Over Christmas break, we took all our little family to see SAVING MR BANKS. I’d seen multiple postings of an article (on FaceBook, which I know is bad for me but I just can’t seem to quit) telling how the Thinking Public should boycott this film because it employed irresponsible storytelling tactics. I read the article. It was well-written and thoughtful and just a whole lot weird to me. The article’s author had personal experience with Ms. Travers, and took offense at the angle at which the film was written.
Some thoughts entered my (gloriously empty) mind: Every story is told with an angle. This is called spin. From the evening news stories to history books to the Holy Bible, all stories have a spin. An agenda. This is normal, right, and expected. “What really happened?” is a question that is nearly impossible to answer, because there is always more than we see.
Storytellers have rights to spin their stories in the way that best suits the story. Novelists choose viewpoint characters based on the perspective they want readers to experience. Poets carefully select words to give certain impressions. It’s their job, right?
Going to see a movie because you want to know what Really Happened is not, in fact, awesome practice. Going to the movies because you want to watch a movie is the way to go. There’s an important difference between a documentary (which, by the way, also has a definite spin) and a Disney film.
SAVING MR BANKS was a charming, precious story. Emma Thompson was gloriously protective of “her” Mary. The actors playing the Sherman brothers were likable (if patronizing in their eye-rolling), and Tom Hanks made a good Uncle Walt (who demanded, expected, and received exactly what he wanted at the expense of someone else’s creative vision). The backstory was clever (and oh, Colin Ferrell — you broke my heart) if not accurate. BUT IT WAS A DISNEY MOVIE.
I suggest that if you don’t want to see a film based on possible historical events, you don’t go. If you’re looking to find the Real Story, the Truth, the Facts in the Case, you learn to research (and don’t stop at one party’s side of the events). But if you’re looking for another reason to admire Emma Thomspon’s range, if you love Paul Giamatti like I do, if you’re into period costuming, if you have a spark of love for the film version of Mary Poppins, go see SAVING MR BANKS.
And leave Truth in the hands of philosophers. Let storytellers tell their stories.