Mary Poppins is a musical fantasy film released by Disney on August 27, 1964. The film was directed by Robert Stevenson and produced by the legend himself, Walt Disney, with songs composed by the Sherman brothers.
Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi wrote the screenplay based on P.L Travers’s famous book series, Mary Poppins.
The film combines exciting live-action and animation, with Mary Poppins being portrayed superbly by Julie Andrews in her feature film debut. Dick Van Dyke, David Tomlinson, and Glynis Johns are featured in supporting roles.
The film would turn its two prominent lead roles, Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, into stars who would go on to have great careers in Hollywood.
The film’s leading actress Julie Andrews portrays an English nanny known as Mary Poppins, who is almost a supernatural figure that essentially brings a spark of magic to a dysfunctional family’s life in London.
She enters a disorganized family where the parents are stuck in a rut of their own doing, and the kids are searching for some kind of independence.
She descends to earth on her iconic umbrella to take charge of the family and bring them together through her unique style of compassion.
Mary Poppins was initially released on August 27, 1964. It became a commercial success, as it became the most significant grossing film of 1964 and Disney’s highest-grossing film ever at the time of its release.
The film does a great job of portraying Mary Poppins as a guardian angel nanny, and no doubt fans worldwide have wished for the same qualities in their own nannies. It brings out an evangelist nature in all who have watched this classic film.
It received a total of thirteen Academy Awards nominations, which was a Disney record. It went on to win five awards, including Best Actress for Andrews, Best Film Editing, Best Original Music Score, Best Visual Effects, and Best Original song.
Mary Poppins is considered Walt Disney’s crowning achievement in the live-action world and is the only film that earned him a Best Picture nomination in his lifetime.
The film received the honor of preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being a film that is historically, culturally, and aesthetically significant.
A biographical drama on the making of the original film, Saving Mr. Banks, was released on October 20, 2013, and a sequel, Mary Poppins Returns, was released on December 19, 2018.
Mary Poppins will be remembered as one of the greatest live-action films of its generation and is still a popular film that’s enjoyed by both children and adults almost sixty years later.
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