Fantastic

Rating: Null/10 (3 November 2004)

Before I give this review, I probably should just mention that I am a major Peter Pan/J.M. Barrie freak who knows far too much trivia on both subjects. I promise not to nit pick. Now on with the review: Finding Neverland is a film inspired by the events that lead to and followed the creation of the play/book Peter Pan. The part of the Scottish playwright James Barrie was handled masterfully by none other than Johnny Depp. Equally well done was the performance of Kate Winslet as Sylvia Davies, the woman whose four sons were the original "Lost Boys". Julie Christie creates a very human antagonist as Sylvia's overbearing mother. Dustin Hoffman also brings in a comical presentation as the producer of Barrie's plays, who thinks that Peter Pan is the most ridiculous thing everÂ…but produces it anyway. This movie, despite the sad events that take place, is not as depressing as it may seem. There's plenty of humor to balance out the more heavy topics. Barrie's conversations with the boys are very clever. Setting aside all of the historical inaccuracies which the descendents of the Davies family are currently up in arms about (for example, the killing off of Mr. Davies before the movie even begins and slightly changing the first meeting between Barrie and Sylvia Davies), this is a wonderful (not using the term loosely) tale of how imagination can be like medicine. The use of constant fantastical imagery (although a technique used before to tell the story of famous authors and artists) paints the perfect picture of the relationship Barrie created with the Davies family. It shows how the games they played became the tale of boy who would not grow up and gives insight on how the mind of an author works when they take from life. These scenes of fancy are done with obvious costumes and paper backdrops, making sure the audience understands that they are coming from the mind of a playwright. Although focusing a little too much on Peter Davies, whose emotional trauma turns annoying every now and again, everyone is portrayed with dignity. There is no bitterness at growing up given in the movie either, similar to the way growing up is discussed in the original Peter Pan story. When Barrie realizes that the eldest boy, George, has suddenly become a young man he's proud, not upset. The 'love story' is done in a subtle manner, exactly how it would have been if Barrie was in love with Mrs. Davies. The failing relationship he has with his wife in the film is also touched upon in a way that is very human, not a theatrical soap opera. Even the scandal that hangs over the tale today, involving the questioning of this married man who spent all of his time with a widow and four young boys, was mentioned in a way that did not make it the focus of the movie. Nor was the main plot about the birth of Peter and Wendy. Instead, the film makers chose to keep the attention on the lives of the characters and most specifically on the way Barrie shared his pretend haven, Neverland, with Sylvia and the boys. Some fun things you may enjoy while watching are Barrie's brief conversations with a friend named Arthur (who is in fact supposed to be Sir Arthur Conan Doyle), the short mutterings of Dustin Hoffman's character, and of course the constant toss between reality and the imaginary games Barrie, Sylvia, and the boys play. Setting aside all of my nit picks which I shall not mention since they would spoil the feeling of admiration the story leaves you with, I most certainly had to say this was a great film. I command you all to go see it.