The Sound of Music

Starring: Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Eleanor Parker, Richard Haydn, Peggy Wood, Charmian Carr, Heather Menzies-Urich, Nicholas Hammond, Peggy Wood
Directed by: Robert Wise
Rating: G
Genre: Drama, Musical
1965

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A woman (Julie Andrews) leaves the convent to serve as a governess to the children of a Captain (Christopher Plummer).

Review:

Tim: The Sound of Music is a very enjoyable musical. It features a good cast, some classic and unforgettable songs, and the NAZIs are the bad guys. This definitely has all of the elements of a classic. While I very much enjoyed the movie, I don't think I would call it a great film. I'm honestly a bit surprised it won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Still, this is a classic, enjoyable film.

The songs are terrific. Rodgers and Hammerstein did an amazing job. I honestly believe this has to be one of the greatest soundtracks ever written. I knew so many of the songs, even though I'd never seen the movie before. They are just out there in the cultural conscious of the American public. The titular "The Sound of Music" is a fantastic start to the film. "Do-Re-Mi" is incredibly catchy a lot of fun to sing along to. I'm also a big fan of "My Favorite Things." I also knew "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" and "Edelweiss", although I'm less of a fan of those. Still, the music here is remarkable.

This film features some classic moments. The scenery is very often beautiful, and the opening scene of Julie Andrews spinning in the fields with the backdrop of mountains is truly an iconic moment. The movie is a lot of fun, especially early on as we meet the character of Maria. She's a great deal of fun to watch, and I enjoyed seeing her struggle at the convent, move to the governess role, and try to get a handle on the children. Those scenes were fantastic. The movie slows down a bit in the middle with the arrival of the governess. By the time the NAZIs are involved, I admit I had grown a bit tired. This movie is almost 3 hours long- the first hour is fantastic, the second hour is very good, but the third hour starts to wear on you. I wish the movie had been a bit shorter. That brings up another criticism- I didn't like how this movie played the same songs multiple times. This is especially obvious at the show near the end. "Edelweiss" was pretty, but did I really need to hear it twice? Likewise, I loved hearing "So Long, Farewell" the first time, but the second time just annoyed me. I wish the movie had been a bit more streamlined.

Julie Andrews is terrific as Maria. She gives such an energetic, funny, warm performance. I just loved her in this role, especially in the earlier scenes. I'm glad she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. I thought Christopher Plummer was fine, but I wasn't surprised to read he didn't have the best time making this movie. He wasn't great and his frustration showed. I thought he was about average. I was really surprised Peggy Wood received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress. I can't really see that, and I don't especially agree with it.

The movie did win 5 Academy Awards- Best Music (yep), Best Sound (yep), Best Film Editing (sure), Best Director (I suppose so), and Best Picture (not my first choice). I actually thought Doctor Zhivago was a slightly better movie. Still, this is impressive (it was nominated for 5 others it did not win).

While I personally thought the movie had a few too many flaws, I acknowledge this is a classic movie, features of the best soundtracks of all times, and is an enjoyable film. I really did like watching this movie, and I'd see it again. I don't always love musicals, but this one was very well done.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



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