Mary Poppins Reflection

Last night a friend and I headed to a theater in Tempe, AZ for a one night only showing of Mary Poppins.  The prospect of seeing the Disney Classic on the big screen was an exciting one.  The actual presentation ended up being a DVD projector on an old screen that utilized the theaters surround sound system but that’s not really important to the story.

What is important is that it had been so long since I had watched to original film in its entirety that last night was like watching it again for the first time.  More important that that was that I finally (after how many years?) get it!  I finally think I understand why almost all of my friends who love Disney love this movie so much.

There are of course easy things to focus on.  At it’s heart, Poppins is just a great musical.  There are memorable songs and exciting dance numbers.  The visuals are stunning, not just in the cartoonified world of the sidewalk drawings where live action blends fantastically with 2D, but in the portrayal of the city.  The rooftops, the streets, the alleyways almost look like the characters have walked into a picture book and they are perfect.  The cast is, of course, stellar.  I mean it’s Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, what’s not to like?

But watching it this time there were a couple things I picked up on that I would never have understood as a child and reasons why I think this film resonates with so many people as they grow up.  It’s the story of thinking you have everything figured out in your life and then realizing that you’ve had it all wrong, realizing that you’re missing out on what’s really important.  It’s all right there in Mr. Banks.  He’s a put together man who demands perfection, punctuality and propriety.  Once Mary Poppins enters the picture his world is thrown for a loop and finally sees what he’s been missing. (we’ll also forgive his male superiority complex right now because I could probably do a completely different piece on all that)

For the first time too I found myself really focusing on and connecting with Mary, herself.  I think I gained a new reverence for the woman.  She is at once caring and commanding; she is absolutely magical in both a figurative and literal sense but she is completely down to earth.  By that token, though she’s “practically perfect” she’s still human and easy to relate to.  I think this is showcased the best near the end of the film where she claims she won’t miss the children and doesn’t love them but it’s clear as day that she’s torn having to leave them.  Mary is really one of the more real Disney characters ever created (and a lot of that does have to do with the fabulous Julie Andrews)

I spent the film smiling pretty much the whole time.  I felt every emotion I was suppose to.  I laughed at the contagious giggles of Uncle Albert, Bert & the Children, I yawned during Stay Awake I was in awe of the rooftops of London, and I felt for Mary when the winds changed.  I walked away from the film feeling a need to sing and dance and talk in a horrid cockney accent.  I haven’t felt that good watching a film in a long time.

So to my Disney friends: I understand why you all love this movie so much.  I’m sorry for ever doubting you.  I will take it upon myself to watch it much more often!

Surrender But Don’t Give Yourself Away

We’ll see if I ever actually publish this blog entry or, like the 2 others taking up my hard drive space right now, this one never sees the light of the internet.  In this case, I’ve realized I have to post it tonight or else it’ll be like the other two and not be relevant to goings on anymore.

So I don’t know if anyone has heard, but there’s this big crazy disaster going on at NBC right now.  Seems Leno didn’t pull the ratings the network wanted and neither did Conan, so rather than just say “buh-bye Jay” (like they should have instead of giving him his stupid hour long show in the first place) the bigwigs decided to bump the Tonight Show and give Leno a half hour show during its time.  O’Brien wasn’t happy with the idea and in a very classy way said he wouldn’t be part of the destruction of the Tonight show.

In what is sure to be seen as far too melodramatic a tone, it feels like we’re losing an old friend.  It’s as if that goofy guy who was always there to make you laugh is suddenly being told he has to go.  It’s the lose of a simple pleasure at the end of the night.  It’s a testament to how great a guy Conan is that he can inspire such feelings in his viewers.  The rallies, the twitter trends, the facebook groups, it’s all there because of one guy, one guy we’re sorely going to miss when he’s gone.

From all of this, however, I’ve learned two things.  The first is that amazing comedy can come from upsetting times. Now before anyone goes off, I know there are much bigger things going on in the world right now.  I know Haiti is a disaster area and I know that the weather’s playing havoc with us here in the states.  I’m aware all of this is trivial but as many other bloggers have said, it’s much easier to talk about something trivial than real tragedy. 

Anyway, back to comedy (worst segue ever):  The best thing about Conan and his staff at the Tonight Show is that instead of being angry and bitter (like they have every right to be) they’re taking it upon themselves to crank out the best shows they possibly can.  The comedy has never been funnier, the guest have never been more fun, everything is done with tongue firmly planted in cheek and I haven’t seen much else that’s been so bittersweet.  It’s a lesson though, it’s a way of staying classy and still turning out a quality product even when times are tough.

The second thing I learned, well I actually thought up last night and then Bley (the official Tonight Show blogger) actually beat me to the punch with it (ignoring the fact that he has hundreds more followers and readers than I’ll ever have).  In a weird way, this whole ordeal did was inspire a backwards sort of hope.  I say backwards because the death of someone’s dream isn’t really something that should instill any kind of feeling besides sadness in someone.  I guess, I try to look at it the same way the show looked at humor.  One could be sad or outraged but instead you look at it from the brighter side of things.  Conan dreamed of hosting the Tonight Show and he got to live that dream!  It may have only been for 7 months but for that time it was his; his name was all over it and people will always remember this time from mid 2009 to early 2010 as the time he hosted the tonight show.  The idea of living your dream for even that short amount of time is so appealing to me that I can’t help but be inspired.  To be someone that a large section of the population loves, trusts and roots for.  That’s why the end of his recap segment said “To Be Continued…” not “The End”.  There is so much more to be done in life and you can’t let the trivial things done by idiots (sorry, for the editorializing) get you down or stop you from being the best you can be.

With that said: Good luck Coco!  Thanks for the being awesome, thanks for the laughs, and thanks for being an inspiration!  We’ll miss you for the next 7 months, but when you come back, you’re sure to be better than ever.

TEAM CONAN FOR LIFE!