Marty (1955) United Artists Director: Delbert Mann Producer: Harold Hecht Cast: Ernest Borgnine, Betsy Blair, Esther Minciotti, Augusta Ciolli, Joe Mantell, Karen Steele. Awards ceremony: -28th Academy Awards: March 21, 1956. RKO Pantages Theatre, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California & NBC Century Theatre, New York City, New York. Other films nominated for Best Motion Picture this year: -Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing. -Mister Roberts. -Picnic. -The Rose Tattoo. Plot summary: Marty Piletti (ERNEST BORGNINE) is a 34 year-old Italian-American bachelor who lives at home with his elderly mother whilst working as a butcher in New York City. All of his friends have girlfriends or are married but poor Marty is single until one Saturday night he is encouraged to go out to a nightclub in order to find a girl of his own. He meets Clara (BETSY BLAIR), a schoolteacher who has been let down by her date and the two of them spend the night together talking and getting acquainted. Everybody tries to convince Marty that the girl is ugly and that he ought to ditch her; and even Marty's mother proclaims to dislike her (for fear of Marty going off with the girl and leaving his mother all alone). But Marty makes up his own mind and ignores all the negative remarks and calls up Clara the following evening for another date. Standout scene: Early on at the dinner table when Marty's mother tells him to go out for the evening to find a girl. Marty snaps back at her with "I'm just a fat little man, a fat ugly man." You really feel for him and his frustration. Ernest Borgnine, who already has such a screen presence, delivers the line with such emotion and power. Facts: -The 28th Academy Awards. -Nominated for 8 Academy Awards, it won 4: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor (Ernest Borgnine), Best Writing/Screenplay. -The second Best Picture winner to feature Ernest Borgnine (the first was From Here To Eternity). -At just 90 minutes this is one of the shortest films to have won the Best Picture award. -The events of the film take place over the course of one weekend. -Ernest Borgnine appears in the opening scene and delivers the first line of dialogue. -In one of the opening scenes Marty and Angie sit in the diner and discuss what they are going to do that evening. The back and forth dialogue between them is very similar to that of the scene in Disney's THE JUNGLE BOOK with the vultures. Personal opinion: Ernest Borgnine gives one of his finest performances in a decent film with a really easy-to-follow storyline (the screenplay won the Oscar). A really good opening scene with Marty serving two women customers in the butcher's, and a nice performance from Betsy Blair as the girl Marty hooks up with. There's that scene where Marty just can't stop talking too! However, the sub-plot involving the mother, her sister and the in-laws distracts from the main story and there is nothing at all likeable about Virginia's (KAREN STEELE) character. I didn't like the ending either. Too abrupt. Highly recommended. Did it deserve the Oscar? YES. 8/10

Review date: 03 March 2025