FIDDLER ON THE ROOF [1971 / 2011] [40th Anniversary Edition] [Blu-ray] [UK Release] Shout It From The Rooftops! The Screen’s Most Magnificent Entertainment . . . Filled With Joy, Laughter, Love and Life!
The heart-warming scenes and uplifting songs of a timeless musical masterpiece meet the spectacular sound and picture quality of Blu-ray for the first time ever to celebrate the film’s 40th anniversary is bursting with hours of extras that will keep you entertained from sunrise to sunset. Nominated for eight Academy Awards® and including Best Picture, Best Actor Topol and Director Norman Jewison. ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ tells the life-affirming story of a poor Jewish milkman whose love, pride and faith help him cope with the challenges of raising a family in Czarist Russia.
FILM FACT No.1: Awards and Nominations: 1971 British Society of Cinematographers: Win: Best Cinematography Award for Oswald Morris. 1972 Academy Awards®: Win: Best Music, Scoring Adaptation and Original Song Score for John Williams. Win: Best Cinematography for Oswald "Ossie" Morris. Win: Best Sound for David Hildyard and Gordon K. McCallum. Nominated: Best Picture for Norman Jewison. Nominated: Best Actor for Topol. Nominated: Best Supporting Actor for Leonard Frey. Nominated: Best Art Direction for Michael Stringer, Peter Lamont and Robert F. Boyle. 1972 Golden Globe: Win: Best Motion Picture in a Musical or Comedy. Win: Best Actor in a Motion Picture in a Musical or Comedy for Topol. Nominated: Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture for Paul Mann. Nominated: Best Director for Norman Jewison. 1972 BAFTA Awards®: Nominated: Best Cinematography for Oswald Morris. Nominated: Best Editing for Antony Gibbs and Robert Lawrence. Nominated: Best Sound Track for David Hildyard, Gordon K. McCallum and Les Wiggins. 1972 American Cinema Editors: Nominated: Best Edited Feature Film for Antony Gibbs and Robert Lawrence. 1972 David di Donatello Awards: Win: Best Foreign Actor (Migliore Attore Straniero) for Topol. 1972 Motion Picture Sound Editors: Win: Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Editing and Dialogue. 1972 Writers Guild of America: Nominated: Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium for Joseph Stein.
FILM FACT No.2: The decision to cast Topol, instead of Zero Mostel, as Tevye was a somewhat controversial one, as the role had originated with Mostel and he had made it famous. Years later, Norman Jewison said he felt Zero Mostel's larger-than-life personality, while fine on stage, would cause film audiences to see him as Zero Mostel, rather than the character of Tevye. Principal photography was done at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, England. Most of the exterior shots were done in SFR Yugoslavia — specifically in Mala Gorica, Lekenik, and Zagreb within the Yugoslav constituent republic of Croatia. Though the area was under heavy snow during location scouting in 1969, during the filming the producers had to ship in marble dust to stand in for snow. Three hundred extras conversant in various foreign languages were used, as were flocks of geese and pigs and their handlers. Isaac Stern performed the violin solos. Director Norman Jewison has a cameo as a rabbi (voice only) during Tevye's dream sequence. Roadshow presentation: Because the film follows the stage musical so closely, and the musical did not have an overture, the filmmakers chose to eliminate the customary film overture played before the beginning of most motion pictures shown in a roadshow-style presentation. However, there is a solo by the Fiddler played over the opening credits (after the conclusion of "Tradition"), an intermission featuring entr'acte music, and exit music played at the end after the closing credits.
