User reviews

I agree with other comments about this being a little-known gem with a terrific cast and that it is a pleasure to see Thelma Ritter in a leading role. Cukor's direction is efficient and he's particularly good with long, unbroken takes which help the actors gain momentum and relate to each other. What I found interesting was that the film is very direct about marriage as an economic proposition and how it is often a business arrangement. The other interesting quality is that many of the scenes are almost surreal in their grotesqueness. I really like seeing Scott Brady in a romantic lead, he's very fresh. The film is interesting as a Fox film made right before their turn to CinemaScope the next year with the somewhat similar, and inferior, How to Marry a Millionarie. This film would have been in color and 'scope if made later. It also has some location shooting which was a growing trend at Fox and other studios during this period yet the pacing and dialogue-driven quality of the film is much like a screwball comedy from 10 years earlier.

Middle-aged match-maker Thelma Ritter (as Mae Swasey) runs a bustling business in New York City, although many of her clients are not the most desirable marriage partners. Spinster-like Nancy Kulp (as Hazel Gingras) - who remained single throughout her run on the 1960s sitcom "The Beverly Hillbillies" - is an especially tough sell. Hoping to fix her up with optometrist Zero Mostel (as George Wixted), Ms. Ritter arranges a party for her prospects. While making the rounds, Ritter mistakenly swaps purses with beautiful model Jeanne Crain (as Christina "Kitty" Bennett). Ritter discovers the model is dating a married man and advises Crain to break up the affair. Feeling motherly, Ritter wants to match Crain up with handsome X-ray technician Scott Brady (as Matt Hornbeck)...

By 1951, character actress Thelma Ritter had become enough of a star to draw audiences on her own. Debuting at age 45 in 1947, the mature actress was named top female new star of the year 1951 by "Quigley Publications" - the organization which continues to rank box office stars every year. Ritter never did become a constant leading woman, but her name in a cast was always enough to indicate a film was high quality. Here, she may not receive top billing, but she certainly is the leading player. The story seems tailor-made for Ritter, by writer-producer Charles Brackett and director George Cukor. It's not their best effort, but Ritter gets good personnel - and shows she can carry the picture. Since she always lent stars great support, it's nice to see Ritter get a good supporting cast.

****** The Model and the Marriage Broker (12/30/51) George Cukor ~ Thelma Ritter, Jeanne Crain, Scott Brady, Zero Mostel

Thelma Ritter was a national treasure. She could combine humor and pathos, and the warmth beneath the crusty exterior was always in evidence. Her presence in any film was always one of the high points, but this one is totally hers; she probably has in it the most screen time of any film she was in and, but for the vagaries of Hollywood, should have been first-billed in the credits. She brings great compassion to the character of Mae, who has endured a great loss and as a result has found herself in a business whose goal is to help others.

Under Cukor's sensitive direction, a wonderful script is brought to life (and, in view of his purported concerns about his physical appearance, one wonders if the script's allusions to the lonely and less-than-beautiful people of the world had a particular resonance for him). Dennie Moore, who had played the saucy maid in Cukor's "Sylvia Scarlett" 16 years earlier, shows up and is again a delight.

"The Model and the Marriage Broker" is a great film find. It has one thing few films have - Thelma Ritter in the lead! In this, she plays a marriage broker trying - and often succeeding - at matching up misfits. When she takes a model's (Jeanne Crain) purse by mistake and vice versa, the two end up in each other's lives, with Ritter dissuading Crain from a relationship with a married man by getting her involved with an eligible bachelor (Scott Brady). Yes, believe it or not - even bald, fat character actor Scott Brady had his palmy days when he was considered a hunk. He was a slightly rougher version of Robert Wagner, in fact, and even had a fan club.

Thelma is fantastic as a woman with a sad past who tries to make the future of others happier. The film is wonderfully directed by George Cukor and written by Charles Brackett. It's one of those dozens of films churned out by the studio back then. Nowadays, when the studios churn them out, they're $20 million flops and not little gems like this one. Jeanne Crain is lovely and the rest of the cast ably supports the leads: Jay C. Flippen, Zero Mostel, Michael O'Shea, Frank Fontaine, Nancy Kulp, and John Alexander. One comment disliked the character played by Brady, but you can't judge men by the standards of today. Like it or don't, the character was pure '50s.

