Saving Mr. Banks (2013)

Author P.L. Travers reflects on her childhood after reluctantly meeting with Walt Disney, who seeks to adapt her Mary Poppins books for the big screen.

Director:

John Lee Hancock

Writers:

Kelly Marcel, Sue Smith

Stars:

Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Annie Rose Buckley

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 14 wins & 72 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Emma Thompson	...	P.L. Travers
Tom Hanks	...	Walt Disney
Annie Rose Buckley	...	Ginty
Colin Farrell	...	Travers Goff
Ruth Wilson	...	Margaret Goff
Paul Giamatti	...	Ralph
Bradley Whitford	...	Don DaGradi
B.J. Novak	...	Robert Sherman
Jason Schwartzman	...	Richard Sherman
Lily Bigham	...	Biddy
Kathy Baker	...	Tommie
Melanie Paxson	...	Dolly
Andy McPhee	...	Mr. Belhatchett
Rachel Griffiths	...	Aunt Ellie
Ronan Vibert	...	Diarmuid Russell

Storyline

When Walt Disney's daughters begged him to make a movie of their favorite book, P.L. Travers' Mary Poppins (1964), he made them a promise - one that he didn't realize would take 20 years to keep. In his quest to obtain the rights, Walt comes up against a curmudgeonly, uncompromising writer who has absolutely no intention of letting her beloved magical nanny get mauled by 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, Walt Disney pulls out all the stops. Armed with imaginative storyboards and chirpy songs from the talented Sherman brothers, Walt launches an all-out onslaught on P.L. Travers, but the prickly author doesn't budge. He soon begins to watch helplessly as Travers becomes increasingly immovable and the rights begin to move further away from his grasp. It is only when he reaches into his own childhood that Walt discovers ...

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Plot Keywords:

mary poppins | disney | author | loss of father | reference to walt disney | 

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Taglines:

To Walt Disney, "Mary Poppins" was more than a book. To her, it was more than a movie.

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Genres:

Biography | Comedy | Drama | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements including some unsettling images

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA UK Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 December 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

Saving Mr. Banks

Filming Locations:

Disneyland Park, Disneyland Resort - 1600 S. Disneyland Drive, Anaheim, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$413,373, 13 December 2013, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$83,301,580

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$117,867,984

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures, Ruby Films, Easy Tiger Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby Digital SDDS Dolby Surround 7.1 Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Meryl Streep was in contention for the lead role.

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Goofs

During the first script reading a platter of Hostess Ding Dongs is present. Ding Dongs weren't introduced until 1967.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Travers Goff: [voiceover] Winds in the east / Mist coming in / Like something is brewing / About to begin / Can't put me finger / On what lies in store / But I feel what's to happen / All happened before.

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Crazy Credits

The credits also have an actual audio recording of P.L. Travers conversing with the filmmakers like the ones depicted in the film.

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Connections

Referenced in The Graham Norton Show: Colin Farrell/Rachel Weisz/Dawn French/Chris O'Dowd/Rod Stewart (2015)

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Soundtracks

Wonderful World of Color
Written by Richard M. Sherman (as Richard Sherman) and Robert B. Sherman (as Robert Sherman)
Performed by The Wellingtons
Courtesy of Walt Disney Records

User Reviews

Delightful

"Saving Mr. Banks" is an exquisite film. It draws you in with the delightful reality of Disney as well as the triumphantly stark reality (inasmuch as it is reality; I do lack her background) of Mrs. Travers. I purposely leave out parts of the film for the sake of the movie-goer, but let me say how delightful the songs are, the people are, the displays of emotion-- my part as well, as I nearly cried and fully laughed at certain points throughout. The film speaks to me and it feels complete in its currency-- tuppence, if you will-- in taking Mrs. Travers' story and embellishing it with the truth of the creators' (both Travers and Disney, for the part he has in the creation of the film) lives. The lives of the characters-- and I do mean most people seen on screen, in particular the driver and Mrs. Travers' mother-- are well-told and well-lived, and spark a certain comfort and warmth, even in the cold of their realities and harsher backstories. I believe the film has done its job beautifully, and I wouldn't change it for the world. Even the animated penguins, although for me there is still my deep and abiding love for their real counterparts.