Mary Poppins Returns Review

A very cute and fun movie. It won’t have you falling out of your seat in laughter, and it won’t have you leave the theater humming your new favorite song but it is still a solid outing by Disney.

I have never seen the original Mary Poppins, unless I was a really little kid and simply don’t remember it. I did however see Mary Poppins on Broadway when I was a child. I don’t exactly know how well this does justice to the old one, so I am the wrong person to make those comparisons. That said, Emily Blunt truly owner the role and made it her own. She fell naturally into place as the equally stern and lovable Nanny. The children also turned in very solid performances. All of these characters were the center of the film and wouldn’t work if any of them were off, but Mary Poppins and the Banks children held it together.

The overall costume and set design was fantastic. It felt as magically as it should and really was memorable, which makes it even more of a shame that the songs are just not ok the same level as the originals songs (which I’m assuming are the same in the movie as the broadway show). Ironically I think the score was better than the actual songs, so it wasn’t all bad. Well none of the songs were bad, it just wasn’t catchy enough or simple enough to latch on to. So many songs seemed to try to recapture the quirkiness of the original, and they over complicated it in the process. So they are fun tunes, but forgettable nonetheless.

Overall the story is simple and fun, serviceable to let us meet the wonderful cast of characters in their unique and interesting locales. I was particularly fond of the animated portion of the movie, and it made me wish we had more of the Live-Action/Animation hybrid like in Rodger Rabbit or Space Jam. 

I’m sure visually this movie will stick with me for a while, and some of the fun moments between Poppins and the children. But the story and songs don’t do much to elevate this film to a great movie.  I would recommend seeing it on the big screen if it at all interests you though, because it does have some great spectacles!

Final Score: 7/10