A delightful, heartwarming movie with a marvelous turn by Thelma, who no matter what part she had, was always a star.

Whatever merit THE MODEL AND THE MARRIAGE BROKER has is due entirely to the caustic, funny performance of Thelma Ritter as Mae, the lady with the New York accent who went into the broker business to make other ladies happy (after her own unhappy romantic past).

And it's a good thing Thelma carries the film, with the expert help of a few very good character roles--one in particular being MICHAEL O'SHEA, as a card-playing friend prone to giving her advice. SCOTT BRADY does a nice job as an eligible bachelor who shares some good scenes with Ritter and JEANNE CRAIN.

But Jeanne Crain is the problem. She looks so cool and detached as the unhappy model that it throws the comedy aspects a little off focus. She seems to be walking through her part instead of conveying any real emotion.

Still, a worthwhile little gem strictly because of Thelma Ritter. She's finally got a leading role and she runs away with it.

Nicely directed at a brisk pace by George Cukor.

"The Model and the Marriage Broker" is not at all what I expected. After all, considering it stars Thelma Ritter you'd expect it to be a comedy. However, the film is a bitter-sweet drama about loneliness and it's a radical departure from the usual Ritter roles.

When the film begins, Mae Swasey has a small business hooking up lonely and sad people. This is actually the best part of the film, as there is a scene with spinster Nancy Kulp that is brutally poignant.

Purely by chance, Mae meets a pretty but lonely model, Kitty (Jeanne Crain). She has every reason to be happy--she's beautiful, successful and young. But she's selling herself short--choosing to pin her hopes on a real bum. The nosy Mae decides to help Kitty at no cost...sort of a pet project. What follows is an interesting love story with many interesting points to make about loneliness, marriage and happiness. It also reveals things about Mae that might just surprise you. And, in an odd reversal, there's a bit of matchmaking...for Mae!

Overall, an interesting film and one worth seeing.

The Model and the Marriage Broker was one of those delightful light comedies that Twentieth Century Fox (and Columbia) did so well in the early '50s. It was released here in Australia as a supporting feature. I saw it then and it's never been seen here since then, sadly, so I'm relying on memory. It's hard to imagine anyone else but Thelma Ritter as the matchmaker, Jeanne Crain was gorgeous and suitably aloof as the model, and Scott Brady was just right as the wolf. George Cukor's direction was flawless: handling sensitive issues without becoming mawkish or cruel, and totally un-self-conscious. It ranks equally with his 'The Marrying Kind' and slightly above his 'It Should Happen to You' (aka 'A Name For Herself'), both made with Judy Holliday at Columbia about the same time. I still remember the classic line delivered by Thelma (as only she could) when she tries to persuade a sad-sack male client to take an interest in the plain-Jane character played by Nancy Kulp: "She's a real live-wire - low voltage, but steady."

Thelma Ritter steals the show as marriage broker Mae Swasey, a businesswoman with a good heart, who really wants to see people find the happiness she lost when her husband left her. She gets all kinds of clients, from a shy woman whose family is anxious to marry her off (Nancy Culp, better known as Jane Hathaway from" The Beverly Hillbillies"), to a couple of kids looking for a wife for their widower dad.

Her favorite clients, however, are two people who aren't aware of her schemes in their behalf (at least not professionally): Kitty Bennett (Jeanne Crain), a model who unwittingly got involved with a married man, and Matt Hornbeck (Scott Brady), who had a narrow escape from marrying a girl with an overbearing mother, not knowing their "accidental" meeting had been a setup all along.

Upon discovering her latest schemes, both Matt and Kitty rebel, despite their feelings for each other, and Mae finds the tables turned, as her attempt to get away for a while leads to a clever setup that rivals hew own talents!

