Did the filmmakers forget that the villains were the Nazis?

Rating: 6/10 (24 November 2018)

The kids are all so cute. The songs are all so delightful and charming. Andrews gives a warm enchanting performance and she probably has the most striking vocals in any musical by an actress. Wise directs the music numbers to polished whimsy. Too bad that the story at its core is about a naval captain resisting the Nazi regime, a regime that would go on to commit the genocide of at least 12 million. But never mind that there is a silly puppet show to get laughs from!
I don't know if it is because the world is going through a resurgent far right at the moment or what but re-watching the film the other day the entire concept of the movie, that is a light family musical, struck me as the the wrong concept for this story and time period. It comes across as tone deaf, morally repugnant and artistically flaccid. The Von Trapp story needed to be told with far, far less sugar or not at all. This aspect basically renders the joys of the film for naught.
There are two aspects of the film that seem to counteract this problem, but alas not enough. The first is Plummer's performance, which is imbued with his loathing of Andrews, the material and the kids. His icy captain does a lot to help make the sugar a little less sweet. Second, Wise does a far amount of mise-en-scene (especially the beginning) in which darkness are always on the edges of the frame. It helps give the impression of danger-evil closing in that gives the goofy musical comedy a hint of irony.
This film has gotten far worse with age.