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Add It Or Trash It: Finding Neverland |
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Find out which of the three deleted scenes included with the DVD of Finding Neverland should have been kept in the movie.
On the DVD of Finding Neverland, there are three deleted scenes:
Pretend You Still Care, Only Grown-Ups Can Have Children, and Depending on J.M. Barrie.
Should the director have included these scenes in the final cut or was it a good idea to leave it on the cutting room floor? Let’s examine further:
Deleted Scene #1 Title: Pretend You Still Care
Description Setup: About a third of the way into the movie, Barrie is scene returning home late at night after being with the Davies boys and their mom. He opens the door and a couple of servants wish him a good evening. Mary is seen at the top of the stairs where she confronts Barrie, a conversation the servants overhear. Mary’s last comment to Barrie in this scene is, “Maybe she (Mrs. Davies) can send over some of the things we’ve run short on; my husband, for example. I’d rather see him in this house.”
This scene was originally longer, however part of it was left on the cutting room floor as described below.
Deleted Scene Description: Mary and Barrie are still talking the servants are seen leaving the kitchen to go to their quarters.
Mary
Well we’ll be the talk of neighboring servants in the morning.
Barrie
Such Nonsense
Mary
And by the afternoon I’ll be getting sympathetic looks from all the ladies in the park.
Barrie
I’m sorry to have embarrassed you in public… yet again.
Mary
The world will forgive you a great deal, of course. My stock in society is measured by your estimate of me. So whatever value you actually place on your marriage. Do me the favor of pretending you still care.
Add it or Trash It? Add It
Why? I was actually quite surprised that this part of the scene was left on the cutting room floor. When viewing the deleted scene you learn new things important to the story. In the deleted scene commentary, the filmmakers claim that they didn’t feel the information in the scene was “needed”. To the contrary, the information in the deleted scene not only gives you deeper insight into Mary and Barrie’s relationship, but it also sets up a future scene where one of Barrie’s friends tells him that “people are talking.” But perhaps the biggest injustice of cutting this scene is the audience not hearing Mary say, “The world will forgive you a great deal, of course. My stock in society is measured by your estimate of me.” This is a very enlightening line and perhaps the most profound thing that Mary says in the entire movie.
Deleted Scene #2 Title: Only Grown-Ups Can Have Children
Description Setup: This is a quick scene that takes place at Barrie’s summer cottage. There’s nothing vital setting the scene up.
Deleted Scene Description: Barrie is walking through the cottage grounds and comes across the youngest Davies’ boy, Michael.
Michael
Are there never children here?
Barrie
No sir.
Michael
Why haven’t you had any children?
Barrie
Well that’s a very good question that I’m afraid I don’t quite know the answer to, but I suppose it’s because only grownups can have children
Michael
Oh. All right.
Add It or Trash It? Trash It
Why? This scene is definitely cute and gets some laughs. However, it is too short and there’s no real place to add it in the movie without “pausing” the story. Even the commentators, who fail to explain why the scene was deleted, argue about where the scene was originally supposed to appear.
Deleted Scene #3 Title: Depending on J.M. Barrie
Description Setup: This is another scene that was filmed at Barrie’s summer cottage. There’s not a real setup to the scene, except that it takes place at the summer cottage grounds.
Deleted Scene Description: Barrie and Mrs. Davies are sitting on two nice chairs out on the property in nature somewhere with an end table between them. Barrie is smoking on a pipe. Mary relays to Barrie how she and the children have come to rely on him. The Mrs. Davies starts to get more serious; obviously wanting to talk about her feelings, but Barrie interrupts her with a joke.
Add It or Trash It? Trash It
Why? This scene is definitely out of place in so many ways. For starters the way the nice furniture is arranged in the middle of the woods/nature just looks odd. Second, Barrie is smoking a pipe throughout the whole scene, something he never does in the entire movie. Third, part of the conversation is how Michael, more than the other boys, has come to depend on Barrie, but that really isn’t brought out in the movie. If ever there was a scene created specifically for the cutting room floor, this is it.
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