Mary Poppins Returns

Mary Poppins Returns is a 2018 American musical fantasy film directed by Rob Marshall, with a screenplay written by David Magee and a story by Magee, Marshall, and John DeLuca. Based on the book series of the same name by P. L. Travers, this sequel to 1964's Mary Poppins stars Emily Blunt as the eponymous character with Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Whishaw, Emily Mortimer, Julie Walters, Dick Van Dyke, Angela Lansbury, Colin Firth, and Meryl Streep in supporting roles. Set in 1930s London, two decades after the events of the original film, it sees Mary Poppins, the former nanny of Jane and Michael Banks, returning after a family tragedy.

Walt Disney Pictures announced the film in September 2015. Marshall was hired later that month, and Blunt and Miranda were cast in February 2016. Principal photography lasted from February to July 2017, and took place at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, England. Mary Poppins Returns held its world premiere at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on November 29, 2018, and was released in the United States on December 19, 2018, making it one of the longest gaps between film sequels in Disney history at 54 years.

The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Blunt's performance, the musical score and numbers, visuals, production values, and sense of nostalgia, although some critics found it derivative of the first film. It was chosen by both the National Board of Review and American Film Institute as one of the top ten films of 2018 and received numerous award nominations, including four at the 76th Golden Globe Awards (including for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy), nine at the 24th Critics' Choice Awards and a SAG Award nomination for Blunt at the 25th Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Plot
In 1935 London, at the height of the Great Depression, a grown-up and widowed Michael Banks is living with his three children John, Annabel and Georgie and supportive housekeeper Ellen in the same family house. William "Weatherall" Wilkins Jr., the new president of the Fidelity Fiduciary Bank, has his lawyers arrive at the house, and post a repossession notice on Michael's front door. Since the death of Michael's wife Kate a year prior, the Banks family has been struggling coming to terms with their new normal, and because Kate handled the finances, Michael became behind on the payments as he had forgotten about them. Although he offers to write a check right then to catch up, he is told he has until that Friday to pay off the entire loan or he will have to move out.

Michael and his sister Jane remember that their late father left them his shares at the Fidelity Fiduciary Bank and begin to search for the certificate that proves their ownership. Michael takes certain possessions from his past, including his childhood kite, and puts them outside, planning on selling them to charity. A gust of wind blows the kite out of the box and into the park. While in this place on a grocery run, Georgie finds the kite, but the wind blows it away. As he chases after it, Annabel and John run after him. Jack finds Georgie, and they try to retrieve the kite, but the wind blows it up into the air. Luckily, Mary Poppins appears and descends from the clouds with the kite in hand.

The children, along with Mary Poppins, head back to the Banks' house, where Michael and Jane are astonished to see their old nanny hasn't changed a bit. Michael reluctantly agrees to let Mary Poppins stay at their home to look after his children. Mary insists that the children should take a bath after playing in the park. The bath acts as a gateway to an underwater world, and they disappear into the bathtub, exploring the world in the process.

While in the nursery, John, Annabel, and Georgie come up with an idea to save their home by selling their mother's antique china bowl. However, an argument between the children ensues and the bowl gets damaged, leading to Mary, the children, and Jack, a young lamplighter and former apprentice of Bert, to fix it by going on an adventure inside the bowl’s animated landscape. The group end up at the Royal Doulton Music Hall where Jack persuades Mary to sing onstage with an entourage of animals.

However, Georgie’s life is put on the line when he is unexpectedly kidnapped by a wolf, who takes off on a freight train with him in tow. The wolf, along with his assistants, a weasel and a badger, happen to be parallel versions of Wilkins and his trusted associates, Frye and Hamilton Gooding. John and Annabel give chase and successfully rescue Georgie before the bowl breaks apart again, sending them along with Mary and Jack back to the real world.

Back in the nursery, Mary is able to tell the children that their mother may be gone, but she lives on in their memories. The next day, Mary, Jack, and the children visit Mary's eccentric cousin Topsy to see if she can fix the bowl again. After their visit, they go to the bank to give Michael his briefcase. The children unintentionally eavesdrop on Wilkins and his assistants, whom they recognize as the counterparts of the wolf and his lackeys from the Royal Doulton Bowl, plotting to repossess the house. When they attempt to warn their father, Wilkins dismisses this which forces Michael to side with him.

