The Sound of Music (NR, 1965)

This beloved musical tells the fictionalized love story of Maria von Trapp (Julie Andrews), who does not fit into the abbey where she lives. While she means well, she's constantly in trouble. The wise abbess sends her away to be the governess for the seven children of stern widower Captain von Trapp (Christopher Plummer). The children are uncooperative until Maria wins them over, sharing her love of music and teaching them to sing. The captain's friend Max wants the kids to sing at the local festival, but the stern captain refuses -- at first. But when the captain hosts a ball, he begins to notice a certain singing governess more than he should (he's been wooing an uppity baroness and had intended to propose). At the same time, Nazi sympathizers are moving into his beloved Austria and preparing to take over -- and he'll be expected to join them. In the end, he chooses Maria, and entering the singing contest turns into an escape from the Nazis.

THE SOUND OF MUSIC is filled with glorious songs ("Do-Re-Mi," "My Favorite Things," "Edelweiss, "So Long, Farewell") and has plenty for hopeless romantics to enjoy -- especially the sweet song, "Something Good," that the captain sings to Maria. It also effectively works in the tension and foreboding of the time period. Everyone in Austria has to make a choice when the Nazis arrive. The beau of Liesl, the captain's oldest daughter, becomes so committed to the Nazis that he's willing to betray the young woman he cared for. Even the nuns in the abbey must make a choice. It's worth discussing with older kids why this was such a tense time and why the Von Trapps made the painful decision to flee the country they loved.