Marty (1955) is the poignant, simple character study of a lonely, unmarried, lovelorn middle-aged, 34 year old son who works as a Bronx butcher and still lives with his love-smothering mother. By film's end, he and another homely 29 year old Brooklyn schoolteacher and female wallflower are liberated - both are triumphant over their respective limitations.
The film's screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky transformed his own original teleplay into a successful major motion picture - and the modest film remains one of the best examples of the cinematization of a television play. (The 48-minute TV comedy-drama was originally presented on NBC-TV's "Philco-Goodyear Playhouse" series on May 24, 1953 as a 60-minute broadcast, with leads Rod Steiger and Nancy Marchand, during a period now recognized as the "Golden Age of Television." It received zero nominations during the Emmys that year.) It was the only film based on a TV drama to ever win Best Picture.
As a feature film, it was one of the biggest 'sleepers' in Hollywood history, from the independent production company of Harold Hecht and actor Burt Lancaster (Hecht-Lancaster). A modest, black and white film in an era of wide-screen color epics, its critical acclaim and box-office success were phenomenal - its $340,000 production budget yielded over $5 million in gross proceeds. And it was the second Best Picture Oscar winner to also win the Golden Palm (Palme d'Or) at Cannes - The Lost Weekend (1945) was the first.
Marty was nominated for eight Academy Awards - and was awarded four - Best Picture!, Best Actor (character actor Ernest Borgnine in a role quite different from his menacing, sadistic villains or murderous 'heavies' in From Here to Eternity (1953) and Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)), Best Director (Delbert Mann for his debut film), and Best Screenplay (Paddy Chayefsky). It was also the shortest Best Picture winner at 91 minutes.
Like “On the Waterfront,” this film demonstrates that story, performance, and direction always count. Neither color nor new projection and sound techniques could make “Marty” any better than it is now. Although filmed on a modest budget (reportedly about $300,000), there is no evidence of any stinting in the production values, a factor the industry will note.
Despite the picture’s north Bronx locale and concern with an Italian-American family, the theme is universal and many viewers may experience a degree of identification. It’s a quiet, simple story. While lacking in general excitement, it’s sparked with sufficient comedy.
Basically, it’s the story of a boy and girl, both of whom consider themselves misfits in that they are unable to attract members of the opposite sex. The boy, sensitively played by Ernest Borgnine, is a friendly, mild-mannered guy in his thirties who feels he hasn’t the handsomeness or the necessary savoire faire to impress girls. He is constantly needled by his mother, with whom he lives, and the customers at the butcher store where he works, to get married.
The girl, beautifully played by Betsy Blair, is a plain schoolteacher whom everybody is always trying to fix up with dates. Pair come together at a boy-meets-girl dance where Miss Blair is ditched by her blind date. A blossoming romance brings both out of their shells as each is able to pour out pent-up emotions to the other.
