In 1964, P. L. Travers brought one of his kids novels to the big screen and introduced us to a flying nanny. No, not the Flying Nun. That was Sally Field. I’m referring to Julie Andrews as Mary Poppins in her screen debut as she floated down from the heavens on a umberella to come to the rescue of a poverty stricken family in a most delightful way of musical.
Fifty years later Mary Poppins, this time played by the talented Emily Blunt, returns to Cherry Tree Lane in the depression-struck London to care for the Bank’s children. Now the Banks’ are are grown up with kids of their own. Michael Banks (Ben Whishaw) an artist and his sister Jane Banks (Emily Mortimer) have fallen behind on their mortgage after the passing of his wife.
Employed part-time at his father’s former employer Fidelity Bank it’s just impossible to make ends meet. His shady boss, nicely played by Colin Ferth has repossession on his mind and is bent to fulfill his mission in five days unless Michael can locate his dad’s misplaced lost bank shares. Mary Poppins to the rescue with her umbrella and kite. Right in the middle of all this chaos is Mary Poppins who meets a a lamplighter Jack (Lin-Manuel Miranda) and the musical begins with a new set of composed songs. The fun starts with the children Annabel (Pixie Davies), John (Nathanael Saleh) and little George (Joel Dawson) with a bathtub full of dolphins to learn the world of sillyness. It gets more fantastical from there with director Rob Marshall’s gift for music that mainly involves the Bank’s family, Jack and herself. It’s magically delicious. It’s got nowhere to go but up.
The standout scene with the talking animals live-action and animations is worth the price alone. This is a welcomed reboot with lots of singing and dancing. The Irony here is at the time Julie Andrews was shooting her version of this, she was pregnant. The same with Emily Blunt. Look for a Dick Van Dyke cameo as he still has it in him for just being ninety. See it in theaters December 20. 5 stars
