Singin' and Dancing Back in Time.: Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

Fiddler on the Roof (1971). Film adaptation of the 1964 Broadway musical of the same name. Directed by Norman Jewison. The film won three Academy Awards, including one for arranger-conductor John Williams. It was nominated for several more, including Best Picture, Best Actor for Chaim Topol as Tevye, and Best Supporting Actor for Leonard Frey, who played Motel the Tailor, both had originally acted in the musical.

The film is about the lives of a proud Jewish family living in the town of Anatevka, in Tsarist Russia, in 1905. Tevye is a very poor milkman, even though he works very hard. He and his wife, Golde (Norma Crane), have five daughters and cannot afford to give them dowries so they ask the village matchmaker, Yente (Molly Picon), to help find them husbands.

Fun Fact:

Orson Welles, Anthony Quinn and Marlon Brando were among the many actors who turned down the lead role of Tevye. Frank Sinatra and Danny Kaye both wanted the role and were passed over.

Chaim Topol (born September 9, 1935), often billed simply as Topol, is an Israeli theatrical and film performer. Topol was born in Tel Aviv. He first practiced acting in amateur theatrical plays staged by the Israeli Army. Among Topol's earliest film appearances was the lead role in the 1964 film Sallah Shabati by Ephraim Kishon, a play, later adapted for film, depicting the hardships of a Mizrachi Jewish immigrant family in Israel of the early 1960s. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and earned the actor the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year - Actor. In 1966, Topol made his first English-language screen appearance as Abou Ibn Kaqden in the big-budget Mickey Marcus biopic Cast a Giant Shadow. He is best known for his performance as Tevye the milkman in the, Fiddler on the Roof. In 1972, Topol won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his performance in the film. He was on active service with the Israeli army at the time, but was granted permission to attend the awards ceremonies. Some of his other notable appearances were in Galileo (1975), Flash Gordon (1980), and as Milos Columbo in James Bond movie For Your Eyes Only (1981)

Fiddler on the Roof, is a Musical about the human experience. Perfect casting, cinematography, pacing, art direction, wardrobe and best of all, the amazing soundtrack.

Soundtracks:

"Tradition"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Chorus

"Matchmaker"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Rosalind Harris, Neva Small, Michele Marsh and Chorus

"If I Were a Rich Man"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Topol

"Sabbath Prayer"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Topol, Norma Crane and Chorus

"To Life"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Topol, Paul Mann and Chorus

"Tradition (reprise)"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Topol

"Miracle of Miracles"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Leonard Frey

"Tevye's Dream"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Topol, Norma Crane, Ruth Madoc, Patience Collier and Chorus

"Sunrise, Sunset"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Topol, Paul Michael Glaser, Michele Marsh and chorus

"Do You Love Me?"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Topol and Norma Crane

Far From the Home I Love"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Michele Marsh

"Chava Ballet"
(Instrumental)
Music by Jerry Bock

"

Anatevka"
Music by Jerry Bock
Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Topol, Norma Crane, Molly Picon, Shimen Ruskin, Paul Mann and Barry Dennen

2 comments:

TomNovember 30, 2010 at 9:47 PM
Wonderful film, Dawn. One of my favorites of all time.
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DawnDecember 1, 2010 at 6:15 AM
Tom, I just love the scene and the song "If I Were a Rich Man".
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