Mary Poppins Returns - Review

Mary Poppins Returns

Early this year Actress Emily Blunt played a futuristic woman named “Evelyn Abbott”, a loving wife and mother who was in a life and death struggle to remaining virtually mute; literally unable to making a solitary sound in the surprise hit “A Quiet Place”. Now at the end of the same we see year Blunt playing a woman from almost a century ago, filled with genuine audible exuberance, femininity and vibrancy though acting, singing, dancing in the sequel to Dame Julie Andrew's iconic role that she brought to original life some 54 years ago as the venerable Mary Poppins in the now titled “Mary Poppins Returns".

At the start the film story its about 25 years after the original version of “Mary Poppins” around the period of the 1930’s in London.  We see Michael Banks is not longer the we remember as he has grown up with three children of his own now. And while he has a stable job as a bank teller Michael has become a bit forgetful and absent minded when it comes to domestic matters of home, mostly due to the sudden passing of his loving wife. "She use to handle those matters" he states early on and because she did he discovered he has lapsed in making payments on a loan he took out  a year ago..

But the bank has not and when two lawyers come to his house to inform him they will repossess the home in five days unless he can pay back the entire loan  in full, Michael realizes his only hope is to find a missing certificate that shows proof of ownership of extremely valuable shares in bank stock his father left him before his passing. Unable to find the certificate and just when all seems to be lost, Michael and his sister receive the surprise of a lifetime when their Mary Poppins, the beloved nanny from their childhood, arrives to save the day from the sky with kite in hand to take the entire Banks family on a magical, fun-filled adventure through their seemingly dire times.

REVIEW: Sometimes a film is just about recapturing a bit of childlike - childhood nostalgia. Well this “Mary Poppins Returns” clearly falls into that category. Filled with more technological brilliant color and more efficient precision elements to look at (both animation and live action), this Mary Poppins gleefully takes the viewing audiences through 2:08 minutes of being just a delightful joy to watch. And while there is nothing particularly unique to recall about this film you will however remember how good, how hopeful and how much decency it exudes as a story about kindness towards others; a virtue seemingly there can never be enough in the world.

The 1964 film version had some of the most memorable songs ever developed for a film. So much so I can recall school kids seemingly everywhere singing “Super‐cali‐fragil‐istic‐expi‐ali‐docious” , “A Spoonful of Sugar” and “Chim Chim Cheree”. And while this 2018 version had no similar universally catchy songs to easily sing from quick memory, it does not mean that these new songs had no less positive charismatic affect. In their own artful way, they do help this sequel's story move along with the same feeling of heartfelt coziness, magic and warmth from the Disney original that I’m certain Director Rob Marshall was aiming to recapture in tone and style. 

But central to it all are the fine performances in the film starting with Emily Blunt, as the venerable Mary Poppins who projects her version of Mary with a tad more prickly “saltiness” (per se) and Lin Manuel-Miranda’s as the honest and effervescent Jack. Together they carry "MPR” with two wonderful performances through their combined singing, dancing and acting. 

In addition to some amazing costumes, exquisite set designs and imaginative equal parts animation and live action involving a very creative experience where a piece of pottery coming to life, we also see several solid, touching and sometimes funny cameo performances. Colin Firth as the villainous banker “Weatherall Wilkins”, Meryl Streep as the quirky repair shop owner “Topsy”, Dick Van Dyke as mysterious “Mr. Dawes”, Angela Lansbury as “Balloon Lady” and David Warner as retired "Admiral Boom" who is obsessed with the accurate hourly time on Big Ben. But it is Emily Blunt who has set herself apart as one of the best actresses working today. It seems as if everything she does now, everything she touches cinematically is flawlessly perfect................And yes, I am still smitten.

The 1964 Mary Poppins was a highly successful musical film. So, going in it would be foolish to think this 2018 effort could ever recapture fully its predecessor pure grandeur and beloved respect.  But if you let yourself completely go with the idea of simply wanting to see an old fashion fantasy with good music filled with humanity and goodness abound then you will find that this “Mary Poppins Returns” to be a very entertaining holiday experience filled with charm and warmth.

3.25 Stars