bianca (Eva Gabor) when they get the cry for help.  Chartering a flight on Albatross Airlines, new pilot Wilbur (John Candy) got the pair to Australia where they meet up with guide Jake (Tristan Rogers).  The trio of mice ventured into the Outback to try and rescue the boy.

I found this charming and fun.  A couple of the story arcs felt unnecessary, but I enjoyed the main story.  The voice work is strong.  The animation is the typically good style Disney films use.

There is a scene where Cody winds up with a bunch of animals in cages captured by the poacher, but they never returned to them.  My first thought at the end of the movie was “What about the other animals?  Are they gonna starve to death in those cages?”

Despite that plot hole, The Rescuers Down Under continued its strategy of simple storytelling and heroic action.  It is a wonderful family film that I think I like a little bit more than the original, though there may be a bias involved with Tristan Rogers involved.  I still enjoyed myself.

classic

Image result for The Rescuers down under

The Grudge (2020)

Posted on by

Image result for the grudge 2020 movie poster

Well it is January.

And it seems as if the first movie of the year is always a horror movie.

January is the month where, typically, movie companies dump the films that are not very good because they just want them to get out there and get done with their runs.  Most of the time, that makes January movies bad.

That is not always the case, of course.  There is a few gems in the month too, but I did not expect one of those when going to see the new version f The Grudge.  Unfortunately, the January movie expectation was fulfilled once again.  The Grudge was terrible.

The film seems to be focusing on Detective Muldoon (Andrea Riseborough), who was one of the detectives investigating the latest murder in a specific house.  It is a house where there seems to have been several cases of murder over the years.

Muldoon’s partner, Goodman (Demián Bichir), had worked a case at the house before, but he tried his best to avoid it because of feelings he had.

As the film moved along, we find out more about the other murders that took place in the house, and we find out that anyone who enters the house gets haunted and eventually kills family members and dies.  Then we go about seeing all of these stories.

There are literally at least three stories from different time lines (maybe four) going on at the same time.  The years flash large and loud on the screen when they first start flipping through time, but trying to tell these different stories was a mistake.  One, there wasn’t enough time to go into any specific details of any of these characters so they simply become one-note characters and two, we know they are dead so there is little to no tension.

It becomes confusing and truly just drops the plot.

Every horror trope/cliche is active in this movie, especially the jump scare.  While some jump scares are fine, this film has more jump scares than any film I have seen in a long while and drives them into the ground.  Plus, the movie is just not that scary.  Even with the jump scares, there is no fear involved.  The jump scares are telegraphed so much that it is painfully apparent when each one is going to happen.

The one good thing about all the jump scares is that it kept me awake.  The film was so boring that I found myself ready to doze off, but every time I got close, there was a loud jump scare to bring me out of the daze.

The acting was about as good as you could expect considering the story that was presented to them.  Lin Shaye (from Insidious) played her role to the hilt, but there was not much character to it.  Jacki Weaver was interesting too, but she suffered from the same issues.

There was nothing in this movie that we hadn’t seen before and better.  The first movie of 2020 certainly only gives the rest of the year’s films nowhere to go but up.

January strikes again.

1 star

The Rescuers (1977)

Posted on by

Image result for the rescuers poster

A film that I have not seen since I was very little happened to be on Disney + and was one of the films that I was looking forward to revisiting on the streaming service.

Honestly, there was not a lot of The Rescuers that I remember.  It has been around 40 years since I saw this (if I actually saw it at all).

Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor voiced the main characters Bernard and Miss Bianca, two mice from the Rescue Aid Society, who responded to a help note in a bottle of a little girl named Penny (Michelle Stacy) who had been kidnapped from out of the orphanage she lived in.  The girl had been taken by the villainous Madame Medusa (Geraldine Page) and her companion Mr. Snoops (Joe Flynn) to force her to find the diamond that Madame Medusa has been searching for for years.

The story of The Rescuers is pretty simple.  There were things that I thought could have been developed more, such as the fact that Bernard was just a janitor and not an actual agent, but that fact did not seem to ever really come up in any significant manner.  There are plenty of examples like this scattered throughout The Rescuers.  Truthfully, these potential plot points would have cluttered this up too much.

The fact is this is a simple good vs. evil story, with one of the more cruel villains in Madame Medusa.  The design of the character in the animation reminded me quite a bit of Carol Burnett’s portrayal of Miss Hannigan from the Annie movie.

There was a very intense chase scene with a mosquito being chased by a bunch of bats that was excellent, which was something that I never thought I would type.

The music was nice, but not memorable. There are some scenes and moments that were pretty dark for a Disney film.  Especially the healing power of moonshine alcohol.