Cast: Topol, Norma Crane, Leonard Frey, Molly Picon, Paul Mann, Rosalind Harris, Michele Marsh, Neva Small, Paul Michael Glaser, Raymond Lovelock, Elaine Edwards, Candy Bonstein, Shimen Rushkin, Zvee Scooler, Louis Zorich, Alfie Scopp, Howard Goorney, Barry Dennen, Vernon Dobtcheff, Ruth Madoc, Patience Collier, Tutte Lemkow, Stella Courtney, Jacob Kalich, Brian Coburn, George Little, Stanley Fleet, Arnold Diamond, Marika Rivera, Mark Malicz, Aharon Ipalé, Roger Lloyd Pack, Vladimir Medar, Sammy Bayes, Larry Bianco, Walter Cartier, Peter Johnston, Guy Lutman, Donald Maclennan, René Sartoris, Roy Durbin, Ken Robson, Bob Stevenson, Lou Zamprogna, Ivan Baptie (uncredited), Cyril Bass (uncredited), Tanya Bayona (uncredited), C.C. Bilham (uncredited), Ina Claire (uncredited), Susan Claire (uncredited), Sarah Cohen (uncredited), Otto Diamant (uncredited), Harry Ditson (uncredited), Harry Fielder (uncredited), Jody Hall (uncredited), Judith Harte (uncredited), A. Haverstock (uncredited), Michael Ingleton (uncredited), Miki Iveria (uncredited), Carl Jaffe (uncredited), Nigel Kingsley (uncredited), H. Krein (uncredited), Hilda Kriseman (uncredited), Barry Lines (uncredited), Danny Mann (uncredited), Alfred Maron (uncredited), Albin Pahernik (uncredited), Joel Rudnick (uncredited), Adam Scott (uncredited), Petra Siniawski (uncredited), Susan Sloman (uncredited), Karen Trent (uncredited), Kenneth Waller (uncredited), M. Winter (uncredited) and Leo Wright (uncredited)
Director: Norman Jewison
Producers: Norman Jewison, Patrick J. Palmer and Walter Mirisch
Screenplay: Joseph Stein (screenplay), Sholom Aleichem (adapted from stories) Arnold Perl (adapted from Sholem Aleichem stories by special arrangement) and Joseph Stein (stage play)
Composer: Jerry Bock
Cinematography: Oswald Morris, B.S.C. (Director of Photography)
Image Resolution: 1080p (Color by DeLuxe)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 (Panavision)
Audio: English: 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
Spanish [Latin]: 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono Audio
French: 5.1 DTS Surround Sound
Português: 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono Audio
Italian: 5.1 DTS Surround Sound
German: 5.1 DTS Surround Sound
Spanish [Castilian]: 5.1 DTS Surround Sound
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish [Latin], French, Português, Italian, German SDH, Spanish [Castilian], Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish [Latin] and Português [Brazilian]
Running Time: 181 minutes
Region: All Regions
Number of discs: 1
Studio: 20th Century Fox / Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer / United Artists
Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: I am a massive fan of film musicals and growing up in the early to mid-1960’s and an era when many of the greatest film musicals were made, like the film adaptations of great Broadway shows like “Carousel,” “Bye Bye Birdie,” “The Music Man,” “My Fair Lady” and “The Sound of Music” was the typical cinematic fare. Walt Disney’s ‘Mary Poppins’ was another of my all-time favourite film from that era and I remember many a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, I would run off to our local cinema intent upon watching my favourite stars sing and dance their way across the silver screen.
Alas, by the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, just as I was starting to grow up to my young adulthood, those big splashy film musicals suddenly lost much of their allure to audiences in general, but not for me. One film that really successfully bucked this trend was ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF.’ For nearly forty years now, this film adaptation of that great, long-running Broadway play of the same name has remained one of the most popular and nay, may I venture to say, the most beloved film musicals of all time. ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ is a beautifully told story of tradition, love and marriage in a Jewish community living in Czarist Russia at the beginning of the 20th century and is based on the 19th century story “Tevye the Dairyman,” by Yiddish storyteller Sholom Alechem.
The story line of ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ is fairly simple; in Norman Jewison, the director's own words, "It's the story of a man and his God, and his problems with his five daughters." The man, Tevye, who struggles between the traditions of his Jewish faith and the wills of his headstrong daughters, three of whom are of the marrying age and eager to do something about it. In a role originated on Broadway by comic Zero Mostel, the film's casting drew controversy when the man playing Tevye in the London version, an Israeli actor named Topol, was chosen for the part. Topol’s understated performance is what made the film the success it did, and served as a sharp contrast to Zero Mostel's over the top antics that worked best onstage. Topol, however, quickly faded into obscurity after the film ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF,’ as did the rest of the cast, actually with one exception and that was Michael Glaser, as the character Perchik, one of the daughter's suitors, would enjoy some great television success in the kitschy mid 1970's TV series ‘Starsky and Hutch’ as cool policeman Dave Starsky.
Topol is Tevye, who dreams of a better life even as his wilful daughters rebel against his plans of arranged marriages, and the prejudices of the outside world threaten to ruin his cosy existence. John Williams' adapted score was one of the pair of Oscars gleaned from the eight it was nominated for. Jerry Bock's fine songs are actually few and far between, while the plot's political undertones play second fiddle to the trials and tribulations of Tvye. Look out for the actor Paul Michael Glaser from the ‘Starsky and Hutch’ TV Series.
‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ is at its heart a very humorous and poignant examination of that age-old rite of passage from generation to generation, played out in the dusty Russian hamlet of Anatevka in 1905. Director Norman Jewison’s treatment of this story is wonderfully sensitive. Tevye, our protagonist, is a man wedded to the centuries-old traditions of the Jewish culture in which he lives. It’s a culture that calls for him, as the father of five daughters, to arrange suitable marriages for his children, without regard for their desires. The film is played out against the backdrop of the anti-Semitism that was so rampant in Russia during the first decade of the twentieth century. This bigotry rears its ugly head at unexpected points in the film, adding an excellent element of tension and suspense to this wonderful family-oriented comedy-drama.
Norman Jewison was well respected as a director, thanks to ‘In the Heat of the Night’ [1967] and ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’ [1968], two very tough and masculine films. Whereas ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ was thus a formidable challenge as it was his first foray into the musical genre. Early on in the project, Norman Jewison determined that the film's success depended on a strong element of realism throughout the production, hence his extensive travels from Canada to much of Eastern Europe. Norman Jewison finally settled on parts of rural Yugoslavia to serve as the film's fictional town of Anatevka. It was a good choice for location authenticity; the crew was able to use many of the area's existing houses and structures as is, without needing to age or distress them to look like early twentieth century Ukraine. The famed English Cinematographer Oswald "Ossie" Morris wanted the look of the film to retain an earthy feel to be able to best communicate the colour and sentiment of the land, so he stuck a nylon stocking over the camera lens. Oswald "Ossie" Morris voraciously defended this technique, which raised a few eyebrows when the cinematography was nominated for an Oscar at the 1972 Academy Awards® as being the ideal shade to convey his message of genuine simplicity.
Ultimately ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ would gross over thirty-eight million dollars; perhaps not surprisingly Norman Jewison attempted another musical in 1973 with the film ‘Jesus Christ Superstar,’ but it did not do nearly as well. Then Norman Jewison hit a ten-year career slump before successfully remerging with ‘Agnes of God’ in 1984 and ‘Moonstruck’ in 1985 a year later and certainly made a comeback that would cause anyone to shout "MazelTov!" What I feel with this film, and especially which I feel is very relevant in the 21st Century, is near the end of the film one winter day, the Jews of Anatevka are notified that they have three days to leave the village or be forced out by the Czarist government, where Tevye, his family and friends begin packing up to leave, heading for various parts of Europe and the United States and where we see the Constable silently watches as the mass evacuation of Anatevka takes place, definitely a reflection what is happening to communities around where the war torn conflicts are happening on a daily basis and as the famous saying goes, “what goes around comes around,” meaning: The status eventually returns to its original value after completing some sort of cycle. A person's actions, whether good or bad, will often have consequences for that person.
FIDDLER ON THE ROOF MUSIC TRACK LISTING
TRADITION (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol and Chorus in the pre-credits sequence]
PROLOGUE (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) [Music played during the opening credits]
MATCHMAKER (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Rosalind Harris, Neva Small, Michele Marsh and Chorus]
IF I WAS A RICH MAN (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol]
SABBATH PRAYER (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol, Norma Crane and Chorus]
TO LIFE (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol, Paul Mann and Chorus]
TRADITION (reprise) (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol]
MIRACLE OF MIRACLES (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Leonard Frey]
TEVYE’S DREAM (The Tailor Motel Komzoil) (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol, Norma Crane, Ruth Madoc, Patience Collier and Chorus]
SUNRISE, SUNSET (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol, Paul Michael Glaser, Michele Marsh and Chorus]
WEDDING CELEBRATIONS AND BOTTLE DANCE (Instrumental) (1964) (uncredited) [Music by Jerry Bock]
TRADITION (reprise) (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by an off-screen chorus]
DO YOU LOVE ME? (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol and Norma Crane]
FAR FROM THE HOME I LOVE (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Michele Marsh]
LITTLE BIRD, LITTLE CHAVELA (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol]
CHAVA BALLET (Instrumental) (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) [Danced by Neva Small, Norma Crane, Rosalind Harris, Michele Marsh, Leonard Frey, Paul Michael Glaser, Ray Lovelock and Tutte Lemkow]
ANATEVKA (1964) (uncredited) (Music by Jerry Bock) (Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick) [Performed by Topol, Norma Crane, Molly Picon, Shimen Ruskin, Paul Mann and Barry Dennen]
