Last night my hubby and I had date night. We went to see Mary Poppins Returns. I was hoping it would be a good movie. I mean, a new Mary Poppins? Do we really need a new one? And you know how people screw up "sequels". I had my hopes up that it would at least be enjoyable. Just be aware that what follows may be considered a complete spoiler, but I'm ok with that. This is your fair warning.
Cue the start of the film, and I KNEW something magical was about to happen. There may be a lot of "remember when" statements coming in this review starting with, remember when movies began with the credits? They lasted a couple minutes with a musical piece? It took me about 30 seconds to realize that the movie hadn't started, the music was still playing, and we were still watching credits. That put a smile on my face and I wondered how many people remember movies beginning this way. Then I also wondered how many people were impatient for the movie to start. I just thought, "I already love this."
I read on Facebook that someone was saying to not forget this movie was a musical. Of course I wasn't sure if that meant the entire thing was full on musical scene after scene or even if the score would be any good. Would the songs be on par with the original music and dances. I mean, the bar (in my opinion) was set extremely high for this movie to reach.
Let's just say that Mary Poppins Returns is a musical just like the original. It made me think of those classic childhood movies like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Robert & Richard Sherman composed music that made those movies absolutely delightful. Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman did a spectacular job at staying true to the original movie with new songs that I believe the Sherman brothers would've approved of! I think the only part in the movie that I thought was a bit "hokey" was the BMX bikes in the "Trip A Little Light Fantastic" scene. It's probably my age, but it just didn't seem to fit the rest of the movie.
I'm not sure at what point in the movie I realized I felt like a child again. Mary Poppins Returns made me feel like a 6 year old little girl who watched the movie with wide-eyed wonderment. The humans were able to interact with cartoons. I thought it would be incredible to experience that kind of interaction. I literally got lost in the movie. I remembered what it felt like to watch a move that seemed magical. I want Mary Poppins to be MY nanny although I've never had a nanny and I'm almost 50. hahahaha
Do you approach movies that are "family" oriented or for children and wonder how they're going to add adult themes? I mean, why can't children's movies just be sweet and innocent? No inappropriate talk by the characters, no implied meanings, no innuendos. Simply a straight forward children's movie. You get all the fun & sweetness of a children's movie that you would hope for with Mary Poppins Returns.
Emily Blunt, I can't say enough about her performance! As soon as you see her feet turned out, you know she's going to be great! I'm not one to join the hype of an actor or actress' performance, but hers was spectacular. I feel as though Dame Julie Andrews would be very proud of this revival of the character she brought to life. BTW, did you know the original Mary Poppins was Julie Andrews' feature film debut? Back to Emily Blunt though. She is probably one of my favorite actresses. I don't think I realized it until this movie. She's such a versatile actress. I can't imagine anyone else playing this role!
Lin-Manuel Miranda did a good job as Jack, the lamp lighter. Can I admit I've never seen him in anything before? No, I haven't seen Hamilton. I also don't keep up on awards shows to know that he's won nearly all 4! Lin-Manuel certainly showed me he can sing, dance, and act all in one fell swoop.
No way I could leave out seeing Dick Van Dyke and Angela Lansbury in this movie. What icons! My heart swelled when I saw them and heard them sing. Dick Van Dyke certainly hasn't lost his gift of singing, dancing, and acting. I had no idea Angela Lansbury was in the movie, so to see her at the end was delightful! I also had no clue Meryl Streep was in the movie. I must live under a rock.
I can't leave out the actors who played Michael & Jane as well as the kids, Anabel, John, and Georgie. I remember Jane (Emily Mortimer) from something, but for the life of me I can't remember what. I looked through IMDB and didn't find anything that I'd know her from. Maybe she just has one of those faces. The kids were fantastic and I really enjoyed them as Michael's children. I think when they look back 20 yrs from now, they'll realize what an amazing opportunity it was to have roles in this movie.
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