There are plenty of recognizable voices throughout the film as well. I heard George Lindsey (Andy Griffith Show), Pat Buttram (Mr. Haney from Green Acres), Bernard Fox (Dr. Bombay), John Fielder (Piglet) and John McIntire (Sheriff from Psycho).  The voices worked well.

The Rescuers was a quick watch and was a fun animated movie.  It is not a very deep story, but as a light and fluffy film, it is pretty good.  There are some scary scenes, but they help create tension for the viewer.

funtime

Image result for the rescuers poster

I Am Mother

Posted on by

Image result for I Am Mother poster

The second science fiction movie that I had picked out for my research to see more of them for 2019 was called I Am Mother, which was found on Netflix.  Released on Netflix June 7th, I Am Mother stars Rose Byrne, Clara Rugaard and Hilary Swank.

In an opportunity to attempt to repopulate a futuristic earth, a robot raises a daughter.  They create a family bond together and the robot helped to instruct the girl to be a productive human.

That is, until an unexpected guest arrives, another human, injured with a whole different story of what was happening outside.

I mean… why do we ever trust robots?

It seems like they are always a trouble.

The film played on the uncertainty of what was happening and who was telling the truth to Daughter.  A good chunk of the film played with what you were supposed to believe.

The young Danish actress, Clara Rugaard, feels like a star in the making.  She was really exceptional with the different tones and emotions in her performances.  Rose Byrne did the voice of Mother and she was great, too.

So far we are two for two in the “I must see more Sci-Fi films” watch.  This will certainly help the Best of the Year list.

4 stars

Freaks (2019)

Posted on by

Image result for freaks movie poster 2019

As I was working on the lists of best and worst for 2019, I came across the sci-fi films and I realized that there were just not very many that I had written down.  So I did some research to see if there were any science fiction films that I could stream to help fill out the lists.

In the research, I found a listing of the best and the worst sci-fi movies from Rotten Tomatoes and there were several high rated sci-fi films that I had not seen.  One of them was a movie called Freaks, which I had seen on Vudu.  So I went there to give it a watch.

It was excellent.

After being locked inside her house for seven years by her father (Emile Hirsch), Chloe (Lexy Kolker) starts to sneak outside despite the warnings that if she leaves the house, she would be in danger.  Outside, she meets a man claiming to be her grandfather (Bruce Dern) who has some differing stories than her father had.

The world is one where people called “Abnormals” or Freaks by the general public, are people with extra abilities who are hunted and exterminated by the government because of the threat they present.

The film started slowly, in almost a dreamlike state, because it took a while to get things moving, but once it gets going, it goes hard.  The action was intense and the stakes are very high.  I did not know how the film was going to take these characters or exactly what was happening, and I like feeling that way during a movie.

The performances in the film were very well done too.  Bruce Dern never gives a bad performance and this is no exception.  The other actors I did not recognize but they all did a stellar job in their roles.

The story is absolutely tense and dark. The world is not a friendly place for the Abnormals.  The uncertainty of the entire situation is only added to because the adults involved are keeping truths from Chloe, and from us as well.

This felt like a dark X-Men future that you might see in a What If scenario or an alternate future.  It is very well done and the movie was very engaging.  I am glad I took the time to watch it.

4.1 stars 

Uncut Gems

Posted on by

Image result for uncut gems poster

I hate Adam Sandler movies.

It has been so long since I have liked an Adam Sandler movie.  They are not funny and he does the same shtick in every one.  He has zero range and little to no skill.

Now, I am going to have to revise that thought.

Adam Sandler starred in Uncut Gem, an A24 film, where he plays a New York City jeweler who is out trying to make the big haul and get out from under his money problems.  And Sandler is absolutely spectacular in this role.

Of course, this is not a comedy where he tries to force in poop, drug and vomit jokes as if he were 12-years old.  This is a raw, nuanced performance of a man desperate to right his life but constantly getting in deeper.

Yes, he is more foul mouthed than ever before, and the character he plays, Howard Ratner, is extremely unlikable, but you understand his desperation and I even got to a point that I was connecting with him.  So many things go wrong to him that you can understand his frustrations.  I have to say, the swearing was something that I had to get past, and that is not even something that normally bothers me.  Not only that but everyone seemed to be talking (or yelling) over each other and that was tough to watch, but once I adjusted to it, I started to enjoy this movie.

Howard gets his hand on a rock that contained colored gems and he knew this was his chance.  Unfortunately for Howard, there are several problems that continue to pop up preventing him from taking advantage of his windfall.

There is a gritty feel to the film and you are constantly filled with anxiety about what is going to happen next.  Howard is on his toes, just barely getting through to the next situation that you never have the chance to take a deep breath.

If Adam Sandler continues to give performances like this, perhaps I might have to reconsider my opinion on him.

