Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

It was estimated that 107 million people saw the original broadcast of this made-for-television musical created by no less than the legendary team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. That represents an astonishing 62% of the U.S. population at a time when there was no pay-per-view, no cable, no TiVo. Having just read Julie Andrews' remarkable early-life autobiography, "Home", I have to admit my interest was piqued to see this seminal production. Andrews was all of 21 on the night of March 31, 1957, when she performed the title role live, and it's fascinating to watch her screen persona so fully formed seven years before her big-screen debut in "Mary Poppins". Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote the musical specifically for her talents as she was then wowing Broadway audiences as Eliza Doolittle in the smash hit, Lerner and Lowe's "My Fair Lady". The evidence refutes Jack Warner's later claim that she was not photogenic enough to be in the film version, and the 2004 DVD is the closest many of us will get to see what her Eliza was like.Captured in black-and-white kinescope, the show is definitely a product of the Golden Age of Television with its flickering images and claustrophobic, sometimes awkward staging. However, as directed by Ralph Nelson ("Father Goose"), the story's universal charm and farcical touches, the expert cast of mainly Broadway veterans, and the memorable musical score more than offset the technical deficiencies. Andrews' bell-like soprano is at its best in her sadly hopeful ballad, "In My Own Little Corner". As the King and Queen, playwright Howard Lindsay (he co-wrote "Life with Father" and the original book for "The Sound of Music") and his real-life actress wife Dorothy Stickney prove to be a comically adroit pair. Fellow stage legend Ilka Chase plays the malevolent stepmother with catty aplomb, and the comic duo of Kaye Ballard and Alice Ghostley fulfill the comic possibilities as the jealous stepsisters. Edie Adams lends a more saucy twist to the ethereal role of the Fairy Godmother. Much later a reliable character actor best known as the Chief of Police on "Hill Street Blues", a stalwart Jon Cypher fits the cardboard dimensions of the gallant, smitten Prince and showcases a surprisingly robust tenor voice first in a soaring duet with Andrews on "Ten Minutes Ago" and then on the show's best song, "Do I Love You Because You're Beautiful?".Like most of my generation, I am more familiar with the 1965 color remake (starring a very young Lesley Ann Warren) since the original production aired only once. Running a fleet 77 minutes, it's a shame that the original color footage could not have been saved since the fairy tale atmosphere begs for it. Luckily, as part of the DVD, there is a gallery of color production and rehearsal stills to give you an idea of what the original audience may have seen if they owned a color TV set, a rarity at the time. Other DVD extras include rare archival footage of Rodgers and Hammerstein appearing on "The Ed Sullivan Show" to publicize the show (including a recited performance by Hammerstein of "Do I Love You Because You're Beautiful?"), as well as a recently filmed introduction by Andrews. The best extra is a half-hour retrospective featurette, "A Lovely Night: the Making of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Television Classic", which features Andrews, Adams, Ballard and Cypher fondly recalling the experience. Children may not be able to tolerate the black-and-white, but baby boomers will find particular joy in seeing this particular production.

This obscure production includes some of the best songs the pair wrote, especially Hammerstein (who was freed here from the need to write in the bogus "folk" dialect of his best-known work). The show was written with Julie Andrews in mind and she sings the songs beautifully here. Although the musical was shot and broadcast in color, the recording is in B&W (how most Americans in 1957 would have seen it, too). The decor looks more like that of a high-school play and the whole setting is pretty claustrophobic, but this doesn't detract from the enjoyment. What's fun about the show, apart from the good songs, is watching the nervous excitement of these players who knew they were doing a live show-- and doing it in close-up, no less-- in front of 100m. This unpretentious (for R&H) charming show is still the best of the animated and TV Cinderellas. The backstory video (on the DVD) is also interesting.

This is, in my opinion, Rodgers and Hammerstein's masterpiece! Based on the beloved fairy tale, Cinderella comes to life in this spectacular TV production! Julie Andrews (who would later star in MARY POPPINS and THE SOUND OF MUSIC), is a joy to watch, and Jon Cypher as the Prince is great too. Other fine performances come from Howard Lindsay and Dorothy Stickney as the King and Queen, Ilka Chase as the Stepmother, Kaye Ballard and Alice Ghostley as the Stepsisters (they are HILARIOUS), and Edith Adams as the Fairy Godmother. The sets and costumes are good. The score is one of R+H's best. Everything about this production just impresses me.When broadcast on March 31, 1957, it got an audience of about 107 million people! Unfortunately, it was broadcast on that night only, so, in 1965, it was remade with Lesley Ann Warren playing Cinderella (this version was great too). It was also remade in 1997, with Whitney Houston as the Fairy Godmother and Brandy as Cinderella (again, another great production). Finally, in 2004, this classic 1957 version was finally released on DVD! The disc, released by Image Entertainment, has good picture and sound quality, and extras including interviews, galleries, and an appearance by R+H on THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW. A treat for musical fans everywhere! Recommended. 10/10

I sincerely hope that many parents and other grownups will share this wonderful, witty musical with their kiddos and kiddo friends. Start them early with quality fare like this, and don't let them develop a prejudice against black & white viewing, or intelligent creations.It really is a shame that later television CINDERELLAs messed with the script, and particularly that they cut the ball- and banquet-planning scene with the King, Queen, Chef, Tailor and...I forget who else. The King and Queen are such stronger roles here than in the later versions. Actually, all the roles seem stronger here, as directed and played. (I don't mean to bash the later two TV CINDERELLAs, both of which have their good points, and good intentions, but end up falling so short of the original, for all their larger budgets, full color, more ethnically diverse casting--the last a plus in my book. A shame they didn't stick with the many strengths of this original script, and build and embellish from there. It also helps to have a Cinderella with a gorgeous, majestic voice.) Besides the wit, humor and intelligence of this musical's book, the big, winning ingredient is the basic sense of love and good will, strong but not cloying. A very Hammerstein element, which, for the most part, he wielded deftly throughout his works. There is an unfortunate tendency to screw with that strong ingredient when people try to adapt and "improve" Rodgers & Hammerstein shows. For a particularly heinous example of this, see the ABC TV, Glenn Close SOUTH PACIFIC. Better yet, don't subject yourself to that horrible desecration of a beautiful work. Watch the good stuff, like this original Cinderella.