So I know that this has absolutely nothing to do with writing, but I’m procrastinating by watching The Sound of Music on ABCFamily and getting over the stupor induced by the family’s Easter Feast. This happens to be one of my favorite childhood movies, one we had recorded from a previous TV presentation sometime back in the 80s. I used to watch that recording over and over again–enough that I remember that it was recorded at Christmas and Sprite had a particularly entertaining commercial that year. I think this is the first time I’ve watched any other version of it, and I find myself surprised to be seeing a number of scenes, lines, etc. that weren’t in the version I know. It must have been edited for TV back then–maybe a wee bit shorter? Or is this an extended version? It seems that everything they cut layered in extra tension about the Nazi threat. Having the full scenes clarify a few things. The music’s the same, of course, and that was my favorite part as a child. DH is at band practice and will be elated he missed this DVR presentation. He is not a fan of Rogers and Hammerstein musicals. I love ”em! I find it a lot of fun to watch old movies and see how old directors from the silver screen through the 60s used to tell a story. It’s very different from the bald and graphic sex and violence that are so often portrayed in modern films. Yes there’s an air of unreality to it sometimes, but somehow it feels like there’s more emotion in the old films. They had to be more subtle in a lot of ways. I suppose to lend a bit of credibility to this post, I’ll pose the question to other wordsmiths who may stumble upon my lj, do you see a similar trend in stories over centuries? What are the factors that make something a classic? I”ll pontificate on that while I take a nice soak before DH gets home.