4 stars

 

Little Women (2019)

Posted on by

Related image

Louisa May Alcott wrote one of the most beloved novels in American literature and it seems as if Hollywood wants to keep making it into a movie.  Greta Gerwig is the third director to put Little Women on the big screen and she does a excellent job in the translation.

Much of the success of this movie would need to be the excellent ensemble cast put together by Gerwig.  Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, Florence Pugh and Eliza Scanlen play Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth March respectively.  Throw in Timothée Chalamet, Bob Odenkirk, James Norton, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper and Laura Dern and you have quite the acting entourage.

The film follows the lives of the four March sisters as they grow into adulthood and deal with the trials and tribulations of life during the aftermath of the Civil War in America.  The story was told in a non-sequential order, jumping around in time.  There were a few times where I thought that type of storytelling did not work as well as a more typical storytelling technique, but most of the time it was fine.

Saoirse Ronan delivered perhaps the standout performance of the film with her portrayal of Jo March, the feisty, non-conventional writer who did not believe she would ever marry.  Ronan delivered the quirkiness of the character beautifully.  Florence Pugh, who has had a great year with Fighting with my Family and Midsommar, was able to bring layers to the bratty Amy, showing how she grew from a little child into a strong woman.

The film does seem too sweet at times.  There could have been more conflict shown which could have deepened the characters even more.  However, I certainly believed that these four sisters were connected and loved one another.

Greta Gerwig have some wonderful shots in the film and does a fine job bringing the classic tale to life in a lively way.  The performances elevates the film even more.  I had never read the book nor seen the other versions (though I did know a couple of plot points just because they are well known) but I still enjoyed what I saw.

3.8 stars

 

Spies in Disguise

Posted on by

Spies in Disguise Movie Poster

How can you go wrong with Will Smith and Tom Holland together in an animated movie?  That’s right… you can’t.

I enjoyed the new animated movie from Blue Sky called Spies in Disguise which takes super spy Lance Sterling (Will Smith) and accidentally turns him into a pigeon.  Walter Beckett (Tom Holland), a genius-level Q-type of character has been designing non-lethal ways to carry out their job and winds up involved up to his neck when he goes along with newly-pigeon Lance on a mission to stop the villainous villain with a robot hand (Ben Mendelsohn).

While the story here is predictable, I did admire the message of trying to do this job in a better way, a way that respects life and understands that life is precious.  The gadgets that Walter invents are cute and creative, bringing laughs to the film.

The best part of the movie is definitely the voice acting as Will Smith and Tom Holland are tremendous, both together and separate. There is a clear connection between the two characters that help make this movie more than what is looks to be on paper.  This is a good example of talented actors elevating the material above what it should be at. They bring some solid character moments into the story that were welcome.

The animation is bright and colorful, always engaging to watch.  The set pieces were excellent and various.

The level of animated movies this year has not reached the quality of past years, but Spies in Disguise is a solid, if not spectacular addition to the list and should fly near the top of the list for 2019.

4 stars

Head Count

Posted on by

Head Count Movie Poster

During Collider Movie Talk this morning, Perri Nemeroff suggested that her “Best Hidden Gem” of 2019 was Head Count.  It was a horror film that no one else on the panel had seen and that she said was on Netflix.  So I added it to my list on the streaming service for later viewing.

That viewing turned out to be this afternoon and I found the film to be a decent horror film with some clever tricks on the tropes of the genre.

Evan (Isaac Jay) was visiting his brother but instead ditches him for a group of students for a weekend of drinking and drug use.  Unfortunately, a round of telling scary stories lead to Evan accidentally summoning a creature by saying its name five times.  The creature tormented these kids without their knowledge for much of the time they were together.

While the story itself was nothing too original, I did like the way the story progressed and how the film takes its time with some of the main characters.  It avoids much of the gore scare in favor for more of a psychological fright.  The creature was a shapeshifter and played with the heads of these characters to get them paranoid and anxious.

The drugs are an easy excuse for the odd things happening and, before they realize what has happened, the creature had hidden within the group in plain sight.

Elle Callahan directed the movie, her feature film debut, and does a very good job.  The film feels as if it is a small story, but never feels cheap, as some horror movies do.

The ensemble actors do an admirable job despite not having anyone that I recognized.  None of them feel as if they standout in a negative way, which,a gain, is something that some low budget horror films have happen.

The film builds to a frightening finale that leaves a lot of questions in the air.

The movie was fine and I liked watching it.  Horror fans would most likely enjoy the film, but those who are not into this genre would most likely not be changed over by Head Count.

3.2 stars

I See You (2019)

Posted on by

Image result for I See You movie poster

I was perusing the choices on Vudu this morning looking for an interesting film to fill Christmas morning.  I like the opportunity the streaming site gives me to see some films that are in theaters right now, but are extremely limited in their releases.

