“All the world is made of faith, and trust, and pixie dust”
- Peter Pan in J.M Barrie
"That’s the real trouble with the world, too many people grow up. They forget.”
- Walt Disney once said.
As adults, our lives seem to be more boring and mundane. Never growing up is always a wistful wish for most of us. Therefore, besides children, adults are also intrigued by Peter Pan- the boy who never grows up and his magical Neverland, where there were only joy and amazing adventures. If you know this boy, you may have once asked yourselves that how the wonder was created. Finding Neverland was made to satisfy your curiosity.
The movie tells the story of J.M Barrie (Johnny Depp)- a Scottish playwright who wrote Peter Pan, and his close friendship with the Davies family. The movie begins when Barrie’s play was a failure, and after that not-so-delightful evening, he went to the park and sat on a bench. At that time, he met Sylvia Llewelyn Davies (Kate Winslet) and her four young sons: Peter (Freddie Highmore), George (Nick Roud), Jack (Joe Prospero) and Michel (Luke Spill). The boys draw his attention with their roleplaying game, then he impressed the boys with his humor and magnificent imagination. When downhearted Peter was indifferent to the new identity Barrie put on things:
-“That golden scepter is just an old hunk of wood "
- “ This is absurd, it’s just a dog.”
-“Just Peter, I like my name.”
J.M Barrie always responded wittily:
-“Yes, well, we dream on a budget here, don’t we?”
-"Just a dog? Porthos dreams of being a bear, and you want to shatter those dreams by saying he's just a dog? What a horrible candle-snuffing word. That's like saying, he can't just climb that mountain, he's just a man, or that's not a diamond, it's just a rock. Just."
- “In punishment for lack of an interesting pirate name, Peter shall walk the plank.”
Barrie showed Peter and the audience how imagination could lift us up and do wonder to our lives.
He visited the Davies' house regularly since then. Barrie got along well with the kids and together they had great times playing in their fantasy own world. Their boisterous playtime was an inspiration named Peter Pan.
The play turned out to be a huge success, although the investor used to think that it was not suitable for the upper-class. Sylvia was very ill at that time, hence, Barrie performed another production of the play at her home. The play hold Sylvia’s family spellbound. There was a sad death in the final scene, but it was a mind-bending ending after all. The film ends with the warm dialogue between Barrie and Peter, sitting on the bench where they first met.
J.M. Barrie: She went to Neverland. And you can visit her any time you like if you just go there yourself.
Peter Llewelyn Davies: How?
J.M. Barrie: By believing, Peter. Just believe.
By believing, Peter. Just believe.
The movie is a semi-biography drama, so it’s not one-hundred percent historically accurate. Although the tragic death of his older brother was briefly mentioned in the film, the movie did not explore deeper of that sad story. In real life, the death of David (J.M’s brother) at the age 14 made Barrie suffer, and the Neverland idea was first appeared from that moment. J.M had to dress like his dead brother to please his mom, and since a little kid, he was forced to grow up quickly after that grievous incident. He also had an inexplicable obsession with kids, especially Peter-who reminded him of his lost brother.
Instead, the movie chooses to focus on the heart-warming relationship and the great creativity behind the creation of Peter Pan. Imagination has no border, and nothing is impossible if you dare to imagine- that what J.M Barrie did. Belief is another key message of the film. “Just believe”, Barrie told Peter. The messages from the film are up to date, when there are more and more people lose faith in each other, and in magic ( I mean, joy, wonder, kindness and other beautiful things).
Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet do not let me down with their amazing acting skill. The performance of four adorable boys (especially Peter) also makes the movie more enjoyable and lovely.
Finding Neverland is a worthwhile watch for adults, believe me or not, it will take you to the journey of finding your own Peter Pan, that never-get-old soul within you.
Nat's Rating:
Rerference:
Finding Neverland 2004, motion picture, Miramax, Los Angeles, California, The United States, N.Gladstein R, Bellflower N, Producers, Forster M, Director.
Goodreads, n.d, ‘Peter Pan Quotes’, Goodreads, viewed 20 July 2018, <https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/1358908-peter-pan>.
Goodreads, n.d, ‘Walt Disney company, quotes, quotable quotes’, Goodreads, viewed 20 July 2018,
IMDb, n.d, ‘Finding Neverland(2004) quotes’, IMDb, viewed 20 July 2018, <https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0308644/quotes>.
Quotes net, 2018, ‘Finding Neverland Quotes’, Quotes.net, viewed 20 July 2018, <https://www.quotes.net/mquote/32274>.https://www.quotes.net/mquote/32274>.
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