The Sound of Music - Research Paper Example

The Sound of Music Summary This paper will discuss the elements of the film, The Sound of Music (1965), and will attempt to use these elements in dissecting and critiquing a great film classic. In particular, this paper will discuss how the elements of Storytelling, Acting, Cinematography, Editing, Sound, and Societal Impact worked together to create one of the most magnificent films to grace the silver screen. Finally, the paper will end with a criticism and analysis of the film that has won the hearts of audiences from all over the world, spanning many generations. Introduction Human beings are such critical and fickle minded creatures. As an artform, it takes a lot for a film to succeed in the industry. The term “classic” is awarded to only a number of films and critics may not even always agree on branding a film with such accordance. However, when it comes to classics, perhaps every critic would agree that the 1965 film “The Sound of Music” truly deserves the recognition because it is a fine example of how the right mix of a good story, impeccable acting, breathtaking cinematography, and harmonious sound design could work together to create a film that will be remembered for decades to come (Manchel, 1990). Storytelling What makes a film a film? How does one know that it is not a painting or a short story? The elements that make a film unique are its form and content. Essentially, content refers to what the film is about while form is how the film’s content is expressed (Benshoff & Griffin, 2004). Both of these elements interact with one another and more often than not, one tends to follow as a direct result of the other. In effect, a film simply wants to tell a story and must tell this story using the elements available to it (Honthaner, 2010). With this, it is worth mentioning the aspects of the film in terms of its story and plot. A story is a narrative of events arranged in their time sequence. The only merit of a story is that it makes the audience want to know what happens next. On the other hand, a plot is also a narrative of events but the emphasis now falls on causality (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). It should also be noted that the plot is used to describe all visual and sonic elements present in a film. Quite simply, the plot is what happens in the movie while the story is what the movie is about (Lehman & Luhr, 2003). Thus, the plot is the logical progression of events that is used to tell the story. In “The Sound of Music,” the story can be summed up as “Maria sees life from a whole different perspective when she leaves an Austrian convent to become the governess of Captain Von Trapp’s children.” As one can see, the story is quite simple and direct to the poem. On the other hand, the plot may be a little more verbose. It is 1930’s in Austria and Maria, a lady from the convent who is a bit rough around the edges, has just been assigned as governess of the seven mischievous children of Captain Von Trapp, a Naval officer widower. The naughtiness of the children comes from a desire to get their father’s attention who runs the household in a very strict manner when he is not away. While Maria was initially met with the same hostility that the children awarded to their previous governesses, Maria soon wins them over with her kindness, spunk and musical inclinations. Soon, Maria and the Captain fall in love and their relationship is soon overshadowed by their socio-economic differences as well as the socio-political events of the time (Wise, 1965). At the helm of the movie as a storytelling device is its director, Robert Wise. The film was based on the book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse and transported into film through the screenplay of Ernest Lehman (The Sound of Music, 2011). The film, as a storytelling device, was able to accomplish its goal quite effectively. It used the chronological way of telling the story (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011) and in so doing, the audiences were transported as voyeurs looking into the life of Maria and the Von Trapp family. Acting The film is top-billed by Julie Andrews, who plays the role of Maria, and Christopher Plummer as Captain Von Trapp. The seven Von Trapp children, the Baroness, Max Detweiler, and the sisters from the convent (The Sound of Music, 2011) likewise played important roles in the development of the film. There are five types of actors which are commonly found in theatres and films. They are the Impersonator, the Personality actors, the Stars, the Wild Cards and the Character actors (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). In the film, the actors were quite effective in portraying their respective roles. It has been said time and again how perfect Julie Andrews was for the part of Maria, because she was able to exude the kind of innocent yet strong personality that was needed to make Maria connect with the audiences. Christopher Plummer also fit the role of Captain Von Trapp quite perfectly as he exuded a strict demeanor and the kind of charm that most men in uniform exude. The other characters in the film like the seven Von Trapp children, the Baroness, Max Detweiler, and the sisters from the convent also made significant contributions to the film through their acting and singing skills. Cinematography If there is one element that separates a film from any other artform, it would have to be cinematography. Cinematography tends to sum up all the visual elements that make the film pleasurable to watch (Cormack, 1994). There are many personalities involved in making sure that the cinematography does justice to the story of the film. Basically, the director’s main job is to tell the story. Thus, the director works hand in hand with the production designer and the art director for achieving an overall coherent and aesthetic production design (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). Ultimately, the director has a lot of artistic control over the film’s production design and so his or her job oftentimes overlaps with the tasks of the production designer and the art director. The