I have always thought that this was an amazing teleplay and movie, but watching the introduction to "Marty" on the recent DVD release gave me even more reason to love it. Surprisingly, while the dialog is so realistic and marvelous, the teleplay wasn't even finished by Paddy Chavevsky until after rehearsals started!! Yet, despite this, it's considered by many to be an American classic.
"Marty" was a live TV play--quite common in the 1950s but unthinkable today. Imagine, each week you might have half a dozen made for TV events that were performed live on various networks. Shows such as "Playhouse 90", "Westinghouse Theatre" and "The Philco-GOodyear Television Playhouse" made television exciting--much of it because at that time the best talent was no longer in Hollywood but in New York working on television! As a result of so many brilliant teleplays, many of them went on to become blockbuster movies--and in the case of "Marty", it won Oscars for Best Picture as well as Best Actor (Ernest Borgnine).
Here in the original version, Rod Steiger gives a marvelous performance as the title character. "Marty" is an unflinching look at a nice but not particularly attractive bachelor who is tired of the rejection and is resigning himself to a life alone. Your heart really breaks for the simple guy, as he is very decent and would make a devoted husband...IF women would just give him a chance. But, at age 36, his chances are dwindling fast. His mother won't admit it, but the film finds Marty coming to this knowledge. The scene between the two of them in the kitchen discussing this is one of the greatest and saddest in TV history.
Fortunately, however, despite his sad life, Marty might just have a ray of hope in his life. He recently met an unattractive lady (Nancy Marchand) at the dance hall and the scene showing how they meet is pretty heart-rending. But, despite this, they hit it off and begin to forge, awkwardly, a relationship. But conspiring against them is Marty's mother (who has rather selfish motives) and Marty's obnoxious friend who calls her a 'dog'. Can Marty sort all this out and straighten out his sad life? Tune in and see.
I think what I love so much is the ordinariness of the characters. These are not handsome Hollywood-types, nor are their lives complex. These are just decent, hard-working New Yorkers of immigrant stock--people who seem ordinary but are so much more. A wonderful film from start to finish. Although it lacks the polish of the later movie and is too short at 51 minutes, it is a gem.
By the way, although Marty's 'friends' and mother comment on how old Marty's new girlfriend is, she is a lot younger than she looks. Marchand says she's 29, but is actually only 25--yet she does look about 40. I can really respect her for making herself so plain and playing such a tough part--and the same can be said for Steiger.
"Marty" was a live TV play--quite common in the 1950s but unthinkable today. Imagine, each week you might have half a dozen made for TV events that were performed live on various networks. Shows such as "Playhouse 90", "Westinghouse Theatre" and "The Philco-GOodyear Television Playhouse" made television exciting--much of it because at that time the best talent was no longer in Hollywood but in New York working on television! As a result of so many brilliant teleplays, many of them went on to become blockbuster movies--and in the case of "Marty", it won Oscars for Best Picture as well as Best Actor (Ernest Borgnine).
Here in the original version, Rod Steiger gives a marvelous performance as the title character. "Marty" is an unflinching look at a nice but not particularly attractive bachelor who is tired of the rejection and is resigning himself to a life alone. Your heart really breaks for the simple guy, as he is very decent and would make a devoted husband...IF women would just give him a chance. But, at age 36, his chances are dwindling fast. His mother won't admit it, but the film finds Marty coming to this knowledge. The scene between the two of them in the kitchen discussing this is one of the greatest and saddest in TV history.
Fortunately, however, despite his sad life, Marty might just have a ray of hope in his life. He recently met an unattractive lady (Nancy Marchand) at the dance hall and the scene showing how they meet is pretty heart-rending. But, despite this, they hit it off and begin to forge, awkwardly, a relationship. But conspiring against them is Marty's mother (who has rather selfish motives) and Marty's obnoxious friend who calls her a 'dog'. Can Marty sort all this out and straighten out his sad life? Tune in and see.
I think what I love so much is the ordinariness of the characters. These are not handsome Hollywood-types, nor are their lives complex. These are just decent, hard-working New Yorkers of immigrant stock--people who seem ordinary but are so much more. A wonderful film from start to finish. Although it lacks the polish of the later movie and is too short at 51 minutes, it is a gem.
By the way, although Marty's 'friends' and mother comment on how old Marty's new girlfriend is, she is a lot younger than she looks. Marchand says she's 29, but is actually only 25--yet she does look about 40. I can really respect her for making herself so plain and playing such a tough part--and the same can be said for Steiger.