The eternal lesson-teacher comes when you don.t want her and leaves when you don.t want her to go and have grown to love her. Emma Thompson.s adaptation of the Nurse Matilda books by Christianna Brand returns for another go round and is a charming, magical trip for the family. warts, unibrow, snaggle tooth and all. World War II is raging and Isabel Green (Maggie Gyllenhaal, sporting a British accent) is holding her family farm together while her husband Rory (Ewan McGregor) is off fighting. Her children, Norman (Asa Butterfield), Megsie (Lil Woods), and Vincent (Oscar Steer), are driving her mad, the senile Mrs. Docherty (Maggie Smith) is making a mess of her store, and her unscrupulous brother-in-law Phil (Rhys...
- 12/16/2010
- by Jeff Swindoll
- Monsters and Critics
Chicago – Magical nannies, dancing animals, great gusts of wind, lyrical life lessons and cute kids in need of a father. You don’t need to be practically perfect in every way in order to find these ingredients a trifle familiar. Robert Stevenson’s 1964 masterpiece “Mary Poppins” used these elements better than anyone has before or since, resulting in what is unquestionably the best live-action Disney film ever made.
“Poppins” is also one of the most influential children’s pictures ever made, inspiring countless variations and copy-cats. Yet Cristianna Brand’s “Nurse Matilda” books took the formula and peppered it with gleefully macabre wit. They centered on a hideously ugly nursemaid who resembled the Supernanny from Hell, until her charges started to become well behaved, thus erasing her multiple blemishes. In 2005, Emma Thompson adapted the books into “Nanny McPhee,” a thoroughly enjoyable fantasy that felt like the offspring of P.L. Travers and Roald Dahl.
“Poppins” is also one of the most influential children’s pictures ever made, inspiring countless variations and copy-cats. Yet Cristianna Brand’s “Nurse Matilda” books took the formula and peppered it with gleefully macabre wit. They centered on a hideously ugly nursemaid who resembled the Supernanny from Hell, until her charges started to become well behaved, thus erasing her multiple blemishes. In 2005, Emma Thompson adapted the books into “Nanny McPhee,” a thoroughly enjoyable fantasy that felt like the offspring of P.L. Travers and Roald Dahl.
- 12/10/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Back With All the Magic and Charm Intact In 2005 Emma Thompson appeared on movie screens as the strange and wonderful Nanny McPhee. She wrote the screenplay herself, got herself cast in the lead role, and surrounded herself with a brilliant supporting cast. This all added up to movie magic for a large number of moviegoers and paved the way for a sequel. It has taken five years but Thompson has written another screenplay and is back in the lead role in Nanny McPhee Returns. The first Nanny McPhee took place in an indeterminate location and time. In the sequel the time is definitely during World War II and the place is a farm somewhere miles outside of London. On this farm lives Isabel Green (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and her three children Norman (Asa Butterfield), Megsie (Lil Woods) and Vincent (Oscar Steer)....
- 8/27/2010
- by Jackie K. Cooper
- Huffington Post
It's just as well that the sequel to 2005's Nanny McPhee has already earned close to $63 million abroad, for it certainly won't appeal to anyone who didn't watch (and enjoy) the original movie. It also doesn't help that, on this side of the pond, the filmmakers saw fit to confront Yanks with the following tagline: "Who's Your Nanny?" Back in England, however, this sequel is properly known as Nanny McPhee & the Big Bang, which is essentially what you'd expect from this franchise with the added twist that this adventure (presumably) travels back in time, so that the titular character can attend to a different family in need of a helping hand (not to mention the opportunity to wave that magic stick around a bit more).
Once again, Emma Thompson reprises double duties as both screenwriter (adapting from Christianna Brand's Nurse Matilda children's stories) and supernaturally gifted nanny. As expected,...
Once again, Emma Thompson reprises double duties as both screenwriter (adapting from Christianna Brand's Nurse Matilda children's stories) and supernaturally gifted nanny. As expected,...
- 8/23/2010
- by Agent Bedhead
I was not particularly fond of the first .Nanny McPhee. movie released in 2005. While I found the cast, headed by Emma Thompson as the magical nanny, appealing, the film was ultimately unrewarding. So to my surprise, the sequel, simply called .Nanny McPhee Returns,. is not only satisfying, it.s also quite delightful.
Just like the first film, this one is also written by Thompson based on characters created by Christianna Brand from the .Nurse Matilda. books. The Academy award-winning actress and screenwriter also returns as the unusual and hideous-looking woman who calls herself a .government nanny..
Maggie Gyllenhaal stars as Isabel Green, a mother of three who is nearing her wits ends. Her husband, Rory (Ewan McGregor), is off to war and she.s left alone to take care of the farm and the family. To make matters worse, Isabel must deal with her brother-in-law, Phil (Rhys Ifans), who has...
Just like the first film, this one is also written by Thompson based on characters created by Christianna Brand from the .Nurse Matilda. books. The Academy award-winning actress and screenwriter also returns as the unusual and hideous-looking woman who calls herself a .government nanny..
Maggie Gyllenhaal stars as Isabel Green, a mother of three who is nearing her wits ends. Her husband, Rory (Ewan McGregor), is off to war and she.s left alone to take care of the farm and the family. To make matters worse, Isabel must deal with her brother-in-law, Phil (Rhys Ifans), who has...
- 8/17/2010
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
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