Mary Poppins has returned to theaters after all these years! Mary Poppins Returns is officially out in theaters everywhere, and it’s a must-see family movie this holiday season! My family and I were able to attend a screening on Monday night, and although our seats were free, no other compensation has been received for this post. All thoughts are my own.
In 1964, Mary Poppins stole our hearts and has continued to be a family favorite since then. I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting with Disney’s latest release, Mary Poppins Returns, but I certainly didn’t think it would so perfectly capture the essence of the original movie like it did.
I’m sure you’ve caught the trailer already, but just in case, here’s a sneak peek into the new film:
About Mary Poppins Returns
In Disney’s “Mary Poppins Returns,” an all new original musical and sequel, Mary Poppins is back to help the next generation of the Banks family find the joy and wonder missing in their lives following a personal loss. Emily Blunt (“A Quiet Place,” “The Girl on the Train”) stars as the practically-perfect nanny with unique magical skills who can turn any ordinary task into an unforgettable, fantastic adventure and LinManuel Miranda (“Hamilton,” “Moana”) plays her friend Jack, an optimistic street lamplighter who helps bring light—and life—to the streets of London.
Carrying on in her mother’s tradition, Jane Banks campaigns for workers’ rights and provides a helping hand to Michael’s family. When the family suffers a personal loss, Mary Poppins magically re-enters their lives and with Jack’s help, brings joy and wonder back into their home.
Angela Lansbury appears as the Balloon Lady, a treasured character from the PL Travers books and Dick Van Dyke is Mr. Dawes, Jr., the retired chairman of the bank now run by Firth’s character.
PL Travers first introduced the world to the no-nonsense nanny in her 1934 children’s book “Mary Poppins.” However, the subsequent adventures of Mary Poppins remained only on the pages of the seven other PL Travers’ books…until now. “Mary Poppins Returns” is drawn from the wealth of material in these additional books. The film takes place in 1930s Depression-era London 24 years after the first film was set. Michael Banks works for the same financial institution that employed his father and still lives at 17 Cherry Tree Lane with his three children, Annabel, John and Georgie and their housekeeper Ellen.
“Mary Poppins Returns” is directed by Rob Marshall (“Into the Woods,” “Chicago”). The screenplay is by David Magee (“Life of Pi”) and the screen story is by Magee & Rob Marshall & John DeLuca (“Into the Woods”) based upon the Mary Poppins Stories by PL Travers. The producers are John DeLuca, p.g.a., Rob Marshall, p.g.a., and Marc Platt, p.g.a. (“La La Land”) with Callum McDougall serving as executive producer. The music score is by Marc Shaiman (“Hairspray”) and the film features all new original songs with music by Shaiman and lyrics by Scott Wittman (“Smash”) and Shaiman.
Emily Blunt is Mary Poppins and Lin-Manuel Miranda is Jack in Disney’s MARY POPPINS RETURNS, a sequel to the 1964 MARY POPPINS, which takes audiences on an entirely new adventure with the practically perfect nanny and the Banks family.
The film also stars Ben Whishaw (“Spectre”) as Michael Banks; Emily Mortimer (“Hugo”) as Jane Banks; Julie Walters (“Harry Potter” films) as the Banks’ housekeeper Ellen; Pixie Davies, Nathanael Saleh and introducing Joel Dawson as the Banks’ children, with Colin Firth (“The King’s Speech”) as Fidelity Fiduciary Bank’s William Weatherall Wilkins; and Meryl Streep (“Florence Foster Jenkins”) as Mary’s eccentric cousin, Topsy.
What I Thought About Mary Poppins Returns
I adored Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda as Mary Poppins and Jack (who was mentored by Bert and met Mary when he was a young boy). I was surprised by how well Emily captured the essence of Julie Andrews’ Mary Poppins character. Her personality was spot on! Jack was a fun new character with a lot of heart.
As I mentioned at the beginning of the post, I was not expecting Mary Poppins Returns to “feel” so similar to the original Mary Poppins. The all-new music and the new story line captured the magic and joy and silliness of Mary Poppins and really felt like an older movie from a much different generation versus a different version of the family movies we see produced today.
Mary Poppins Returns is goofy and bright and toe-tapping for the whole family – from little ones who will be dazzled by the songs and colorful scenes and costumes to the parents and grandparents who will enjoy the nostalgia of seeing Mary Poppins and a grown up Jane and Michael Banks again. If you’re expecting a run-of-the-mill cute family film, you might be disappointed. Mary Poppins Returns is not like most other movies these days. If you expect something different and surprising and delightful, then you’ll enjoy every minute of this new flick.
I’ve had a few of the catchy songs stuck in my head since I saw it in theaters 2 days ago…
Mary Poppins Returns is already stacking up the award nominations, and I’m not surprised at all. I expect this movie to go down as a modern classic.
Mary Poppins Returns Activity Sheets and Coloring Pages
To download any of these coloring pages or activity sheets, please click on the preview image to open up the full sized PDF, and then either save to your computer or print from the PDF view. Do not right click to save or you’ll get a very small image.
Download everything in one shot below or pick and choose the individual pages to download and print. Enjoy!
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MARY POPPINS RETURNS is now playing in theatres everywhere!
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