From the moment little Michael piped up “Excuse me sir, but you’re standing on my sleeve”, I was hooked. My favorite scenes involved the children. Peter’s repeated “It’s just a bit of silliness, really” made me cry. George’s realizing that his mother had something far worse than a chest cold and blackmailing her into submitting to an examination made me wonder how much the children that I work with really understand and how much they don’t tell me that they know. Jack’s interruptions of Barrie’s fantasy pirate ship made me laugh.

I went for Johnny Depp. I went for Peter Pan. I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did. After all, I wasn’t that impressed with Kate Winslet in ­Titanic-. Somehow the idea of her as a grand romantic heroine didn’t set well with me. However, I believed every moment of her as a widowed mother. I was able to see her as a figure of rumor, of societal misunderstanding.

I also liked Radha Mitchell as Barrie’s wife Mary. Wed to a man she doesn’t really understand yet longing to journey to Neverland herself, Mary is the most tragic figure in the film in some ways. Barrie and Sylvia and the boys had each other. Mary’s attempt at social climbing fails and she ends up eating far too many suppers alone.

Truth be told, -Peter Pan- wasn’t a favorite of mine growing up. I was more given to stories of princesses…or rather, scullery maids who became princesses, riding off on beautiful horses into Technicolor sunsets. The older I get, however, the more I understand. Wendy is trapped between her childhood in the nursery and a maturity that can only be achieved by leaving it behind. Peter is so frightened of growing up that he literally stops time, remaining a child forever. “It’s about our summer together, isn’t it?” little Peter Llewelyn Davies asks Barrie after seeing the play. And it was, but it was about so much more.

Accidents happen. Fathers die, children get sick, mothers become ill. Children grow up and stop believing in fairies. But we never forget. Not entirely. And for two hours or so, it is we ourselves who are flying out the nursery window.

“First star on the right and straight on ‘til morning.” May they be directions we always remember.

I would have to say that -Finding Neverland- sort of crept up on me too. I didn't expect to enjoy it at all, or really to get much of anything out of it. While I did think it was a bit slow getting started, the end was probably worth the wait.

I don't want to get too philosophical about the movie, I left with some thoughts about society... There was a line in the movie (Stephanie would remember it exactly) that talked about the critics taking the fun out of the theatre (or something like that). Barrie just didn't fit anymore... his ideas (ok, fantasies) were just not what people were looking for.

He had a problem... and he solved it.

Having the orphan children come to see the play... scattering them out in the crowd of socialites ("We'll at least we got a clean one") was a nice indictment of the theater going society (at least in the movie!) and maybe society in general. My idea of a good movie is what Barrie did with his play... give the people something to laugh at, something not too serious. Escaping reality is really ok, up to a point. (Ask me about Crouching TIger, Hidden Dragon sometime...)