Fiddler on the Roof

Release Year: 1971

Director: Norman Jewison

Review: Oh, if I were a rich man..I'd still really enjoy this film.  Generally  I'm not a fan of pure musicals, but 'Fiddler on the Roof' managed to bridge the genre gap.  Classic musicals often have a lacking atheistic, feeling like filmed theater production.  This isn't the case here.  This is a beautifully shot film full of rich visuals. The music in it is great, but it doesn't solely rely on the singing and dancing to entertain, it is very much a movie.  I may not identify with all the themes, but somehow a story about a Jewish man marrying off his daughters in pre-revolution Russia still managed to connect with me.  More than just religion the film is about the struggles of a tight-nit family and the push against an evolving society.  While it is a long film, it never felt like it, which is a big indicator of the enjoyment level.  Topol playing the lead is always entertaining when he is on, and completely embodies the role.  I don't think I could ever watch another rendition of the play without him in the role.  In many ways 'Fiddler' is a classic musical done right.  It uses the film medium to enhance the experience rather than simply capture the production on film.
Rating: 4/5

The Up Series

Release Year: 1964-2005
Review: A documentary following the lives of fourteen children from Britain coming from various walks of life in attempt to measure the impact of social class on their lives. The series starts introducing the kids at the age of seven, and revisits them every seven years for updates on their lives. The series is a fascinating, voyeuristic, view on how average people live, work and age. It is engrossing to be able to watch the lives of these people unfold. Expectations from the childhood are either realized or go tragically awry. The every day struggles that face everyone, such as the struggle to find steady work, marriage problems, and raising a family are all explored in the film simply by taking a look into these people's lives. The 'Up Series' is an important documentary which sheds light on human growth, the impact of class background and a slew of other human behavioral issues. Besides its importance, the documentary is also sheer entertainment. Once you watch one you will want to watch the entire series out of curiosity. The participants are all unique and interesting in their own way, its hard not to have a favorite. This is a monumental documentary and should be required viewing as so much can be learned about life from it.
Rating: 5/5

Everything You Wanted to Know About Sex

Release Year: 1971

Review: One of the Woody Allen's sillier type films, broken up into several vignettes, the film tries to answer some classic sexual questions. Some of the segments are hilarious and other are more goofy and awkward than anything. For me the best thing about Woody Allen films is the sharp, witty, dialog, and this one is mostly lacking that, replacing it with, at times, corny sex jokes. It's a nice little skit comedy, but not one of my favorite Allen films.

Rating: 3/5

Dirty Harry

Release Year: 1971
Review: A classic tough-guy cop thriller. There is no actor that more successfully pulled off the gruff, fringe, cop better than Clint Eastwood as Dirty Harry. Andrew Robinson pulls off a chilling demented serial killer who always seems to be just beyond the grasp of the law. I was struck by the blunt portrayal of violence and graphic display of murder as it seemed almost out of place with the rest of the feel of the film. Beyond the two classic characters, the film does feel dated. The rest of the supporting cast is somewhat robotic and the cinematography fails to capture the beauty of San Fransisco (like the superior shot Hitchcock film Vertigo did 13 years prior). It is a classic good cop, bad cop flick, and was thoroughly enjoyable despite not completely holding up over time.
Rating: 4/5

Bananas

Release Year: 1971
Review: In general, I'm a fan of Woody Allen, and this movie was a moderate showing of his talent at best. I always feel that Woody Allen films have a sort of stand up comedian feel to them, with well thought out humor and witty dialog. This film differently had bits of that, especially in the beginning. What degraded this film for me was the slapstick nature of it which fell flat. There were some scenes that were just blatently obvious and corny with the silly music to boot. In all, the movie has some great scenes, and is geniuinly funny at parts, but falls well short of Woody Allen's best work.
Rating: 3/5