Maria or the Baroness?
So this weekend we watched The Sound of Music. I won't offer a full review, because what would be the point? It's one of the best movies of all time. (Number 55 on the AFI list.) And all of you have seen it, probably a dozen times.
But watching it for the tenth time or so, it finally struck me: If I were Captain von Trapp, I think that I would have stayed with the Baroness. I mean, Maria has the pure, virginal thing going, and she's good with the kids, and she can sing. Oh, man, can she sing. But what do the Captain and Maria really have in common? For one thing, she's much younger than he is, which may be a plus in some men's minds. But she's from a different social class, she doesn't seem very sophisticated or even educated. When the first flush of romance is over, what will they talk about? The kids? No! Stop! Think about it. The Captain is an aristocrat, for pete's sake. And so's the Baroness. Plus, the Baroness is more elegant, more refined. And smart.
Now, once they flee the country, all of this may be a moot point. But in terms of a Mary Ann versus Ginger debate, I think that there's a real case to be made here for the Baroness.
posted by Number Three @ 7:41 AM
1 Comments:
As a self-proclaimed expert on the Sound of Music film, having watched it everyday for several years during my childhood, rehearsed the musical numbers with my two sisters so much that we nearly had the choreography down for the "goodnight" number, with each of us taking different parts along the way...so as such an expert I can say that this is the most fabulous film ever. And why did we abandon musicals anyway? We hate joy that much? We need more melodrama in our lives, frankly. And not of the reality TV variety.
On the Baroness v. Maria debate: I agree that it seems very odd, and this bridging of class/status is not well explained in the film. What I love about the characterization of the Baroness is that she is intelligent, and sympathetic, and she gets what's happening. I love the scene with her and Maria in the bedroom where she advises her on what to wear--it's just brilliant. She's so sophisticated and suave that she is entirely graceful in the face of Maria's clear threat to her position. Plus the hair! the ensembles! the makeup! the jewels! She's the complete package. So she's not the best with the kids. But who could live up to a NUN for god's sake? (Literally for God's sake?) Ah well. She's up there with Liz Taylor in Giant for me.
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