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I was just going to turn the TV off and get some stuff done when something
happened that I didn’t quite expect. Familiar mountain scenes appeared
and an opening orchestral sequence started up, then Julie Andrews spun across
the alpine meadows. I was sucked in. I didn’t turn the TV off until four
hours later, when the movie was finally over (boy, I’d forgotten how long
it is with those commercial interruptions added in).
So much for getting work done. Now, you have to understand that I could have
gotten up at any time, put in the video, and watched the commercial-free version
of this classic musical. But there was something about the commercials—and
the slightly fuzzy reception—that brought me back to the yearly Sound
of Music TV viewings of my childhood.
Nostalgia aside, this is undoubtably one of the greatest musicals of all time.
The score by Rodgers and Hammerstein is so familiar I often forget how good
it is—but bits of the songs, like “Do, a deer a female deer…”
and “Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens…” run through
my head for a long time after a viewing. The actors all have the amazing ability
to both sing and act, including all seven children. And the plot is well paced
and truly enjoyable every time—funny, endearing, romantic, suspenseful, and even
charmingly cheesy (but in a good way) by turns.
Well, I suppose I should give those of you who haven’t experienced this
movie in the last decades a brief overview of what you’re missing. In 1939
Austria (just before Hitler takes over), Maria (Julie Andrews) is a postulate
in an abbey. She wants to become a nun, but since she’s not very good at
it, the mother superior sends her to be a governess for Captain von Trapp’s family (von Trapp is played handsomely by Christopher Plummer)—seven children whose mother has died. Maria’s not a very orthodox governess, but she finds her
way into the hearts of the family and has a romantic dilemma to face. Unfortunately, Hitler also finds his way
into Austria….
If this movie has somehow passed you by—or if you just haven’t thought
to watch it in awhile—you might want to pick it up again. You could go
to Salzburg for The Sound of Music tour, too (and I highly recommend
that as well—beautiful Austrian countryside and it’s fun to see the hodge-podge
of places from the film), but it’s definitely cheaper to watch this delightful
movie again. Just don’t try to get anything done while you’re watching
it, and if you’re one of those musical cynics, please try to avoid comments about the characters bursting into song.
