Tuesday 2 February 2010

Change of mood (but more about the brine)

Talking about brine...as we were in the comments to the last post...here's one of my favourite ever film clips:




The film, of course, is 'Bedknobs and Broomsticks' (based on two books by Mary Norton), the song is 'The Beautiful Briny' and it was written by the Sherman brothers (also songwriters for 'Aristocats', 'Mary Poppins', 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' AND 'The Jungle Book'). According to wikipedia 'The Beautiful Briny' was written for 'Mary Poppins' (1964) but not needed in the end and so carried over to 'Bedknobs' (1971). I never knew that...did you?

See what a difference a day (and an underwater dance sequence) make? Not a care in the world...

x

15 comments:

The Weaver of Grass said...

Yes a lovely film = they don't make em like that any more.

Rachel Fox said...

Oh I don't know about that. I also love the cartoon musical 'Enchanted' from only a few years ago (2007). See the best bits here.
x

Kat Mortensen said...

I can only see a large white square where the video should be, I'm afraid.

I saw B & B years ago and don't remember much, but "The Aristocats" is one of my all-time favourites. "Mary Poppins", it goes without saying, is another.

Kat

Niamh B said...

tis a brilliant film - loved it

Titus said...

Oh, I'm a children's film sucker anyway, but I loved this one!
When the children first arrive at the house (the London accents!) and then the discovery that Eglantine (?) is a witch, but not a very good one - oh, it's all flooding back to me.
Cheery stuff indeed.

Titus said...

Really flooded back. My only cousin, Caroline, took us (me and Robert) "up town" to see it at Leicester Square and we had a Wimpey after. Oh, those were the days...

Kat Mortensen said...

Got the video now, but I still don't remember. I was only 10 when it came out.
David Thomlinson played George Banks in Mary Poppins, didn't he?

Eryl said...

For some reason I didn't see this as a child, it wasn't until I was a mother myself that I finally watched it on TV with a totally transfixed toddler. Great to see this bit again. Glad the song didn't get wasted too.

Rachel Fenton said...

"Enchanted" was witty - cut out Spall and the witch and it would have been even better....
Aristocats is pure torture to watch and the scene with the jazz cats is scary! Mary Poppins was de rigueur viewing as a child at Christmas but I saw it last week (must be the tenth time) and I just could not get beyond the mockney accents. Some things are best left in childhood! Sorry for being a grump :( My verification word is "grunten"!

Rachel Fox said...

Hello all - glad you enjoyed this...I know I did.

And Titus...wimpey (proper old school wimpey - none of your revamped rubbish)! Back in the days when that was all there was (tomato sauce in the plastic tomatoes etc.). They had a very distinctive smell (Wimpey 'restaurants') too if I remember rightly. It wasn't entirely pleasant.

x

Rachel Fox said...

Rachel - just missed you. Like Kat I loved 'Aristocats' as a kid. In fact I think I was a bit in love with Thomas O'Malley. I'm over it now obviously. Still love his feme tune though.

I can stand the mockney in Mary Pops somehow. It's so bad it's funny. And half of England talks like that now anyway so maybe Dick van Dyke was ahead of his time.

x

hope said...

Ah, you taught me something new today!

The soft spot in my heart for "Mary Poppins" was indeed Dick VanDyke. He just seemed to damn jolly and happy to be a chimney sweep. Not even the adult revelation that he was an alcoholic dimmed my childhood memories.

[So as not to taint Mr. VanDyke, he did get help and sober up].

Rachel Fox said...

Who in showbiz hasn't been something you might call an alchoholic at some point though Hope (never mind the rest of us)? I had a phase of beer by the bed (for first thing in the morning) myself when I was younger. Also I think the word alcoholic gets used to cover a whole range of drinking habits. I've no idea about DvD's drinking history.

x

A Cuban In London said...

Have never seen the film, but I've just put it in my lovefilm list. And loved the clip, too. Many thanks.

Greetings from London.

Rachel Fox said...

You and your kids will love it, Cuban. I hope!
x