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By
NICK ZEGARAC
Forty years old and still
practically perfect in every way! Even at 2 hours
and 20 minutes "Mary Poppins" remains Walt
Disney's crowning technical and artistic
achievement; an effervescent eclectic blend of
animation/live action and special effects that
brings P.L. Travers' enchanting bestseller to
life. Julie Andrews' London stage performance in
"Camelot" so impressed Disney that he immediately
began talks to secure her talents for his film. By
the time shooting began, Andrews was playing Eliza
on stage in "My Fair Lady." That she was casually
looked over for the lead in the film version of
that play remains a mystery. But "Lady's" loss was
Poppins' gain.
Andrews delights in the title role as the
too-good-to-be-true nanny with just enough playful
larceny lurking beneath her properly quaffed locks
and bonnet. She arrives to take charge of the Bank
household and whip them into shape: wife Winifred
(Glynis John), husband George (David Tomlinson)
and their two children, Michael (Matthew Garber)
and Jane (Karen Dotrice). Seems Jane and Michael
have been giving the previous nannies a hard time.
Actually, they're just a pair of lonely kids who
desire the love and attention of their stoic dad.
A lowly chimney sweep, Bert (Dick Van Dyke) helps
provide Mary and the children with one of those
supercalafragilisticexpialidocious bits of
escapism set to magic: a fantastic frolic in the
country complete with carousel ride, a fox hunt
and horse races. Yikes, tally-ho! There's so much
to admire and celebrate in this perennial classic
that it's best left to the home viewer to pop this
one in for a jolly holiday of a good time!
Disney's deluxe, 2-disc DVD is a genuine treat. At
long last, anamorphically enhanced for widescreen
televisions, the transfer is generally quite
smooth and solid for image quality that will
surely please. Colors are rich and vibrant. Blacks
are solid and deep. Whites are generally clean.
Occasionally there is a hint of age-related
artifacts as well as some minor pixelization that
breaks apart some of the background information,
but these distractions are kept to a bare minimum.
The audio is a brand new, and very engaging, 5.1
mix for the home theatre aficionado. Extras
include the all-new 50-minute documentary on the
making of the film that is quite comprehensive.
There are also some self-congratulatory audio
commentaries and "A Musical Journey" with composer
Richard Sherman. The rest of the extras are
typical Disney catering to the tot's fanfare: a
trivia game, special effects junket and some music
video and short subject stuff. All in all this is
a very nicely packed special edition from the
Disney stable and one that's been long overdo. So
get out your umbrella or go fly a kite; because
"Mary Poppins" is shear magic for the young and
young at heart! |
