Finding Neverland Reviews

One of Johnny Depp's best performances! This is such a touching story that moves with a catchy soundtrack that magically captures the inspiration behind making Peter Pan.

For many years, I have been a huge fan of Johnny Depp but, unfortunately, he has now become one of the most overrated actors at work nowadays. Basically, he keeps showing up in some huge blockbusters which are all rather underwhelming and I terribly miss the time when he was making some smaller features and was considered a box-office poison. Anyway, back in 2004, the situation was not yet so dramatic and this movie was one of the last smaller projects involving Johnny Depp before he became the biggest movie star in the world. Anyway, when this movie was released, it was very well received so I was really eager to check it out. And, indeed, it was really good with one of those great typical excentric characters he used to play in the 90’s. Also, the other intriguing element was to witness the genesis of one of the most enduring tales ever created. Of course, they have romanticized the whole thing (there is no such thing as a 100% accurate movie based on a true story) but it was really compelling to watch. The only complain I would have is that Kate Winslet’s character and even the kids could have been more developed in my opinion. For Marc Forster, it was a very impressive 3rd directing effort and he would continue to make some pretty good flicks (‘The Kite Runner’, ‘Stranger Than Fiction’, ‘Stay’). It is actually really too bad that he still has some trouble to recover from the ‘Quantum of Solace’ debacle (‘World War Z’ should be a turning point for him, either resurrecting his career, or finishing it altogether but I’m not really optimistic, I’m afraid). To conclude, it is a very good biopic and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you want to see Johnny Depp is something worthwhile for a change.

There have been a number of Peter Pan films released over many years. From the cult classic, "Hook," to Disney's animated adaption, Peter Pan has gotten more than his fair share of publicity. Disney's Peter Pan has long since been my favorite Neverland adventure put to film, but it seems that it has now been dethroned. Not only is Finding Neverland an engaging and fascinating film, it's also a magical and enchanting experience.

J.M. Barrie is trying to get over the poor reception from his last play by writing a new adventure. To find inspiration, he goes to the park where he meets the Davies, a family of four boys and a widowed mother named Sylvia. Barrie immediately falls in love with the family. Most of the boys enjoy playing with Barrie as they use their imagination to become pirates, cowboys, among other things. Only one of the boys, Peter, refuses to leave reality. As Barrie slowly opens Peter's mind to the world of imagination, the Davies soon inspire Barrie to discover and develop Neverland.

This isn't a documentary. Nor is it a cheesy family drama. Finding Neverland, like the film's portrayal of J.M. Barrie, is playful, a little eccentric, and intelligent. It's a family film that avoids all the common pitfalls of it's own kind. Finding Neverland isn't formulaic, and it doesn't feel the need to pander to kids.

In fact, despite it being labeled as a family film, it's unlikely to appeal to children. It's slower than most family films, lacks action, and while there is humor, it's much more subtle than what children are used to.

The visual effects are superb. As Barrie and the Davie boys explore fantasies, their surroundings change into something of a storybook setting where the children can explore and play. Editing between real life and their imagination make this more than just a novelty. It's an innovation, and a true achievement in editing, visuals, and storytelling.

As Barrie slowly gathers inspiration from his surroundings that will inevitably make up the world of Neverland, we see glimpses of his ideas appear in the real world. A cranky and tyrannical grandmother with a hook in her hand. Boys jumping on their beds and flying out windows. With each inspiration, comes a feeling of magic. Like seeing the magician at work.

The acting is very well done. Johnny Depp, in one of his less bizarre roles, portrays J.M. Barrie with a childlike playfulness and innocence. While his accent may be a bit off putting (he's supposed to be British, so why does he sound Scottish...?), Depp buries himself in the role, and it's absolutely enchanting. Freddie Highmore is excellent as Peter Davies, especially considering his age at the time of production. Kate Winslet is appropriately distraught, but fun loving as Sylvia Davies, and Dustin Hoffman is great in the slightly more humorous role as a play producer that funds Barrie's work, despite his skeptical attitude towards him.

The score, for which the film won an Oscar for, is composed by Jan A. P. Kaczmarek. Like the film, it's magical and beautiful, and has an element of playfulness to it. By absorbing itself into the film, the score enhances the production greatly, and adds to the overall enchantment and wonder.

While a film about J.M. Barrie and his inspirations may initially seem more like a homework assignment than a film, Finding Neverland achieves grand heights as a well made and magical production. It's not quite a masterpiece, but it's not far off. If nothing else, it's a family film that won't insult the intelligence of it's older films, and that in itself is a rare treat.

Marc Forster is one of the 4 directors who tackled Johnny Depp and survived. The other three are Tim Burton, Terry Gilliam and Gore Verbinski. One first glance the film doesn't seem much, just another film. If you peek a little closer you will notice it is as entertaining as J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan and although not as magical, still flows in the same vein. The cast is very well-chosen, wonderfully played, and the set intriguing. Marc Forster takes us behind the scenes on how J.M. Barrie got his inspiration for Peter Pan and his life-story, all wonderfully paced and warmly presented. The cinematography is not bad either, showing different levels of moods from different angles and highlighting the main focus of the scene, making it stand out so that the background, or side, activity becomes obsolete. The score by Jan A.P. Kaczmarek is equally enchanting. I wouldn't say this film will go on to become a cinema classic but to those who are currently in their teens and are watching it, it will be in, let's say, 20-30 years. It possesses a certain magical quality that I hope still remains when I'll re-visit it after many, many years.

