The magically told story of James M. Barrie's inspiration for writing his most popular work Peter Pan is 5 stars beyond brilliant!!!

Rating: 10/10 (18 January 2005)

Finding Neverland is a fantastic piece of work. The acting is amazing. Johnny Depp achieves such greatness in his role as J.M. Barrie. He does such a great job of illustrating subtlety, which is not only more effective and believable, but also harder to do. Also, it doesn't have that big blockbuster feel, which means the risk of feeling like someone is shoving this story down your throat isn't present. No, there'll be no choking down of this film. It flows with the greatest of ease. Depp's sheer and utter brilliance is complemented by an amazing supporting cast consisting of Kate Winslet, who gives an awe inspiring performance as Sylvia Lewelyn Davies; Freddie Highmore, who as Peter himself,proves to the audience, that he is quite the scene stealer; Radha Mitchell as Mr. Barrie's beautiful (and lonesome, once Barrie meets the Lewelyn-Davies family)wife; and Julie Christie, as Kate Winslet's mother. The film shows Barrie's good heart, through his various acts of kindness for the Lewelyn-Davies family. He gives them what they need: a trip away from reality, but by the end, everyone in the story learns, that "you can't just go on pretending," to quote Depp as Barrie. The beautiful world Barrie has created in his limitless mind is more than just a place. It's a point of view: a state of mind. With a tear-jerking ending conversation between James Barrie and Peter, any human being with a heart will at the very least feel the souls of the characters drawn into their own hearts. It's completely absorbing and undoubtedly one of the VERY best films of the year. And finally, out of the most important lessons of all that are conveyed throughout the film, stands the one that applies to both reality and imagination: "just believe."