Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

A Tradition of Storytelling

Fiddler on the Roof (1971) is a sweeping, emotionally resonant film adaptation of the 1964 Broadway musical, itself based on the stories of Sholem Aleichem. Set in a Jewish shtetl in Tsarist Russia at the turn of the 20th century, the film tells the story of Tevye, a humble milkman, as he struggles to hold onto tradition in the face of a changing world.

What makes Fiddler extraordinary is how it fuses the intimate with the epic. It is a story about a single family—but also about the disintegration of an entire way of life. The film’s themes—identity, faith, change, love, and oppression—resonate far beyond the time and place of its setting, giving it an enduring universality.

Plot Summary

Tevye (Chaim Topol), the film’s narrator and central figure, lives in the small village of Anatevka with his wife Golde and their five daughters. He begins by introducing the concept of “Tradition”, which governs everything in their lives—from how people eat and pray to how they marry.

But Tevye's comfortable worldview is repeatedly challenged as his daughters seek to break from arranged marriages and choose husbands for love. The eldest, Tzeitel, rejects the wealthy butcher Lazar Wolf to marry her childhood sweetheart, Motel. The second, Hodel, falls in love with a radical student, Perchik. And the third, Chava, marries outside the faith—a step Tevye cannot accept.

Meanwhile, political unrest looms. Anti-Semitism grows, and by the film’s end, the Jewish community of Anatevka is forced to leave, scattering families to the winds of history.

Themes

Tradition vs. Change

The film's central theme is the struggle between tradition and progress. Tevye’s internal conflicts are allegorical for larger cultural tensions. The familiar opening number, “Tradition,” is not only celebratory but also ironic—foreshadowing how fragile these customs will prove to be.

Faith and Doubt

Tevye frequently speaks to God, not just in prayer, but as a companion, a silent judge, and sometimes, a source of frustration. His conversations offer both comic relief and philosophical introspection, grounding the film’s larger events in deeply personal terms.

Family and Fatherhood

The emotional core of Fiddler is Tevye’s role as a father. Each daughter’s choice to break with tradition tests his love and values. The film poses difficult questions: How far should a parent go in supporting their children? Where is the line between compromise and betrayal?

Identity and Exile

As Anatevka’s Jewish community is displaced, the film reflects on the nature of home, belonging, and identity. The story ends not with resolution, but with displacement—a quiet echo of the diaspora that defines much of Jewish history.

Performance and Characters

Topol as Tevye

Chaim Topol, who originated the role in London, gives a career-defining performance. He brings a perfect balance of humour, pathos, and gravitas. Tevye is both archetype and individual—a wise fool, a moral philosopher, and a tender father. Topol’s expressive face and weary voice carry the weight of generations.

His delivery of songs like “If I Were a Rich Man” is at once joyous and melancholic, and his dramatic scenes—especially his silent disowning of Chava—are devastating.

Norma Crane as Golde

Crane brings steeliness and nuance to Golde, Tevye’s long-suffering wife. Their duet “Do You Love Me?” is a standout, showing how love can grow in quiet, lived-in ways over decades of shared hardship.

The Daughters

Each daughter represents a different challenge to Tevye’s world: from Tzeitel’s traditional but self-initiated match, to Hodel’s political engagement, to Chava’s interfaith marriage. These characters are more than plot devices—they are believable young women caught between duty and desire.

Supporting Characters

Paul Michael Glaser (Perchik) and Leonard Frey (Motel) give strong performances, and Molly Picon, as Yente the matchmaker, adds a welcome touch of humour and community texture.

Cinematography and Direction

Director Norman Jewison made the smart decision to film on location in Yugoslavia, giving the film an authentic, lived-in quality. The village of Anatevka feels real, not like a stage set. Cinematographer Oswald Morris employed a sepia-toned filter for much of the film, subtly evoking old photographs and nostalgia.

Jewison uses wide shots to emphasize isolation and group identity, and close-ups to highlight Tevye’s introspection. The film is quietly beautiful—never flashy, always sincere. Its visuals underscore its themes: stability amid change, beauty amid hardship.

Music and Choreography

Jerry Bock’s music and Sheldon Harnick’s lyrics are masterful—accessible yet deeply expressive. The film includes nearly all of the musical’s most beloved numbers:

“Tradition” – the rousing prologue

“If I Were a Rich Man” – a dream of wealth laced with irony

“Matchmaker, Matchmaker” – a youthful, naive look at marriage

“Sunrise, Sunset” – perhaps the most tender song about the passage of time in musical theatre

“Do You Love Me?” – a surprisingly emotional conversation between husband and wife

The choreography by Jerome Robbins (adapted for film) is particularly effective in the wedding scene, where the bottle dance is both joyous and tense, hinting at instability.

John Williams, early in his film career, arranged and conducted the score. His contributions add richness and continuity, especially in the underscored dramatic sequences.

Tone and Pacing

Fiddler strikes a unique tonal balance: it's a musical, yes, but not escapist. Its humour is dry and situational, its joy always shadowed by the awareness of hardship. The film begins with whimsy and ends with exile. Yet it never feels manipulative—its emotional weight comes naturally from the characters and their choices.

The pacing is deliberate, especially in the second half, which shifts from romantic and familial drama to social upheaval. Some viewers may find the transition jarring, but it's narratively and thematically justified.

Historical and Cultural Significance

Released in the early 1970s, Fiddler on the Roof arrived during a time of great cultural re-examination—civil rights, feminist movements, and anti-war protests. Its themes of generational conflict, social change, and systemic oppression resonated with audiences beyond the Jewish community.

It was nominated for eight Academy Awards, winning three (including Best Cinematography and Best Score). Its success helped bring serious, adult-oriented musicals to mainstream cinema and cemented the viability of Broadway-to-Hollywood adaptations.

Conclusion

Fiddler on the Roof (1971) remains one of the most emotionally powerful, thematically rich, and musically memorable films in American cinema. It honors its cultural roots without becoming insular, presenting a story that is both deeply Jewish and profoundly universal.

Its portrait of a man struggling to keep his family and faith intact amid seismic social change is as moving today as it was over 50 years ago. And in Tevye, it gives us one of cinema’s most indelible characters—a man standing on the roof of history, fiddling for balance.