I came across one listed as I See You with Helen Hunt on the poster.  The synopsis was intriguing and so I clicked on the trailer, which was available on the site.  It wasn’t half way through the trailer and I turned it off and ordered the film.

Watching this movie was quite a trip.  I loved it, but it was really an experience.

I have said before that I tend to be a difficult person to fool in a movie and those that fail to do so, when trying, usually end up in my dislike column.  I See You succeeds in this area better than any movie since The Sixth Sense.  I never saw any of this coming.

A local police detective Greg Harper (Jon Tenney) is assigned a case of an abducted child, a case that has eerie similarities to a previous case solved from years before.  Meanwhile, Harper is having troubles with his family. His wife Jackie (Helen Hunt) has had an affair.  His son Connor (Judah Lewis) is having issues with his anger over the situation.  Strange things begin happening in their home that hint at something more than human is going on.

Then, it switches gears… and I’m like…”Oh..hey?  What?”

The story goes in a completely different way and then, suddenly, once again swerves, catching you completely unaware.

Every time I thought that I had everything sussed out, the film threw me for a loop.

It was an amazing ride.

The tension created as this movie progressed was real and powerful, aided in the fact that I was not sure what type of movie I was seeing.  The creepiness factor was off the charts.  You weren’t sure what was happening and yet, it all fit together in a very satisfying way.  The director, Adam Randall, doesn’t have much on his IMDB page (iBoy and Level Up, neither of which I had heard), but I was very impressed with the way he played with perspective in this movie and how he created a different feel for scenes that we had seen before.

The tropes of the horror/thriller genre gets a workout here too as they are tossed around and subverted in many ways. Just when you think that you know what you are seeing, something weird happens.

The only spot that I did not love was the very end (which of course I will not spoil), but there is a coincidence that was hard to buy.  Other than that, I thought the writing of this was just tremendous.  It was written by Devon Graye, an actor who does not have any other writing credits on IMDB besides this one.  If this is his debut, I am really looking forward to what he will do next.

I found this to be completely engaging, totally unexpected and thoroughly surprising.  Worth every penny it cost to stream it.

4.6 stars 

Saving Mr. Banks (2013)

Posted on by

Image result for saving mr banks

The last couple of years, I have had a tradition with my mom to watch a movie on Christmas Eve.  Last year we went to the theater and saw Mary Poppins Returns, but this year there was just not much that I thought she would enjoy at the theater.  Certainly wasn’t taking her to Cats.  So, since this year I got Disney +, I figured we could watch a film in the comfort of home.

Looking through the tons of films available on Disney +, I came across Saving Mr. Banks, the story of how the film Mary Poppins was made.  I loved this movie when I saw it and I figured this would be a great film to watch with mom.

P.L. Travers (Emma Thompson) resisted selling the rights to her creation, Mary Poppins, to Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) for years, but a need for money put her in a situation she had not faced prior.  Travers went to Los Angeles to see if she could handle selling the rights or if giving them up would be too much for her.

The story of Mary Poppins was a very personal one for Travers as she wrote this book with her father Travers Goff (Colin Ferrell) in mind.  The film shows us flashbacks from P.L’s (her real name being Helen, nicknamed “Ginty”) childhood, revealing the traumas that influenced her life and her work.

She feared that Walt Disney would turn her deeply personal work into fluff and fantasy.  There have been debate on the ending of the film as Travers had claimed to have hated the movie, angered at how Disney treated her character.  Some say that Disney railroaded Travers into giving up the rights for Mary Poppins.  The film gives a different story, of course.  It is a film by Disney which makes you wonder about the correctness.  This is not a documentary though and the film brings some strong emotions to each scene.

The first time I saw this movie, I found the flashbacks a tad dull, but this time, I appreciated the importance of these scenes to the character of P.L. Travers.  Truthfully, Colin Farrell is absolutely astounding as her father.

There are other wonderful performances in Saving Ms. Banks as well.  Emma Thompson is excellent as the main character and the ever talented Tom Hanks seemed born to play the role of Walter Disney.  Paul Giamatti was great as the kind-hearted limo driver Ralph who bonded with Travers.  Bradley Whitford was writer Don DaGradi and Jason Schwartzman and B.J. Novak were the iconic songwriting pair, Richard and Robert Sherman.

The “Let’s Go Fly a Kite” segment in this movie is one of my favorite scenes in any Disney film.  There is just so much hopefulness in the scene and the actors look to be having a blast.

Those who see Disney as the evil overlords will see conspiracies throughout this movie and will not like it.  I thought it was lovely, filled with great performances and very emotional.

vintage

Image result for saving mr banks