The film starts out with a boat ride that would be helped by a shot of Dramamine as U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels (DiCaprio) and his partner Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo) are sent to a hospital for the criminally insane located on an isolated island to investigate the disappearance of one of its patients. This sets off a chain of events that will push the already unstable Marshal to and over the edge.

The movie’s trailer to the contrary, the film is more of a psychological thriller than an outright horror story and from the first frame on things seems strange and edgy. The first strains of the film score are also abrasive and over stated as if the filmmaker wants you to not get comfortable. The events that unravel from there redefine the main characters and the viewer needs to pay attention.

If this film’s ultimate success is dependent on return patronage, it’s got the bases covered because a twist in the film’s ending will have you wanting to see the film again to examine all the clues that lead up to it. Scorsese has had an uneven run with his last few films and while Shutter Island is no classic, it’s still a lot of fun and takes some detecting from the audience to fully enjoy.

Rob Hudson
www.facebook.com/ParamountPicturesAU

Despite the over fifty-year gap between the first Poppins film released back in 1964 and the new sequel, Disney has brought the story up to date. Even correcting quite a few of the wonky elements from the first edition and resisting the temptation to go all CGI crazy. The film still has that old school charm visually and this includes what appears to be hand drawn animation.

After the fact, Emily Blunt seems the perfect choice to pick up the reins from Julie Andrews and the new script gives her plenty of lines to deliver as only a posh pom could. Elsewhere the cast provide good support and it was a real treat to see the 93 year-old Dick Van Dyke return to the screen in a cameo.

Too far removed for most of the current audience members to remember seeing the original up on the big screen, this new version will easily provide the basis for new fond memories. Along with the release earlier this year of Christopher Robin, Disney is trying its best to create new memories and with Mary Poppins Returns consider it a job well done.

Rob Hudson
www.facebook.com/marypoppinsreturns