Sound of Music is overall just a sound film. I love Julie Andrews, of course. Her voice is just beautiful. However, the film's music makes the most of the humor, the romance, and the excitement the film presents to its audience. Overall, it is a very heartwarming tale of unexpected blessings and the unexpected road that God can take us on. While most of the movie is heartwarming and amusing, it ends on a strong note of encouragement for doing the right thing, even when it causes hardship. The film also, therefore, stresses the importance of perseverance.
Les Miserables is, as the name reflects, a tragic story. I'm sure everyone has at least heard of the musical, as the film won many awards, but my favorite rendition of the operetta is on the stage. There are so many more songs and sung dialogues that the movie cut out. I was fortunate enough to be in Les Miserables in high school, and I fell in love with the score and the story. The musical speaks of the struggle in poverty, love, sickness, and death. It also questions morality. Is it right to steal food in order to save your starving family? Is it right to rebel against a government that is no longer serving its people? Is it right to let a criminal go free if he will contribute to the greater good? The music in the operetta makes the most of the dramatic score, and contains lyrics that make the audience laugh and cry.
Overall, I think musical numbers within film and television can add a lot of meaning and depth to the story, if done well. There are a few times where I feel as though musical numbers did not contribute at all to the story, and in fact made the impact somewhat lesser.
Making a musical into a film can be hard. Sometimes you just can't get the same feeling that you get when you see it on stage. Sound of Music is a wonderful example of a musical film done right. Les Miserables was good, but I do have some issues with the film, like the fact the camera is almost always right in someone's face. I want to see the costumes and sets too! Just pull back like five feet!
ReplyDeleteI agree! Sound of Music was wonderful! The film Les Miserables did a good job with the emotion, not as much with the music. I'm probably nitpicking, though, because I was in my high school's rendition of it. I did notice that it was big on close-ups, too! For as rich of sets as the film had, they didn't really care to show them off!
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