Mary Poppins returns
Published 12:00 am Thursday, February 28, 2019
By Rolando Giustini
For the Clemmons Courier
For the Clemmons Courier
Do we need another Mary Poppins movie?
It was said that it took nerve to remake the 1964 “Mary Poppins,” although the powers that be tried to say that it was not a remake, but rather a sequel.
This statement is an example of the “Hollywood Illness,” which I discussed in an article concerning George Lucas and his dissatisfaction with the Star Wars sequels.
The Hollywood Illness is a never-ending practice of changing whatever they take and making it their own. No book, play or original script is ever left alone.
A film, like any work of art, must be taken on its own merits
“Mary Poppins Returns,” if seen by someone who never saw the 1964 original, is a beautiful movie, full of lovely dances, songs and well-acted roles by Emily Blunt, Lin-Manuel Miranda and cameos by Dick Van Dyke and Meryl Streep as Topsy. Julie Andrews does not appear, as she did not want to take anything away from Blunt.
Writer P.L. Travers, author of the Mary Poppins books, did not like the Disney original.
“Mary Poppins Returns” opened on Christmas day, earning more than $11 million at the box office. The film also received four Golden Globe nominations, including best picture, musical comedy, and was in AFI’s 2018 Top Films of the year. Oscar Buzz has it as a safe bet for an Oscar. Rob Marshal, of “Chicago” fame, did a great job as director.
The film takes place 25 years after a bad economy claims the bank’s home, and the death of Michael’s wife, leaves the three children and, the three grandchildren without much hope for the future.
There are new numbers, and elements from the other Travers books, but the songs and dances are firmly tied to the ones in the original. We also have some animation sequences…a nod to the original.
Marshal called it a risky undertaking.
If you are lucky to not have seen the original, or, are able to let it stand on its own, you will enjoy the film.
In the final take, “Mary Poppins Returns” and we are “kinda glad” it did.