The Sound of Music Live!
  • Network: NBC
  • Series Premiere Date: Dec 5, 2013
User Score
6.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 28 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 28
  3. Negative: 9 out of 28

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User Reviews

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  1. jntolbert
    Dec 6, 2013
    8
    Carrie Underwood gave a strong and passionate vocal performance (10), but the speaking parts and overall acting was lacking (6). I'll settle on an 8 for the overall. The supporting cast was perfect.
  2. jman76
    Dec 7, 2013
    8
    My close friend showed me the original and I wasn't so enthusiastic but at the end I changed my perspective and thought it was great. Plus I couldn't get the tunes out of my head. This I thought was going to be a train wreck because it was payed by a TV station. But I was wrong. Aside from some funky looking sets and some aspects forgotten from the original, it was definitely a greatMy close friend showed me the original and I wasn't so enthusiastic but at the end I changed my perspective and thought it was great. Plus I couldn't get the tunes out of my head. This I thought was going to be a train wreck because it was payed by a TV station. But I was wrong. Aside from some funky looking sets and some aspects forgotten from the original, it was definitely a great remake. I loved the songs and thought they did a pretty good job.… Expand
  3. CaioLima
    Dec 6, 2013
    10
    The production was flawless. Carrie Underwood and the cast did an amazing job. She singed with passion, her voice is simply incredible, and she acted good.
  4. jandefischer
    Dec 6, 2013
    8
    Great singing throughout. Kudos to Carrie Underwood for her first acting try. She was, however, best when singing. Her supporting cast were much more experienced actors and it, unfortunately, showed. The annoying hiss throughout became more and more noticeable as the show went on. All in all NBC deserves credit for doing a live musical for the first time in 50 years. I look forward toGreat singing throughout. Kudos to Carrie Underwood for her first acting try. She was, however, best when singing. Her supporting cast were much more experienced actors and it, unfortunately, showed. The annoying hiss throughout became more and more noticeable as the show went on. All in all NBC deserves credit for doing a live musical for the first time in 50 years. I look forward to seeing more since the TV ratings showed very high numbers.… Expand
  5. kristen58
    Dec 9, 2013
    5
    Everything was well done except the casting of Carrie Underwood. While she has a great voice and the songs were good, her acting was not. I didn't believe she was really Maria. She was trying really hard, but her acting was superficial. It was an amateur's idea of "good" acting. Scenes with her were like watching a high school stage production of Sound of Music. The rest of the showEverything was well done except the casting of Carrie Underwood. While she has a great voice and the songs were good, her acting was not. I didn't believe she was really Maria. She was trying really hard, but her acting was superficial. It was an amateur's idea of "good" acting. Scenes with her were like watching a high school stage production of Sound of Music. The rest of the show was much better quality than that.… Expand
  6. podaddy
    Dec 17, 2013
    0
    This production was a complete and utter abomination. The positive reviews are no doubt from the pom-pom waving fans of Ms. Underwood's brand of country pop, but any objective viewer could not come away from this "performance" with anything greater than a score of 2. It's rather amusing to listen to so many bash those who would critique Ms Underwood for her wooden performance. GreatThis production was a complete and utter abomination. The positive reviews are no doubt from the pom-pom waving fans of Ms. Underwood's brand of country pop, but any objective viewer could not come away from this "performance" with anything greater than a score of 2. It's rather amusing to listen to so many bash those who would critique Ms Underwood for her wooden performance. Great musicals require great acting and Underwood dragged down the entire cast with her plastic barbie girl performance. The "Sound of Carrie's Music" was adequate, but the Sound of Carrie's Acting" was abysmal. There were likely hundreds of young Broadway female performers who could have made a name for themselves during this live production, but the network's desperate attempt to capture ratings and Underwood's handlers desire for brand exposure and money trumped that idea I guess.… Expand
  7. cityslicker
    Dec 18, 2013
    8
    Kudos to Carrie and the cast for a stellar job with the Broadway version of this amazing story. Carrie's singing was phenominal, and she did a decent job on the acting for her first major acting role. So tired of the hate and bashing she is getting so unfairly. She sang in the same key as Julie Andrews- and she did it live and flawlessly. Instead of giving Carrie and cast credit for goingKudos to Carrie and the cast for a stellar job with the Broadway version of this amazing story. Carrie's singing was phenominal, and she did a decent job on the acting for her first major acting role. So tired of the hate and bashing she is getting so unfairly. She sang in the same key as Julie Andrews- and she did it live and flawlessly. Instead of giving Carrie and cast credit for going live-- they are bashed unfairly by rabid Julie Andrews fans and ignorant haters who think this is a remake of the movie- which it was not. Julie Andrews approved this and loves Carrie- so it is a shame her fans cannot be as classy as she is. Second- Julie admitted that they all lip synced and had a hundred re-shoots to make the movie perfect. Carrie had to do this LIVE- with one take. No re-dos. So under that pressure- and with no acting experience- she did amazing!… Expand
  8. Spaceace78
    Dec 11, 2013
    9
    I just watched this version of the sound of music with my kids the other night. I never saw the original, or at least not all of it anyways. I think that Carrie Underwood did an extremely good job in her portrayal of Maria. That said, I know what people are thinking, she's no Julie Andrews, no! of course she's not, no one is. However, Carrie puts her own personal flair into the songsI just watched this version of the sound of music with my kids the other night. I never saw the original, or at least not all of it anyways. I think that Carrie Underwood did an extremely good job in her portrayal of Maria. That said, I know what people are thinking, she's no Julie Andrews, no! of course she's not, no one is. However, Carrie puts her own personal flair into the songs and makes you feel a part of the struggle of the story, she brings out the emotion, the feeling and the depth of this wonderful yet timeless classic in her own unique way. I for one am looking forward to watching it again.… Expand
  9. PittLord
    Dec 15, 2013
    2
    As I am laying peacefully on my couch, I suddenly here a horrific noise coming from upstairs. I thought an animal was dying and went up their only to find my father watching this trainwreck with the volume up to an alarming level to compensate for his hearing loss. The horror, the horror.

