The joy of Mary Poppins Returning
In Mary Poppins Returns, Poppins comes back to take care of the Banks children – Georgie, Anabel, and John but really to help Michael Banks after the passing of his wife, Kate.
February 20, 2019
In 1964, Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke took to the big screen in Disney’s Mary Poppins. The fun, lovable nanny would make her way into people’s hearts and home for years to come. Fans wondered for years if a sequel would ever be made, then in December of 2018, after decades of waiting fans finally got a sequel we’d been waiting for. Mary Poppins was my favorite movie so this news was very exciting for me.
The sequel Mary Poppins Returns stars Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins and Lin Manuel Miranda as Jack, Jane Banks as Emily Mortimer and Michael Banks as Ben Whishaw. In Mary Poppins Returns, Poppins comes back to take care of the Banks children – Georgie, Anabel, and John but really to help Michael Banks after the passing of his wife, Kate.
In all, Mary Poppins Returns clocks in at 2 hours and 10 minutes, making it 9 minutes shorter than the original. The newer movie includes 27 songs all written by Marc Shaiman with lyrics by and Scott Wittman, who both are composers and directors. The songs are very beautiful and entertaining, song like “A Conversation” which were written with heart and love.
Mary Poppins Returns was based off of the book series written by P.L. Travers. This movie was based off the book Mary Poppins Comes Back. This leads to the question, since there are more books, will there be more movies? Fans really hope so.
Many people thought actress Emily Blunt would try to outdo the original Mary Poppins actress, Julie Andrews but that was just the opposite. Andrews helped Blunt get into character and stayed on set to oversee everything. Blunt did a wonderful job and did not exceed Andrews at all. Andrews was offered a part in the movie but declined because she didn’t want the focus to be taken off of Blunt.
Although Andrews declined a part in the movie, her former co-star Dick Van Dyke accepted the role of Mr. Dawes Junior, whose father he also played in the original movie. The 93-year-old actor sang and dance just like in the original, causing laughter and joy to many Mary Poppins fans. It major fans like me cry of happiness and awe.
Lin Manuel Miranda, who has previously worked for Disney on the Moana soundtrack and writer of the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, plays Jack. Mary Poppins met Jack when he was younger since he was an apprentice for Bert, the chimney sweep from the original movie. This part meant a lot since people expected them to not even mention Bert in the sequel.
The movie focuses on themes of love and friendship and not giving up on the important things and it truly makes you feel all the feelings. Some scenes and songs will make you sad, others happy and adventurous, so whether you’re planning to “Trip a Little Light Fantastic” or your world is “Turning Turtle,”this movie will make you laugh, smile, cry and see the importance of love and family.
Sierra (cc) O'tool • Aug 23, 2019 at 11:08 AM
This article really spiked my interest just by the title! Mary Poppins is also one of my favorite movies and I really enjoyed all the context of the characters and the behind the scenes knowledge. I actually did not know that Dick Van Dyke was 93, it kind of shocked me at first and was nice to learn about him. I also had no idea that Julie Andrews was actually offered a part in the movie and I really wish she would have accepted. It was very kind of her,though, to make sure Emily Blunt was the true focus as she played Andrews’ original role. All in all, this article was pretty interesting and you got to all necessary points that apply to the movie. Also, mentioning the theme(s) of the movie gave the movie a new meaning to me knowing what it was truly trying to teach! Good job and I hope to read more articles like this in the future from you!
Alex Baer • Aug 23, 2019 at 11:07 AM
I enjoyed the first mary poppins and i didn’t watch the second, its nice to know that they didn’t ruin the reboot like they usually do with older movies. I wasn’t even aware that they made a new movie but i think it’s nice they worked so hard to make it nostalgic to marry poppins fans. Most movie reboots are just sad attempts to make money off of people’s nostalgia and most of the time people realize this and the movie ends up getting bad ratings. From your article it seems that they actually managed to make a good reboot which is hard for a lot of movie companies so i completely agree with this.
Emma Crow • Apr 9, 2019 at 10:45 AM
This article was just as amazing as the movie! I love how you provided behind-the-scenes info many people may not have known about. Keep up the awesome writing, my friend!
Aliya Bolton • Apr 9, 2019 at 10:43 AM
I love the introduction, it hooked me right away. I’ve wanted to see this movie for ever and now I want to see it even more. I love how you gave a lot of information but yet no spoilers. The end of your article well states how the movie is funny and will give you laughs. That definitely makes me want to watch and enjoy the movie.
Veronica Dela Rosa • Apr 9, 2019 at 10:42 AM
I loved the original Mary Poppins, and I’m so glad you did this on the sequel. This article really gives us an outlook on how the critics were thinking, plus Mary Poppins Returns is an absolutely amazing movie.