High-Def Digest rates it very highly , its a must own BD .

It's one of the most successful and beloved films in Hollywood history, and yet 'The Sound of Music' continually gets a bad rap. Too saccharine, chant the naysayers. Too cutesy, too schmaltzy. Too many precocious singing children mugging and jockeying for camera position. Too many chipper and cheery songs. Too many nuns. Too much pious inspiration. And then there's that too-good-to-be-true nanny routine of Julie Andrews. Shouldn't we all just take a spoonful of sugar and rename this picture 'Mary Poppins Goes to Austria?'

Okay, take a deep breath. Take a step back. Close your eyes and open them again, and take a fresh look at 'The Sound of Music' without all of the baggage and hearsay that's beaten down this monumentally popular movie over the past few decades. For if you approach Robert Wise's adaptation of the Rodgers and Hammerstein stage hit with an open mind and unspoiled heart, it's impossible not to be seduced by its considerable charms and admit (however grudgingly) that 'The Sound of Music' is a fantastic film that justly deserved its Best Picture Academy Award and continues to dazzle and entertain a full 45 years after our first introduction to the vociferous Von Trapps. And on Blu-ray, it is truly wunderbar!
One of the first mega-blockbusters of modern cinema, 'The Sound of Music' enjoyed an initial and unheard of run of almost four years. That outdistances both 'Titanic' and 'Avatar' by a long shot (eat your heart out, James Cameron), and it's easy to see why. The themes of family, perseverance, defiance, and maturation that swirl about 'The Sound of Music' are far-reaching and universal, and audiences of all ages can respond and relate to them. The Salzburg locations with the breathtaking alpine backdrops thrill the senses, and the score – the final effort of arguably the most lauded and influential composer and lyricist in the history of musical theater – contains scads of instantly recognizable and beautifully structured songs.

Based on the life of Maria von Trapp (Andrews), a free-spirited nun-in-training who becomes governess to the seven recalcitrant children of the gruff Baron von Trapp (Christopher Plummer) on the eve of Nazi aggression in the mid-1930s, 'The Sound of Music' tells a simple story laced with some predictable dramatic embellishment, but it’s the exuberant presentation and top-flight performances that elevate it to classic status. Watching Maria tame and emotionally seduce both the children and the baron, with whom she (of course) falls in love, and witnessing the family's musical development would never normally sustain interest over the course of three hours, but the talented Wise (who also helmed 'West Side Story') treats the tale as an epic, and his inspired use of location (a critical element the stage show lacked) and active staging of songs propel the movie forward so we're blissfully unconscious of its length. In many musicals, the numbers often disrupt the story's flow, but Rodgers and Hammerstein always made sure their songs advanced the plot, deepened relationships, and shaded characters, and Wise honors their methodology, alternating intimacy with grand-scale treatments.

Andrews may have won a controversial Best Actress Oscar for her film debut in 'Mary Poppins,' but her signature role remains Maria, and she and 'The Sound of Music' will be inexorably linked for all eternity. And why not? From the moment she raises her arms and trills "The hills are alive…" moments after the film begins, she captivates her audience, and her pure, almost angelic tones, boundless energy and warmth, and fresh-faced beauty engender immediate admiration. Andrews personifies the naïve, insecure, inexperienced novice who attacks her Herculean task with equal parts spunk and tenderness, and her readings of such immortal Rodgers and Hammerstein tunes as 'My Favorite Things,' 'Do Re Mi,' and the title song remain definitive. And if you still feel the need to carp that she's too virginal or prim, just watch the achingly romantic 'Something Good,' and you might just change your mind. Dame Julie definitely has a sexy side, and in that gazebo scene with Plummer she makes all of us fall in love with her.

Andrews, though, is not the whole show. Plummer may have initially regarded his role with thinly veiled disdain, but he's quite good, as are Eleanor Parker as the stuffy baroness who vies for his attentions and Peggy Wood as the patient and inspirational Mother Superior. (Though dubbed, her rendition of 'Climb Ev'ry Mountain' is still quite moving.) The city of Salzburg is also a major character, and many times comes close to stealing the picture, so mesmerizing is its picturesque charm.

And then there's the remainder of the score that includes such identifiable and hummable tunes as 'Maria,' 'Sixteen Going on Seventeen,' 'Edelweiss,' 'The Lonely Goatherd,' and 'So Long, Farewell.' Coupled with the romantic story and abundance of glorious scenery, 'The Sound of Music' becomes one of the most captivating, family-friendly musicals ever to grace the screen, a film that merits its big canvas and fills it to perfection. Sure, it's a little saccharine; without a doubt, it's a tad schmaltzy. But every now and then that's just what the doctor orders, and this true-blue classic never fails to inject us with a healthy, rejuvenating dose of honest emotion, wonderful music, and impeccable artistry.