If you find this 1972 documentary now, you might not understand the purpose until the very end of the film. It seems like a labor of love from Blake Edwards, celebrating how beautiful and talented his wife is, as countless camera angles showcase her beautiful face and her singing and dancing rehearsals from The Julie Andrews Hour. At the very end, narration informs us that in three weeks' time, Julie's television show will premiere, so tune in! There you have it, folks: it's a promotional documentary. By showing rehearsal footage, the network hoped to boost her ratings.
Watching it now, you can just appreciate seeing both rehearsal footage for her television program and quality family time with Blake and the children. No one ever looks in the camera, so it has a "this is the real Julie Andrews" flavor to it. The only "flaw" in the plan to show the real Julie Andrews to the world is this: since she is an absolute professional and a classy lady, she knows the camera is on her. She's not going to show it anything she doesn't want the audience to see; if she were that type of person, she would have already "let her hair down". But this is the woman who has nothing but nice things to say about Christopher Plummer, insisting they are "the best of friends," and calls Anne Hathaway a "natural". She doesn't dish dirt, she doesn't reveal personal information - and there's nothing wrong with that. She is a lady.
So, while you'll get to see her choking on a marshmallow during a family roast on the beach, and a touch of the nerves while playing a song she wrote in front of Leslie Bricusse, you'll also never see something she isn't comfortable with being aired on national television. Great for fans, but don't expect any hidden secrets to come out.
