A fantastic film

Rating: 10/10 (30 October 2004)

Here's what you'll hear about 'Neverland': it's 'Shadowlands,' only with Johnny Depp instead of Anthony Hopkins, and much better. That, to be sure, is the movie in a nutshell, although it does not do it near enough justice. I won't bother going into the plot, but, as everyone knows, Johnny Depp plays J. M. Barrie, Scottish author of the play Peter Pan, in the early 1900s.
The accent is impeccable. You'll forget he's doing one after the first ten minutes, in fact, you'll forget you're watching Johnny Depp (and comparing him to his other roles), after twenty. Some movies are horrible, but watchable because of Depp ('Secret Window'), some are good, but needed Depp's performance to give it the edge it needs ('Pirates of the Caribbean'), but yet others, including this one, are fantastic pictures that have Depp so at the heart of the movie that he becomes the character, and the character becomes him. I could not see 'Neverland' working without Depp, not because he makes a bad film good, but because he is so integral to what the picture is, the two become inseparable. Think of a cake, and Johnny Depp is the sugar.
The movie itself, however, is the flour. It melds together Barrie's imagination and reality in such a way as I've never before see. Marc Foster cuts between shots of Barrie playing with the children to shots of the same people in various fantasy worlds, and the effect is mesmerizing. I was supremely impressed by the cinematography as well. There were numerous times that I simply marveled at a brilliant camera move or framing. Many of those all-important moments that send chills down your spine are also there.
All of the acting is magnificent, especially the little boy playing the child Peter Davies, to whom Barrie takes special attachment to (and for whom Barrie names his titular flying boy), who will also be playing Charlie in the upcoming Burton adaptation of 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,' next to Depp. Kate Winslet and Julie Christie also impress as Peter's mother and grandmother, respectively. If there is one ill note I felt in the acting, it was in Dustin Hoffman's portrayal of Barrie's producer. Hoffman's acting simply felt a little too Hoffman-y for me. Take from that what you will.
The film moves along at a perfect pace. The film was about an hour and a half, although it felt nowhere near that short. In fact, the film began exactly when it should, did not rush through anything, and then ended exactly where it needed to.
Do not expect perfect historical accuracy. The film's opening credits include the title 'Inspired by True Events,' and so do not be surprised when the film deviates from true events, or eliminates people here and there.
How did 'Neverland' stack up, then? Let me put it this way: About halfway through the film I decided that every writer should see this movie. By the end I decided every human should. The picture becomes more than about a writer and the family he loves, it becomes a story about what love is, and how it is best expressed. I cannot describe how incredible the movie is. I won't say that to me it was a life changing experience, but perhaps it will be to many in the audience.
Go see 'Neverland.' 5 stars out of 5.