From the performances, Johnny Depp has certainly been never like this in his career. Almost a vast majority of his characters are either loud, eccentric and colourful whereas this one is quiet, too human and a gentleman. Very interesting, really. It's one of the best performances by him. Then we have Davies boys: Freddie Highmore, Nick Roud, Joe Prospero and Luke Spill. All were wonderful in their roles but of course, Highmore was the best of the bunch, being more talented and more misty-eyed. Kate Winslet was also good but she has done far better roles than this. Seeing Radha Mitchell was a good surprise. She was good, too. Dustin Hoffman actually looks better and dignified with a beard. He should sport that often.

In all, Finding Neverland is a good watch but nowhere a classic in my eyes although the combined performances of Depp and Highmore might make you call this film just that.

8.0/10

Oh my God. I totally thought this film was going to be sooo boring and the only good thing would be Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet, but it so wasn't!
It was AWESOME! Again, AWESOME!
It's was so interesting to learn how Mr. Barrie got his inspiration for Peter Pan and what his life was like.
A great movie (with Johnny Depp looking really gooood), and also a bit of a tearjeaker, so bring tissues!

I absolutely adored this film!! Finding Neverland is a real-life story but is mixed with fairy tales. I found Finding Neverland to be a very rare family bio-pic. Finding Neverland not only shows the beauty of love but also of using your imagination. It is a big inspiration to me for that basic reason. It wasn't only the characters that made it beautiful for a family but also the way it is filmed. I loved the artistic designs of the neighbourhoods and also the costumes and cinematography as well. Finding Neverland is so magical it's untrue. Out of the 5 Best Picture nominees of 2008, I liked Finding Neverland the best. It is a film about self-discovery in which Barrie learns about himself with Peter Pan. Despite how beautiful the film is, it is quite a heartbreaking film as well. It is a masterpiece that I could watch over and over again.


Johnny Depp rarely stars in family films. I can only think of Finding Neverland, Pirates Of The Caribbean trilogy, Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Edward Scissorhands and the upcoming Alice In Wonderland. Depp almost made J.M. Barrie his own person as well as his own character. I was fascinated by Barrie's work on Peter Pan especially because I love Peter Pan. Depp has portrayed a man who loves being with children which is something Depp has ever done before. Johnny's performance as Barrie reminds me a lot of his performance as Ed Wood because being a maker of entertainment. They are both funny characters. I loved Kate Winslet's performance as Sylvia Llewelyn Davies. She is a single mother of 4 sons Michael, George, Jack and Peter. Barrie comes into their lives at the right time especially after the boys lost their father. Kate's performance was a very heartbreaking and a performance that makes you think about things. Johnny and Kate's performances were different: Kate was deeply emotional and Johnny was serious and funny. Freddie Highmore is one of my favourite child star male actors of this generation. His performance in Finding Neverland was his breakthrough performance before Charlie And The Chocolate Factory. He is better in Finding Neverland than Charlie And The Chocolate Factory. Other cast members Dustin Hoffman, Julie Christie and Radha Mitchell were really good as well.


Marc Forster has been a director of making different kinds of films. His work in Finding Neverland is his finest achievement so far. His directing in Finding Neverland was far better than his lame directing in Quantum Of Solace. Forster isn't a good action film director but Finding Neverland proved him to be a good director for family based stories and could make another go of a bio-pic. The script is written really well about a person who lived just over 70 years ago now. Finding Neverland is without a doubt one of my favourite family films of all time.


This one is the best of the 5 Best Picture nominees in 2004. It is my second favourite film of 2004 after Closer. Finding Neverland is Johnny's fourth best performance after Sweeney Todd, Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl and Edward Scissorhands and it is Kate Winslet's fourth best performance after Revolutionary Road, Titanic and Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind. Finding Neverland is Marc Forster's best work so far and will hopefully always be his finest achievement. Finding Neverland is one of the most heartbreaking films as well as one of the most beautiful, inspiring and magical films ever made.

Johnny Depp & Kate Winslet solidly anchor this fairy tale-ish depiction behind the process of a fairy tale.
Finding Neverland starts off as a story of a man who's refusal to grow up results in the fantasy based chapters of his stage production & ends with a boy who is forced to grow up by the grim reality of the loss of a loved one.
The end is truly moving & successfully endearing enough to mask the pixie-like liberties taken with any historical fact of this story of the man who founded the Lost Boys.

I wonder how many people who saw the movie have actually read or re-read Peter Pan while they were adults and how many of them have known anything about the real life of J. M. Barrie before the movie. I'm not an expert on Barrie, but I do know a bit about him and had to re-read Peter Pan for my Children's Lit class, so I can tell you the film version of Barrie and Peter Pan is mostly imaginary. What irks me mostly about the movie is its inaccurate portrayal of historically real persons and real events and yet it presents itself to be semi-biographical (for a very nice article on Barrie and Peter Pan, go here: "Lost Boys"). This Disney-esq version of Barrie's life and the birth of Peter Pan is also full of corny sentimentalism and predictable clichés. It's a tear-jerker all right, but the emotion stays on the surface; there is no revelation and no depth. It is easy to swallow and even easier to forget. Contrary to popular opinion, I don't find Johnny Depp's performance particularly memorable in this film although his Scottish accent is impressive (to me anyway). The rest of the cast is OK, but the corny dialogues were too distracting for me to pay attention to the acting.

"Finding Neverland" is an average film that might be entertaining if one goes for that sort of thing. It is sad though that you just know many are going to walk away from the film thinking THAT was what really happened historically. J. M. Barrie, in the end, meets the same fate as his Peter Pan, whose pop culture image has long replaced the real thing.

I absolutely love it. Not just for Johnhy Depp, but for this amazing story. I think I cried, but at the end i was left smiling, because this movie is truly great and should be seen by all..