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Movies / On DVD / Nanny McPhee
Nanny McPhee

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Nanny McPhee (2006)

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Reviews Counted:128

Fresh:93

Rotten:35

Average Rating:6.6/10

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: U [See Full Rating] for mild thematic elements, some rude humor and brief language

Runtime: 1 hr 49 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:21-10-2005

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

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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...Pleasing but ultimately unsatisfying.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Anna Smith
Anna Smith
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Frothy and fun yet deliciously dark...

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
04/01/06
Jo Berry
Jo Berry
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The young 'uns could certainly do worse than Nanny McPhee as they await the next instalment of Potter.

Full Review Source: FilmFocus | comment Comment
10/29/05
Joe Utichi
Joe Utichi
FilmFocus

Unfortunately, Colin Firth seems as though he's on auto-pilot and the relationship between his character and Evangeline is unconvincing, if not borderline inappropriate.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
10/29/05
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

Emma Thompson is a treat as the eponymous childminder.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
10/15/05
Stella Papamichael
Stella Papamichael
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This whimsical and wonderfully nasty children's tale is thoroughly enjoyable, if not hugely notable.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
07/21/05
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Dark Horizons | comment Comment
01/15/08
Garth Franklin
Garth Franklin
Dark Horizons

Nanny McPhee really works ... despite all of its common plots and ideas, because it stays true to storybook conventions that have never and will never get old.

Full Review Source: Cinematical | comment Comment
09/17/07
Christopher Campbell
Christopher Campbell
Cinematical

An exquisitely designed fable that will delight adults as well as their offspring through its beguiling innocence and hushed, low-key charm.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
03/01/07
David Noh
David Noh
Film Journal International

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
01/05/07
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

Nanny McPhee falls back on the Nickelodeon principle "If all else fails, hit 'em with a retina-searing overload of visual and aural information."

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
11/27/06
Scott Tobias
Scott Tobias
AV Club

There are many different kinds of children's movies, and this one tries to be all of them at once -- including one of those in which the children are smarter than the adults.

Full Review Source: Christianity Today | comment Comment
09/27/06
Peter T. Chattaway
Peter T. Chattaway
Christianity Today

Often as garish and shrill as it is magical and enchanting.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
07/17/06
Walter Chaw
Walter Chaw
Film Freak Central

Frays in the second half… Fancy Darcy as a limp romantic lead!

Full Review Source: Decent Films Guide | comment Comment
06/07/06
Steven D. Greydanus
Steven D. Greydanus
Decent Films Guide

Its redeeming virtues are Thompson, Firth and Kelly Macdonald as Firth’s adoring housemaid; they manage to give genuine, affecting performances in the midst of all the outlandish, obnoxious goings-on.

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
05/12/06
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review

Mary Poppins as imagined by Lon Chaney.

Full Review Source: Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) | comment Comment
05/03/06
John Beifuss
John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)

I found myself tearing up right on cue, (Patrick Doyle knows all my buttons) but sincerely, enjoying the magical tale as much as if I were a small child.

Full Review Source: Cinerina | comment Comment
03/27/06
Karina Montgomery
Karina Montgomery
Cinerina

Should play well with the small fry, though adults may be more bothered by the clumsy shifts in tone.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
02/22/06
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

It relies on a good story and interesting characters a lot more than it does on eye candy.

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
02/18/06
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope

The kids will love the candy-box sets and costumes like confectionery-shop windows, the whimsy and farcical grotesqueness of it all.

Full Review Source: New York Observer | comment Comment
02/08/06
Rex Reed
Rex Reed
New York Observer
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Latest News for Nanny McPhee

April 14, 2009: Nanny McPhee Sequel Looms Opens in new window
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
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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...

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