Saving Mr. Banks

"Saving Mr. Banks" is the back story to the making of the Disney film adaptation, "Mary Poppins". The movie primarily focuses on the tumultuous relationship between Walt Disney himself, and Mary Poppins' author, P. L. Travers. As the movie progresses, it is portrayed that Travers warms to Disney and seemingly, enjoys the end result of their working together. Viewers leave "Saving Mr. Banks" with that "warm fuzzy" feeling that is trademark, Walt Disney.

In real life, Travers was reported to dislike  Disney's overly saccharin version of Mary Poppins, as well as Disney himself. But yet, here we are "Disney-fied" into believing a better version of the truth. Ever the business man, Walt made Mary Poppins the way he wanted the film made, does that make him a pompous ass, or a marketing genius? Does the selling of the rights make Travers a sell-out, or a woman doing what she had to do to survive financially? 

The truth is, we all fight our own inner battles, and ultimately end up doing what it takes to survive. We do what we think is best given the current situation and the information we have at hand in that very moment. Disney may have empathized with Travers' viewpoints at some point in time, but the fact is, he had a business to run and a movie to make. Travers on the other hand, may have wished she never sold the rights to Mary, but the fact is, it left her a millionaire who never had to worry about money again. 

Regardless of their thoughts or inner battles the, obvious, end result of their decisions has left the world with one of the most beloved movies of all time. With that said, was either person wrong in their history making choices? Didn't the world unfold just as it should have? Is the world better off having a dreamer and an imagination-genius at the helm of it's happiness? Or are we better off with realists like Travers who was once quoted as having said, "...sorrow lies like a heartbeat behind everything I have written.", guiding our truths? Ultimately, isn't it up to us to see what's presented, do our own research and come to our own conclusions about life, and the stories it presents to us? 

As a Mary Poppins fan I love the 1964 movie, I was amazed by the stage production, and even own my very own parrot-head umbrella. "Saving Mr. Banks" added another layer of love and more so, an understanding to the productions for me and I highly recommend you see it! And at the end of the movie if you're not sure what to think, or much less what to say, just remember the one word to say when you have nothing to say at all, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!