WHAT’S IT ABOUT
Now an adult with three children, bank teller Michael Banks learns that his house will be repossessed in five days unless he can pay back a loan. His only hope is to find a missing certificate that shows proof of valuable shares that his father left him years earlier. Just as all seems lost, Michael and his sister receive the surprise of a lifetime when Mary Poppins — the beloved nanny from their childhood — arrives to save the day and take the Banks family on a magical, fun-filled adventure.
MOVIESinMO Review
Mary Poppins can do anything . . . except make me like this movie. The original Mary Poppins (Julie Andrews) is a fun and entertaining musical filled with lovable characters, memorable songs, and a cast that knew how to act. Mary Poppins Returns has none of that. The songs are mediocre at best, and none of the main actors have that feeling of realism/believability. In this story, Michael Banks, one of the children from the original, is now an adult with three children of his own. With no wife to help deal with everyday issues, his life became hectic, and ultimately his house is about to be repossessed by the bank. Every time he was on the screen, looked like he’s wearing a toupe’ with a seventies mustache. His sister tries to console him, his nanny is a clutz, and his kids act far beyond their age, almost as if they are the parents. Jack (Lin-Manuel Miranda) does a decent job as a lamplighter but has a serious predator vibe. Then there’s Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins. She is so smug, she becomes completely unlikable. She’s supposed to be the same Mary Poppins from the original movie, but it’s all too clear she is not. The period is supposed to be around 1910. I’m not a history buff, and therefore most things regarding the look of a movie don’t bother me, BUT there are so many problems with this film, they practically scream impossible. Did they really have BMX bikes in this movie? Hell yeah, and that’s just one problem even that a ten-year-old could point out. The songs were forgettable but to be honest, how many songs do you like the first time you hear them. Overall, Mary Poppins is just not that great of a film so don’t waste your money over nostalgic reasons. The songs ain’t worth it. The acting ain’t worth it. And Emily Blunt, I mean Mary Poppins definitely ain’t worth it.
OUR RATING – AN UNWANTED RETURN 5.5
MEDIA
- Genre – Fantasy
- Street date
- Digital – March 12th 2019
- DVD/Blu-Ray – March 19th 2019
- Video – 1080p
- Screen size – 2.39:1
- Sound – English Dolby Atmos, English Dolby TrueHD 7.1, English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1, French Dolby Digital Plus 7.1, Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
- Subtitles – English SDH, French, Swedish
Extras
- The Practically Perfect Making of Mary Poppins Returns(HD, 24 min): Broken into four parts that can be watched separately, the short doc begins with an introduction before switching to cast & crew interviews commenting on the production design, the direction, casting, the musical performances, and the cast cameos while sharing thoughts on the sequel.
- “Seeing Things from a Different Point of View”(HD, 18 min): Another four-part short doc focused on the music and dance choreography with various cast & crew interviews discussing specific scenes and lots of BTS footage throughout.
- Back to Cherry Tree Lane(HD, 5 min): More interviews praising Dick Van Dyke’s role.
- Deleted Song(HD, 5 min): Marc Shaiman performs “The Anthropomorphic Zoo,” which was replaced by “The Royal Doulton Music Hall,” over rough storyboard sketches.
- Sing-Along Mode(HD): Accessible through the pop-up menu, viewers can enjoy the film and sing along with the lyrics appearing on screen.
- Deleted Scenes(HD, 2 min):
- Leaving Topsy’s
- “Trip a Little Light Fantastic”
- Practically Perfect Bloopers(HD, 2 min).