ATTENTION: Please be aware that due to recent events in the media, it has become all too easy to take a stab at Mr. Michael Jackson and his troubles. Even though there may be subtle, as well as not too subtle, parallels that may be drawn between Mr. Jackson and the subject matter of this movie, I feel that this type of crass behavior is quite beneath me and I will not partake in such obvious tomfoolery. If at any time during this review you are reminded of The King of Pop, please feel free to do so at your earliest convenience as to purge it from your system and deal with your own perversions at a later date. Thank you.

Playwright/novelist JM Barrie is known today to well above twenty kids as the author of the beloved classic Peter Pan. But, as in all good tales, there is a story behind the story and Finding Neverland is such a tale. Desperate for a hit, JM Barrie (Johnny Depp) is at his wits end to write a successful play at the behest of Charles Frohman, (Dustin Hoffman) the man who has been flipping the bill for Barrie’s productions. He doesn’t care if it’s a comedy, a drama or a THRILLER, just as long as it is a hit. While pondering and WORKING DAY AND NIGHT in an attempt to discover just what direction he is to take his imagination, Barrie runs into widowed Sylvia Llewelyn Davies (Kate Winslet) and her four sons. Instead of telling them to BEAT IT, he befriends them and strikes up a bond that provides the inspiration for his now famous children’s book.

Naturally, after spending so much time with Mrs. Llewelyn Davies and her kids, (Mrs. Llewelyn Davies is incidentally quite the P.Y.T. [PRETTY YOUNG THING]) eyebrows begin to be raised at both relationships, for in the public eye such behavior is considered BAD. Instead of proclaiming “LEAVE ME ALONE,” Barrie ignores such comments and continues on with his innocent relationship, for they are all JUST GOOD FRIENDS. Those naysayers only really WANNA’ BE STARTIN’ SOMETHIN’ anyway because they find his actions to be quite OFF THE WALL. To make matters all the more difficult for Mr. Barrie, his wife doesn’t really understand the relationships he has recently forged, and she would like nothing more for her husband to tell her “SHE’S OUT OF MY LIFE,” but art and imagination cannot be controlled that way, it seems.

Naturally, the tone of the film glosses over any potential indiscretions that may or may not have happened between the married Barrie, the widow and/or the children, but that is not the intent of the film. YOU ARE NOT ALONE if you get the sense that this is a fantasized version of the events as they happened, for in keeping with the theme of integrating imagination and fantasy with reality, the movie itself is an obvious sugar coated version of HIStory, but the sugar itself is oddly not saccharine thanks to director Marc Forster. He leaves the more potentially scandalous details IN THE CLOSET and opts to choose charm and beauty above shock. Johnny Depp gives an understated but involving performance and wisely does not push the childlike element of JM Barrie to absurd proportions. It was a smart move on his part. Kate Winslet, as well, is quite solid as she continues to remind me that she is a talented actress and not just that annoying chick from Titanic. It’s also HUMAN NATURE to expect any movie involving children to contain smart-assed little so-and-sos, but it can be DANGEROUS to assume such things, for the child actors in this movie were pretty damned natural. Even more shocking, however, was how engrossing I found this obvious reach for Oscar gold to be. A part of me wanted to dislike the movie on the merits that it was a Miramax period piece. ANOTHER PART OF ME saw right through all the colors and the splendor and directly to the desire for major awards. However, the end result is not nearly as BLACK AND WHITE. Somehow, I was swept away with the magic and emotion and I was forced to take a good long look at the MAN IN THE MIRROR and wonder where all my cynicism went. The underlying message of letting yourself grow up without really growing up is a charming and necessary sentiment that perhaps can even drive through even the flintiest of hearts. The movie certainly won’t HEAL THE WORLD or anything, but it works and it didn’t end up hurting my teeth.

How's It Look, Smart Guy?
This film is presented in a 2.35.1 anamorphic transfer. The picture is very clean, with no artifacting or other flaws one might see in lesser discs. Normally, with Miramax discs you can expect a mixed bag when it comes to transfers, but Finding Neverland is a pretty solid example of when they do fairly close to right. There might be some grain noticed here and there, but sometimes that just can’t be avoided.

How's It Sound, Ya Bum?
No DTS for you sound freaks, but this is certainly not a movie that would show off your system anyway. So relax, chums. Be happy enough in the fact that the disc has a Dolby Digital 5.1 English track as well as a 5.1 French and a 5.1 Spanish track. WE ARE THE WORLD, you know? So loosen up. There isn’t all that much going on in the back, even the music score stays mostly up front and it is only every once in a while that the rear speakers ever see any action. There are also subtitles in English, Spanish and French.

You Think I Just Wanted The Movie, Pal?   
You get a COMMENTARY TRACK with director Marc Forster, producer Richard Gladstein and writer David Magee who astound me at the level of honesty they were allowed to convey, this being a Disney owned company and all. They are VERY open about the tweaks they made to Barrie’s life and provide us with a friendly, casual sounding commentary without prattling. Worth a listen.

There is a FEATURETTE entitled “The Magic of Finding Neverland” which should really just be called “The Magic of Self Gratification.”

Another FEATURETTE called “Creating Neverland” is a potentially fascinating look at how the fantasy sequences were created using today’s state of the art visual effects so naturally it was barely three minutes long.

“On the Red Carpet” is another FEATURETTE and this one gives us two minutes of a premiere at the Venice Film Festival. It gave me the nagging thought as to why they didn’t just make the effects featurette two minutes longer.

Three DELETED SCENES can be viewed with or without director commentary. It won’t hurt to watch for they are all quite short.

Almost as charming as the film itself, we have the OUTTAKES. Here we get to see how quirky Depp is at the workplace and to what lengths he goes to make others more comfortable on set. Cute stuff.

Bring Us On Home, Brother
I’m not made of stone, people. This is a real charmer that deserves to be given a shot especially if you are prepared to write it off. This movie caught me off guard and if given a chance, I’m sure it will surprise even the most heartless sons of bitches out there. Er… ummm… HOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. HEE HEE. SHAMON!!!! (I ran out. So sue me. Fuck off).