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“Mary Poppins” is getting a fresh look in 2024 across the pond — its age rating has been raised because it features discriminatory language … which ain’t appropriate for all audiences.
While you probably may have never noticed the offensive term in the live-action flick … the British Board of Film Classification — commonly referred to as the BBFC — is calling out the film’s use of the phrase “Hottentots,” as it’s said to be unsuitable for youngsters.
It may sound like gibberish to us here in the States — but that term has history there in Britain. It’s a dated phrase that’s been deemed too racially offensive … and was used way back in the day by European colonizers in Africa — specifically as it pertains to the Khoikhoi, an indigenous group from Southwestern Africa.
It’s believed the term “Hottentots” came about as an imitation of the group’s language, which featured clicks … and these days, it’s an old-timey racially charged word that isn’t really used anymore. And yet, it’s in “Mary Poppins.”
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As for when the insensitive phrase is used in the beloved Disney movie … it occurs during one of the film’s more iconic moments — the “Step in Time” number led by Dick Van Dyke‘s Bert, the chimney sweep … when all the guys have black soot covering their faces.
Specifically, when Bert and his band of chimney sweeps break into a rooftop dance … the Banks family’s eccentric neighbor, Admiral Boom (Reginald Owen) — who thinks he’s still commanding a naval ship — declares, “We’re being attacked by Hottentots.”
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Owen’s Admiral Bloom also says the term at the start of the film, when he asks the Banks children … if they’re “going to fight the Hottentots.” Remember, this flick came out in the 1960s … so even then, it was a different time.
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The shift in age rating will hopefully help concerned parents from exposing their children to “discriminatory language or behavior,” which could be unintentionally repeated.
It went from being rated U (their version of rated-G) to PG … so, there ya go!
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