Julie Andrews Said Christopher Plummer Gave ‘The Sound of Music’ Its ‘Glue’
Some movies are so iconic that almost entire generations can seemingly quote entire monologues of beloved actors from memory. When such movies enter our consciousness, we can create stories in our minds surrounding the film and then be thoroughly shocked when the truth sneaks out. The Sound of Music is loved by so many all these years later for good reason. Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer are household names, thanks to this movie. So, did they love the movie as much as the viewers did?
The cast and creators were concerned ‘The Sound of Music’ would be too sugary
The Sound of Music was a film adaptation of the Broadway musical, according to a Vanity Fair interview on YouTube. Julie Andrews said those working on the film were concerned that it could be “quite saccharine if we were not careful.” The director, Rober Wise, Christopher Plummer, and Andrews all felt that way.
There were conversations surrounding this topic before filming started. How could they get rid of the most sugary parts? Andrews says, “It’s mostly because with that beautiful scenery and seven children and that glorious music if you weren’t careful, it could be very, very sugary.”
Plummer was the ‘glue’ of the movie, said Julie Andrews
While the cast and crew were concerned about The Sound of Music being too sugary, Julie Andrews said it was thanks to Christopher Plummer who kept it all together.
She said, “It was really thanks to Chris Plummer who gave the film its glue. He was the firm, stern father of the children and the antagonist that I had to work with.”
Andrews continued with how she felt about Plummer and their enduring friendship. She said, “Chris was such a wonderful actor. We became great friends and really until he passed away fairly recently, we saw each a lot, we knew each other. He stayed a friend and it was very pleasant.”
According to MovieGuide, Andrews released a statement after Plummer died in 2021. She wrote, “The world has lost a consummate actor today and I have lost a cherished friend. I treasure the memories of our work together and all the humor and fun we shared through the years.”
Plummer really didn’t like ‘The Sound of Music’
Christopher Plummer may have been the iconic Captain von Trapp and the glue that held The Sound of Music together, but he still did not like the movie. He also did not like his most memorable solo, “Edelweiss.”
Plummer could appreciate the legacy that The Sound of Music left on his career, but his feelings were not the same during the actual filming. Plummer had an early career on the theater stage and was used to more in-depth characters. He thought that the Captain was boring and just difficult to like. It was his toughest role.
Plummer told The Hollywood Reporter his dislike of the movie was “because it was so awful and sentimental and gooey. You had to work terribly hard to try and infuse some minuscule bit of humor into it.”
Plummer continued, “It’s a very good picture [for] what it is. But someone had to be Peck’s bad boy and I chose myself.”
According to Express U.K., Plummer also said, “Although we worked hard enough to make [Captain von Trapp] interesting, it was a bit like flogging a dead horse. And the subject matter is not mine. I mean, it can’t appeal to every person in the world. It’s not my cup of tea.”
Plummer admitted to being drunk frequently while filming The Sound of Music. In fact, he was drunk when he performed the famous music festival scene. Plummer says that his “drunk stage” of filming movies brought many of his most rewarding projects after transitioning from the stage.
