Nanny McPhee (www.the-usher.com)

"I did knock"

After losing their mother, the seven Brown children had forced seventeen nannies to walkout because of their increasingly bad behaviour. When the agency tells their father Mr. Cedric Brown (Firth) that there are no more nannies left, he is at the end of his tether but that is when he hears a knock at the door. Standing there is Nanny McPhee (Thompson), who says she has been sent by the government to help him with his unruly children and she is no ordinary nanny.

Family oriented films can be very hit and miss with many of them missing the magic that all of the family can enjoy but can British film 'Nanny McPhee' cast a spell over you?

Adapting the story from the best selling Nurse Matilda books by Christianna Brand, Emma Thompson brings the magical world of Nanny McPhee to the silver screen. It is the quality of her script that draws you in from the off, as this fairy tale unfolds before your eyes. In a very un-Poppins like way, Nanny McPhee uses magic to teach the children five key lessons that will make them not need her any more and they are definitely not coated with a spoon full of sugar to help them go down. The children are completely out of control since the death of their mother and a firm, guiding hand is needed to bring them back to the well behaved, good and loving children they once were.

Lead by the eldest son Simon, the mischievous seven reek havoc on anyone that tries to force their way into the Brown household. With numerous tricks up their sleeves, Simon, Eliza, Eric, Christianna, Sebastien, Lily and Aggie think they can get rid of anyone but Nanny McPhee is very different. The problem is that they see everyone as a treat with all the fairy tales pointing to the fact that after your mother dies your father forgets about you and marries, leaving you with an evil stepmother who makes your life a living hell. These two storylines combine wonderfully with Mr Brown's own financial and family problems to produce a tale with all the magically trappings that make it fantastic family entertainment.

The quality of the story and the script has managed to attract some of the best British talent. Colin Firth leads the cast as the head of the household, Mr Cedric Brown. A funeral director by trade, the man is still grieving for his departed wife and his financial woes are not making things any easier. This is an excellent role for Firth, as it shows he is more than just a romantic comedy actor. The talented Kelly Macdonald is also good as the Brown family's maid, Evangeline, who brings some heart to the picture. The performances of the seven children are also a highlight, with none of them overly annoying and the excellent Thomas Sangster as Simon, standing out. Add to this the quality of Celia Imrie, Derek Jacobi, Patrick Barlow, Imelda Staunton and the legendary Angela Lansbury as Great Aunt Adelaide and you have a first-rate supporting cast.

Leading the way however is a very understated but all accomplishing performance from the brilliant Emma Thompson as Nanny McPhee. The character is there to give the children a push in the right direction and make them remember how they used to be but is the magical Nanny that holds the entire film together. While she may not have a lot to say, her presence is what drives the story along and opens the children's eyes to life without their mother.

'Nanny McPhee' is an outstanding example of family entertainment that the film industry seems to have forgotten about for quite some time. It is nice to see a film that is not driven by product placements, merchandising or the possibility of becoming a franchise but just there to entertain a family of adults and younger children. 'Nanny McPhee' is destined to become a firm family favourite.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1 with Dolby Digital 5.1, the movie is presented well.

BONUS FEATURES

Deleted Scenes (13.01 mins)
Entitled 'Nannies of the World', 'Jowls and Wheen work at night', 'Mr Brown and Evangeline', 'Mr Sepless and the pink chair', 'Jowls and Wheen surprise Mr Brown', 'The tea party' and 'Nanny in Disguise', these deleted or extended scenes are introduced by director Kirk Jones

Audio Commentaries

Kirk Jones, the director and the children
The man at the helm is joined by Raphael Coleman, Eliza Bennett, Jennifer Rae Daykin, Sam Honywood and Holly Gibbs to talk about making 'Nanny McPhee'. This is a chatty and fun commentary from the director and the kids, as they play havoc as the director tries to talk about making the film. He is constantly interrupted by the kids wanting things as he tries to get his points across.

Lindsay Doran (Producer) and Emma Thompson (Nanny McPhee)
The producer and star/screenwriter provide an informative and funny commentary about adapting the 'Nurse Matilda' novels to the big screen. They talk about the cast and characters, highlighting the many changes in the script during pre-production and the evolution of the script. This is a good commentary that adult fans of the film should enjoy.

Casting the Children (11.39 mins)
Director Kirk Jones, casting director Pippa Hall, producer Lindsay Doran and stars Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Kelly Macdonald, Angela Lansbury, Imelda Staunton, Thomas Sangster, Eliza Bennett, Raphael Coleman, Holly Gibbs and Sam Honywood take you behind the scenes of the making of the movie. Here we see the original casting videos, rehearsal workshops, the read through and the animal training the kids when through to prepare for the film.

Village Life (3.51 mins)
Director Kirk Jones, producer Lindsay Doran, production designer Michael Havells and Emma Thompson talk about building the house and the village for the production. We also see the construction of the inside of the house sets.

Nanny McPhee make over (5.38 mins)
Director Kirk Jones, producer Lindsay Doran, costume designer Nic Edel, hair and makeup designer Peter King and Emma Thompson take you through the various stages of makeup used to create Nanny McPhee

Gag Reel (2.44 mins)
Watch the outtakes from the food fight, Celia Imrie eating worms and the kids forgetting their lines

How Nanny McPhee came to be (7.41 mins)
Emma Thompson introduces a featurette that shows how the story developed from the original Christanna Brand 'Nurse Matilda' books and why the changes had to be made. We find out which characters stayed the same and which were changed and also the scenes that are the same. The featurette also offers an insight into writer Christanna Brand and her illustrator Edward Ardizzone.

Trailers
Previews of 'The Barbie Diaries', 'Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were Rabbit' and 'Pride and Prejudice'

OVERALL

Universal has done a very good job with the DVD treatment of 'Nanny McPhee'. The featurettes are informative and fun and the commentary tracks are a very good listen. Fans of the film should be very pleased with this package.

DVD

Mary Poppins

The Princess Bride

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2005