    Now I am sure that Carrie Underwood is a lovely person and a damn good singer, but she is a    As I am laying peacefully on my couch, I suddenly here a horrific noise coming from upstairs. I thought an animal was dying and went up their only to find my father watching this trainwreck with the volume up to an alarming level to compensate for his hearing loss. The horror, the horror.

    Now I am sure that Carrie Underwood is a lovely person and a damn good singer, but she is a horrible,, horrible actress. She was missing notes, starting and stopping too early, and was out of breath from having to "act", which along with the god awful production values sung this thing in to William Hung's wheel house.

    I cannot believe how bad this was. All that talent on stage lead a lot of people like me to raise their expectations to a higher level than they may have been without a cadre of known, established actors. It was a massive disappointment.

    While many may be inclined to prefer disappointment over outright dislike, but this is only true if the movie is on is above average. When the film in question is below average, disappointment sets in and exponentially increases.    … Expand
  10. Poirot
    Feb 2, 2015
    1
    I saw the original one night and watched this the next. After watching Carrie Underwood, my advice is thank goodness you can sing. If you had to make a living based on your acting you would be back in Oklahoma. It is an affront to actresses everywhere to call Carrie Underwood an actress. She is as bad an actress as most singers on American Idol. Anyone who thinks that this wasI saw the original one night and watched this the next. After watching Carrie Underwood, my advice is thank goodness you can sing. If you had to make a living based on your acting you would be back in Oklahoma. It is an affront to actresses everywhere to call Carrie Underwood an actress. She is as bad an actress as most singers on American Idol. Anyone who thinks that this was "flawless" should have their reviews examined. The sets were terrible. One of the nuns was over singing through the entire debacle. I believe that if you went to any high school performance of The Sound of Music you would get a better acted, better sung and overall better performance. The only reason I did not give it a zero, was because the set did not collapse.… Expand
  11. cxfoster
    Dec 13, 2013
    3
    If you liked the movie, you will almost certainly be disappointed with this. The role of Maria is crucial and Carrie Underwood is very weak in the acting department. There was zero chemistry between her and anybody else. And her voice is good, but does not come close to the clarity and range of Julie Andrews. Stephen Moyer was pitchy, but a better actor. The only person I thought wasIf you liked the movie, you will almost certainly be disappointed with this. The role of Maria is crucial and Carrie Underwood is very weak in the acting department. There was zero chemistry between her and anybody else. And her voice is good, but does not come close to the clarity and range of Julie Andrews. Stephen Moyer was pitchy, but a better actor. The only person I thought was really good was Christian Borle in the part of Max. Also, there was also no real sense of danger at the end. All in all, a disappointing and uninteresting effort.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

83
#83 Most Discussed TV Season of 2013
82
#82 Most Shared TV Season of 2013

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
52

Mixed or average reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. Denver Post
    Reviewed by: Joanne Ostrow
    Dec 9, 2013
    50
    Carrie Underwood isn’t an actor and Stephen Moyer isn’t a singer and together they lacked chemistry as Maria and Captain Von Trapp..... The highpoint of the evening was Audra McDonald’s rendition of “Climb Ev’ry Mountain,” and Laura Benanti as the Baroness lit up the screen.
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  2. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Alessandra Stanley
    Dec 6, 2013
    50
    It wasn’t a singalong or a sacrilege or a slavish, shameless remake. It was a live performance of a legendary musical that felt muted and a little sad.
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  3. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Hank Stuever
    Dec 6, 2013
    50
    An ambitious--yet disappointingly stiff--staging of the original musical.
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