Hi, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab...
It looks like Apple.com posted this trailer, so if you haven’t seen it yet, take a quick peek. It’s also on the DVD for JERSEY GIRL, which I just watched this weekend. Miramax has pretty high hopes for this one, and they’re already pushing it as one of their big Oscar possibilities. I’m curious about it. I mean, come on... Johnny Depp. Kate Winslet. Dustin Hoffman. Marc Forster. It’s a pretty distinguished pedigree, and the story’s one of those that should be a home run if told properly. We’ve had a few reviews show up so far, and now... here’s another:
I was pleasantly surprised to receive an invitation to a screening of Finding Neverland this week. I knew that its release date was still at least a couple of months away, and I still have no idea why Miramax held a screening earlier this morning that was attended by only five or six people. I’m certainly not complaining though, because it is a wonderful film.
I hadn’t even seen a trailer for it yet. I knew who was in it, who directed it and that it was about J.M. Barrie, and that’s about all I knew. I had absolutely zero expectations, which is a nice way to see a movie these days. Doesn’t happen often.
Anyway, the story begins in London circa 1903. It is opening night of Barrie’s (Johnny Depp) latest play. For the life of me I can’t remember the title of it. It’s only mentioned briefly in passing. Though it plays to a full house of theatre lovers, the reception is poor and it’s a huge flop (“complete rubbish” one theatre-goer calls it), much to the dismay of Barrie’s wealthy producer, Charles Frohman (Dustin Hoffman).
Barrie notices almost instantly that the audience hates it. People are yawning and snoring and exchanging glances that seem to say, “What on earth is this crap?” Upset that he has written something beneath his talents, a disappointed but not crushed or devastated Barrie vows that his next work will be a smashing success.
To get his mind off of his last play and start fresh with a clean slate, Barrie begins walking to a nearby park with his massive dog. He finds a comfortable bench and tries to start writing a new play. One afternoon, he encounters a five year-old boy named Michael (Luke Spill).
Since he is the youngest of four boys, Michael must stay under the bench until the oldest boy, George (Nick Roud) says it’s ok to get up. Barrie tells George that he and his dog will put on a show if Michael is allowed to get up from under the bench. Soon, Barrie and his dog are slow dancing together for Michael, George, their mother, Sylvia (Kate Winslet), and the two other brothers, Peter (Freddie Highmore) and Jack (Joe Prospero).
The family loves the performance, though Peter is the hardest to impress. Barrie begins spending time with the family every day in the park, and later, at their home and his own summer cottage outside of the city. They play elaborate games of Cowboys and Indians and stage plays, among other things.
Barrie comes to love the boys as much as they love him. Meanwhile, he also starts writing his new play, based on a combination of his adventures with the boys and his own childhood creation, Neverland.
Not everyone is pleased with Barrie’s relationship with Sylvia, a widow, and her sons. Barrie’s wife Mary (Radha Mitchell), who cares more about society life and climbing the social ladder than anything else, becomes increasingly frustrated with his refusal to stop spending so much time with them and missing dinner’s at home. She threatens to leave him if it continues. Equally upset is Sylvia’s mother (Julie Christie). She wants Sylvia to find a respectable new husband, and she fears that her daughter’s insistence upon befriending a married man has ruined her reputation and any chance at finding a decent husband. People are also gossiping about the nature of both Barrie’s relationship with Sylvia and the boys themselves.
There wasn’t a minute of this movie that I didn’t enjoy. The fact that it’s only about 1 hour and 40 minutes long certainly helped. There isn’t any unnecessary fat that should be trimmed and it doesn’t overstay its welcome. It is a delight from start to finish.
The cast, of course, is superb. Depp, sporting short hair and looking as young and boyishly handsome as he has in a long time, is excellent as Barrie, a flawed but decent and caring man who truly comes to love this new family that has entered his life. He’s almost saintly, and I’m not sure how accurate the movie’s representation of this man really is (the beginning states that it is “Inspired by True Events”), but he’s the kind of man that’s almost too good to be true. Definitely not a tortured artist struggling with his demons.
Winslet and Christie are also very good. Hoffman’s role is barely long enough to be considered a cameo. He has maybe five minutes of total screen time, not enough to really make any kind of impression. The boys, however, are simply fantastic, especially Highmore (Two Brothers). He easily steals every scene he’s in. He has a natural, composed screen presence and it’s impossible not to love the kid.
Equally impressive is Marc Forster’s direction. Finding Neverland could not possibly be any more different from Monster’s Ball, at least on the surface. It’s pretty remarkable that they come from the same director. Here he manages to perfectly balance humor with more serious moments, particularly Sylvia’s serious illness. That he managed to do such an incredible job with both seems to indicate that this is a director who could be making quality movies for quite a while.
You really fall in love with Barrie, Sylvia and the boys. It’s a simple story, essentially about a man discovering a new family and how they come to love each other. It isn’t flashy or earth shattering. It won’t change the world. But it’s hard to imagine someone not being totally entertained by it.
There are a couple of minor flaws that aren’t difficult to look past. Sylvia is a little underdeveloped. We learn that she lost her husband and that she’s sick, but we really don’t learn much more than that. Also, Mary figures heavily into the story during the first half, but almost completely disappears after that. Finally, it does get a tad overly sentimental at the end, but not unbearably so. I will admit to wiping back a few tears.
I’m not sure if this is a serious Oscar contender or not. It’s a moving story that’s exceptionally well-told, but it might not be Oscar bait. I do know that I enjoyed it immensely, that I would definitely see it again, and that it’ll probably make my top 10 list for the year. Kudos all around.
Vincent Hanna
Vincent’s been reviewing things for us for a while, like DIE ANOTHER DAY, TOMB RAIDER, and COLD MOUNTAIN. I appreciate this one, too, man. Well done. Another reason to check out FINDING NEVERLAND is to see the interplay between Depp and Freddie Highmore, who is playing Charlie in the new CHOCOLATE FACTORY that Depp and Tim Burton are working on right now. Interesting stuff, indeed...
"Moriarty" out.
