On M List of Movie Reviews
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Marty (1955)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
3/14
3/14:
Marty is a weird viewing experience for me.
More often than not, I laughed so hard throughout the film because I found everything about it to be uproariously hilarious.
Here is an insufferable bore who's a fucking pathetic boob, using the "woe is me" shtick on a loser girl. She falls for him,
and everything is all easy peasy. They both have a cry, and the motormouth just can't stop talking about how his life has
been one big goddamn tragedy. The following axiom is true: "First impressions are everything."
When Marty is back on his turf with his pathetic relatives and fake friends, they throw around so much useless gossip that
his life feels hollow with these lame, hopeless losers. How cyclic their quotidian lives are. What's sad and surprising about
the theme is it's true today. An interesting aspect is how people can develop many unfounded opinions
even though they hardly know either something or somebody.
Anyway, the topic is realistic and germane. Unfortunately, I'm the kind of person who avoids this
like the plague. That's why I laughed so hard during Marty. I understand if the others think of it as a superb
picture. Frankly, let's be real: Marty is for losers because they relate so much to it. That's why the poor
Herb Stempel famously feigned ignorance when he was asked what won Best Picture for 1955. I also hate New York pictures
because I find them melodramatic. This is evident in Marty as people think their problems are so...so...so
special! Almost every scene is overdone to the point of hysterical.
There's an interesting set of similarities between Marty and Tony Manero of Saturday Night Fever. Both have loser
friends, are stuck with bland relatives, see their lives circling the drain, and are surrounded with so much negativity. So,
they use something else to channel their escape: a girl for Marty and dancing for Tony.
As much as I like Ernest Borgnine, he shouldn't have won the Oscar for Best Actor. It's a big step down from what Marlon
Brando did in On the Waterfront. Sorry, I don't agree with the "dog" comment about Betsy Blair who's actually a
nice-looking gal. After all, she was married to Gene Kelly. Ha, take that!
All in all, Marty is too weird, but in all honesty, it's not bad although I can see why it's a forgotten Best Picture
film today.