A Beloved, Very Likable Film, But Twice Was Enough

Rating: 8/10 (12 August 2006)

I took me over 30 years to finally watch this film, something I did in 1998....and I could see why this is such a beloved film. I watched it one other time, about five years later on DVD, but didn't enjoy it as much and traded it for something else. However, I still have a high regard for the film.
The film is a throwback to something you might see in the 1930s or '40s - a super-nice, old-fashioned movie led by Julie Andrews, who probably never again looked as pretty and wholesome as she did here. In fact, her image from this was so squeaky-clean that she went out of her way to play some sleazy parts in coming years. Too bad. At least here, she's a joy to watch. The kids are all nice, attractive and well-behaved, something else you don't see much anymore on film. Christopher Plummer is the male lead and once he loosens up, he's fine, too, as is the usually-funny Richard Haydn. Even the bad guys in this film - the Nazis (which include Eleanor Parker) - aren't prevalent. They don't have a lot of scenes in here even though they are an integral part to the story.
The film is nicely photographed, too, and I don't mean just the Austrian Alps.
I did think there were too many songs in here, something of them done twice. That's too much. Maybe that's what made me think two viewings were enough. (I'm not big into musicals.) On my second viewing, for some reason, I found the movie too boring in too many spots, which means a number of them since it's almost three hours long in total. It was slow-starting and I just couldn't get into it. I am glad at least I could enjoy this once.