Fri., December 26
Mary Poppins While it doesn’t have the soft-edged sense of
whimsy and wonder that the Travers books have, Walt Disney’s 1964
version of the Mary Poppins stories does at least manage to avoid the
worst excesses of that studio’s most saccharine work — thanks
largely to the verve of the performances by Dick Van Dyke and
everyone’s pal, Julie Andrews (140 min.). — D.D. (Paramount
Theatre, Oakland, 8:00)