I won't say anymore, just that if you're a fan of Thelma's (and who wouldn't be?), you'll really enjoy this one!

George Cukor may well have directed more good movies than anyone else. Not to say that he was the greatest director of all time. Orson Welles was no slouch. Neither was Sam Fuller. But look at the list of movies Cukor directed and you will see an extraordinary oeuvre.

"The Model and the Marriage Broker" is one of the lesser known of his very good movies. It has beautiful shots of New York. The ensemble cast is uniformly superb. The story is appealing, thanks to Charles Brackett. And Thelma Ritter -- the great Thelma Ritter -- gets to play a title character! (She is the marriage broker -- two words and more letters -- rather than the model, of course.) She could light up a movie the same way Shirley Booth could. Some say she stole movies from others. Here that was not necessary, as she is the star. (Her best performance, for me, is still in "Pickup On South Street." But that is a supporting role.) Shirley Booth did so few. She must have been great on the stage. What a shame for posterity that she made only a handful of movies.

Ritter, however, made loads of them. And this is one of her best. It also is one of Cukor's best. Who could say which is his best? Probably there is no single best. I do feel he was generally better with black and white than in his color outings. And I have a particular fondness for "The Marrying Kind." But who knows? The Judy Holiday and Aldo Ray characters might originally have been brought together by the character Ms. Booth plays so beautifully in this story.

Who doesn't love Thelma Ritter? She was maybe the best character actress we ever had, able to both knock back a comic line with flawless timing and make us care. I'd been looking forward to seeing this, her only genuine starring role (though she's third-billed), which also benefits from George Cukor direction and some tasty early-'50s location New York filming. But it's a rather mild affair, and we blame the Charles Brackett screenplay, which doesn't go much of anywhere. Jeanne Crain is the model and Thelma the marriage broker, a disappointed-in-love matron who makes matches among her not particularly attractive clientele and gets involved in one unusual pairing, of Crain and radiologist Scott Brady (in his handsome-leading-man days, which didn't last that long). Thelma has an interesting array of clients, including Nancy Kulp, Zero Mostel, and Frank Fontaine, and also a conniving sister-in-law, Helen Ford, who was a major star in 1920s Broadway musicals, especially those by Rodgers and Hart. She also has a pleasant but dull suitor, Jay C. Flippen, and a simpatico card-playing buddy, Michael O'Shea, who'd been starred by Fox back in the '40s but by now was relegated to supporting roles. It goes by easily and pleasantly, and Thelma, not unexpectedly, makes us both laugh and care. It just added up to less than what I'd expected.

Thelma Ritter, in a rare leading role, is marriage broker Mae Swasey in New York City. The first scene is in her office with a gentleman (Frank Fontaine as a price fixated Swede) and a lady (Nancy Kulp as an overly tall tongue tied 40 year old who is getting on her sister-in-law's last nerve), in separate dilemmas of singlehood being counseled by Mae (Ritter) on how to match up with one of her other clients. I'll tell you this much - no they do not end up together. This scene tells you all you really need to know about Mae to understand most of what goes on during the rest of the film.

But there are questions. For example - How did she get into this business? If she thinks marriage is so important why is she not married? Why does she take such an interest in a random model (Jeanne Craine as Kitty) she has just met, as far as really trying to make sure she doesn't continue going with a married man who intends to break up his home to marry her? They are strangers after all. And who is this older woman whom Mae keeps trying to avoid?

Well, this is not a noir. Instead it is a very sweet romantic comedy about some very lonely homely people, and some that are not so plain but need a little push to overcome some preconceived notions. Thelma Ritter is something you don't see much of in modern films. She was 47 in her first credited film role, but you couldn't help but love her to death with her earthy wit and one liners.

How have things changed? In 1951 people still expected to meet a significant other in person or through friends. It was considered a bit of a scandal to have to pay somebody to find someone for you. Today matters are reversed. Everyone is expected to use dating apps, and don't you dare say something to somebody on the street. They could be wanted by the FBI!. Another minor matter was that TVs were so new people would become hypnotized by the tiny screens. Also, refrigerators were not so tall you needed to live in a cathedral to make one fit.

