Von Trapped (Caroline Quentin)

(Amazon UK link)

Sometimes I pick up a random DVD that looks intriguing on a church book stall, or similar. It’s probably a couple of years or more since I paid 50 cents or so for ‘Von Trapped’; it’s taken this long to decide to watch it. We had no idea what to expect…

Caroline Quentin stars as a hairdresser called Maria. She is obsessed with the film ‘The Sound of Music’, and has been for the past eighteen years since she was jilted at the altar by Larry (Jim Carter). She has brought up her child Lee as a single mother, helped - and sometimes hindered - by her mother, Kath (Una Stubbs). 

Unfortunately Lee is getting into some bad company and is seen shoplifting. And Maria is given an unexpected gift from a friend's lottery win to enable her to go to Salzburg. It’s been her dream for many years… so she goes, accompanied by both Lee and Kath.

The film, which was made for TV, is only an hour long. We nearly gave up watching after the first ten minutes or so, as it all seemed rather silly. But there’s a storyline, albeit a bit confusing, and some lovely scenery in Salzburg. The last fifteen minutes or so are worth watching as the story improves, albeit in a somewhat schmaltzy and unlikely way. But we were quite shocked when it ended so suddenly, not having realised how short it would be. 

There are some altercations - with Maria and Lee over a lifestyle decision, and with Maria and Kath over Kath’s regular attempts to control her daughter. Maria is perhaps too willing to let everyone else tell her what to do; she’s likeable, although with such a short film it was hard to feel anything much for any of the characters. There’s an important issue that’s explored in a mostly sensitive way; it would be a spoiler to say what it is, but that added something to the film.

I’d hoped it might be suitable for children but it’s rated 12 and I think that’s about right. There’s some violence that might be disturbing, and a lot of innuendoes and implications, even though nothing explicit happens on film.

I’m not sure I’d recommend it; I see that on Amazon there are some very high ratings, and some very low. It appears that most viewers either love it or hate it. My opinion is in the middle. I doubt if we’ll bother seeing it again, but it had some redeeming qualities, including one or two moments of humour and I think it’s worth seeing at least once, though probably not worth buying the DVD. 

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