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With its singing chimney sweeps, dancing penguins, and magical merry-go-rounds, Disney’s Mary Poppins has been delighting kids of all ages for decades—thanks, in no small part, to a musical and magical nanny who floats down to Cherry Tree Lane to change a family’s life forever.
After losing their sixth nanny in four months, Jane and Michael Banks (Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber) hope to find a new nanny who will play games and bring them treats. But their father, stern banker George Banks (David Tomlinson), has other things in mind—things like order and discipline.
Somehow—as if by magic—the Banks family immediately hires the mysterious Mary Poppins (Julie Andrews). Right from the start, it’s clear that there’s something different about their new nanny. As Michael points out, “She’s tricky”—but they soon find that she’s much more than that.
With the help of her street performer friend, Bert (Dick Van Dyke), Mary Poppins introduces the Banks children to a world where anything can happen. Though she makes them take their medicine and clean their room, the children have never been happier—which makes their father suspicious. But when he tries to take control and teach his children some valuable lessons, things don’t exactly go according to plan.
Though it takes place nearly a century ago—and it first hit theaters in 1964—this delightful family film is still as fresh and fun today as it is sure to have been when it was released. The story is both entertaining and cleverly written. The animation is beautiful. And, in the end, there’s an important lesson or two to be learned (even for the grown-ups).
More importantly, though, it’s filled with unforgettable songs (which I’ve known by heart since I played them on my little red Raggedy Ann record player as a kid). They’re all perfectly arranged and flawlessly choreographed in rousing musical numbers—starring everything from a team of chimney sweeps to a family of animated penguins, who dance beside a live-action Dick Van Dyke (which was pretty impressive for 1964).
In a way, Mary Poppins is much like a musical variety show, framed by a cute story about a struggling family and the magical nanny who comes to the rescue. Sure, Uncle Albert (Ed Wynn) and his serious case of the giggles has little to do with the story, but that (along with the merry-go-round horse race) only adds to the film’s charm.
If you haven’t seen this lovable family classic in a while, now’s the perfect time to pick up a copy. You’re sure to find yourself singing and dancing along in no time.
Blu-ray Review:
Once you see Disney’s Saving Mr. Banks (which hits theaters on December 20th), I can guarantee that you’ll be eager to watch this beloved classic again. So although the film’s 50th anniversary isn’t for a few more months, now’s the perfect time to release the 50th Anniversary Edition on Blu-ray.
You won’t find a lot of new extras on the Blu-ray release, but you will find a great tie-in to Saving Mr. Banks. In Becoming Mr. Sherman, actor Jason Schwartzman and composer Richard Sherman discuss the music of Mary Poppins while tying it into the making of Saving Mr. Banks (in which Schwartzman plays Sherman). The only other new feature is the Mary-Oke, which presents four different songs from the film with music and animated lyrics.
But, of course, that’s not all of the extras included on this Blu-ray release. It also includes a number of classic special features. Though I’ve already mentioned many of the classic extras in my DVD review below, there are a couple of them that are even more interesting now, thanks to Saving Mr. Banks—including archive footage of both the film’s Gala World Premiere and the after-party (featuring footage of Walt Disney, the Sherman Brothers, and author P. L. Travers).
The film’s 50th Anniversary Edition release isn’t exactly loaded with new extras—so if you already own the film on DVD, that might just be good enough. But whether you’re picking up a new copy on Blu-ray or pulling out your old DVD copy, you’ll definitely want to gather the family together soon to re-watch this Disney classic.
DVD Review:
The new two-disc 45th anniversary special edition DVD release of Mary Poppins is as jam-packed with features as Mary’s carpetbag is with mirrors and coat racks and things.
The main disc includes a song selection menu, which allows you to skip to your favorite song—and play it with or without on-screen lyrics. There’s a commentary, in which Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, composers Richard and Robert Sherman, and Karen Dotrice reminisce and look back on their Mary Poppins experiences. Or you can watch the film with pop-up fun facts that offer more information about the books, the movie, and the filmmaking process.
The second disc includes a menu full of features about the new Mary Poppins musical—including a sort of making-of feature (which clocks in at over 48 minutes), a design gallery, and a downloadable MP3 of “Step in Time.” There’s a backstage menu, featuring an extensive (five-year-old) making-of feature, stills, and footage from the film’s world premiere. There’s a music menu, including deleted song, “Chimpanzoo.” And, finally, there’s a short, called The Cat that Looked at a King, in which Julie Andrews and a pair of young friends step into a painting and find a fascinating animated world.
Though few of these features cater to the movie’s younger audience, older fans will find many of them worth watching.
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