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The Marrying Kind

Play trailer Poster for The Marrying Kind 1952 1h 33m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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63% Tomatometer 8 Reviews 55% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
When on-the-rocks couple Florrie (Judy Holliday) and Chet Keefer (Aldo Ray) come before Judge Anne B. Carroll (Madge Kennedy) and request a divorce, Carroll asks the Keefers to recount for her the story of their marriage, in hopes that the troubled couple will recall what it was that brought them together in the first place. What follows is a turbulent tale filled with jealousy, pain, frustration and distrust -- in other words, the perfect recipe for love.

Critics Reviews

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Melissa Anderson 4Columns 01/28/2022
Judy Holliday's unassailable timing and instincts bring her character, Florence Keefer, a dispirited wife and mother, vividly to life. Go to Full Review
Richard Brody The New Yorker 08/01/2016
Despite its buoyant tone and comic energy, George Cukor's drama of scenes from a marriage, as viewed in flashback by a couple in divorce court, is a scathing work of New York neorealism. Go to Full Review
Manny Farber The Nation 09/15/2021
The story behind a sad little divorce suit told by the cut-back method, with the director (Cukor) using a sneak camera without putting any heart or belief into it. Go to Full Review
Michael E. Grost Classic Film and Television 08/08/2008
Frighteningly grim story. Go to Full Review
Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com 12/16/2007
B-
The acting of Judy Holliday (for which the part was written) and Aldo Ray is good, but what starts as a comedy changes to a melodrama that uncharacteristically of Cukor's work is condescending to the little people. Go to Full Review
Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews 06/21/2007
C+
It never captured my imagination. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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S R @ScottR Apr 1 A harsh take on marriage and the struggles of staying together. Although it is positive, it must have been unique for its time to take on such a tough story. I saw it since it was on the NYT 1000 movies list. SLC DVD. I assume it was on the list since it was filmed in NYC. See more Steve D 06/24/2023 Extremely slow romance with nothing for the actors to do. See more 03/29/2021 Lovely comedy-drama starring Judy Holiday and Also Ray, directed by George Cukot See more 10/12/2016 The rating speaks for its self. See more 05/03/2016 The best thing about my recently-purchased Mill Creek 'Classic Romances' 8-pack (though I previously had two of them from a Mill Creek Rita Hayworth 5-pack--they were cheap so I didn't squawk too much, mind you) is that it offered me three more of Judy Holliday's nine films before her untimely demise at 43 from breast cancer. I previously loved her in 'Adam's Rib', 'Phffft', 'The Solid Gold Cadillac' and of course her Oscar-winning role, amidst very stiff competition, in 'Born Yesterday'), but this was a surprisingly dramatic turn for one of my favourite American actresses ever, particularly noted for her comedic touch. I won't give any spoilers, but when she breaks down after suffering a particular catastrophe, it really got me, and this is a horribly underseen and undervalued work. I realize director Cukor gets a lot of flak because he was basically considered a 'women's director', and even got released from 'Gone with the Wind' because of arguments with his producer, but he really knew how to get a great scene, particularly when given a fine script--I love films I have seen from Garson Kanin, both with and without his wife Ruth Gordon (best known as the title female in the cult classic 'Harold and Maude')--and this was definitely a fine one. The film definitely deserves a contemporary reappraisal. It's that good. See more 04/24/2015 The best thing about my recently-purchased Mill Creek 'Classic Romances' 8-pack (though I previously had two of them from a Mill Creek Rita Hayworth 5-pack--they were cheap so I didn't squawk too much, mind you) is that it offered me three more of Judy Holliday's nine films before her untimely demise at 43 from breast cancer. I previously loved her in 'Adam's Rib', 'Phffft', 'The Solid Gold Cadillac' and of course her Oscar-winning role, amidst very stiff competition, in 'Born Yesterday'), but this was a surprisingly dramatic turn for one of my favourite American actresses ever, particularly noted for her comedic touch. I won't give any spoilers, but when she breaks down after suffering a particular catastrophe, it really got me, and this is a horribly underseen and undervalued work. I realize director Cukor gets a lot of flak because he was basically considered a 'women's director', and even got released from 'Gone with the Wind' because of arguments with his producer, but he really knew how to get a great scene, particularly when given a fine script--I love films I have seen from Garson Kanin, both with and without his wife Ruth Gordon (best known as the title female in the cult classic 'Harold and Maude')--and this was definitely a fine one. The film definitely deserves a contemporary reappraisal. It's that good. See more Read all reviews
The Marrying Kind

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Movie Info

Synopsis When on-the-rocks couple Florrie (Judy Holliday) and Chet Keefer (Aldo Ray) come before Judge Anne B. Carroll (Madge Kennedy) and request a divorce, Carroll asks the Keefers to recount for her the story of their marriage, in hopes that the troubled couple will recall what it was that brought them together in the first place. What follows is a turbulent tale filled with jealousy, pain, frustration and distrust -- in other words, the perfect recipe for love.
Director
George Cukor
Producer
Bert Granet
Screenwriter
Ruth Gordon, Garson Kanin
Distributor
Columbia Pictures
Production Co
Columbia Pictures Corporation
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 13, 1952, Original
Release Date (DVD)
Jan 28, 2014
Runtime
1h 33m
Sound Mix
Stereo