Blu-ray Image Quality – 20th Century Fox, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and United Artists have come together to bring us a stunning 1080p encoded image, plus an equally stunning 2.35:1 accurately framed aspect ratio. Much has been said already about the quality of the film transfer, and my observations are consistent with those who have already praised it. The image features excellent contrast, deep and strong black levels, richly saturated colours and although the palette is heavily towards earth tones, but we also get very pleasing, warm flesh tones. Fine object detail is very good and particularly with the close-ups of the actors, though softness inherent to the source material is also apparent from time-to-time. There’s no indication of attempts to “fix” those issues with digital processing tools, and likewise there’s no signs of heavy handed grain reduction. All in all it is a totally amazing and terrific looking transfer befitting a classic film in this 40th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray release.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – 20th Century Fox, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and United Artists gives us a brilliant 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio experience that is consistently clear and intelligible. Surround activity consists mainly of support for the orchestral film music score, though the effect is very nicely balanced and seamless. Detail in the audio track is best illustrated by the Fiddler’s violin solos, which have the satisfying solid sound of the bow grabbing the strings. Low frequency effects are non-existent, but the audio track has great depth and fullness throughout all the musical numbers. John Williams led orchestra fills the surrounds. Ambiance effects are well positioned especially at the start of the film, and the dialogue is very clear and understandable, even with the accents, coming out of the front speakers. Unfortunately, the ADR work sounds very bad, flat and lifeless, and there's a lot of it as they mouthed the lyrics on the set to music played back and sadly it does not sync very well either, which is the only disappointing aspect to this otherwise stunning film.
Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:
Special feature: In this Original Theatrical Release and precisely at around 1 Hour 51 Minutes with the film we get an Intermission and the Entr'acte and Music interlude.
Audio Commentary by Director/Producer Norman Jewison and Actor Topol: Here we are introduced by Norman Jewison and Topol who were recorded separately but edited together very smoothly. Both of them offer interesting facts about filming in Yugoslavia and also talk about the cast and decisions made during filming. Between the two men, there isn’t any dead space and I enjoyed listening to this, especially Topol’s track which was also really very funny. This is a good commentary track, though Norman Jewison and Topol despite not actually together in the same room. They have each got great titbits on the production, from Norman Jewison’s point of view he needed to make the film as “real” as possible and in order to achieve that sense of realism. When Norman saw Topol appearing in the stage version at the Her Majesty’s Theatre, which is located at the Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London, Norman immediately knew Topol was perfect for the part in the film and was the final reason he chose Topol over Zero Mostel, despite the head of the studio demanding Zero Mostel, but Norman stood his ground and won the day. On top of all that Topol loved playing the part and also felt the part was perfect for him because he had that aspect of being an ideal character that had the Eastern European tradition persona. They each give heart-warming stories about the horse that follows Tevye throughout the film and was very old at the time and loved Topol and we hear how Norman Jewison actually saved it from being slaughtered and ending up in a glue factory, and by sending money back to someone who had a farm in Yugoslavia allowed the horse to live a happy like for another four years grazing on the farm. When you see early on with Topol in the barn, and tells us he was suffering from a very serious tooth ache and that is why he has a pained look on his face. When we see the young daughter walking home with the cow and rescued from belligerent Russian men, she is saved by the handsome Russian man, well Norman informs is that this actor was actually Italian and despite this, felt he was right for the part. When you see the dream sequence in the cemetery, when you hear the rabbi speak, this is actually Norman Jewison doing the dubbed speaking. When we get to the wedding scene ceremony, Norman informs us that to get the right atmosphere on the screen, the film was filmed with a piece of silk stocking over the lens that was offered up to them with a young lady secretary who worked at Pinewood Studio and was also used for the rest of the filming. As we get to near the end of the film and the scene with the Tevye and his family have left their village and the fiddler is following them and Tevye wants him to follow them and that that point Norman Jewison says, “Thanks for staying with us, especially if you have stayed with us this long and it has been an experience for me, and to look at this film again, that was made many years ago and I guess it was one of the Top 30 all-time grossing films and it has played to millions and millions of people all over the world and many languages and thanks to M-G-M and United Artist, and will go onto play for many many more years, and as you read all the credits, it is a film that has had great contribution by a lot of talents and it was an extra ordinary talented group of people, who helped to put all this together and I shall always be eternally grateful to me.” And so ends another wonderful and special audio commentary by the very talented director Norman Jewison and actor Topol, who gave us some many very special moments about the film and also special information about all aspect of the film and what happened behind-the-scenes and one should make an effort to listen, despite being 181 minutes long.
