Saving Mr. Banks

     When Walt Disney's daughters begged him to make a movie of their favorite book, P.L. Travers' "Mary Poppins," he made them a promise - one that took 20 years to fulfill. In his quest to obtain the rights, Walt comes up against an uncompromising writer who has absolutely no intention of letting her beloved nanny into the Hollywood machine. But, as the books stop selling and money grows short, Travers reluctantly agrees to go to Los Angeles to hear Disney's plans for the adaptation. For those two short weeks in 1961, Disney pulls out all the stops. He soon begins to watch helplessly as Travers becomes more and more difficult and the rights begin to move further away from his grasp. It is only when he reaches into his own childhood that Walt discovers the truth about her past, and together they set Mary Poppins free to ultimately make one of the most endearing films in cinematic history. 

     Wow. Saving Mr. Banks is easily one the best productions I've seen this year. Big fat giant POP!! Everything about it was beautiful, touching and inspiring. Mary Poppins has always been one of my favorites. In fact I even got to meet Mary Poppins herself when I visited Epcot. As much as I love this iconic film, I never really knew the story behind it. It was so incredible getting to learn about the journey that brought us one of our favorites. In this film, we see not only the process of putting it on the big screen, but also the inspiration that was brought to life in the pages.

     So many awesome people helped bring the story to life. The director, John Lee Hancock (The Blindside, Snow White and the Huntsman, The Alamo) specifically played an amazing role in the film process. In every case, if you don't have a strong director you don't have a strong production. And Hancock delivered the story beautifully along with help of writers, Kelly Marcel and Sue Smith, and many others. The acting and character development was just phenomenal Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, The Green Mile) as Walt Disney was pretty amazing, and Emma Thompson (Sense and Sensibility, Brave, Love Actually) as P.L. Travers was absolutely brilliant. The amazing supporting cast included Paul Giamatti (Sideways, Saving Private Ryan, Cinderella Man), B.J. Novak (The Office, Knocked Up, Saving Mr. Banks), and Jason Schwartzman (Rushmore, Fantastic Mr. Fox, I Heart Huckabees).

     So to wrap it up, Saving Mr. Banks is a major POP!! Wonderful film that I am looking forward to seeing again. Great movie. Alrightie that's it for this post. If you liked it go ahead and share it with your friends and tell me what you think!!
                                                               Until Next Time...

                        PEACE OUT GIRLSCOUTS!!

                                           AND....


                 Merry Christmas Y'all!!!

Ways to Live Forever

12 year old Sam McQueen (Robbie Kay: Pirates of the Caribbean:On Stranger Tides, Fugitive Pieces, Once Upon A Time) is like most boys. But there is something that makes Sam a little bit different. He has leukemia. Although the adults in his life don’t want him to dwell on it, Sam wants to know anything and everything about his disease and death, a possibility he might have to face. Together with his best friend, Felix (Alex Etel: The Water Horse, Millions, From Time to Time), he starts a book of "scientific investigation" with questions, observations, evidence, reflections, and lists of all the things he wants to do someday, like breaking a world record, flying in a blimp, and experiencing what it’s like to be a teenager. In this emotional and inspiring story, Sam and his family face an uncertain future with love, humor and each other.
     
     I am going to give this film a POP!! I enjoyed this film a lot. It was such a sweet story, and it was very fun to watch. It really touched a lot on family and friendship and how cancer really does affect people. Beautiful directing by Gustavo Ron, also amazing job by the post-production team! The acting in the film was  brilliant as well! So props to Robbie Kay, Alex Etel, Ben Capel (The Thin Red Line, Murder by Numbers, Remains of the Day) Emilia Fox (The Pianist, Silent Waitress, David Copperfield) and the rest of the cast. I thought it was very neat that the film is based off the novel by Sally Nicholls. I personally love book to screen adaptations so that got me excited, and I can't wait to read it. Something else that I found really cool about the film is that a portion of proceeds will go to support the LLS (Leukemia & Lymphoma Society) and other cancer-related organizations teamed up with World Wide Productions to promote both the picture and its message. If you want to learn more about the LLS go ahead and check out their website, lls.org , for some more information! In conclusion beautiful film beautiful story! If you see it, bring tissues! That is why I give Ways to Live Forever a POP!! 


     This was a very fun screening to attend! Before watching the film, I got to participate in a VIP reception, and meet the star of the movie, Robbie Kay. I was pretty excited because I love him as Peter Pan on Once Upon A Time. :) After the movie, he held a little Q&A. I got to ask Robbie what his favorite memory on set was. He answered that he loved all of it, but his favorite day was when he got to shoot the scene where he was riding a skateboard with his screen mom (Emilia Fox). So make sure to keep your eye out for that scene. :)  
                          Thanks for reading!! Please share with your friends! Until next time...
                                             
                                  PEACE OUT GIRLSCOUTS!!

VIP Reception

Film Q&A