Fiddler on the Roof

Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest musicals of all time...
Review: Fiddler on the Roof is a cinematic masterpiece. Originally a musical, this movie is an amazing adaptation that remains faithful to the original, while at the same time not making it seem "theatrical" to the point where it looks contrived. The characters are played perfectly with Topol (who plays Tevye, the poor village milkman) taking the highest honors.

Fiddler on the Roof is simply a timeless story, even if it finds itself placed in czarist Russia. The story revolves around Tevye, a poor Jew living in Russia and his struggle to stay true to his faith (and ideals) in a world that is rapidly changing. This film follows Tevye in his journey to meld his rich Jewish past with the modern world that surrounds him. His arguments with himself ("On the other hand,...") are priceless and allow us to relate with Tevye as he struggles with his heritage (the pogroms), his financial status ("If I Were a Rich Man") and his family (his daughters are entering marrying age).

Ths music is wonderful. The songs are poignant and easily remembered. I guarantee that you'll wind up singing/humming "Tradition" or "If I Were a Rich Man" days after watching the movie. The movie itself is humourous at times, and sorrowful the next and the storyline is deep, but is not a damning social commentary. The cinematics are also extraordinary, with the film being shot "on location" in Zagreb, Yugoslavia.

This is an ideal family movie, and I can remember watching (and loving) this movie at an early age. I'm glad I purchased this movie for my DVD collection, as it will become one of my most watched (and sung to) films. The box comes with only a single DVD, but is double-sided and contains additional footage, an additional song (cut at production) and a commentary on the movie itself.

Rating:
Summary: A must-have for fans of "Fiddler"
Review: "Fiddler on the Roof" has always been one of my favorite musicals. I also believe that this is one of the very few adaptations of a Broadway musical that worked on film. I always laugh at Topol's dramatic, yet unabashedly witty portrayal of Tevye. Several of the supporting roles are handled rather well, namely by Norma Crane (Golde), Michelle Marsh (Hodel) and Leonard Frey (Motel). One of the several important aspects that glue this film together is the wonderful Bock/Harnick musical score that includes "If I Were A Rich Man" "Sunrise, Sunset" and the sweet duet "Do you Love me?"

The DVD has the film on one side (in the 2.35:1 letterbox ratio--thank god!), while the other side is chock-full of substantial extras, documentaries, as well as "Tevye's Dream" in full color--complete with a comparison to the final, filtered look of the scene. One feature I particularly enjoy is a documentary on director Norman Jewison. You really get to see the genius in his use of realism, rather than broad comedy, to bring forth a new aspect of the realities of the characters...

I recommend this DVD to anyone considering purchasing it!

Rating:
Summary: L'Chaim of the Jewish People!!!!
Review: This movie a a stirring look into the life of a Russian Jewish family. From the practice of our shabbet, all the way to our Jewish wedding, this movie presents all our traditions and customs to the non-Jewish world.
Topol is brilliant in the role of Tevye, from the look all the way down to the accent. While it does leave out some of the tiny details that were given in the Broadway version of this play, it also adds so much more to an already great production. We could never imagine 'If I Were A Rich Man' without thinking of Tevye dancing up a storm of dust in his barn, or 'Sunrise, Sunset' without all the children and adults gathered around the wedding canopy. (This feat was impossible on the stage due to the fact that the actors would then block the view of the audience.)
~*~Facts~*~
At the beginning, after Tevye says, 'Like a fiddler on the roof', the screen cuts away to a shot of the fiddler standing on the roof. This person is NOT the actor seen in the rest of the film, but a very young version of the violinist Isaac Stern. I was watching the VHS version at a friend's house when I noticed the beginning was slightly different than the version that had been taped off of TV back in the 70's. While in the TV version you are able to recognize that this person is Isaac Stern, in the VHS version it looks like the regular actor. (I believe the DVD has information on this scene added as a bonus. Don't take my word for it though.) I've also been told that in the far off shot at the end of the movie, the man holding the violin under his arm following Tevye is, once again, young Isaac Stern.
This movie is something for the Jewish community to be proud of. I hope it inspires those who have wandered to come back to the traditions we have passed down for thousands of years. I hope it also helps the non-Jewish community to understand a little bit more about our traditions and why we so strictly keep to them.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointed with this version
Review: Is it me, or is there a scene missing from this dvd? I've now watched this dvd version 2ce. At first I could not understand why I felt something was somehow lacking . . . an entire scene!
(...) the scene where the messenger from Moscow who informs the Russian Captain of the edict to clear out Anatevka has been unceremoniously SLICED from this dvd version (...) (He refers to the Jewish people as "Christ killers"). Frankly I feel cheated. I did not expect this when I purchased the dvd. It is for this reason that even though I love this movie, I am giving this version a lower rating than the film itself really deserves.

