The Sound of Music (film)

The Sound of Music is a 1965 American musical drama film produced and directed by Robert Wise from a screenplay written by Ernest Lehman. It is based on the 1959 stage musical composed by Richard Rodgers, with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Lindsay and Crouse, itself based on the 1949 memoir The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria von Trapp. The film stars Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer, with Richard Haydn, Peggy Wood, Charmian Carr, and Eleanor Parker. Set in Salzburg, Austria, it is a fictional retelling of Maria von Trapp's experiences as governess to seven children, her eventual marriage with their father Captain Georg von Trapp, and their escape during the Anschluss in 1938. Filming took place from March to September 1964 in Los Angeles and Salzburg. The Sound of Music was released by 20th Century-Fox in the United States on March 2, 1965, at first as a limited roadshow theatrical release. It initially received mixed reviews from film critics. However, the film was a major commercial success, becoming the number-one box office film after four weeks, and the highest-grossing film of 1965. By November 1966, The Sound of Music had become the highest-grossing film in history, surpassing Gone with the Wind, and it held that distinction for five years. The film was popular throughout the world, breaking previous box-office records in 29 countries. The Sound of Music had an initial theatrical release that lasted four and a half years, and two successful re-releases. It sold 283 million admissions worldwide and earned a total worldwide gross of $286 million. The Sound of Music received five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. The film also received Golden Globe Awards for Best Motion Picture and Best Actress, the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement, and the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written American Musical. Since its original release, the film is widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. In 1998, the American Film Institute (AFI) listed The Sound of Music as the 55th greatest American film of all time, and the fourth-greatest film musical. In 2001, the United States Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".