SOUND OF MUSIC on ABC Family...did they leave out something?

No, it was in it. But it's in the second half. Always has been.

So they moved it...or are you referring to the Finale Ultimo?

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Recapping the plot:

Maria is convinced to leave the Von Trapps by the baroness, during the big party.

INTERMISSION

The kids are playing ball with the baroness on the back porch. Captain Von Trapp announces to his children that he plans to marry the baroness.

The kids try to see Maria in the abbey to beg her to come back and tell her about the plans for the wedding, but she won't see anyone. She is in seclusion.

The Reverend Mother summons Maria to her office to see what is troubling her, and discovers that Maria is in love with the Captain. She tells Maria to face her fears and to "Climb Every Mountain," 'til she finds her dream.

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I think you simply confused it with the stage show.

If memory serves me, the stage show has the song sung at the end of the first act. The Mother Superior sings it insisting Maria goes back to the Von Trapps.

As others have said, in the movie, the intermission "cliffhanger" was the moment when she leaves the party.

Can you imagine Rodgers and Hammerstein NOT ending the first act with that beauty? It's "Soliloquy" all over again.

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Updated On: 4/5/10 at 12:54 AM

I agree that the movie made the material much stronger. The movie is far superior to the Broadway versions, specifically the score.

I think "My favorite things" makes much more sense as the song Maria sings to the children during the thunderstorm in the bedroom. In the stage show, the Reverend Mother sings it to Maria when she tells her she has to go be the nanny for the Von Trapps. In the stage show, Maria has the children singing "The Lonely Goatherd" in the bedroom.

I cannot imagine the movie without the wonderful "Lonely Goatherd" puppet segment. That scene with the fantastic Bill Baird marionettes has always been my favorite part. When I have seen stage productions, I have always found ANY staging of "Lonely Goatherd" dissapointing and anticlimactic. That's a testament to how the movie put the piece in the upper realm of the best stage-to-screen musical adaptations.

"I have confidence" (written for the movie)blends with the original material fantastically. "There's no way to stop it" is my least favorite of the Broadway score, and I am glad it got axed from the movie. Finally, "Something Good" is IMO the perfect love duet for the Captain and Maria vs "An Ordinary Couple."

Other than the score, I find that the finale with Rolfe in the movie is far superior to the stage version. Much more dramatic, and much more poignant.

Captain Von Trapp: "You'll never be one of Them."
Rolfe: "LIEUTENANT!", "LIEUTENANT!" *Blows whistle*

Now THAT was a shock the first time I saw it, and led to the best lines in the movie:
"Reverend Mother, I have sinned"
"I too have sinned Reverend Mother."
A bit far fetched, but boy is it wonderful!

Updated On: 4/5/10 at 09:37 AM

And there's the line in that scene, "what is it you cawn't face, Maria?" Right?

I got sucked into watching it again last night (It's my cat's favorite movie) and was thinking how great the film adaptation is. It is odd to end the "act" without that song, but dramatically it makes sense.

Personally, "An Ordinary Couple" is a beautiful song, and I love it. However, Richard Rodgers said that because of the ill health of Oscar Hammerstein, the song couldn't be rewritten. That's why when the chance came for Rodgers to "tweek" the score for the film, "Something Good" was written.

Ahhh... exactly what this thread was missing... sour negativity regurgitated from a dead woman.

Updated On: 4/5/10 at 12:16 PM

Stopped counting at 75 how many times I saw the movie (and that was BEFORE it came out on video). Got to take the SofM tour in Saltzburg. After the birth of my children, pretty much the highlight of my life.

I also watched last night - why do I do that when I have it on DVD? Anyway, made me sad, again, Julie Andrews can no longer sing. Wish I could have seen her on Broadway.

I've spent a lot of time pondering Kael's review. Should she be hailed for marching to the beat of her own drummer? Or should she be condemned for panning something so universally beloved? I come down on the side of the latter- I look at critics as a sort of Consumer Affairs for movie goers. She was a fascinating writer (I bet I read "Raising Kane" a hundred times) but should a film critic be so out of step with the tastes of the masses?