Special Feature: Norman Jewison, Film Maker [1971] [480i] [1.37:1] [49:33] The National Film Board of Canada finds us on location in Yugoslavia and four months into production and looks at the making of the film ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF.’ It was very interesting to see him direct on the set and talk about his background and working in the Hollywood system. The production was epic, as well as looking like chaotic mess, especially for the time, and we get to see Norman Jewison throwing hissy fits on the set, especially with a hilarious scene where he is trying to get a flock of geese to react in a certain way to be filmed. We also get to see him agonizing over the non-cooperation of the weather, especially where he wanted snow, but Yugoslavia, where much of the exterior scenes the film ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ were shot, decided not to have snow that November; and Norman Jewison wanted overcast days, but instead it would be sunny. We get to see him chastising his cast. We also get to see him crying at a moving performance. In other words, Norman Jewison is a very emotional filmmaker or at least he was back then. Norman Jewison also gives us behind-the-scenes insights and scoops on the state of Hollywood in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the differences filming in someplace like Yugoslavia versus, say, New York City, "creative bookkeeping", and the "suits'" concern with budgets over artistry. A lot of this stuff is surprisingly candid as well as the emotional outbursts. We see also see images and clips from his previous films like ‘Forty Pounds of Trouble’ [1962], The Thrill Of It All’ [1962], ‘Send Me No Flowers’ [1964], ‘The Art of Love’ [1964], ‘The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming’ [1966], ‘In The Heat Of The Night’ [1967], ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’ [1968] and ‘The Cincinnati Kid’ [1965]. One interesting comment Norman Jewison makes is about the actor Steve McQueen that appeared in two of his films and says that he was one of the worst actors he ever had to work with, as he use to mind games. Contributors include: Tony Curtis and Topol.
Special Feature: Norman Jewison Looks Back [2007] [1080i] [1.78:1] [10:00] With this special feature, it is broken up into five separate options. The five sections include: “On Directing” [3:28] Here Norman Jewison talks about how he was hired for the job and how his name played into it and also how Norman Jewison got involved in the film adaptation, in particular how the executive producers reacted when he revealed he was a gentile. “Strongest Memory” [00:57] Here Norman Jewison talks about the cast and the actual villagers from where the film was made and reflecting on trying to capture the film’s iconic image. “Biggest Challenge” [1:11] Here we hear how the weather was Norman Jewison’s worst enemy for this film since they were trying to capture every season on film. “On Casting” [1:20] Here Norman Jewison talks about the controversial choice of picking Topol over the originator of the role of Zero Mostel. Finally “A Classic?” [2:34] Here Norman Jewison attributes the universal success of the film to themes such as tradition that resonate with many cultures including the Japanese people.
Special Feature: “Tevye's Dream” in Full Color: Here we have two separate items relating to the same subject, where we get a look at the full colour version of the concocted dream sequence story by Tevye before it was desaturated for the final film and so nice to have the two comparisons, which is as follows: Tevye's Dream Sequence in Full Color: With An Introduction by Norman Jewison [2007] [1080p] [1.78:1/2.35:1] [5:56] and Side-by-Side Comparison [2007] [1080p] [2.35:1] [1:39].
Special Feature: John Williams: Creating A Musical Tradition [2006] [1080i] [1.37:1] [11:32] Here we get to see master composer John Williams talks about adapting the score of ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ to the Big Screen presentation and tells us his intentions and how he felt about the original work and how grateful he was to be able to work on it and it has John Williams speaking about how important this film was to his career. John Williams also speaks about how he had to adapt the original music from the stage play to play bigger than it had on stage because Norman Jewison had built up this entire world from the foundations of the play. We also get to view some rare black-and-white images of behind-the-scenes of the film and we also get to view some clips from the film. Contributors include: John Williams [Composer], Joseph Stein [Screenwriter], Sheldon Harnick [Lyricist] and Jerry Bock [Composer via Telephone Interview, March 2006] (archive sound only).
Special Feature: Songs of ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ [2006] [1080i] [1.37:1] [14:43] Screenwriter Joseph Stein, lyricist Sheldon Harnick, and original composer Jerry Bock reflect on the creation of ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ signature melodies and lyrics, who were the original team behind the music with a mix of new interviews, and some older recordings which allows all to participate in this segment even though two of them have now sadly passed away. We also get to view some clips from the film, plus we also get to hear personal and insightful comments from Joseph Stein [Screenwriter], Sheldon Harnick [Lyricist] and Jerry Bock [Composer via Telephone Interview, March 2006] (archive sound only) talk about the original play and how much they really liked the film version.
