Film Review: Saving Mr Banks

Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) and Pamela Travers (Emma Thompson)

Saving Mr Banks is the story of the fortnight-long visit by Mary Poppins author, P L (Pamela) Travers to Los Angeles to meet with Walt Disney to negotiate on the purchase of the film rights to her books. Disney's daughters had been captivated by the Mary Poppins story urging their father to make a film but Disney's efforts to obtain agreement from Travers had extended over decades without success. Finally in 1961 at the urging of her agent, Pamela Travers agrees to meet with Walt Disney and his creative team, particularly the Sherman brothers who compose the music for the Disney films. The negotiations are tortuous as Travers has a profound dislike for animation and the patience of Disney and his team are tested to the full whilst trying to meet the many conditions imposed by Travers.

The film directed by John Lee Hancock has Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson in the two lead roles as Walt Disney and Pamela Travers respectively and is shot on site at the Disney studios. Travers early life in Queensland, Australia is also shot in California and it is her early life particularly Travers' relationship with her father that provided the background for Mary Poppins. The script was written by Kelly Marcel and Sue Smith with experienced actors filling the supporting roles such as Paul Giamatti, Bradley Whitford, Colin Farrell, B J Novak and Jason Schwartzman. To a degree this is sugar-coated film and both Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson look considerably younger than the actual ages of their real-life counterparts.