Disney’s efforts to mine every piece of nostalgia it can get its hands on has to reach a tipping point soon, right? You’d think so, but I think it’s safe to say they’ll continue making their billions because, I mean, did you see that Lion King teaser? Either way, the latest property they’re bringing back is Mary Poppins, courtesy of director, Rob Marshall, and screenwriter, David Magee.
The appropriately titled Mary Poppins Returns is set two decades after the original, and we find the Banks family in turmoil since Michael (Ben Whishaw) has missed several payments to the bank, and now they are set to lose the family house if he doesn’t pay the loan in full by midnight Friday. But then…well, you know…Mary Poppins returns to watch over the Banks children in her own magical way.
I can’t imagine the kind of pressure it must be to follow-up a film so beloved by many people, myself included, and one that was considered a major achievement full of iconic performances and songs that garnered Walt Disney his only Best Picture nomination. So, I suppose I can’t be too surprised that the resulting film is a safe, derivative, and mostly uninspired work. It’s not a terrible film, by any stretch, but it’s the kind of film that never quite feels like it was something made because of anything other than, “hey, it’s been long enough, this could make us a couple bucks.” But as we established, if anyone out there can effortlessly squeeze money out of an audience by playing on their love for a property, it’s Disney.
To be fair, there’s quite a lot to admire, love even. Emily Blunt is terrific. She absolutely owns the role, and brings a maximum level of sass. She’s equally pleasant and sly, playing on Julie Andrews iconic take of the character just enough while bringing her own thing. I couldn’t help but smile whenever she was on screen. In fact, most of the acting is terrific, especially from Ben Whishaw, Emily Mortimer (who plays Michael’s sister, Jane), Julie Walters (who plays the maid, Ellen), and Colin Firth (who is the president of the bank). It’s also wonderful to see 2D animation in a Disney film again. When those moments popped up, I was in absolute delight. There’s even a couple fun cameos (which the trailer unfortunately spoiled, so I’d advise you to avoid the video under this if you haven’t already seen it).
Unfortunately, not much of it works. As likable as Lin-Manuel Miranda can be, he’s hindered by an awful (I’m assuming on purpose) cockney accent, playing Jack, a former apprentice of Dick Van Dyke’s Bert from the original. It makes his singing incredibly awkward, and it shocked me that the film opens with doing a pretty extensive number. The other songs (which were done by Scott Wittman and composer, Marc Shaiman) are decent enough in the moment, but I’m struggling to remember a tune or a lyric as I write this. It also didn’t help that Rob Marshall, despite his theater and choreography experience, has been someone who has never really been able to shoot his musical numbers in a compelling, dynamic way. The choreography is quite good, but the camera can’t seem to hold on a wide shot for longer than a few seconds before cutting to either a weird angle or an unnecessary close-up shot.
I don’t want to say I had a bad time with Mary Poppins Returns, because I didn’t. It’s a film that is so eager to please that it’s pretty easy to put your guard down and simply go along with it, even if it’s at the expense of doubling down on everything P.L. Travers hated about what Disney did to her character in the original. I can see it resonating with people who just want to revisit this character, but I’d rather just rewatch the first one. The film is a perfectly serviceable and joyful romp that has a flow to it that’s far more old fashioned that most movies aimed at kids these days, and that’s something I can get behind. I just wish the great central performance from Emily Blunt was given a more creative and more ambitious film to play around in.