Imagination manifests itself best as that sparkle of light in a child’s eye when they have realized ultimate joy. Finding Neverland is a heartstring pulling film that movingly addresses the notion of make believe as a means to venture away from the sometimes harsh realities of life.
Johnny Depp stars as J. M. Barrie a successful playwright whose latest play opens to terrible reviews and shutters quickly. His life is in a bit of a rut with his marriage and career beginning to fizzle. One day while frolicking with his dog in the park he comes upon the Llewelyn Davies family consisting of four adorable boys and their recently widowed mother Sylvia (Kate Winslet). Barrie entertains the boys with his dog as if recreating his plays in the grass and everyone involved forms a natural camaraderie. They patch up the holes, filling the missing parts of each others lives with love but not without complication. Barrie must deal with a failing marriage and Sylvia’s overbearing mother Emma de Maurier (Julie Christie) who comes off weathered and tough, but only wishes to shield her family from further pain and suffering. Barrie must navigate these issues including his affection for Sylvia while forming an especially unique bond with Peter (Freddie Highmore) while teaching him how to imagine and be a child again.
Imagination is the principle theme of the film, how it lets us believe anew. Barrie’s creation of Peter Pan stems from his experiences of love and family with the Llewelyn Davis clan as they comfort one another. As Sylvia claims, “time is chasing after all of us.” Therefore imagination encapsulates the idea of retaining some of that exuberance of youth or in the case of the widowed children re-instilling it by going to your personal Neverland by any means necessary. Whether playing pirates, cowboys, or flying a kite, it is essential that there is a happy place to find solace in when overwhelmed.
Johnny Depp is stellar as Barrie, completely believable as a child living in a man’s body. You see that sparkle in his eye. Winslet excels in being strong yet soft as the loving mother of four boys, submitting because she needs to believe in something greater than her reality. Julie Christie becomes the scary controlling Grandmother even if her intentions are good. Lastly the young boys are all fantastic in displaying the large expanse of their immense acting skills.
Marc Forster directs a fine cast of actors in his follow up to the gut wrenching Monster’s Ball. He continues to demonstrate skill in extracting great performances from his thespians expressing feelings in a very real way without going over the top. This is especially true with the four magnificent boys who play Kate Winslet’s children in the film. They capture that pureness of youth mixed with a touch of sadness and strength as they are forced to grow up way before there time due to unfortunate familial circumstances.
There is always the ...
