Mary Poppins she ain't

After a summer of music — from Bo Bice to The Police to Kenny Loggins to Taylor Hicks — we wrapped up the season with a cute movie last night: Scarlett Johansson in "The Nanny Diaries."

Here's the Cliff Notes version: Scarlett become an nanny for an uptight NYC family and falls in love with the cute little kid — Who wouldn't? That lil' guy was adorable! — and she tries to break him of his uptight upbringing.

Again, it was a cute movie and I liked it the first time I saw it ... when it was called "Uptown Girls." Only this one didn't star that cutiepie Dakota Fanning.

Still, I liked the movie and I didn't even mind the theme taken directly from the hit 1964 "Mary Poppins" film: A new nanny appears out of nowhere (in this case, suburban New Jersey) and brings common sense to an uppedy family.

What I couldn't stand, though, was making Scarlett's character the modern-day Mary Poppins. She floats over the Upper East Side on an umbrella. The Oscar Award-winning "Chim Chim Cher-ee" can be heard as an instrumental track in spots.

Yeah, they've touched a nerve here. Don't mess with Mary!

"Mary Poppins" has always been my fav movie. Ever since I first saw it as a kid and even had the Viewmaster cards from that flick, I've been a huge fan.

So much so that we went to the Broadway version of Mary's story (seen here) back in March. And here's the real purpose of this entry: To tell the world how cool the play was.

In explaining how cool this show is, I'll use the same five words I've been using for the past six months to explain it to anyone who will listen...

She flies through the audience!!!

Seriously, what more do you need to know?!

Hence, after seeing both Mary Poppins on the stage (and in the air!) and then seeing Scarlett's veiled attempt to re-create her in modern times on the screen last night, I'll pick Mary every time.