Oklahoma! (1955)

95% of critics liked it
(22 reviews)
72% of users liked it
(29,657 ratings)

Rodgers and Hammerstein's 1943 Broadway musical was considered revolutionary for a multitude of reasons, not least of which were the play's intricate integration of song and storyline, and the simplicity and austerity of its production design. The 1955 film version of Oklahoma! retains the songs… More Rodgers and Hammerstein's 1943 Broadway musical was considered revolutionary for a multitude of reasons, not least of which were the play's intricate integration of song and storyline, and the simplicity and austerity of its production design. The 1955 film version of Oklahoma! retains the songs (except for Lonely Room and It's a Scandal!, which are usually cut from most stage presentations anyway) and the story, but the simplicity is sacrificed to the spectacle of Technicolor, Todd-AO, and Stereophonic Sound. The story can be boiled down to a single sentence: a girl must decide between the two suitors who want to take her to a social. In her movie debut, 19-year-old Shirley Jones plays Laurie, an Oklahoma farm gal who is courted by boisterous cowboy Curley (Gordon MacRae) and by menacing, obsessive farm hand Jud Frye (Rod Steiger). Fearing that Jud will do something terrible to Curley, Laurie accepts Jud's invitation to the box social. But it's Curley who rescues Laurie from Jud's unwanted advances, and in so doing wins her hand. On the eve of their wedding, Laurie and Curley are menaced by the drunken Jud. During a fight with Curley, Jud falls on his own knife and is killed (this sudden-death motif was curiously commonplace in the Rodgers and Hammerstein ouevre). The local deputy insists that Curley be arrested and stand trial, but he is outvoted by Curley's friends, and the newlyweds are permitted to ride off on their honeymoon. Counterpointing the serious elements of the story is a comic subplot involving innocently promiscuous Ado Annie (Gloria Grahame), her erstwhile sweetheart Will Parker (Gene Nelson) and lascivious travelling salesman Ali Hakim (Eddie Albert). None of the Broadway cast of Oklahoma! was engaged for the film version, though Charlotte Greenwood is finally able to essay the role of Auntie Eller that had been written for her but she'd been unable to play back in 1943. The evergreen songs include Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin', Surrey with the Fringe on Top, People Will Say We're In Love, I Cain't Say No, and the rousing title song. Two versions of Oklahoma! currently exist: the Todd-AO version, filmed on 65-millimeter stock, and the simultaneously shot CinemaScope version, shipped out to the theaters not equipped for the wider-screen Todd-AO process. Both versions have been issued in "letterbox" form on laser disc, and the subtle differences in performance style and camera angles in each and every scene are quite fascinating. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Play Trailer

Rating, Runtime: G, 2 hr. 25 min.
Directed By: Fred Zinnemann
Written By: Lynn Riggs, Oscar Hammerstein, Sonya Levien, William Ludwig
Genres: Western, Romance, Musical & Performing Arts, Classics

In Theaters: Oct 11, 1955 Wide
On DVD: Apr 27, 1999
Studio: Samuel Goldwyn Company

Critic Reviews

Variety Staff, Variety
The wide screen used for the Todd-AO process adds production scope and visual grandeur, capturing a vista of blue sky and green prairie that can be breathtaking.
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
The film heaves and sputters from one indifferently rendered number to the next.
Douglas Pratt, Hollywood Reporter
The film is so richly layered that multiple viewings become compulsive -- you think it's all there in front of you, but every time you revisit it, you notice something more, and finish with a desire to go back again.
Bosley Crowther, New York Times
A full-bodied Oklahoma! has been brought forth in this film to match in vitality, eloquence and melody any musical this reviewer has ever seen.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
The wrong director, Fred Zinnemann, who doesn't have any sense for the genre, was assigned to this musical, but the tunes are glorious.
Philip French, Observer [UK]
Folksy and sentimental.
, TV Guide's Movie Guide
It's a watchable, if hardly terrific, rendering of an innovative Broadway landmark.
David Mattin, BBC
50 years on there's still an infectious charm about Oklahoma!
Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central
Pretty fun in spite of itself.
Peter Bradshaw, Guardian [UK]
A solid Hollywood landmark.
Patrick Peters, Empire Magazine
A brilliant musical that still looks fresh today.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Efficient but not exciting.
Wally Hammond, Time Out
My favourite is the odd cast singing 'The Farmer and the Cowman should be friends', a sentiment I have long believed in.
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
The wide open spaces of the American West were never more wide or more open than in this 1955 movie adaptation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...Zinnemann manages to keep the pace moving in the right direction, and any small concerns one may have diminish quickly in light of the rest of the movie's delights.
Don Willmott, Filmcritic.com
if classic Broadway is your thing, you'll enjoy this movie more than the other Rodgers and Hammerstein classics that made it to the screen in the same era

Read all 16 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

AJ V

The classic western musical. First of all I don't like westerns and second I'm not a big fan of musicals (I only like certain ones). So, I didn't enjoy this movie. It's not a bad movie, I think it's good that they mixed the genres (it's also a romantic… More
The classic western musical. First of all I don't like westerns and second I'm not a big fan of musicals (I only like certain ones). So, I didn't enjoy this movie. It's not a bad movie, I think it's good that they mixed the genres (it's also a romantic comedy), I just didn't care for it.
Stella D

yes i admit i love this movie. shot on location... in arizona!
Randy T

Pure escapism. My favorite Rodgers & Hammerstein musical.
erika b

One of the best films of its time. It shows how love should be.
danny d

overlong and uneventful for the first 90 minutes, oklahoma was actually quite good for the final 50 minutes but it was too little too late to save it. obviously considered one of the "great" musicals, shirley jones was the sole bright spot and even she was unbearable… More
overlong and uneventful for the first 90 minutes, oklahoma was actually quite good for the final 50 minutes but it was too little too late to save it. obviously considered one of the "great" musicals, shirley jones was the sole bright spot and even she was unbearable through large portions of the film.
Leigh R

Good movie.
Alec B

Not as bad as you'd think. Fred Zinnemann has a great sense of size and scope and his decision to film the majority of the movie outdoors captures the natural beauty of the landscape. The fantasy dream ballet sequence is extremely well done and at moments is very beautiful. But… More
Not as bad as you'd think. Fred Zinnemann has a great sense of size and scope and his decision to film the majority of the movie outdoors captures the natural beauty of the landscape. The fantasy dream ballet sequence is extremely well done and at moments is very beautiful. But at the end of the day its an adaptation of Oklahoma, a musical that has not transcended its time. The horrific sexism is bad even by 1950s standards.
Andrew F

Long and kind of boring, but the songs save it.
Anthony V

Just never my cup of tea.
Nikki M

Who wouldn't want a Surrey with the fringe on top?!