production designer is the one in charge of the overall look of the film. Production designers have to closely coordinate with the director and the producer (in terms of budget constraints) in order to select the most appropriate settings and style that would enable the film to tell the story (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). Especially during pre-production, the production designer works closely with the film director to establish the particular aesthetic needs and the intended visual feel of the film. The production designer likewise works closely with the costume designer, the hair and make-up stylists, the special effects director and the location manager to ensure the unified visual appearance of the movie (Sanderson, 1977). The production designer of “The Sound of Music” was able to craft a wonderful set, from the convent to the Von Trapp family, to the richness of the Austrian landscape. The role of the art director tends to blur with the responsibilities of the production designer. However, the art director’s main goal is to unify the overall visual appearance of the scenes in the film, making sure that these scenes are able to stimulate moods, contrast features, and appeal to the target audience psychologically (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). Notably, the pleasurable experience that one derives from watching “The Sound of Music” is the superbly crafted images set against the wonderful landscape of Austria. The director, production designer and set designer no doubt took great efforts in designing the visuals of each scene. Lighting, costume design, and hair and makeup likewise added to the authenticity of each scene being portrayed on the screen. Editing Film editing is the part of the process of film making in which shots are selected and put together to make one coherent story (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). Indeed, the film made use of excellent editing techniques, from the wideshots showing the landscape of Austria, to the close-ups of Maria, the Captain and the other characters, to depict the intensity of the moment. Sound Sound is a very important element in film because it plays a crucial role in shaping the way the viewer react to, and watches, a movie. Essentially, the influences of sound greatly enhances the visual elements projected on screen. Goodykoontz and Jacob (2011) categorize the sound elements of a film into three, namely, dialogue, musical score and sound effects. In more detail, dialogue is the conversation that goes on among, and sometimes within, the characters (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). The musical score is the music that is played in the background of a scene as action takes place (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). There are two types of sound effects used in film. The first kind of effects are walla, which are murmur sounds heard in the background, but does not overshadow the main characters. Then there are stock sound effects, such as nature sounds or mechanical noises (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). As a musical, the sound aspect of the film played a great part in its success of the film. The sound design team were made up by James Corcoran , Bernard Freericks , Fred Hynes , Murray Spivack, Orrick Barrett, William Buffinger, Jesse Long, and Don Stern . Using the music of Rodgers and Hammerstein, the film did a wonderful job of taking the audiences to a splendid musical journey showcasing the lives of the main characters of the film. Any person living in today’s world is most likely to be familiar with the songs that make up the soundtrack of the film. Using music that appeal to the children and to the children at heart, songs like Climb Every Mountain, Maria, Do-Re-Mi, My Favorite Things, Edelweiss, Sixteen Going on Seventeen, I Have Confidence, So Long, Farewell, Lonely Goatherd, Something Good, and The Sound of Music will forever be etched in music history. This aspect of the movie is largely responsible for it to be labeled as a classic and for the film to continue tugging at the hearts of audiences of all generations. In fact, the songs and musical score of “The Sound of Music” still pervade the airwaves and have greatly influenced how musicals are being done today. Societal Impact Other than being a delightful film with a great story and amazing music to go with it, the Sound of Music is also a social commentary on the effects of the eve of World War II. Film Criticism and Analysis Indeed, the 1965 film “The Sound of Music” truly deserves the recognition because it is a fine example of how the right mix of a good story, impeccable acting, breathtaking cinematography, and harmonious sound design could work together to create a film that will be remembered for decades to come. It does get the recognition that it deserves when in the 1966 Academy Awards, the film won Best Director (Robert Wise), Best Film Editing (William Reynolds), Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment (Irwin Kostal), Best Sound (James Corcoran of 20th Century-Fox SSD and Fred Hynes of Todd-AO SSD), and ultimately, Best Picture (The Sound of Music, 2011). References Benshoff, H., & Griffin, S. (2004). America on film: Representing race, class, gender, and sexuality at the movies. Wiley-Blackwell. Cormack, M. (1994). Ideology and cinematography in Hollywood, 1930-39. Palgrave MacMillan. Goodykoontz, B., & Jacobs, C. (2011). Film: From watching to seeing. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint. Honthaner, E. (2010). The complete film production handbook. Focal Press. Lehman, P., & Luhr, W. (2003). Thinking about movies, Watching, questioning, enjoying. Wiley-Blackwell. Manchel, F. (1990). Film study: An analytical bibliography. Fairleigh Dickinson University Press. Sanderson, R. (1977). A historcial study of the development of American motion picture content and techniques prior to 1904. Ayer Publishing. The Sound of Music. (2011). Retrieved April 17, 2011, from IMDB.com: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059742/ Wise, R. (Director). (1965). The Sound of Music [Motion Picture]. Read More