Rating:
Summary: Musical Story-telling At Its Best and Purest
Review: I've always been an advocate for the modern cinematography.
I've based my career on the spectacles of modern film-making. I produce music videos for modern musicians, and yet I am always short of the vital element that which is required in a true work of excellence. And I envy Norman Jewison of being posessed by that element. Absolutely brilliant and entertaining in every aspect, The Fiddler On the Roof is without a doubt one of the greatest examples of musical story-making at its best.

Rating:
Summary: Possibly the best motion picture adaptation of a broadway ..
Review: If you purchase DVDs based on the quantity and quality of the extras, than be sure to buy this great DVD presentation of "Fiddler on the Roof."

I especially enjoyed DVD extra features, when available, and Norman Jewison's, "Fiddler" Director, commentary is priceless. Also Topol's comments are effectively edited into the accompanying Jewison's commentary, together they provide valuable insight into the making of "Fiddler on the Roof."

With the viewing of this DVD, especially the extra features, "Fiddler" has become one of my favorite musicals.

Rating:
Summary: Fiddler on the Screen--a wonderful adaptation
Review: Norman Jewison chose Topol rather than Zero Mostel, the Broadway Tevye, amid the same type of controversy and hurt feelings that occurred when Andrews was snubbed in favor of Hepburn in My Fair Lady. Here, however, the casting may well have been brilliant. Topol plays Tevye with genuine anguish and anger, and no schmaltz and schtick. The songs are also directed with the same careful reserve--contrast the almost conversational tone of "Do you love me" and the meditative "Far from the home I love" with the over-the-top sort of singing in, say, Yentl.

The careful, toned-down direction takes nothing away from the production. In fact, you can visualize the hard daily life of people in a Russian shtetl (village) and the tragedy of the relocation of thousands of these Jewish villages by decree, foreshadowing the Holocaust later in history. This film captures a culture, yet is a musical, too. An amazing achievement.

Rating:
Summary: HAS NOT AGED ONE LITTLE BIT
Review: I just saw the movie for the first time since it was in theaters when I was five years old. The dream sequence when Tevye describes the butcher's wife rising from the grave scared me so much as a child that I was screaming under the movie theater seats. I still remember that, and the sight of Tevye's boots trudging through the mud as his family is forced to leave their village was embedded in my mind.

Well, after thirty years, I am absolutely stunned to see that this movie is completely, entirely modern. One does not need to suspend belief and view this movie through the prisim of time past when movie musicals were the norm. There are no late sixties-early seventies hairdos in the turn of the century setting as is so typical in so many movies, especially musicals, from times past. The songs do not awkwardly intrude into the drama as they often seem to in musicals from an earlier age before audience's tastes changed to expect reality or fantasy without singing and dancing.

The scenery, costumes, acting, lighting, photography, music, singing, dancing, story- absolutely everything could have been filmed today. The movie is stunningly modern. It has simply NOT AGED. I have never seen any movie, ever, that has held up so well through time. It is a sad, moving and yet joyous film that deserves all of its accolades and more. See it.

Rating:
Summary: excellent
Review: this is by far one of the best musicals ever, right up there with west side story and sound of music. the songs are wonderful and the story is quite well done, letting the viewer decide what's going on. i think that the message at the very end of the film is pertinent to the current israeli-palestinian conflict. it takes just a small and simple phrase, like "God be with you," to break the dam of ice freezing the relationships between the two torn nations. but it can be done

Rating:
Summary: What more can be said?
Review: I remember seeing this movie in the theatre when I was 7 and it has become such a part of my life that it qualifies for a religious service to watch it. Every song, character, and line is so well done that you can't help but be moved byt he whole production. I cannot reccommend this movie enough as a definite "must see" for anyone.