It's hardly news that Disney movies - especially the more recent ones, from The Little Mermaid forward - are so full of scary villains, murder scenes, and orphaned babies that it's a wonder more kids aren't traumatized for life from watching them. Still, I rather enjoyed this post on Adventures With Gretchen on everything else her kids learned from The Little Mermaid and Finding Nemo, including how the only important thing in life is to find the right man and how to break your parents' hearts by telling them you hate them.
Really, I was just happy for an excuse to launch into one of my favorite rants, about how Mary Poppins is the best movie ever made for children, and my constant musing why more kids' movies don't follow that model: NO death, NO bad guys, NO scary parts. Yet the movie still manages to be vastly entertaining, due to its fantastic music and charming performances.
So I throw down the gauntlet: can anyone think of a more successful kids' movie than Mary Poppins? And by success I don't mean box-office success, I mean success in creating a product so perfectly tailored to the whimsical tastes of children I suspect my great-grandkids will love it just as much fifty years from now as my kids love it today.