Starring Chaim Topol, Norma Crane, Rosalind Harris, and Leonard Frey
Directed by Norman Jewison
Music by Jerry Bock; Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
We celebrate the last day of Passover, the Jewish spring holiday celebrating the Israelites' Exodus from Egypt, with one of the most famous movies about the Jewish faith ever made. The Broadway musical adaptation of the book Tevye and His Daughters by Sholem Aleichem was one of the biggest hit shows of the 60's, and the first to run over 3,000 performances. United Artists eagerly bought this and Man of La Mancha, another dark mid-60's stage hit, with an eye for a big roadshow adaptation. They knew they were taking a big risk after too many huge epic roadshow musicals in the late 60's and early 70's failed to make their money back, but they still threw everything they had into making this one as realistic and gritty as possible in a musical. Did they succeed, or should this one be sent to Siberia? Let's begin with Tevye the milkman (Topol) as he introduces the people of the Russian Jewish village of Anatevka and their "Traditions" and find out...
The Story: Tevye is hoping Yente the Matchmaker (Molly Picon) will find good husbands for his older daughters Tzeitel (Harris), Hodel (Michele Marsh), and Chava (Neva Small). His daughters have their own ideas. Tzeitel is promised to wealthy butcher Lazar Wolf (Paul Mann), but she falls for Motel (Frey), a poor but ambitious tailor. Tevye eventually gives in and agrees to the marriage, and finds a way to convince his wife Golde (Crane) that they're made for each other, too. He's less happy when Hodel falls for the handsome revolutionary Perchick (Paul Michael Glaser) but eventually accepts the marriage, even when Hodel follows her husband to Siberia after he's arrested.
Tevye really hits the roof when book-loving Chava falls head over heels for Fyedka (Raymond Lovelock), a Russian Christian Orthodox scholar. Her eloping with him means she'll have to give up her faith. Her father thinks this is the worst of his problems, but then, the town's rabbi (Zvee Schooler) announces that their lives are about to be upended forever, and Hodel isn't the only one who is going to be "far from the home I love."
The Song and Dance: What I love about this movie is only The Sound of Music inhabits the world of the characters as much as this one does. The bleak landscape of Yugoslavia in the 1970's may not be much to look at, but it's as much of a character as Tevye and his family. The stunning cinematography, including gorgeous shots of that fiddler on the roof, won a deserved Oscar in 1972. Unlike most of the huge epic musicals that came out in the late 60's and early 70's, Fiddler really needs those three hours and the widescreen vistas to tell its entire story of how both a family and a town's "traditions" are upended by outside change.
Topol was a bit of a controversial choice for Tevye after Zero Mostel won acclaim for the role on Broadway, but he's having so much fun shaking along to "If I Were a Rich Man" and is so lovely with his daughters, it's hard to complain now. Crane is equally good as his sensible wife Golde. Frey and Harris are especially touching as the adorably dorky tailor and the sweetly awkward young woman who loves him anyway.
The Numbers: We open with Tevye introducing us to the residents of Anatevka and their "Tradition" even before the credits begin. The fiddler (Tutte Lemkov) plays the overture over the credits while perched on that roof. The sisters dress and do the laundry as they sing about "Matchmaker, Matchmaker" and their hopes for their future husbands. Tevye really gets into wondering what he'd do "If I Were a Rich Man" in the barn, shaking and shimmying with absolute glee. Lazar Wolf joins Tevye's family for their "Sabbath Prayer." Wolf and Tevye announce "To Life" when they treat each other to drinks at the local bar and every man in town gets in on the spree, including the military and local students.
"Tevye's Monologue" is heard in his head as he recalls Tzeitel's childhood and realizes that she does love Motel and he wants her to be happy. Thrilled when Tevye agrees to their marriage, he hurries through the woods with Tzeitel, singing about their "Miracle of Miracles." The surreal "Tevye's Dream" is a black-and-white sequence where Tevye tells Golde about a dream he had where their ancestors and Lazar Wolf's wife claim Motel is the man for their daughter. Their wedding ceremony is a joyous occasion, including the touching "Sunrise, Sunset," men performing with bottles on their heads, and men and women dancing together holding hands for the first time in Anatevka...until local peasants, backed by the Tsar's men, attack and destroy the party.
After the fiddler performs the Entre'Acte, Tevye gives us a brief reprise of "Tradition" and explains what's changed. He has another monologue very similar to his first when Hodal insists on marrying Perchick. Feeling sentimental, he asks Golde "Do You Love Me?" Hodal admits at the train stop that while she does want to be with her husband, she's scared about being "Far From the Home I Love." There's a brief ballet segment shot in silhouette as we see Chava the way her father remembers her...and her in love now. His third monologue after Chava asks to marry Fydeka is briefer and far less congenital. It's one thing to go against an arranged marriage and follow a revolutionary, but very religious Tevye draws the line at giving up one's faith for love. The movie ends with the cast singing about their feelings on leaving their beloved "Anatevka."
Trivia: Sadly, this would be Norma Crane's final film. She died of breast cancer two years after its release.
Fiddler On the Roof opened on Broadway in September 1964 and was a huge success, becoming the first Broadway show to run over 3,000 performances. Its stars Zero Mostel and Maria Karnilova won Tonys, as did the show as a whole. It was an equally big hit in London. The show been revived many times on both sides of the Atlantic since then, most recently on Broadway in 2015 and in London in 2019.
Two stage songs were cut from the film, a duet for Perchick and Hodel, "Now I Have Everything," and a number for Yente and the women of the town, "The Rumor/I Just Heard." Another song, "Any Day Now," was written for Perchick to replace "Everything," but was ultimately cut.
What I Don't Like: This is not your typical lighthearted musical romp. This is a three-hour epic revolving around the fracturing of a family and of a society. It's not for someone who is looking for something more fun and upbeat. There's also that run time. Admittedly, once you get to the third daughter's marriage, you start looking at your watch and wishing some of this could have been trimmed. On the other hand, we don't get to know some folks as well as you'd like, including the rabbi and the hilarious Yente.
The Big Finale: Families with older children and teens looking for thoughtful Passover viewing and who can handle the violence and fairly dark story and have time on their hands (or can split this into two night's viewing) may enjoy discovering Tevye, his family, and their "traditions." They may even be willing to discuss similar traditions and their importance in their own families.
Home Media: Easily found on disc and streaming, the latter usually for free with commercials.
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