Anthony's Film Review - Mary Poppins Returns (2018)

Mary Poppins is back, delivering as much fun and imagination as before...

Let's talk for a moment about movie sequels. The notion of a film to follow up on a previous movie is nothing new at all. It's been done for decades. What is new, however, is the notion of making a sequel to a movie that is more than a decade old, maybe two decades old. Some may consider this a sign that Hollywood has truly run out of ideas, so the industry needs to rehash old favorites in new ways to keep generating its massive revenue. Along these lines, a sequel that follows a very old movie is definitely going to surprise people. That was sort of my reaction when it was announced that there would be, in the year 2018, a sequel to the Disney musical film Mary Poppins, which was originally released in 1964. That's 54 years between those movies. Are you kidding me?

Still, while I am aware of the business side of Hollywood and any noticeable trends with movies, I ultimately put it all aside and ask one question with any movie I see. Is it an entertaining movie?

I am happy to say that Mary Poppins Returns is a very entertaining movie. It's entertaining simply because it recaptures the magic of the original Mary Poppins. In a way, this sequel film also feels like a remake. It has new songs, new adventures, and new characters, all with the same familiar magic of the original. Anyone who fell in love with the 1964 Mary Poppins will likely enjoy this new 2018 Mary Poppins. Likewise, anyone who first enjoys this new Mary Poppins ought to be interested in seeing the original movie for the very first time. Basically, it's great for kids and adults alike, even if they're in different generations.

Speaking of generations, Mary Poppins Returns centers on a new generation of children after the one in the 1964 film. In the original film, the children are Michael and Jane Banks. In this new movie, both Michael and Jane are adults. Michael (Ben Whishaw) is a widowed father of three children of his own, named Anabel, John, and Georgie, and Jane (Emily Mortimer) is an aunt for those three. There's another similarity to this movie and the original one, in that the male head of the household isn't terribly close to his own children. Here, Michael is worried about being in debt ever since his wife died and now risks having his house repossessed. Eventually, Mary Poppins flies down from the sky to help this new generation of the Banks family.

Emily Blunt plays the title character played 54 years earlier by Julie Andrews. Overall, Blunt is a fantastic choice to portray Mary Poppins. She practically channels Julie Andrews in her performance, so watching her is sort of like watching an unaged Andrews reprise the role. However, Blunt also prepared for her role by reading the original Mary Poppins books by P.L. Travers, such that her Mary Poppins comes across with both stern discipline and fun-loving imagination, a bit more serious than Julie Andrews being relatively more kind. Besides acting, Blunt is also great with singing and dancing in the musical sequences. I'm glad she is playing Mary Poppins.

As for the fantastic adventures that the three young Banks children go on, they are definitely fun. One of my favorite sequences is the one that takes place in an animated world occupying the surface of a china bowl. The characters, consisting of the three children, Mary Poppins, and a man named Jack (Lin-Manuel Miranda), enter this world where they interact with animated characters. It's a throwback to when Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews were dancing with penguins. It's another example of a scene in this movie that will delight both fans of the original film and newcomers to the cinematic world of Mary Poppins. As for the music, it's fun. You'll especially like the final musical number that I would describe as, well, uplifting.

The story is simple. While Michael and Jane deal with their financial crisis, Mary Poppins, Jack, and the children go on adventures that bring them joy. It basically goes back and forth between the two plot strands, yet presents a single narrative that continues moving forward. The performances of everyone involved are great. Speaking of which, you can also expect to see Meryl Streep, Colin Firth, Dick Van Dyke, and Angela Lansbury in interesting supporting roles.

So that's all I really have to say about Mary Poppins Returns. It's a movie that brings back the magic of the original while providing new adventures and music for the audience. Another winner from Disney.

Anthony's Rating:

For more information about Mary Poppins Returns, visit the Internet Movie Database.

In addition, check out my review of Mary Poppins.