Movie Info:
Writers: Bill Walsh, Don DaGradi, P.L. Travers
Director: Robert Stevenson
Cast: Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, David Tomlinson, Glynis Johns, Hermione Baddeley, Karen Dotrice, Matthew Garber, Elsa Lanchester, Arthur Treacher, Reginald Owen, Ed Wynn
Rating: G
Studio: Walt Disney Video
Release Info:
Theatrical Release: August 29, 1964
DVD Release Date: January 27, 2009
Online Availability: Amazon for $19.99
“Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down…”
Mary Poppins was a childhood classic by the time I was born. I’ve seen this movie hundreds of times. I owned the VHS of it and I loved it. I used to imagine Mary Poppins was my nanny and we were riding down banisters and jumping into pictures. You don’t know how many stairwells I tried to ride down in my youth thanks to this movie.
If only I had a nanny who could make my toys come to life so they helped me clean up or who gave me medicine that tasted delicious. I would have loved to have a nanny to sing me to sleep. Jane and Michael Banks were two, pretty lucky kids to have Mary Poppins in their life. I didn’t even have a nanny, which sucked because a nanny, especially like Mary Poppins, would have been pretty cool.
It’s hard to believe that this year marks the 45th anniversary for Mary Poppins. It seems fitting that Disney has released this DVD. It’s allowed me to upgrade from my worn out VHS to a long lasting DVD. Now, as a parent, I can enjoy this movie with the kids. They had never seen Mary Poppins before, so it was a treat to introduce them to a movie that was such an integral part of my childhood.
Julie Andrews is splendid in this movie. It made me fall in love with her as an actress. She’s young, beautiful, has a gorgeous voice and her acting is impeccable. She is complimented by a fine supporting cast, which includes Dick Van Dyke as the entertaining Bert and David Tomlinson as the formidable Mr. Banks. Of course, the children, Jane and Michael are played quite well by Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber. The acting placed together with an enchanting, timeless story and the magic of Disney make for an excellent movie worthy of being watched over and over again.
The Mary Poppins (45th Anniversary Special Edition) Plot
You get but a fluttery vision of Mary Poppins, floating in the clouds before descending down into the streets of London, England. The year is 1910. The first character we actually see is Bert (Dick Van Dyke). With his cockney accent and his friendly disposition, it’s hard to put out this artistic individual. He’s a one man band with instruments attached to his body. As he plays for the crowd, he makes up a song that has parts personalized about each person in his audience.
As a storm starts to blow in, the crowd scatters, some of them deposit coins in his hat. After everyone has left, Bert talks directly to the camera, breaking the fourth wall, in the process. He wants to tell the story of Cherry Tree Lane, in particular, that of number 17 Cherry Tree Lane. After leading us down the street, we meet the crazily incorrigible Admiral Boom (Reginald Owen). He believes he’s still on his war ship and shoots his cannon off every day at the same time, sending his neighbors’ houses into disarray.
Next door is Number 17. It’s the home of the Banks. They are very wealthy, but have problems. Mr. Banks (David Tomlinson) is quite grumpy all the time. He is aloof with the children and even with his wife. Of course, he doesn’t know much about the fact that his wife is a woman’s suffragist, fighting for the right of the woman to vote. Of course, Mrs. Banks (Glynis Johns) is also kind of a ditz.
There is chaos inside the house when we arrive. Katie Nanna (Elsa Lanchester), the children’s nanny, is packed up and ready to leave. She’s at her wits end. She’s lost the children and can’t handle them. While Mrs. Banks, Ellen (Hermione Baddeley), the maid, and Mrs. Brill (Reta Shaw), the cook, try to beg Katie Nanna to stay, she refuses to care for the children any further. Mrs. Banks is sure Mr. Banks will be furious, but Katie Nanna still doesn’t care. She’s had enough of the Banks and their children.
Mr. Banks is initially cheerful when he comes home, but his mood dampens when he learns Michael and Jane are missing. They are brought home by a constable, just as he is calling the police. He’s also disturbed that Katie Nanna has quit. He has Ellen take care of the children and get them ready for bed and he has Mrs. Banks write the letter he dictates to the newspaper looking for a new nanny. He wants someone strict and harsh.
The children come down to wish him good night. They too have written a letter for a nanny. After they go to bed, it’s torn up and put in the fire by Mr. Banks. The next day, a huge line is around the home and down the street waiting for Mr. Banks to interview them for the job. As the wind blows, all of them disappear, leaving only Mary Poppins (Julie Andrews) at the door. She enters and has the letter from Jane and Michael. Mr. Banks is so perplexed considering he tore it up, so she hires herself for the job.
The children are excited to meet their new nanny. Though she can be cross and strict, she teaches them about responsibility by having fun and going on adventures. The two receive the love and attention they so long for from their parents, especially their father, and Mary Poppins works her magic, to transform the home into something less troubled, as she improves the children’s lives.
This is the movie that taught us how to say/sing “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious…” What is more awesome than that?!
Storyline/Plot: 
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:
Audio/Visual:
Mary Poppins looks better than ever in this 1.66:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. The picture quality here is nothing to complain about. It doesn’t look brand new, but for something 45 years old it certainly is in a league all it’s own. The colors come through beautifully, the level of detail is some of the best I have seen in a Poppins DVD, and there are few instances of blur, grain, or compression problems. You would be hard pressed to find any major problems. You might find a few here, but nothing worth balking about, in any case.
