Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Stanley Donen

Writers:

Stephen Vincent Benet (story)
Albert Hackett (writer) ...

Release Date:

22 July 1954 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Family | Musical | Romance | Western

Tagline:

LUSTY, MIRTHFUL GIRL-STEALING MUSICAL! . . . with Seven Great Songs!

Plot:

In 1850 Oregon, when a backwoodsman brings a wife home to his farm, his six brothers decide that they want to get married too.

Plot Keywords:

Cabin | Mountain | Love | 1850s | Singing

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Howard Keel	...	Adam Pontipee
Jeff Richards	...	Benjamin Pontipee
Russ Tamblyn	...	Gideon Pontipee
Tommy Rall	...	Frankincense (Frank) Pontipee
Marc Platt	...	Daniel (Dan) Pontipee
Matt Mattox	...	Caleb Pontipee
Jacques d'Amboise	...	Ephraim Pontipee
Jane Powell	...	Milly Pontipee
Julie Newmar	...	Dorcas Gailen (as Julie Newmeyer)
Nancy Kilgas	...	Alice Elcott
Betty Carr	...	Sarah Kine
Virginia Gibson	...	Liza
Ruta Lee	...	Ruth Jebson (as Ruta Kilmonis)
Norma Doggett	...	Martha
Ian Wolfe	...	Rev. Elcott

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Anscocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Western Electric Sound System) (magnetic prints) | 70 mm 6-Track (Australia) (1968 re-release) | Mono (optical prints)

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:All | Sweden:11 (re-rating) (1963) | Sweden:15 (original rating) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:S | Peru:PT | UK:U | USA:Approved (PCA #16932) | USA:G (re-rating) (1971) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Filming Locations:

Corral Creek Canyon, Sun Valley, Utah, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Director Stanley Donen said that producer Jack Cummings originally planned to use existing American folk songs for the film's musical numbers. After months spent searching in vain for the right music, Donen recalled, the decision was made to commission an original score.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Adam climbs out of the window to get into the tree, the leg he puts out first changes between shots.

Quotes:

Benjamin Pontipee: [after Dorcas hits him with a snowball] Snowballs with rocks in them! Them poor little dears! Sobbin' buckets o' tears!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Nuovo cinema Paradiso (1988)

Soundtrack:

Spring, Spring, Spring

Real Men Can Sing AND Dance

As an experienced woodsman compounded by being a fan of great music, it is so refreshing to see a perfect musical centered around men behaving like men. So many shows have slim little dandies spinning around and leaping to and fro and the only way you can tell them from a 13 year old girl is their shorter haircuts. I truly enjoyed seeing someone masculine (gay or straight doesn't matter) move in a skilled manner, and disprove the stereotypes of "White Men Can't Dance." Seven Brides for Seven Brothers has the great Howard Keel (the John Wayne of Musicals), supported by a cast of 6 men (some actors, some dancers and some acrobats) and the outcome is nothing short of spectacular. Michael Kidd's choreography is fantastic, demonstrating grace and strength, yet remaining believable in the fact that the skills could be something done by woodsmen. Mercers music, especially "Bless Your Beautiful" and "Lonesome Polecat" is simply awesome and are in my head for days every time I watch it. The cinema-scope and vibrant colors are unbelievably crisp. I watched this with my 2 year old daughter, and aside from her dragging me up to dance with her during the big production numbers, she sat in her chair and watched the ENTIRE 2 hour movie. A two year old that watches an entire 2 hour movie with her dad, you say!?! Do I need anymore proof of the perfection of this movie!? Bless Howard Keel, as he must be smiling down on me whenever I collapse back into my seat, exhausted from dancing with my little girl...who also slept very, very well that night.