Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on July 2011

British actress Emma Thompson has reprised the role of Nanny McPhee, the governess with magical powers created by venerated British children’s writer Christianna Brand. In Nanny McPhee Returns, a sequel to the 2005 film, Thompson plays a governess who shows up to help a harried farm woman (Maggie Gyllenhaal) raise her children. She imparts to the children five important lessons, including how to teach pigs to fly. Fellow Brits Maggie Smith and Ewan McGregor make cameo appearances. Ahead of the film’s official release in Japan, a special screening for mothers of young children was held in Shiodome, with actor Junichi Ishida and education analyst Naoki Ogi in attendance, as well as piglet which, unlike those in the film, couldn’t fly. Ogi is an expert on the relatively recent phenomenon of ikumen (“child-rearing dads”). On the other hand, Ishida, a longtime bachelor who married pro golfer RikoHigashio last year, could only answer “Well…” when asked when he would finally become a parent. Both men praised what the film has to offer. “As an education theorist, I mainly work in print, but the power of movies is really amazing,” Ogi remarked. “This film is not only about educating children,” Ishida remarked, “but gives us several important life lessons.” To mark the release of the film, Ogi has released a series of YouTube videos with lessons for Japanese parents, including not pulling a child’s arm while saying ‘hurry up’” and avoiding saying dame (“don’t do that”) every minute.