Mary Poppins Returns – Review

Did Mary Poppins just end terrorism?

Mary Poppins Returns is the long awaited sequel to the original 1964 Mary Poppins, directed by Rob Marshall, and stars Emily Blunt, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Whishaw, Emily Mortimer, Colin Firth and Meryl Streep. Mary Poppins Returns revolves the titular and mysterious Mary Poppins, when she returns to Depression-era London to visit Jane and her brother Michael, now a father of three, to help them rediscover the joy they had when they were children.

Even though I didn’t grow up watching the original Mary Poppins, can see why it’s such a classic that defined family films for years to come. Since I didn’t really have much nostalgia for Mary Poppins, I was still looking forward to seeing the sequel, because of it’s killer cast and how Disney has been on a role lately, when making great movies. What I didn’t expect Mary Poppins Returns, was to be as amazing as it was. This is the feel good movie of the year that will make you feel reborn with happiness!

You may be wondering why would we need someone like Mary Poppins 54 years after she last left the Banks family. Surprisingly though, this is such a perfect time to bring back someone as timely as Mary Poppins. In a world of negativity and hate, this movie comes in, bringing so much joy and happiness that reminds us that sometimes we need to keep our inner child. The story might be familiar in some ways to the original but the formula works well, while at the same time, trying a few new things. This makes the plot and message all the better. I also just love the way this movie is written. It keeps the spirit of the original, and despite this coming 54 years later, nothing feels different. Mary Poppins is still the lovable nanny that she was in the original, with new characters here being also incredibly admirable.

Rob Marshall manages to do such an amazing job directing this. The way everything is presented is so smooth and full of life. The musical sequences are also astonishingly well realized, because of Marshall’s detailed vision. Rob Marshall was such a perfect choice for this film. The performances here are also practically perfect in every-way. Emily Blunt had the impossible task of following the iconic Julie Andrews in the role of Mary Poppins, but yet she manages to make the character her own without destroying what Andrews did previously. Emily Blunt fully embodies the character and is so lovable in the role. I will not be surprised if Blunt gets nominated for best actress at the Oscars this year. Lin-Manuel Miranda is also so amazing. Like all the rest of the performances, he’s just a lovable character, in which both Miranda and Blunt have amazing chemistry together. They killed it with the musical scenes! Ben Whishaw and Emily Mortimer both play the grown up Banks children from the original, and as expected, both work very well! I even loved the appearances from Colin Firth and Meryl Streep in this film!

The single best thing about Mary Poppins Returns is the Music and the Musical Sequences, which were simply awesome! All the songs here are so catchy so full of life. The music is terrific, and I cannot wait for these songs to be nominated at the Academy Awards, so we can see them performed at the Oscars. The music is sure to be on repeat for me, for weeks to come. As stated, the musical sequences are simply amazing as they are so grand in spectacle. All of the camera stunts looked stunning , alongside the VFX, which blends perfectly. They bring back the 2D animation sequence style from the original, and it looks absolutely gorgeous. The score here is also perfect. It’s full of imagination and it’s just simply beautiful.

If there was any problem with this movie it would be that it does play things a little bit too safe. This is not a bad thing, personally, since the formula works so well, that it’s still amazing to watch and enjoy. But I can definitely see some viewers bothered by this compared to others.

Overall. Mary Poppins Returns was amazing. It may play things safe at times but the joy and wonder I felt watching it was so incredible, that it severely outweighs the bad. Mary Poppins Returns manages to be one of the most fun experiences I’ve had in a theaters all year, with every single aspect hitting home. Mary Poppins Returns is not just a film that is gonna dominate the box office, but it’s also gonna be an Oscar heavyweight in many categories. I love this movie and I cannot wait to see this again with my family over the holidays!

9/10