Mary and Jack walk the children back home as they run into Jack's lamp-lighting buddies, who help guide them home while also showing them how to speak their lingo. When they get home, Michael appears distressed amid his worries for losing the house. The children try to cheer him up and echo Mary's words to him regarding their mother.

The next night, the family has packed all their belongings and are preparing to head out. The neighbours gather around to say goodbye until Georgie brings out the kite, and Michael takes a look to see that it's been patched up with a drawing he made of his wife and children. When he looks closer, he sees that the drawing was made on the certificate that he had been looking for. Michael and Jane see that they have seven minutes to midnight, which means they won't make it before the deadline, so Mary, Jack and the lamplighters gather to turn back time for the Banks family. Michael and Jane rush to the bank, while the lamplighters gather around Big Ben and try to get Jack up to the top to try and turn back the hands of time. Jack successfully gets inside and dims the lights so nobody can see what they are doing. Meanwhile, Wilkins is with Gooding and Frye as he waits for midnight to claim the Banks home. Mary floats up to the clock just before it can strike midnight, and she turns it back five minutes.

Thinking the time is wrong, Wilkins continues to wait as Michael and Jane try to get his attention with the kite. The wind blows it inside his office and Frye (being the only good one in the bank) lets them into the building. The children join them as they try to put the pieces together, but they are missing the piece with the signatures, which Georgie threw out. Feeling they have lost, Michael hits back at Wilkins and says he can take the house because he still has his family. Just then, Wilkins' uncle Mr. Dawes, Jr. comes back from his travels and criticizes his nephew for his dirty deeds against the people of London. Dawes comes back to take over and he fires Wilkins. Dawes tells Michael that he knew his father and agreed that he made some good investments, so the shares will be enough to pay off the loan, and the family can keep their house.

The following day, the family goes out to the park where they encounter an old lady selling colorful balloons, who tells the family to pick the right one. Michael admits that he hasn't held a balloon since he was a young, and the balloon lady tells him that he's forgotten what it's like to be a child. Michael grabs one and it sends him floating into the air. The children follow suit, along with the other park patrons, plus Jane and Jack. A penniless Wilkins attempts to join, but he grabs the wrong balloon and it falls to the ground. Michael and his family float among others as they feel happy and redeemed. As the family returns home, a gust of wind opens the front door. Mary senses this and feels it is time to go. Michael and Jane realize this and they quietly thank Mary for everything that she has done. Jack rides his bike around town again and Mary floats up to the skies on her umbrella, takes one last look behind her, and smiles.

Cast

 * Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins. Julie Andrews portrayed her in the original film.
 * Lin-Manuel Miranda as Jack: a cockney lamplighter and former apprentice of Bert from the original film.
 * Ben Whishaw as Michael Banks: Jane's brother, who is now working as a part-time teller at Fidelity Fiduciary Bank, and a struggling yet widowed artist. Matthew Garber portrayed the character in the original film.
 * Emily Mortimer as Jane Banks: Michael's sister, who is now working as a labor activist. Karen Dotrice portrayed the character in the original film, and makes a cameo appearance as an elegant woman in Mary Poppins Returns.
 * Pixie Davies as Annabel Banks: Michael's daughter.
 * Nathanael Saleh as John Banks: Michael's older son.
 * Joel Dawson as Georgie Banks: Michael's younger son.
 * Julie Walters as Ellen: Michael's and Jane's long-time serving housekeeper. The character was previously portrayed by Hermione Baddeley in the original film.
 * Meryl Streep as Topsy: Mary Poppins's eccentric Eastern European cousin who runs a fix-it shop within London.
 * Colin Firth as William "Weatherall" Wilkins: the current president of Fidelity Fiduciary Bank.
 * Firth also voices a wolf in the animated Royal Doulton Bowl sequence.


 * Angela Lansbury as The Balloon Lady. The character does not appear in the original film, but comes directly from the novels.
 * Dick Van Dyke as Mr. Dawes Jr.: the chairman of Fidelity Fiduciary Bank and William's uncle. The character was portrayed by Arthur Malet in the original film, while Van Dyke previously portrayed both Bert and Mr. Dawes, Sr. (Mr. Dawes, Jr.'s late father).
 * Jeremy Swift as Hamilton Gooding: one of Wilkins' associates.
 * Swift also voices a badger in the animated Royal Doulton Bowl sequence.


