The kids will love the candy-box sets and costumes like confectionery-shop windows, the whimsy and farcical grotesqueness of it all.
Nanny McPhee (2006)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:28
Fresh:18
Rotten:10
Average Rating:6.3/10
Consensus: A bit alarming at first, Nanny McPhee has a hard edge to counter Mary Poppins-style sweetness, but it still charms us and teaches some valuable lessons.
Rated: PG [See Full Rating] for mild thematic elements, some rude humor and brief language
Runtime: 1 hr 49 mins
Genre: Comedies
Theatrical Release:2005
Box Office: $47,124,400
Synopsis: Emma Thompson, whose first screenplay won the 1995 Oscar® for Sense and Sensibility, returns to screenwriting with Nanny McPhee, a motion picture adaptation of the "Nurse Matilda" books by... Emma Thompson, whose first screenplay won the 1995 Oscar® for Sense and Sensibility, returns to screenwriting with Nanny McPhee, a motion picture adaptation of the "Nurse Matilda" books by Christianna Brand. Thompson, the only person to have won Oscars® for both acting and writing, also plays the title role in Nanny McPhee, opposite Colin Firth, Kelly Macdonald and-in her first role for the big screen in two decades-Angela Lansbury. In this dark and witty fable, Thompson portrays a person of unsettling appearance and magical powers who enters the household of the recently widowed Mr. Brown (Firth) and attempts to tame his seven exceedingly ill-behaved children. The children, led by the oldest boy Simon (Love Actually's Thomas Sangster), have managed to drive away 17 previous nannies and are certain that they will have no trouble with this one. But as Nanny McPhee takes control, they begin to notice that their vile behavior now leads swiftly and magically to rather startling consequences. Her influence also extends to the family's deeper problems, including Mr. Brown's sudden and seemingly inexplicable attempts to find a new wife; an announcement by the domineering Aunt Adelaide (Angela Lansbury) that she intends to take one of the children away; and the sad and secret longings of their scullery maid, Evangeline (Kelly Macdonald). As the children's behavior begins to change, Nanny McPhee's arresting face and frame appear to change as well, creating even more questions about this mysterious stranger whom the children and their father have come to love. Nanny McPhee is directed by Kirk Jones (writer/director of Waking Ned Devine). The producers are Lindsay Doran (in her third collaboration with Thompson, following Sense and Sensibility and Dead Again) and Working Title's Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner. [More]
Starring: Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Kelly MacDonald, Celia Imrie
Starring: Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Kelly MacDonald, Celia Imrie, Derek Jacobi, Imelda Staunton, Angela Lansbury, Celia Bannerman, Eliza Bennett, Elizabeth Berrington, Phyllida Law
Director: Kirk Jones
Director: Kirk Jones
Screenwriter: Emma Thompson
Producer: Glynis Murray, Lindsay Doran, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner
Composer: Patrick Doyle
Studio: Universal Pictures
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Reviews for Nanny McPhee
Any time Thompson curls that prosthetic snaggletooth over her lower lip and murmurs a nearly inaudible harrumph is a comic moment to be treasured.
There's nothing offhand or spontaneous-feeling about Nanny McPhee; it's a highly mechanical piece of work, and its potentially delightful details are wasted.
In a seemingly blithe way, the movie captures an aspect of child consciousness not usually explored onscreen -- that zone between innocence and knowledge.
Nanny McPhee has its own enduring charm, a mix of witty dialogue, pie-throwing slapstick and eccentric family portrait.
This bracing adaptation of the Nurse Matilda books by Christianna Brand is the acidic antidote to Mary Poppins sweetness.
The kiddie komedy of Nanny McPhee shows that Mary Poppins plus Charles Dickens can add up to less than even Cheaper by the Dozen.
A howling headache-inducer that features bratty urchins prone to torturing people and a color scheme resplendent with hot-pink bustiers and peeling lime paint.
Thompson's script is clever and, despite that monstrous makeup, her performance is deliciously balanced by the standards of what is, after all, a children's fable.
Nanny McPhee offers solid family entertainment in the face of it all. Mary Poppins, eat your heart out.
Nanny McPhee is clever enough, but it never feels like it's hitting quite the right notes.
A winning tale of naughty children in need of love and the mysterious governess who comes to their aid.
With Yours, Mine and Ours and Cheaper By the Dozen 2 lately cluttering up the multiplexes with teeming masses of onscreen children in search of a better agent, Nanny McPhee arrives as a jolly improvement.
At its most enjoyable the film feels like Roald Dahl's idea of Mary Poppins -- and on occasion, The Sound of Music.
... a movie whose twisted visual imagination is more forceful than its wobbly, zigzagging narrative.
Will kids like the movie? I suspect they will. Kids like to see other kids learning the rules even if they don't much want to learn them themselves.
The fun is doled out in small portions and the film is so passive that younger kids will probably fidget in their seats.
Thompson never allows Nanny McPhee to become cute or cuddly, but manages to make the children -- and us -- love her, warts and all.
Latest News for Nanny McPhee
April 14, 2009:
Nanny McPhee Sequel Looms ![]()
Emma Thompson is putting together a "Nanny McPhee" sequel, to be titled "Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang," and Maggie Gyllenhaal, Rhys Ifans, Maggie Smith, and Asa Butterfield... More...
February 01, 2007:
Box Office Guru Preview: Keaton and Kids Hope to Score Touchdown
As the Chicago Bears and the Indianapolis Colts get ready to rumble at the Super Bowl on Sunday, Hollywood goes into counterprogramming mode and targets female moviegoers with a... More...
January 25, 2007:
Box Office Guru Preview: "Epic" Comedy Battles Oscar's Finest
A quartet of poorly-titled films will hit the multiplexes on Friday hoping to grab some business opposite a string of acclaimed releases fresh from earning their Oscar nominations. More...
March 30, 2006:
Critical Consensus: "Slither" Is Certified Fresh, "Ice Age 2" Is Lukewarm, "ATL" Is Hot, And "Basic 2" Is Very, Very Bad
This week at the movies, we've got a pair of sequels that will appeal to widely disparate demographics ("Ice Age 2: The Meltdown," "Basic Instinct 2"), a... More...
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