Review of Mary Poppins (1964) by Viniciusbrito — 18 Dec 2018

Based in a book from Pamela Lyndon Travers, Mary Poppins, from 1934. A rich familly with two children that are very stubborn and complicated, that every nanny that they had before quit the job or got fired, the parents, that don't have much time for the children needs a now one, and from there comes the famous Mary Poppins to be the kids nanny. Right at the first moment the kids already noticed that she ain't really a normal nanny, they see that she has powers and can do thiings that they have never seen before, she will give to the kids and the adults some really nice and songfull adventures with some pretty teachings. Directed by Robert Stevenson, written by Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi and produced by Walt Disney.

There is in this movie a interesting world building, a fantastic world in some ways, there is, of course, the normal England life, where the family works and take of the children, there is our world there, like Harry Potter, that clearly have somethings that was inspired from this story, there is another thing happening in the world that almost anyone knows about. There is a admiral with a sailor in a ship at a top of a house, and from there he monitor everyone and tell people what is going on in the neighborhood screaming around, this is so nice, it doesn't really have a big thing in the story, but it is so funny because he actually acts and it is stereotyped like he is a true admiral there, watching for dangerous and situations, it is so fun. Before talking about the Mary Poppins character, another nice building that the movie have done is that making clear that she was a nanny of other children, children that are already grown, at least this is how I did interpreted it, like other people already knew her and knew how things was with her.

The character of Mary Poppins is fantastic, she is so mysterious, fun and a delight person, she is also strong with the kids in words. Her powers are also very interesting, like some really simple and fun tricks, and another thing that Harry Potter was inspired by this, is Mary Poppins handbag, where she just takes from there a lot of things that obviously won't fit in a small bag, that was so fun watch the kids trying to figure out what was going on, and even more fun than that was the measuring tape that said how the person is. You neve got to know what she really is, but that is so fantastic because she even says "i neve explain myself", because it don't really matter, it isn't why this is about.

There are a few things that I think it could have been better done in this movie, wich is the fact, that the home that Mary Poppins ends up, isn't really a home with a disfunctional familly with a lot of problems, the father gets home singing in his first show up, so as the mother, her effect would have been better noticed in a home where things had a real struggle. There are some sequences that I didn't really felt, one or two moments that got me out of the story, but nothing that make the movie less magic.

The fact that one of the places that they went in this movie, is inside of paintings made by Bert is awesome, because, you see, those paintings we can say that are from Bert's imagination, because that's from where comes all the things that are made, right ? So they literallty just jump inside of a dream, and when they got there, there are all cartoon, 2d animation, and that is just amazing, those 2d animation journeys always got me like a dream, and in here, when they mix up that, it is literally, they jumping into one and it is really magic, in a moment referencing Charlie Chaplin by the way.

The musics in this movie are, pretty much, all very nice, some are really great and very creative, one thing that I believe gives it a lot of value, is that all the songs were made for the film, it isn't really a remake from another band that had this songs, they were made for this and that is awesome. The songs are so happy and sweet with the great voice by the actors, they are both so happy and they exude happiness all the time, the movie ends with you thinking that they are your friends already, waiting for the next meeting. The dance sections are also so fun, the dancing movies are so simply in a way that we can do to, specially in the cartoon moment, that was fun and sweet in this aspect as well.

This movie is, for sure, very ludic, but you can notice a lot of adults talks in there as well, mainly when it is towards the end the situation with the father, that apparentely doesn't really know how to be a good one, his dialogues with the character of Bert, are really good and very deep, saying how it is supposed the relationship in the father perspective, time flies.

Julie Andrews is fantastic, she is charming, serious, commander and very inspiring, she does have a lovely voice and a very nice spirit to dance. Dick Van Dyke is a man that is simply amazing, you end the movie wanting him to be your friend, he is so happy and simple, living the time of his life.