Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

I cannot vouch for the authenticity of Fiddler on the Roof, a nominee in 1971 for Best Picture, but its depiction of Jewish life in pre-revolutionary Russia is pretty spectacular. You get a sense, if the depictions are accurate (or even if they are just close), of what life must have been like for the peasants at that time. And, to go with it, you get some glorious songs, great singing and dancing, and a moral or two about the universal need to fall in love and be with the person you truly love.

The focus of the story is Tevye (played by Topol), a milkman with five daughters and a frustrated but sharp-tongued wife, Golde (played by Norma Crane). Much of the film deals with attempts to find suitable husbands for the couple's daughters; this is sort of a different take on the events of Pride and Prejudice, really. However, the daughters have other plans. When, for example, the matchmaker Yente shows up to say that she has found the perfect match for the oldest daughter (Tzeitel), Tevye and Golde have to contend with Tzeitel's earlier but secret pledge to marry the poor tailor, Motel. Motel is played by Leonard Frey, who is light years away from the character he played in The Boys in the Band.

Similar situations occur with two other daughters, much to the initial dismay of their parents. However, the film (and the musical upon which it was based) is so life-affirming and love-affirming. Tevye has several scenes where he is forced to rethink his way of understanding situations. This is all the more ironic given the opening number of "Tradition," in which he espouses a need to hold fast to the way things have always been done. Of course, hardly anything gets done in the traditional way during the course of the film, but that is perhaps the point. We have to grow and adapt and adjust.

You've undoubtedly heard many of the songs already, and there are some great ones here: "Matchmaker," "If I Were a Rich Man," "To Life," "Sunrise Sunset" (still such a moving song), and one of my favorites, "Do You Love Me?" That last song is sung between Tevye and Golde, who are only now realizing after 25 years of marriage and five children that they do, indeed, love each other. I was also moved by "Far from the Home I Love," sung by Hodel (Michele Marsh) to her father before she boards a train that will take her to her husband in Siberia. You'd have to be a very hard-hearted person not to feel some strong emotions in that moment.

The dancing is first-rate, particularly in the extended wedding sequence. The bottle dancers are just astounding. If you have seen the film, you know what I mean. If not, you should rent it just to see them. Don't worry; you'll certainly figure out who they are. There's also a pretty amazing sequence earlier in the film involving male Jewish and Russian dancers having a sort of "dance-off."

As a backdrop to all of the scenes of day-to-day peasant life and romance and such are the rumors of pogroms being carried out against various other Jewish villages in tsarist Russia. A "demonstration" at Tzeitel and Motel's wedding is the first direct sign of what is in store for the village. It is only at the end of the film that the Russians' plans for the Jews are made clear, yet the villagers pack up and plan for their futures in new places, including America. Even in the midst of tremendous degradation, they still are able to find a sense of hope. While it may sound like a happy ending, it's truly more of a melancholy one. You may have a sense that all will turn out okay, but you are still saddened by the depths to which people have sunk over the years to belittle their fellow human beings.

The Cider House Rules (1999)

The Cider House Rules, a 1999 nominee for Best Picture, is yet another example of just how wrong Hollywood gets it sometimes. How can you take a story about abortion, incest, drug abuse, medical malpractice, racism, class struggle, and orphanages (just to name a few of the controversial topics it covers) and turn it into this bland of a film? Put it through the Hollywood grinder, obviously. Then you need to get it undeservedly nominated for a number of awards so that it looks like a prestigious film.

Tobey Maguire plays Homer Wells, an orphan who grows up to be the protégé of the doctor who delivered him, Dr. Wilbur Larch (played with his usual gusto by Michael Caine). Homer quickly learns that the good doctor is not only helping young women who wish to give their children up for adoption at the orphanage; he's also performing abortions, which were illegal at the time in the state of Maine. After having a crisis of conscience, Homer leaves the orphanage and finds work as an apple picker. In fact, he begins working for the fiancé of the girl he eventually falls in love with. The fiancé is played by Paul Rudd, who conveniently disappears for most of the movie while his character is serving in the military (so nice to have those pesky distractions out of the way). The girl is played by Charlize Theron. Of course, Homer is going to fall in love with her. Who wouldn’t fall in love with such a beautiful woman who’s left all alone after having an abortion?

While working on the apple farm and living in the "cider house" with several African Americans who are also hired to do the seasonal work of picking apples, Homer learns about more of life's dark secrets. For example, Mr. Rose, played by Delroy Lindo with enormous gravity, is sexually assaulting his daughter, the imaginatively named Rose Rose, played by Erykah Badu (who is quite a find as an actress). Homer volunteers to use the skills he has learned while "interning" with Dr. Larch to solve Rose's problem. In fact, he merely creates more problems. This pattern keeps getting repeated throughout the film.

I thought the John Irving novel upon which the movie is based was daring and enlightening. It took chances and made you, at times, not like some of the main characters or their actions. The movie seems to take too few of those chances. There are far too many scenes about the complexity of the decisions that characters must make so that we will feel sympathetic toward them. There’s always a “reason” for why someone behaves the way that she/he does. It's just a bit too pat, frankly, to match the depth of this subject matter.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the look of the film. It's beautifully shot, gorgeous cinematography, just the way you want a film about incest and abortion to look. I was reminded of the criticisms leveled at The Color Purple all those years ago, about how a tale of spousal abuse was somewhat "glorified" by the golden light in which it was shot. Well, Spielberg's film has nothing on The Cider House Rules in that department.

I'm sure that I (and the members of the Academy) must have seen plenty of films during 1999 that would be more worthy nominees for Best Picture than this film. I suppose the Miramax publicity machine was at its greatest strength in those days. Otherwise, I can't really explain how this film is included as one of the five best for that year.