WATCH NOW
FINDING NEVERLAND
After the unsuccessful opening of his play Little Mary in London in 1903, Scottish playwright James Matthew Barrie (Johnny Depp) goes off with his Newfoundland dog to write a new play in nearby Kensington Gardens. There he becomes friends with a family of four fatherless boys and their mother, Sylvia Llewelyn Davies (Kate Winslet).
Though the boys like James, young Peter still grieves for his recently deceased father and remains distant. James gives the boy a journal so he can use his imagination and write.
The playwright often meets the Davies family in the park, where he entertains them by playacting, telling stories and teaching them to fly kites. His wife, Mary (Radha Mitchell), invites the family and their grandmother, Mrs. Emma du Maurier (Julie Christie), for dinner. But the Barries’ marriage is already strained, and Mary is irritated by all the time her husband spends with the Davies family. She begins to see another man.
Meanwhile, rumors begin to circulate about the relationship James has with Sylvia and the boys. James, genuinely shocked, asserts that they are only friends.
During this time, he is writing a new play filled with pirates, lost boys, a girl and her two brothers, a ticking crocodile and a boy named Peter Pan who flies through the air to Neverland.
This outstanding film is based on the play by Allan Knee. The fine actors led by Johnny Depp (sure to receive another Oscar nod) inhabit their characters and give believable, strong yet subtle performances. Young Freddie Highmore is perfect as Peter and may get some Academy attention as well. (He will be seen next in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.) The direction by Marc Forster deftly blends the story of a lonely man, his imaginative incarnation as Peter Pan and the children who inspired him: Don’t forget to bring tissues.
My favorite Peter Pan so far, this creative fiction adds to the myth surrounding Sir J.M. Barrie (1860-1937). Themes of marital discord, illness and death.
For more movies like FINDING NEVERLAND (2004) visit Hurawatch.
Also watch: