Mary Poppins (40th Anniversary Edition)

As a product of 60's Disney films, I purchased the DVD after my 8 year old son and 11 year old daughter went to see the Broadway production of "Mary Poppins". The kids started watching it immediately and I loved listening to them sing my favorite songs from the movie. Ten days later on a rainy Sunday we popped it in the DVD player as a family and watched it on the big HDTV in the living room.

I was amazed at the color, the skin tones and the digital remix of the score. I felt just as excited as the first time I saw it, was shocked at Dick Van Dyke's blue eyes, the creamy complexion of Julie Andrews and the sheer fun of this movie.

And my technie kids loved the story - "T'uPence never fails to make them sad about the pigeons at St. Mark's Square and I love that as a mother I'm sharing some of my own childhood.

PS - my son wants to be a chimney sweep!

I wasn't raised as a Disney kid, so I was only peripherally aware of this film growing up, maybe saw some of it on TV a time or two, but never in the movie theatres or from start to finish.

Recently, however, my kid and I read the first four "Mary Poppins" books and were thoroughly charmed by their odd, acerbic humor. So I thought, hmmmm, maybe we should try the movie as well, even though I knew, vaguely, that the Julie Andrews MP was much different than the mysterious faerie-nanny we had come to know from the books. Although the Disney Poppins isn't entirely sugary-sweet, she is much more benevolent and feel-good than the grouchy, cross nanny in the books. Also, though I love Dick Van Dyke dearly, having his character Bert in the film from start to finish is a big change (Bert only appears in two or three stories in the books) and he often overwhelms the rest of the film. The Banks family is also greatly altered - instead of a spaced-out humbug, the father becomes a foreboding, socially retrograde prig, while the mother (also a space cadet in the books) is made more sympathetic, a foil for the crabby dad. (And the interjection of her being politically active, as a voting rights suffragette, seems oddly out of place: the books were never about the parents, and they are made much more central here...)

There is some innovative animation and creative, imaginative visualizing of the story, but far too many alterations and new material created out of whole cloth to suit a "Mary Poppins" purist, which I guess I am. Since we love the books so much, I previewed this film alone, and I think I'll hold off for a few years before we give it a whirl as a family: I really think it would ruin the magic of the Travers text, and replace it with something much simpler, much cheaper, and far less wondrous. (ReadThatAgain book reviews)

This movie is just amazing. I feel everybody should watch this film, IN FACT i just sat down with my friend who had not watched it a few months ago and made her! If you like this movie, I would also recommend "the sound of music".The Sound of Music (Two-Disc 40th Anniversary Special Edition)

This movie is just amazing. I feel everybody should watch this film, IN FACT i just sat down with my friend who had not watched it a few months ago and made her! If you like this movie, I would also recommend "the sound of music".The Sound of Music (Two-Disc 40th Anniversary Special Edition)

ONE OF MY FAVORITE JULIE ANDREWS MOVIES. SHE HAS A BEAUTIFUL VOICE, A GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR, AND A WONDERFUL DISPOSITION. THE ENTIRE CAST IS TERRIFIC!! I BELIEVE THIS WELL BE A CLASSIC FOREVER!!