Special Feature: Deleted Song: “Any Day Now” [2006] [1080i] [1.37:1] [3:07] This song was meant to introduce Perchik [Paul Michael Glaser] to the film, but was decided not to be included in the film and we get to hear a rare audio demo song of the deleted musical number “Any Day Now,” but thankfully was saved and kindly provided by composer Jerry Brock. Since it was never filmed, here it is accompanied by a series of black-and-white and colour still images, as well clips from the film.
Special Feature: Tevye's Daughters [2006] [1080i] [1.37:1] [16:28] Here we get a hear the three oldest daughters that appeared in the film, which are Rosalind Harris [Tzeitel], Neva Small [Chava] and Michele Marsh [Hodel] talk about how they were hired for the film and recount their experiences working on the film. We also get to hear comments from Lynn Stalmaster [Casting Director] and Sheldon Harnick [Lyricist]. This is a wonderful interview with the three woman and they each talk about how important the film was to them personally and what an amazing time in their lives it was to be in this wonderful film. They also praise the director Norman Jewison, as they found him to be a very kind person and also felt he had a soul. We also once again get to see some rare black-and-white and colour behind-the-scene images from the film, as well as clips from the film.
Special Feature: Set In Reality Production Design [2006] [1080i] [1.37:1] [9:50] Here we get a talk with Robert Boyle [Production Designer] who discusses the locations and sets in making an effort to make the village look real and well used. Robert Boyle also informs us how he really wanted Anatevka to be a real place and not just a film set and that is why there were so many trials and tribulations that went into making the place seem as real as possible. Apparently due to the German army in the Second World War went and removed and destroyed so many towns like the one in this film, it was difficult to find the perfect shooting location, but in Yugoslavia they were able to find just the right location. We also get to compare the roughly drawn storyboards with the actual film clips from the film, as well as viewing some rare black-and-white images.
Special Feature: Storyboard To Film Comparison [2006] [1080i] [1.37:1] [21:04] Here we get to view a view the comparison of several musical sequences from the roughly drawn storyboards and with the finished scenes in the film, especially relating to Tradition; Matchmaker; Introduction to Miracle of Miracles; Tevye’s Dream; Lazar Wolf and Tevye.
Special Feature: Trailers, Teasers and TV Spots: Here we to view six separate trailers and they are as follows: Original Theatrical Trailer [1971] [480i] [1.37:1] [4:04]. Original Re-release Theatrical Trailer [1971] [480i] [1.37:1] [1:52]. “Reserve Your Seat” Teaser [1971] [480i] [1.37:1] [1:46] With information for reserve seat ticket purchasing. “Will Rogers” Teaser [1971] [480i] [1.37:1] [2:03] This was a screening to benefit the Will Rogers Memorial Hospital. TV Spot [1971] [480i] [1.37:1] [00:31]. TV Spot [1979] [480i] [1.37:1] [00:28] This was to promote the theatrical re-release. With the “Reserve Your Seat” and “Will Rogers” Teaser Trailers, for some unknown reason they show the image squeezed that should have been viewed in the 1.78:1 aspect ratio.
Finally, ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ [1971] is a totally sheer delightful film from start to finish! The acting is wonderful throughout, performed to perfection by a strong ensemble cast. There is a marvellous chemistry among all the actors, so it’s hard to single out any one performance as being more exceptional than the others. Topol who was nominated for a Best Actor Academy Award® for his performance and reprises his Broadway role as the tradition-bound yet dreamy Tevye and he succeeded the late Zero Mostel, who originally played Tevye on stage. The late Norma Crane is equally brilliant as the strong-willed, sharp-tongued Golde. The part of Perchik, the radical student who wins the heard of Hodel, is expertly played by one of the few widely recognizable faces in the cast Paul Michael Glaser. This film version of ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ remains remarkably true to the stage version. Despite the length of the film, which is nearly three hours long, but despite this the film ‘FIDDLER ON THE ROOF’ is sheer magic and entertainment at its best. It also offers some great music that makes you want to get up and sing the “IF I WAS A RICH MAN” and feel you are dancing with Tevye. Norman Jewison did an admirable job directing this film, because it could have easily veered away into saccharine or gone too dark. The film does an admirable job of blending generous humour along with some heavy themes. Add in the amazing original music and the contributions of John Williams and you have a winner. So, go ahead journey back in time to the dusty Russian village of Anatevka and fall in love with Tevye and Golde and Lazar Wolf, Yente, Mendel and Mordcha. It is a journey well worth making! Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
