The Sound of Music is Returning to Theaters

It's been more than 50 years since Julie Andrews enlivened the hills of Austria with The Sound of Music, but audiences have hardly forgotten. As part of the yearlong TCM Big Screen Classics series—which has recently brought West Side Story, Big, and The Big Lebowski back to the big screen—The Sound of Music will be returning to more than 600 theaters across the country for a limited engagement in September.

The Sound of Music, based on the 1959 Rodgers & Hammerstein musical of the same name, made a huge impact at the box office upon its release. In addition to being the first film to gross $100 million, it also showed some serious staying power, playing in theaters for well over a year after its original release. The film earned five Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Robert Wise. And in 2001, it was added to the Library of Congress's National Film Registry for preservation.

Though it was seemingly universally beloved by audiences and critics alike, there was one individual who was not a fan: Andrews's co-star, Christopher Plummer. Though the musical made the actor a household name, he's been known to refer to it as "The Sound of Mucus," "S&M," or simply "that movie." In 2010, he told The Boston Globe, "I was a bit bored with the character. Although we worked hard enough to make him 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."

With all due respect to Captain von Trapp, we vehemently disagree. As will the thousands of people who are likely to be lined up for these limited screenings. There will be four showings total—two on Sunday, September 9 and another two on Wednesday, September 12 (at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. local time on both days). The film will be screened in its original widescreen format, and a mid-film intermission will be included.

To find out where the film is playing near you, visit the Fathom Events website, which is presenting the film in association with Turner Classic Movies and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.