 * Kobna Holdbrook-Smith as Frye: one of Wilkins' associates.
 * Holdbrook-Smith also voices a weasel in the animated Royal Doulton Bowl sequence.


 * David Warner as Admiral Boom: a staunchly by-the-book retired naval officer, who is now confined to a wheelchair. Reginald Owen portrayed the character in the first movie.
 * Jim Norton as Mr. Binnacle: Boom's first mate. Don Barclay portrayed the character, while David Tomlinson provided his voice in the original film.
 * Noma Dumezweni as Miss Penny Farthing: Wilkins' secretary.
 * Tarik Frimpong as Angus: Jack's fellow lamplighter.

Voices

 * Edward Hibbert as Mary Poppins' Parrot Umbrella. He was previously voiced by David Tomlinson in the original film.
 * Chris O'Dowd as Séamus the Coachman in the animated Royal Doulton Bowl sequence.
 * Mark Addy as Clyde the Horse in the animated Royal Doulton Bowl sequence.

Development
The sequel to Mary Poppins had long been stuck in development hell after the release of the 1964 film. Walt Disney attempted to produce a sequel a year subsequent to the film's release, but was rejected by author P. L. Travers, who openly dismissed Disney's film adaptation. In the late 1980s, then-chairman of Walt Disney Studios Jeffrey Katzenberg and vice-president of live-action production Martin Kaplan approached Travers with the idea of a sequel set years after the first film, with the Banks children now as adults and an older Mary Poppins with Julie Andrews reprising her role. Travers again rejected the proposed concept, except for Andrews' return. The studio shortly thereafter abandoned the effort.

On September 14, 2015, Walt Disney Pictures president Sean Bailey pitched a new Mary Poppins film to Rob Marshall, John DeLuca, and Marc E. Platt, as the team had produced Into the Woods for the studio the year prior. With approval from Travers' estate, Disney greenlit the project with the film taking place 25 years after the first, featuring a standalone narrative, based on the remaining seven books in the series. Marshall was hired to direct, while DeLuca and Platt would serve as producers along with Marshall; David Magee was hired to write the script.

Casting
On February 18, 2016, Emily Blunt was cast in the film to play the title role in the sequel. On February 24, 2016, Lin-Manuel Miranda was cast in the film to play Jack, a lamplighter. In April 2016, Disney confirmed that the film was in development and that Blunt and Miranda had been cast in the lead roles. In May, Disney announced the film's title as Mary Poppins Returns. By July 2016, Meryl Streep had entered negotiations to join the cast to play cousin Topsy, and in the following month, Ben Whishaw in negotiations to play the grownup Michael Banks. In September, Streep formally joined the cast. The following month, Emily Mortimer was cast as the grownup Jane Banks, and Colin Firth joined the film as William Weatherall Wilkins, president of the Fidelity Fiduciary Bank. In February 2017, Angela Lansbury was cast to play the Balloon Lady. Julie Andrews, who portrayed Poppins in the 1964 film, was approached to do a cameo in the sequel, but turned down the offer as she wanted it to be "Emily's show". Dick Van Dyke, who portrayed Bert and Mr. Dawes Sr. in the original film, returns in the sequel as the latter's son, Mr. Dawes Jr., replacing Arthur Malet, who died in 2013.

Filming
Principal photography on the film began February 10, 2017, at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, England. Filming also took place outside the Bank of England in March 2017, and outside Buckingham Palace in April 2017. Principal photography was wrapped by July 2017.

Animation
Like the original film, this film includes a sequence combining live-action and traditional hand-drawn animation. The animation sequence was supervised by Jim Capobianco and Ken Duncan. Over 70 animation artists specializing in hand-drawn 2D animation from Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, and other animation studios were recruited for the sequence. The animated drawings were created using pencil and paper and scanned onto the computer to be digitally inked & painted. Character designer James Woods and animator James Baxter also helped redesign the penguins from the first film. All of the hand-drawn animation was created by Duncan's animation studio, Duncan Studio, in Pasadena, California.

Music
The music and score for the film was composed by Marc Shaiman, with song lyrics written by Scott Wittman and Shaiman. The complete soundtrack album was released by Walt Disney Records on December 7, 2018.

Release
The film was originally scheduled to be released on December 25, 2018. However, in July 2018, it was moved up to December 19, 2018.

