Bea says: Cecil and I were lucky enough to bag advance tickets to some special
screenings of this film at Melbourne's historic Regent Theatre, and a couple of
friends joined us which made for a lovely city outing in those days between
Christmas and New Year.
I probably last watched the original Mary Poppins when I was the age of
many audience members (perhaps 5 or 6) and don't remember the story well,
except for the Chim-Chimenee scene and song, the chalk paintings and the
carousel horses. But I did read the books (all of them) in early primary
school, so also have a sense of how the books present the characters and
stories. I say stories as they are just that - a sequence of short
stories really, and I understand that this was a challenge for both
films.
But - it is a good effort for a sequel. The all star cast (Emily
Blunt, Colin Firth - playing a baddie, Meryl Streep, Angela Lansbury to name a
few) save any weaknesses in plot and context, although Cecil and I both
felt the songs were not as strong, and I at times felt the writing team may
have been struggling to keep a distinct plot line going. It did
occasionally venture into Harry Potter territory (Meryl Streep's sequence
particularly), and that was when I felt it was most tangential in terms of
plot and context. There are many (I think) references to the original; I
didn't really need those and sometimes they just made me wonder why - the
penguins for example, don't really belong in the book sequence...
The second half of the film picks up the pace and overall it is
satisfying and a great little piece of escapism as a film, with a few nice
moments and messages. Again, perfect for those days between Christmas and
New Year; Cecil and I had just been for a long walk on a pier before entering
the theatre so we both had a few minutes of shut eye during the first
half, with no ill effects in terms of following the plot or characters.
We had a slap up cream tea afterwards with our friends; highly
recommended as a follow up to a screening of this!
***1/2
Cecil says: It’s
confession time for me, here. I have never seen the original Mary Poppins. I
kind of knew some of the songs, but to be honest these mid-60s classic musicals
all blur into one for me, so Sound of Music and My Fair Lady as well – films I
never saw when they came out in my childhood.
Bea had to
give me a quick tutorial on Mary Poppins before we left for the day out,
especially as it was impossible to find an online copy of the original movie.
And really
we went to Mary Poppins Returns because it was a chance to see a film at the
wonderful Regent Theatre in Melbourne. I’d have gone even if it was the most
unsuitable loud fantasy war game movie because it was the venue that counted.
So I had
nothing to compare the new Poppins to.
As Bea says,
the songs were a bit disappointing, I thought. None of them felt catchy enough
to be humming them later; none of them felt particularly enjoyable to watch even
on the screen. In fact, if comparisons are to be made, my other recent
experiences of musicals – Sunshine on Leith and the Greatest Showman – both had
catchier and more uplifting tunes, to be honest.
I think the
last song of all was my favourite, but even that one I have already forgotten,
just a week later.
As for the
all-star cast, Emily Blunt was pretty good in the title role; Meryl Streep was
flamboyant and clearly enjoyed herself, but I kind of wondered ‘Why?” at her
cameo; Colin Firth was fine as the baddie. But my favourite was Angela
Lansbury, who comes on very late but for me took the show.
It was fun
to see the Two Chairmen pub in one of the early scenes, since I used to work in
an office very close to there.
But I really
haven’t got much else to say about this film.
The venue
was fabulous, and they put on a ‘Cockney’ chimney sweep on a bike in front of
the screen before the film began, who made a quick welcome and intro for the
audience in the Regent, which was a nice touch.
**.5
