Mary Poppins 45th Anniversary Edition Movie Review
Practically Perfect in Every Way
In 1964, Mary Poppins was a groundbreaking blend of live action and pioneering Disney animation, and it became an instant hit. I remember as a very little girl how I desperately wanted to see Mary Poppins, and how excited I was to finally see the movie. What I don't remember was if I easily sat through 139 minutes of singing and dancing without squirming. I do remember loving the movie and developing a little-girl's crush on Bert, the chimney sweep, portrayed by a young Dick Van Dyke.
I still find Dick Van Dyke just as charming on the 45th anniversary edition of Mary Poppins, and Julie Andrews is practically perfect in every way
as Mary Poppins who descends down from the clouds in response to the Banks children's advertisement for a nanny. However, Mary Poppins is l-o-n-g, and the singing and dancing become tedious after a few numbers. I can't imagine a child sitting easily all the way through Mary Poppins today unless they can use the fast-forward feature during some of the song and dance numbers. Part of my problem, however, was the fact I once again received a warped disc, and I really cannot concentrate on a movie that stops action for a moment every time the warp spins around.
There are 15 songs plus the overture and closing credits in Mary Poppins. Fifteen. That's about twelve too many songs. The memorable songs are: "A Spoonful of Sugar," "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," and "Chim Chim Cher-ee." In 2004, "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" was ranked number 36 in the American Film Institute's list of the 100 Greatest Songs in Movie History.
Julie Andrews won a Best Actress Oscar award in 1965 for Mary Poppins. In fact, Mary Poppins received 13 Academy Awards nominations and won 5 awards including (2):
* Best Actress -- Julie Andrews
* Best Film Editing
* Original Music Score
* Best Song for "Chim Chim Cher-ee"
* Special Visual Effects
SOURCES
(1) Christianactivities.com/Mary Poppins
(2) Wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Poppins_(film)
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Published by Kathryn E. Darden
An author, poet, publisher, publicist & skincare consultant, I have written for publications including CCM Magazine, The Tennessean, Barbie Bazaar Magazine, Christian Activities & several local newspapers.... View profile
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14 Comments
Post a CommentAlways loved the old Mary Poppins movie. The extra bonuses should make it all the more enjoyable :)
Not one of my favorite movies. I do think the girl was clever. The boy less so. Van Dyke's accent got to me. But I loved "Feed the Birds" with Jane Darwell. She was always great.
I love Mary Poppins! (I don't have the patience for warped discs, either, though.)
Ah yes, the days of the good old clean movie musical!
I sang "A Spoonful of Sugar," "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," and "Chim Chim Cher-ee" for weeks after I saw the movie.
I really liked this as a kid and still watch it.
fun loved this movie!
I remember this one too. Gee, are we THAT OLD? I have always LOVED this movie.
I remember Mom taking us to the theater to see this. I would have been about five years old. It's one of my earliest memories, and I don't remember fidgeting too much. Today's kids just don't have the attention spans we did.
I've never seen Julie Andrews in a movie that I didn't like, and her role as Mary Poppins is second only to Marie in Sound of Music. Great review.