The Muppets/Saving Mr. Banks

Daniel Green noted, “Jim Henson’s comic creations The Muppets undoubtedly had their heyday in the late 1970s-early 80s with prime-time ratings winner The Muppet Show, a charming blend of family-friendly humour and celebrity cameos from the likes of John Denver, Elton John and Dudley Moore.” Then in 2011, Disney had brought back Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and friends with the help of director James Bobin, comedic actor Jason Segel, Amy Adams and so much support with the release of “The Muppets.” This new installment introduces newcomer Walter (Peter Linz), the largest Muppets fan, with his brother Gary (Segel) and his girlfriend Mary (Adams).

The three leave the calm town of their home in Smalltown, USA for the big vacation are of Los Angeles to go tour the now rundown Muppet Studios. Green said in his review, “After consequently overhearing the sinister plans that villainous oil tycoon Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) has in store for the waning Muppets brand and the hallowed ground underneath their old theatre, Walter and pals set off to reunite the old gang, starting with the totemic Kermit. The Muppets’ brave fight against Cooper’s Machiavellian oil baron has already caused somewhat of a stir in the US, with Fox Business Network anchor Eric Bolling suggesting that the film had a communist agenda and was “trying to brainwash [your] kids against capitalism”. Nice try, Eric.”

Green continued, “Cynical cross-promotion aside, Muppets fans will find much to enjoy in this latest outing, with Flight of the Concords star Bret McKenzie penning a number of memorable song and dance numbers, including the Oscar-nominated Muppet or a Man. There are also a number of successful cover versions of contemporary classics, with a barbershop rendition of Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit likely to raise more than a few wry smiles from older members of the audience.” Whether the children watching this will stay patient through the handful of self-referential ‘in-jokes’ (“I can’t believe we had that in the budget.”) may very well depend on how much attention the individual child has in question. You get the actual feeling that “The Muppets” may be targeted at people who remember the Muppets the first time around than the regular Disney Company.

Green noted, “Segel and Adams do an adequate job of representing humanity’s interest in the Muppets’ plight, though one can’t help but wish that screenwriter Segel had ditched weedy and irksome newcomer Walter in favour of a more established Muppets regular as our protagonist. Cooper also comes away looking more than a little foolish – why the filmmakers selected someone so rigidly restricted to straight, serious roles to play the pantomime villain is anyone’s guess (you’re opinion of Cooper’s performance will likely hinge on the first rendition of catchphrase “maniacal laugh”).” “The Muppets’” flaws are huge, but not large enough to really hurt Muppets fans. Bobin and Segel may not come close to completely embodying the once declining franchise when looking at jokes and display, but expect the gang’s latest movie to have its song numbers (and dance) at the box office thanks to Disney’s well-done marketing machine.

Next up is the 2013 movie inspired by true events, which is a behind-the-scenes backstory about how Walt Disney, played by Tom Hanks, had turned P.L. Travers’ book, Mary Poppins, into a successful beloved film, “Saving Mr. Banks.” Emma Thompson plays P.L. Travers.

When it comes to making a place of fantasy, fun and laughter for children, there wasn’t much that Walt Disney couldn’t do. When his daughters insist him to listen to them and make a movie out of their favorite book, how could he say no? It’s a promise that would take him two decades to keep.

Reagan Gavin Rasquinha said in his review, “It turns out that Travers has a stiff upper lip seemingly made out of granite. But when the book royalties start to dry up, she grudgingly accepts the call from Hollywood, flies to Los Angeles and agrees to the adaptation, but only if it matches her lofty standards.”

Sounds easy enough, which is the thinking of the scriptwriter Don DaGradi (Bradley Whitford) and songwriting brothers Richard and Robert Sheman (Jason Schwartzman and B.J. Novak). They were wrong sadly! Rasquinha said, “The grouchy Travers is finicky, cranky and an overall fusspot.” She makes them go insane and rejects their script as being “pulp.”

Rasquinha noted, “Hancock often cuts to a parallel story, Travers' childhood set in the Australian outback, in 1901.” She was raised by her mother (Ruth Wilson) and her father (Colin Farrell) who she loves. The flashbacks try to explain how Travers crossed from a lively girl to a woman who doesn’t have a humor and is near to arrogant. Strangely enough, if there’s one thing that the movie could not have used, it’s the handful of flashbacks. There are so many of them that it is almost satisfying each time it goes back to Los Angeles.

When Disney’s charm doesn’t work on her, he figures that he can only see and analyze Travers’ complicated manners by channeling into his own childhood. When doing that, he uses sympathy and not anger to try and calm Travers’ uptight manners and to look at the movie as a way of relief. Heartwarming without being saturated, this film makes for a really enjoyable time.

Be on the lookout tomorrow for more excitement in “Disney Live-Action Month.”