Mary Poppins (A+ or 4/4 stars)
'Mary Poppins' (directed by Robert Stevenson) is one magical Disney musical; with a timeless story, strong performances, a flawless use of animation/live-action/special effects & fantastic songs -- it's simply wonderful. The film begins in 1910 London (the Edwardian era) when proper banker, Mr. Banks & his suffragette wife (David Tomlinson, Glynis Johns) advertise for a new nanny to care for their 2 rowdy children, Jane & Michael (Karen Dotrice, Matthew Garber). The children nab the attention of their very-busy, no-nonsense father by scaring-off every new nanny that's hired. So when Mr. Banks advertises for yet another nanny, in a change-up, Jane & Michael write their own specific ad and, when their father burns it in the fireplace, the pieces miraculously reassemble & go up the flue.
Next day, Mary Poppins (the luminous Julie Andrews, in her screen debut) answers the ad, gliding down from the sky in a huge wind storm (GREAT scene) with an umbrella as her parachute. Now, the children soon learn that Mary is no ordinary nanny; as she leads them on a series of enchanting escapades, all the while teaching them life lessons in proper behavior. One wonderful new friend Mary introduces Jane & Michael to is Bert (Dick Van Dyke) the local chimney sweep/sidewalk artist/one-man-band. He joins them on breezy holiday to a cartoon countryside world inhabited by animated penguins, who serve them tea on a carousel {awesome!}. They also learn the ridiculous, yet ridiculously entertaining song, "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious".
And they pay a visit to Bert's whimsical Uncle Albert (Ed Wynn), whose infectious laughter leads to, shall we say ... strange consequences. Mr. Banks is pleased that his kids are behaving better, but he's not happy to hear their fantastic stories of what they've been doing with Mary Poppins; he doesn't believe them. To show Jane & Michael what the real world is like, he takes them to his bank. A series of disasters follow which result in him being fired from his job. Mary Poppins' role in all of this leads to the fear that all her good work was for naught. But before the film ends, this rather unusual nanny does help Mr. Banks show love to his children. Just a little more magic is required for all of the sticky situations to iron themselves out.
'Mary Poppins' offers movie magic. Rarely does a motion picture manage to be SO much fun while also delivering a simple, heartwarming story. Part of that magic comes from the plentiful & outstanding songs: "Chim-Chim-Cher-ee" - joyously sung on a rooftop; "Spoonful of Sugar" - sung by Mary as she tries to get the kids to clean up their room; "Feed the Birds" - beautifully shot & hauntingly sung by Mary so that the kids can sleep; and "Let's Go Fly a Kite" - the wonderful closing song.
Every character is great; even the 2 housemaids who must keep all the furniture in place when canons go off at noon, everyday. Their "Posts, everyone!!" rant is hysterical. Dick Van Dyke is fantastic as our happy-as-anything, jack-of-all-trades, Bert. Bert is a versatile role for Van Dyke to show off the range of his talents. David Tomlinson takes a somewhat-villainous role as the stern dad & makes him loveable in the end. Glynis Johns is fun as the go-get-'em suffragette mother. It's just so nice to watch a Disney film that affords enough time to develop the characters. Visually, 'Mary Poppins' is astounding, too; with eye-popping cinematography (vivid cartoon imagery blended with brooding, soot-filled London), magnificent sets & gorgeous costumes. I can't fault 'MP' in any area of filmmaking.
But now I come to Julie Andrews. Ohhhhh, Julie Andrews. 'Effervescent' is a word I'd use to describe Andrews & her performance, here. She's a stunner in every sense of the word. She's naturally beautiful. The performance is charismatic, and yet, there's a cool, distancing effect that she gives to Mary that completely works. She's stoic; not wanting to get too close to the kids because the reality that she may have to leave them is always there. If anyone is able to break down her chilly exterior - at times - it is Bert. And it's simply gloriously when we DO see Mary let down her guard, sing, dance & have fun - all while teaching lessons to the kids. Andrews won an Academy Award for this role - which is fabulous - because she was denied the chance to play Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady earlier that year (when movie producer Jack Warner wanted a bankable face in Audrey Hepburn). Guess who got the last laugh, producers?!?
Next day, Mary Poppins (the luminous Julie Andrews, in her screen debut) answers the ad, gliding down from the sky in a huge wind storm (GREAT scene) with an umbrella as her parachute. Now, the children soon learn that Mary is no ordinary nanny; as she leads them on a series of enchanting escapades, all the while teaching them life lessons in proper behavior. One wonderful new friend Mary introduces Jane & Michael to is Bert (Dick Van Dyke) the local chimney sweep/sidewalk artist/one-man-band. He joins them on breezy holiday to a cartoon countryside world inhabited by animated penguins, who serve them tea on a carousel {awesome!}. They also learn the ridiculous, yet ridiculously entertaining song, "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious".
And they pay a visit to Bert's whimsical Uncle Albert (Ed Wynn), whose infectious laughter leads to, shall we say ... strange consequences. Mr. Banks is pleased that his kids are behaving better, but he's not happy to hear their fantastic stories of what they've been doing with Mary Poppins; he doesn't believe them. To show Jane & Michael what the real world is like, he takes them to his bank. A series of disasters follow which result in him being fired from his job. Mary Poppins' role in all of this leads to the fear that all her good work was for naught. But before the film ends, this rather unusual nanny does help Mr. Banks show love to his children. Just a little more magic is required for all of the sticky situations to iron themselves out.
'Mary Poppins' offers movie magic. Rarely does a motion picture manage to be SO much fun while also delivering a simple, heartwarming story. Part of that magic comes from the plentiful & outstanding songs: "Chim-Chim-Cher-ee" - joyously sung on a rooftop; "Spoonful of Sugar" - sung by Mary as she tries to get the kids to clean up their room; "Feed the Birds" - beautifully shot & hauntingly sung by Mary so that the kids can sleep; and "Let's Go Fly a Kite" - the wonderful closing song.
Every character is great; even the 2 housemaids who must keep all the furniture in place when canons go off at noon, everyday. Their "Posts, everyone!!" rant is hysterical. Dick Van Dyke is fantastic as our happy-as-anything, jack-of-all-trades, Bert. Bert is a versatile role for Van Dyke to show off the range of his talents. David Tomlinson takes a somewhat-villainous role as the stern dad & makes him loveable in the end. Glynis Johns is fun as the go-get-'em suffragette mother. It's just so nice to watch a Disney film that affords enough time to develop the characters. Visually, 'Mary Poppins' is astounding, too; with eye-popping cinematography (vivid cartoon imagery blended with brooding, soot-filled London), magnificent sets & gorgeous costumes. I can't fault 'MP' in any area of filmmaking.
But now I come to Julie Andrews. Ohhhhh, Julie Andrews. 'Effervescent' is a word I'd use to describe Andrews & her performance, here. She's a stunner in every sense of the word. She's naturally beautiful. The performance is charismatic, and yet, there's a cool, distancing effect that she gives to Mary that completely works. She's stoic; not wanting to get too close to the kids because the reality that she may have to leave them is always there. If anyone is able to break down her chilly exterior - at times - it is Bert. And it's simply gloriously when we DO see Mary let down her guard, sing, dance & have fun - all while teaching lessons to the kids. Andrews won an Academy Award for this role - which is fabulous - because she was denied the chance to play Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady earlier that year (when movie producer Jack Warner wanted a bankable face in Audrey Hepburn). Guess who got the last laugh, producers?!?