?When the first baby laughed, its laughter broke into a thousand pieces and each piece became a fairy.?
I do not know how many of you are familiar with this line, but those who immediately pictured a mischievous boy in green tights flying up and down a room with a tiny fairy following him, well, this movie is for you. Peter Pan has captured young imaginations from the word go. I remember loving the idea that one?s shadow can be naughty and separate from one and that one could fly away into a beautiful Neverland.
The movie ?Finding Neverland? is a fitting tribute to J.M. Barrie, the man whose fertile imagination brought the ever young Peter Pan into existence
The movie is like a breath of fresh air, in an atmosphere so full of ?stylish? movies, that one feels too jaded to watch them. There is no slickness about this movie, no trick photography, no clever narrative style, no exaggerated drama and no pretence. It?s just a simple story. These have become so rare these days, that spending the one and a half hour in the company of Mr. Depp and his fabulous co-stars, is indeed a pleasure.
What really is creditable about this is, that the movie offers ample opportunity for it to be turned into a ?run of the mill? Hollywood movie, there is tremendous scope for melodrama and controversy, it is to the director?s great credit that he refrained from falling into any of those traps, and delivered this simple yet very touching story about Barrie?s journey on the way to writing Peter Pan.
The movie begins with the opening night of Barrie?s disastrous play ?Little Mary?. We are introduced to Barrie?s sensitive nature and subtle humor right at the beginning. He is of a tremendously imaginative nature and finds great solace and joy in looking at ordinary things and yet imagining the most extraordinary adventures with them. His wife is excluded from this ?inner world? mostly due to her own uptight and ?proper? nature, and the subject of his relationship with her is handled with great tact and subtlety.
Barrie finds great joy in simple things like ?make believe? and play and ends up becoming a playmate and friend to a family of four boys and their widow mother (Kate Winslet). The movie deals with his interaction and relationship with the family. Among the boys, is a fellow named Peter. He has lost his childish ways a little and grown up too fast because of his father?s death. Barrie has a special relationship with this boy, who he teaches to laugh and play and especially write, even if it is a bit of ?silliness?. Peter of course becomes the prototype for Peter Pan and the play becomes a tribute to the family. The widowed mother however is very ill and how the children and Barrie deal with this, forms the better and more magical part of the movie.
As a director, Forster is nothing short of brilliant. There were so many places where he could create controversy and doubt (Barrie?s relationship with the mother, even in fact his relationship with the children), but he steers firmly clear. He has but one way of telling us the story, the simple way. He brings out the simplicity of Barrie?s character and his uncomplicated joy and imagination. In these days where there is a need to explore every great man?s character and try and show how depressed he was, or how obsessed he was, or question his sexuality, it is indeed a pleasure to see a legend treated like a normal man. He makes sure the narrative is crisp and not lagging in any place. He trusts his story and it shows. The cinematography is superb and the look is beautiful. The characters are developed beautifully and treated sensitively.
Performances in this movie are superlative. Depp is nothing short of amazing. There seems to be no effort in his performance, which according to me is the hallmark of any great performance. He does not act, he simply is. His soulful eyes and subtle humor carry the movie through. The children are exceptional. Though, of the children, Peter has the bigger role, the other children are used effectively and each character is unique.
The child who plays Peter is exceptional and though slightly stiff at times, is one of the most heartwarming little things I have seen on screen (the last kid, was the little girl in ?Signs?). The one discordant note is the disappointment I felt with Kate Winslet?s performance. She seems off color in comparison to the rest of the cast. Though she is adequate, she is just not it. A cameo played by Dustin Hoffman, is also a sweet role, and though he has not much to do, he still leaves his mark. The small role of the widow?s mother is also ably performed and beautifully directed. The same goes with the role of Barrie?s wife.
The background score of the movie is adequate, even really good at some spots, but nothing spectacular.
You will enjoy this movie if you are fond of simple stories and subtle cinema. This is a prime example of a remarkable life being brought to screen through the able hands of remarkable people. This is a movie that works on its own merit and not due to packaging or ?stylized? filming. You will find yourself with teary eyes, even though not much emotion is being displayed, there are no big speeches no despairing dialogue, there is just a connection, a beautiful connection with the hearts of the audience.
Comments and ratings eagerly awaited.