Fiddler on the Roof (1971) - Drama, Family, Musical

Hohum Score




Director: Norman Jewison
Stars: Topol, Norma Crane
Length: 181 Minutes
PG Rating: G
Reviews: 10 out of 162 found boring (6.17%)

One-line Reviews (73)

Some of the songs are very good, particularly "Tradition" and "If I Were a Rich Man", but in between these are simply lots of long, drawn out sequences of nothing much happening.

Another thing that turned me off was the typical '60s-70s youth culture propaganda in which the message here was that the old traditions and the people who believed in them are shown to be of little value while the younger man with his new views is shown to be "enlightened.

This is way too long and way too overrated.

The camera took the excitement out of it, and the bottle dance is MUCH MUCH MUCH more enjoyable live with real people in front of you, knowing theres no way they can cheat or mess up without you knowing.

" and the rousing "To Life", which features most of Jerome Robbins' original choreography.

Totally worth watching in my opinion.

" All in all, this movie deserves recognition for its wonderfully entertaining comic moments, as well as for its touching story and great music.

so, fascinating.

Enjoyable, but be prepared for its slowness .

An intriguing plot shapes this movie, helping to elevate it above "just another musical" along with the aforementioned performances.

I found most of the songs very entertaining as well as exciting.

Few musical characters are so fully realized or so deeply engaging...

The intense religious, moral, and historic concepts of this movie are not to be wasted on the blanket image that "Fiddler on the Roof" is a happy and simple musical movie.

In my mind, the movie has its weakness such as its very slow rhythm.

But there was something too predictable in the way it was handled.

This movie is far from boring.

This movie, although generally noted for the touching story and musical numbers, is also an entertaining comedy.

Thankfully, the film's almost sitcom setup of each of beleaguered narrator Tevye's daughters (Rosalind Harris, Michele Marsh, & Neva Small; all slyly luminous scene-stealers) increasingly testing the boundaries of cultural transgression by marrying (gasp) for love always veers away from clichéd expectations enough to keep the film vibrantly unpredictable rather than the kind of saccharine staleness too many classical musicals dredge up.

Set in 1905 Russia as the Bolshevik Revolution winds up, this movie offers an excellent introduction---not a detailed study, but an introduction---to Russia's fascinating history in this period, while giving a great flavor of traditional Jewish village culture in the Pale of Settlement, the age-old homelands of Jews in rural Russia.

They range from the rousing ("Tradition", "To Life!

This musical bored and upset me for almost three solid hours.

"Fiddler on the Roof" is one of those movies, similar to an opera, which presents itself in a playfully entertaining medium- while exposing deep seeded conflict of religious faith and historical political persecution.

It's a compelling story that's worth the watch.

Though I do like some of the more famous songs ("Matchmaker" is catchy, "If I Were a Rich Man" is universally appealing and "Sunrise, Sunset" is beautifully written), I have always found the overall show to be pretty dull and very frustrating in terms of its repetitive nature.

The art direction, sound editing, camera angles, stunning photography, contrasts, virtually every technical aspect of the movie I can name -- and I mean EVERY one -- is magnificently executed to augment Jewison's vision to perfection.

It is really more than enough to make it highly enjoyable.

but at 3 hours it's way too long.

Before 1971, "Fiddler On The Roof" was a popular Jewish stage play/musical in America, and evocative of old Yiddish plays.

Hollywood found the magic recipe of warmth and excitement in the production of this film; the richness of the human spirit is worth watching.

Whilst several 'serious' themes - oppression, racism, tradition in a changing world - are tackled the 'entertainment' element is always present, sugaring the pill of propaganda.

If it is too long - as some users have suggested - this is to allow the full story to emerge in all its rich, cultural complexity.

In my opinion the movie was boring and Fiddler on the Roof is much better on stage and live, and not reinacted behind a camera.

fascinating .

What he doesn't count on is the fact that Tzeitel and the two daughters next in line all have their own ideas as to what makes a perfect match, and after the rousing "To Life!

A movie that can make you react to it like you are watching it for the very first time each time is a movie worth watching.

