By Ugochi Okafor
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, the film is a sequel to the 1964 film Mary Poppins , and 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, twenty-five years after the events of the original film, it sees Mary Poppins, the former nanny of Jane and Michael Banks, returning after a family tragedy”—the above highlight is from Wikipedia.
To me, a lot of foreign movies shouldn’t have sequels. But the opinions of the audience, sometimes, doesn’t matter when all the filmmakers are thinking is HOW DO WE MAKE MORE MONEY? One will say, like Nollywood, like Hollywood. Lol.
Anyway, despite my unseeming likeness for Emily Blunt, I will be unbiased in my opinion here: she lacks IT (charisma, charm, humour, compared to the last Mary Poppins). No pun intended. She wasn’t really the kind of actor that should have given the burden to deliver such character that requires all that I mentioned above that are missing. The kids however give us momentary joy with their cuteness and seeming naivety. The songs are, well, songs (you can dance to them). The storyline is okay (like just okay) and the performance of the actors is inbetween very good and great. Eventually, if you are up for some reminiscing about your childhood, you should watch this movie; it carries a certain nostalgic air.