Marketing
On March 4, 2018, Disney released a teaser trailer for the film, with the release date of December 25. On September 17, 2018, Disney released an official trailer which revealed new footage, a snippet of an original song from the film, "The Place Where Lost Things Go", and announced December 19 as the new release date for the film. On October 22, 2018, Disney released a special look on Dancing with the Stars' "Disney Night" which teased an original song from the film, "Can You Imagine That". On November 15, 2018, Disney released a sneak peek which teased another original song from the film, "Trip a Little Light Fantastic". On November 22, 2018, Disney released a special episode of 20/20 on ABC called "Mary Poppins Returns: Behind the Magic" which included an extended look of the film. On November 26, 2018, advance tickets for Mary Poppins Returns went on sale along with the digital pre-order of the soundtrack and the release of two tracks off the soundtrack, "The Place Where Lost Things Go" and "Trip a Little Light Fantastic".

Box office
, Mary Poppins Returns has grossed $32.3 million in the United States and Canada, and $22.1 million in other territories, for a total worldwide gross of $54.4 million.

In the United States and Canada, the film was projected to gross $49-51 million from 4,090 theatres over its first five days (including around $35 million in its first weekend) and a total of $75 million over its first week of release. The film made $4.8 million on its first day of release and $4.1 million on its second. It went on to gross $23.5 million its opening weekend (a total of $32.3 million over its first five days), finishing slightly below expectations but second at the box office behind Aquaman.

Critical response
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 77% based on 244 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Mary Poppins Returns relies on the magic of its classic forebear to cast a familiar – but still solidly effective – family-friendly spell." On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating to reviews, the film has a weighted average score of 65 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale, while those at PostTrak gave it an 84% overall positive score and a 62% "definite recommend".

Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, saying, "Emily Blunt is the magical nanny in this scarily accomplished clone-pastiche sequel, which starts terrifically and ends cloyingly – just like the original." Geoffrey Macnab of The Independent wrote, "The nostalgia here could easily have been very cloying. Instead, it adds to the richness and mystery. In an era of superhero franchises where sequels to successful movies turn up almost instantly, Mary Poppins’s return shows that sometimes it pays to wait. Half a century on, her allure hasn’t faded at all." Owen Gleiberman of Variety deemed the film as a "rapturous piece of nostalgia", lauded Blunt's take on Mary Poppins and described her casting as "practically perfect", while lending his praise on Marshall's direction as well the production design, musical score, songs, and the supporting performances (particularly Miranda, Whishaw, Firth, and Streep). He also drew comparisons of the film's quality and tone to the 1960s musicals as well the nostalgia to Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Brian Truitt of USA Today labelled it as a "comforting nostalgia-fest" and "satisfaction in spit-spot fashion" while commending the performances of Blunt and Miranda (which he referred them as "endlessly charming") as well Marshall's knack on musical numbers and Shaiman's "swinging delight" original score. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone rated the film with three out of five stars, praising Blunt's unique portrayal of the titular character while referring the film as an "industrial-strength sugarplum" and felt that the sequel didn't live up to the 1964 original, but nevertheless praised the film in which he remarked: "Mary Poppins Returns shows it has the power to leave you deliriously happy". Time magazine's Stephanie Zacharek remarked that "Mary Poppins Returns honors the spirit of its predecessor". She also highlighted Blunt's interpretation of the titular character (in which she described the performance as close to "Travers’s original vision"), as well the costumes, production values, and 2D animation sequences while finding fault at Shaiman's and Wittman's songs as one of the film's "weaker points".

Will Gompertz of the BBC gave the film 2 out of 5 stars, saying, "It looks fantastic, the special effects are special, and a great deal of money has clearly been spent in the hope of making it supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. All of which is great. Except the movie – unlike the eponymous super nanny – never quite takes off." Manohla Dargis of The New York Times stated negatively that "the movie ratchets up more than the family’s existential stakes" and "Mary Poppins Returns looks, feels and sounds like a sales pitch" while calling Shaiman's and Wittman's songs as a "gravest disappointment", which she stressed out that "these are songs that get in your head, body, memory, and there’s nothing here with comparable melodic or lyrical staying power" in her negative comparison of the former to the Sherman Brothers' 1964 original songs, but praised Whishaw's performance as "emotional rawness".