This film is breathtaking in story, music, and execution, and tells a story of beauty in the midst of the suffering and struggle of the 20th century.

"But would it be heresy on my part to suggest that "Fiddler" isn't much as a musical, and that director Norman Jewison has made as good a film as can be made from a story that is quite simply boring?

The music is mostly enjoyable and keep an eye out for the fiddle player.

At first this appeared to be an enormously-entertaining story and solid religious one with the main character talking to God all the time.

"Stunning, joyful and jubilant"-quote from the NY Daily News.

If you had not seen the play, the movie might cause you not to want to see the play, with a fear of boredom.

For FIDDLER ON THE ROOF is a long, slow and extremely heavy-going movie, for which the lengthiness of its story is never offset by the quality of the music.

In fact, despite the extreme length, I found this to be a fairly empty film, without a great deal of depth or, indeed, substance; everything you see is on the surface, and that's it.

Much of the soundtrack, composed by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick, is thrilling - especially the magnificent "Sunrise, Sunset".

Slow at first but very compelling story .

) is beautifully sung and played, with the instrumentals simply stunning.

It's more than unbearable.

The plot of this movie is told very well without one lyric or note, and so while the songs are all great, they slow down the plot and rhythm of interest.

Fiddler is a real entertaining and intellectually challenging few hours that are well worth it.

The range and audacity of `Fiddler on the Roof' is stunning.

Next, though the number in the woods between the two lovebirds was nice and gave them a performance, but I got up and did something else, it bored me.

Fortunately, many of the film's songs are quite well known in the popular culture, and provide entertaining interludes between the trials and tribulations of Tevye's household and the village's threat from the Czarist regime intent on relocating it.

Truly entertaining and fantastic, Fiddler on the Roof gives you enough good story, coupled with amazing characterisation that you could watch this endless amounts of time and never get bored.

I didn't go nuts over the film, but it's perfectly enjoyable.

Now, still its definitely a good movie and worth watching for many reasons.

The movie going public might only know her from such mainstream films like Come Blow Your Horn, but this woman who started as a child entertaining newly arrived folks from places like Anatevka became the First Lady of the Yiddish Theater.

Overall, Fiddler on the Roof is an often entertaining musical filled with excellent songs and a score that puts the majestic John Williams on the map.

Seeking help from Springfield's synagogue to get a coronary bypass operation, Homer Simpson came to Rabbi Kruftosky and told him: "Now I know I haven't been the best Jew, but I have rented "Fiddler on the Roof" and I will watch it "' I'll complete this quote later but for now, I understand why "Fiddler on the Roof" is highly regarded in the Jewish community, for it provides the most enchanting and entertaining insights on Jewish traditions, 'Tradition' as the motto shouted by all the villagers of the small and peaceful town of Anatevka, in pre- revolutionary Russia, traditions like an immanent symbol of eternity.

The serious subplot of Jewish persecution is also intriguing.



Very emotionally engrossing.

(When Motel and Tseitel are running through the woods singing "Miracle of Miracles", that's pretty thrilling!

In today's soundbite society where ten minutes is too long ,it would never get made.

The cinematography is stunning and the acting is a joy.

Humorous, passionate, and intriguing as Tevye, the poor milkman with five daughters,Topal is wonderful with movement, facial expression, and singing throughout the play.

The film mixes humor, heavy drama, and sadness in the fate of some of it's characters, into a film that is truly riveting to watch.

) and the gorgeous score by Jerry Bock surround a brilliant book, and the production values on this movie are simply breathtaking.

The legendary Broadway show with Zero Mostel was a joy to behold--beautiful, heartbreaking, extremely funny, and at its beating heart was an actor so sublime, so comedic, wise, brilliant and riveting, that the audience was swept away.

The second act is mostly strong with many emotionally impactful moments, but the build-up to get there is way too long and too slow.

Breathtaking .

I found Fiddler on the Roof to be an excellent, entertaining film.

The first half of this three-hour film has musical numbers that are boisterous and breathtaking.