the gentle Scotsman

Rating: 7/10 (27 January 2009)

Powerful acting from an impressive array of names makes Finding Neverland a deeply moving film. The play Peter Pan is the shining light Barrie crafted to clear the shadows that clutter everyday life. The film, like the play, has a magical, translucent quality. Depp inhabits Barrie fully. The accent wobbles now and again with patches of Leith and Brigadoon breaking through, but Barrie's quest to show the child in us is the best of us is lovingly depicted in Depp's characterisation. Winslet, once again, rises to a challenging role. With outings like this and her stint in Little Children and Jude, she is inheriting the mantle of Streep as actress with the most range. We don't see enough of Julie Christie these days, but her rare gifts are all the more appreciated when so potently displayed. A great actress doing justice to fine writing - every word she utters is like cut glass. Hoffman cruises but does not disappoint in a role that seems to have been written for Jim Broadbent. And all credit to young Freddie Highmore - in such distinguished acting company, he elicits and earns our tears the most.
An air of sadness orbits Barrie, his child-like behaviour a counter-point to it. His writing, his take on life, are triumphs of the human spirit. Elegiac, life-affirming, and timeless, the movie embodies the life and work it chronicles.