The same can be said for the Dolby Digital 5.1 track that is included. The 5.1 track sounds just fine. Naturally the music offers moments when the track just shines, but the dialogue is crisp and easy to hear, as well. The sound effects are fun in that lighthearted way that Poppins is presented as. The surround sound is going to be overworked, but when you factor in age and lack of truly unpleasant elements, there isn’t much to complain about. Along with the 5.1 track there are Dolby Digital 2.0 tracks in English, French, and Spanish. The audio options are completed with subtitles in English, French, and Spanish.
Visual: 
Audio: 
Bonus Features:
The first disc includes a small variety of special features in addition to the main feature film. Some of these special features have been included with previous releases of Poppins so in the end, the importance of owning this disc will likely depend on whether or not the new special features need to be part of your DVD library.
On the first disc, Disney Song Selection is available. The funny thing about this is that you can choose from eight of the songs in the movie and you can view the lyrics on the screen while they play. I am not sure why all of the songs in the movie weren’t included. This was never mentioned. After this, there is a commentary that was available on the 2004 release of Poppins. The commentary includes a number of people though it was filmed in chunks and then pieced together. The chunks include Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews, Karen Dotrice and Richard Sherman, and Robert Sherman on his own. The groups were pieced together to make an interesting commentary. Naturally Van Dyke and Andrews are the most entertaining, but some good information is passed along by everyone. If you’ve never heard this it should be quite entertaining if you’re a fan.
If you want a little something extra to go with your commentary you can add in “Poppins Pop Up Fun Facts.” Just like Pop Up Video, there are trivia bites that appear on screen as the movie plays and the commentary goes on. If you have the 2004 release you already have these so they will not appear to be anything new, but again, if you haven’t seem them you should enjoy watching them.
Previews are also included on this disc for Pinocchio: Platinum Edition, Up, Space Buddies, The Secret of the Magic Gourd, Monsters, Inc., Beverly Hills Chihuahua, Bolt, Oliver & Company: 20th Anniversary Edition, and Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure.
The second disc has a section known as, Disney on Broadway. A 48 minute featurette, “Mary Poppins: From Page to Stage” kicks things off. This is a more technical feature that deals with what it is like to develop a project and take it all the way to a theatrical musical. You will hear from a variety of people including, musicians, the producers, and some of the actors. How much you like this will just depend. There are some moments that are quite good and others that feel a bit technical and bland.
“Step in Time” lasts for just seven minutes and includes the sequence that occurs on Broadway. This is introduced by the composer. The nice part of this is that it gives you that Broadway feel right from your living room.
“Bob Crowley’s Design Gallery” is a series of galleries. You can view the Costumes in 33 pictures, the Set Designs in six pictures, Concept Art in 13 pictures, and 16 Set Model pictures. An introduction by Crowley is also included.
This section is rounded out by an MP3 file that has a seven minute track of the Broadway cast singing “Step in Time.”
Next up, you can what “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious: The Making of Mary Poppins.” A wide variety is covered here in nearly an hour. Van Dyke hosts and everyone that you could possibly want to be included here is here. There are plenty of good stories to be heard and lots of information to go around.
“The Movie Magic of Mary Poppins” is one of the more kid-friendly offerings available on the set. The feature looks at some of the special effects that occur in the film.
“The Gala World Premiere” puts together some footage of the red carpet arrivals for the premiere of Poppins. A variety of people are in this including all of the important players in the film.
“Dick Van Dyke Make-Up Test” is a short screen test of the actor in makeup.
Also included are some of the original trailers and a few television spots. A variety of Still Galleries are also available here. “A Magical Musical Reunion” includes Sherman, Andrews, and Van Dyke and deals with the music of the film and the excitement they feel about the songs. This is followed up by “A Musical Journey with Richard Sherman.” Sherman takes us on a tour of the film’s settings and gives plenty of information and behind the scenes information in the process. A deleted song, “Chimpanzoo” finished things off in this area.
Rounding out the bonuses is “The Cat That Looked at a King.” In this animated short, Andrews plays a woman that takes two children into a chalk drawing. It’s a cute feature that tells of a cat that challenges a King in a battle of wits.
Bonus Features:
Bottom Line:
Mary Poppins was one of my favorite movies growing up. Today, I have had the pleasure of sharing this movie with my own kids thanks to this 45 Anniversary Special Edition release. If you didn’t purchase the 2004 release, you’ll want to pick up a copy of this anniversary edition of Mary Poppins. If you have purchased the 2004 release, it might not be worth the upgrade considering the quality of the movie is only slightly better and many of the bonuses are recycled. If you don’t own Mary Poppins, pick it up now. You owe it to yourself (and your kids) to own this magnificent film. Mary Poppins, in its DVD form, is highly recommended.
Overall Rating:
Technorati Tags: Mary Poppins, Family Movie, Classic, Magic, Musical, Disney, DVD Review, Nanny, Walt Disney, Home Video
Written by Dominick Evans – Visit Website
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Dominick is in his late 20s. He lives in Michigan with his life partner, Ashtyn, their 14 year old son Robert, and their Shih-Tzu, Oliver. Dominick is a writer and the head editor for both LI Kids and Literary Illusions. He enjoys composing music and is an aspiring director/screenwriter. In his free time he enjoys spending time with his family, playing and watching sports, playing video games, watching movies, and singing.
