How do you solve a problem like Maria?

The Sound of Music, a 1965 Academy Award winner for Best Picture, first aired on American television on February 29, 1976, and to a HUGE success. It led to annual airings during the holiday season for the next 20 years. As recently as last December 15, 2024, NBC still showed the movie, which means there is still a large audience demand that spans generations.

Fondly, I remember watching it every year as clear as if it were yesterday. My sisters and I grabbing pillows and blankets and piling them in front of the television with our mom and our grandma sitting on the couch behind us. The smell of popcorn popping in the kitchen. It was one of my favorite parts of that magical time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. We loved the music and the singing, the teen romance between Liesl and Rolf, and the spunkiness of Maria. Even though the movie felt a bit dated, it was never too old for us.

The nuns' provide us an instant understanding of Maria’s character by describing all of her contradicting traits in song. “She’s always late for everything except for every meal.” “Many a thing you know you’d like to tell her. Many a thing she ought to understand. But how do you make her stay. And listen to all you say. How do you keep a wave upon the sand?” “She’s as flighty as a feather She’s a darling! She’s a demon! She’s a lamb!” “She is gentle! She is wild! She’s a riddle! She’s a child! She’s a headache! She’s an angel! She’s a girl!” Umm. This is someone I would love to hang out with. Her attention span might be pitiful, but she is full of fun and joy and that is her special gift to the world.

Then we meet the grief stricken and disciplined Captain Von Trapp and we know instantly that this is what he and his children need in their lives. They need a Maria. From that moment, we are hooked.

Many years ago, my sisters and I found ourselves in Salzburg, Austria and specifically on the The Sound of Music tour (see the photo gallery below). With the soundtrack playing over the speakers, a tour bus chauffeured us around to the actual film locations. Pure heaven, right? Well, as it turns out, this is only an American dream. Europeans (specifically Austrians and Germans) think the movie is drivel. Or never even heard of it. The question is why? Could the infectious Maria be the problem?

I don’t think so. She is well drawn character with depth and three-dimensionality. I think the reason Austrians think this movie is terrible is because of the Fargo affect. Yep. That 30 year old Oscar nominated movie from 1997 about MinnesOOtans? Apparently, when that movie came out, many a Minnesotan was unimpressed, while the rest of the nation gushed over it. They cited the exaggerated accents and phrases seen as caricatures mocking how they speak. They also felt like they were being portrayed as simpletons and buffoons.

The same could be said for the Austrians and The Sound of Music. They cited an inaccurate and romanticized portrayal of Austria during the Nazi occupation, geographical inaccuracies, and the perception of the film as trivializing events during a painful time in history. As a Minnesotan, I get it. I can fully appreciate never wanting to watch a movie that triggers unwanted feelings. Proof again that the beauty of books and movies is that they give us new insights, perspectives, and a deeper understanding of a story by listening to others' interpretations. Our world would be such a better place if we could all do that.