Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down…. the medicine go do-own… the medicine go do…. Oh wait! Sorry, wrong nanny. For some reason I was thinking of Mary Poppins. And I'm sure that the seven children being looked after in Universal's Nanny McPhee WISHED they had been lucky enough to have had Poppins as their caretaker. Nanny McPhee stars the beautiful and talented Emma Thompson in a role as far removed from Mary Poppins as you could ever imagine. Buried under a ton of makeup, Thompson comes to the aid of the recently widowed Mr. Brown (Colin Firth) after his 7 monstrously precocious children have succeeded in chasing off the previous 17 nannies. Nanny McPhee's methods are questionable indeed as she opts to teach the children manners, not with kindness and love, but with a hard-edged magical style. I really kind of hesitated using the comparisons to Mary Poppins in this review, as I am sure that will be a part of every review you ever read about this film. But to be honest, it was the first thing that came to mind when I saw the original TV trailer.

Anyhow, the plot of Nanny McPhee not only involves the disobedience and eventual comeuppance of the children in question, but also the woes of Mr. Brown. He finds himself in a rather precarious situation as his late wife's aunt has been funneling money to the family for years. But she is about to cut off poor Mr. Brown is he fails to find a suitable new wife in a suitable amount of time. If this happens, his family stands to lose their very home. To make matters worse, his only choice appears to be the widow Blatherwick (Imelda Staunton), whom I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.

Both Thompson and Firth deliver wonderful performances, which really shouldn’t come as a real surprise. Thompson especially has rarely been stereotyped as any one particular type of actress, deftly moving from emotional dramas to the most physical of comedies. Here, she utilizes her nearly witch-like appearance with aplomb. She delivers a mixture of comedy and fright that would be sure to 'scare straight' the most uncontrollable of children… and I daresay a handful of adults as well. Firth has also been one to handle some very diverse roles, and as Mr. Brown he creates a truly sympathetic character.

The style of Nanny McPhee is what I really enjoyed the most though. There is a strangely gothic feel to it, from the look of the house to the overall use of colors. The humor is decidedly very dark, but not so much as to make it a film to keep the kids away from. Instead, we are given an extremely fun family film.

Universal recently released the DVD for Nanny McPhee and like most of their releases, it offers up a wonderful amount of extra features that will certainly appeal to the adults in your household. There are two separate commentaries, and for once both are well worth a listen. I the first we hear from director Kirk Jones, who is joined by the child actors. This is a very unusual track in that the interaction between Jones and the kids is what makes it so much fun to listen to. It's one of those cases of 'kids say the darndest things.' The follow-up commentary features Thompson and producer Lindsay Doran, who mostly discuss how the movie came to be and how they might have done it differently if given the chance. Thompson wrote the screenplay and makes a lot of interesting comments about the production.

You'll also find several deleted scenes, along with the optional commentary that fills you in on why they were cut, as well as a lengthy featurette that focuses on the daunting task of casting the children. Rounding out the disc, there is a brief look at the building of the magnificent sets, a chance to see Thompson getting into the makeup, a very funny (but way too short) gag reel, and a featurette about the series of books that inspired the movie.

Nanny McPhee is not a perfect movie through and through, and I certainly agreed with some of the proposed changes that might have made it a darker film, but in the end I found it to be quite entertaining and my kids absolutely loved it. (Except for the fact that I threatened to call Nanny McPhee on them if they didn't behave!)

Directed by: Kirk Jones
Starring: Emma Thompson, Colin Firth
Extras: Feature Commentary with Director Kirk Jones and Children, Feature Commentary with Actor Emma Thompson and Producer Lindsay Doran, "Casting the Children" featurette, "Village Life" featurette, "Nanny McPhee Makeover" featurette, "How Nanny McPhee Came to Be" featurette, Deleted Scenes and Alternate Opening, Gag Reel
Specifications: Widescreen (2.35:1), Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Universal
Release Date: 5/9/2006
Region 1
MPAA Rating: PG
Website

We'll give Nanny McPhee a B.