Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, which is set in Oregon in 1850, is particularly known for Kidd's unusual choreography, which makes dance numbers out of such mundane frontier pursuits as chopping wood and raising a barn.

Film critic Stephanie Zacharek has called the barn-raising sequence in Seven Brides "one of the most rousing dance numbers ever put on screen.

In 2004, the same year Howard Keel died, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers was selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry of the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

As Adam walks her through their house, he informs her she will be responsible for cleaning, laundering, and cooking for all of them, telling her to make dinner and leaving her alone in the kitchen.

After a disastrous dinner, an angered Milly accuses Adam of manipulating her into becoming his servant, but he acknowledges that he wanted to marry someone strong and hardworking to work alongside him due to how difficult living in the backwoods is.

As winter comes and the brothers pine for the women they fell in love with they sing ("Lonesome Polecat"), and Milly asks Adam to help them.

Furious at the Pontipees' actions, Milly forces the men to live in the barn while the women stay in the house with her, sleeping in the brothers' beds.

Over the winter, the women vent their frustrations by pranking the remaining Pontipees and muse upon their slowly softening feelings towards marriage and decide to sing ("June Bride").

The brothers try to gather the women to bring them back to the town only to encounter the angry townspeople, who have come through the pass intending to hang them for kidnapping the girls.

Stanley Donen called me in and I looked at the script and said, "The big trouble in the original short story is that the Howard Keel character is the one that tries to get all of these boys married off, and that's not right.

"[18] For example, Kidd explained to Mercer and dePaul his conception of the "Lonesome Polecat" number, the lament of the brothers for the women, and the two worked out the music and lyrics.

[18] In his introduction to a showing on Turner Classic Movies on January 17, 2009, host Robert Osborne, as well as Jane Powell in her autobiography, The Girl Next Door, both say MGM was much less interested in Seven Brides than it was in Brigadoon which was also filming at the time, even cutting its budget and transferring the money to the Lerner and Loewe vehicle.

[19] On the 2004 DVD commentary, Stanley Donen states that the film was originally shot in two versions, one in CinemaScope and another in normal ratio, because MGM was concerned that not all theaters had the capability to screen it.

The dresses worn by the female cast were made from old quilts that costume designer Walter Plunkett found at the Salvation Army.

[13] Howard Keel wrote in his memoirs "Donen did a good job directing Seven Brides, but the real hero and brains behind it was Jack Cummings.

When it premiered at the Radio City Music Hall, A. H. Weiler of The New York Times called the film "a wholly engaging, bouncy, tuneful and panchromatic package ...

"[23] Richard L. Coe of The Washington Post declared: "Dandy dancing, singable songs and the ozone of originality make 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' the niftiest musical I've seen in months.

"[24] Harrison's Reports called it "A thoroughly delightful blend of songs, dances and romantic comedy" with "exceptionally good musical numbers.

"[25] The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote that the dances "give the picture its remarkably spirited and exhilarating quality ... A minor weakness is the playing of Jane Powell, whose Milly is a somewhat colourless figure; Howard Keel, the brides and the brothers, however, are all admirable.

"[26] John McCarten of The New Yorker posted a dissenting negative review, writing that the film "got on my nerves" and "struck me as desperately contrived and often witless", though he did concede that there were "some fine dances" in it.

The critics' consensus states: "Buoyed by crowd-pleasing tunes and charming performances, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers makes a successful transition from Broadway to screen that's sure to please the whole family.