I'd just recommend this one, particularly since Valentine's day is coming up. It is a romantic feel good film that is not exactly packed with pretty faces. The casting call must have been interesting.

Although Jeanne Crain gets star billing in this comedy/drama, and even Scott Brady as the X-Ray guy gets billing over Thelma Ritter, this is Ritter's film from the get-go.

She plays Mae Swasey, a no-nonsense marriage broker with a heart of gold. She makes a small living helping life's lonely plain-janes and balding swains find a little happiness. And some of her clients are real doozies. She holds little Sunday afternoon "parties" where the lonely and desperate come together over coffee and cakes and get nudged into pairs.

Of course Mae has a secret of her own: she's in the business because her husband was stolen away 20 years before and she knows loneliness. When she accidentally runs across a naive model (Crain) being strung along by a married man, she knows the score.

So Mae manipulates the model and a struggling X-Ray guy who makes only $75 a week in New York City into some sort of relationship. But they get resentful and send Mae packing. The trouble is that while these glamorous types might not need her help (but they do), many others really do.

Crain learns this after Mae closes shop and goes off to a resort for a rest. Crain meets a few of Mae's customers who can't make a move without her compassion and sage advice. Crain catches on and does a little manipulating of her own.

Thelma Ritter is sensational as Mae. She funny and down to earth and can spit a cherry pit across a room with the best of them. Jeanne Crain is good as the model, and Scott Brady does well as a X-Ray guy. Excellent supporting cast includes Zero Mostel, Nancy Kulp (in her film debut), Dennie Moore, Frank Fontaine, Helen Ford, Michael O'Shea, Allison Daniell as Mae's secretary, Maudie Prickett, Frank Ferguson, JOhn Alexander, Jay C. Flippen, Mae Marsh, Kathryn Card, and Joyce Mackenzie.

They don't make films like this anymore. More's the pity.

I love Thelma Ritter and I was thrilled to finally see her in a film where she was the main character. I am so used to her being a rough but sympathetic character in a film noir or Doris Day's anything but sober housekeeper...this was a wonderful revelation. Thelma Ritter's character Mae Swasey is a sympathetic if not melancholic individual who helps the lovelorn find a love connection for a small $500 commission. She meets the lovely clothing model Kitty Bennett, played by Jeanne Crain (who gets top billing in this film), by accident and takes it upon herself to speak up about a letter she reads when their purses are accidentally swapped.

"When people want to alibi their bad manners, I notice they always bring up their age."-Kitty

You see Kitty is on the cusp of potentially breaking up a marriage. Mae feels strongly enough to speak up and try and give Kitty some hard earned advice...and even goes out in the pouring rain to get rid of the married man to give Kitty extra time to think it over.

"This way you haven't got another woman's unhappiness on your conscience."-Mae

This is a wonderful George Cukor classic that I highly recommend. It deals with human nature, the need for a connection and not facing some of the challenges or realities of that basic human need. Jeanne Crain Is beautiful and may have received top billing...but this film is all about Thelma Ritter's character Mae. You can definitely say that she steals this show. I loved the character of Doberman played by Michael O'Shea and I was really pleased that he could provide a much needed happy ending for one of our characters. I enjoyed the twist provided where you think that Mae has been in Kitty's shoes...which is cleared up when an Emmy Swasey appears. It was fun to see some different professions optometry, x-ray tech, matchmaker, secretary, clothing model, etc. And I really appreciated some of the different sets used from a wedding venue, to an office building, to a bowling alley, to a private residence...it gave the film some added depth. Some of the smaller interactions like those between Mae and the office secretary were some of my favorite scenes...especially since they tie back in to the story.

This is on my recommendation list. I think if you enjoy classic films this is a rather nice (if melancholy) look at a basic human need and if you are a romantic you might also appreciate this film. For sure it is a must see for both Thelma Ritter and George Cukor fans.

I found Thelma Ritter by accident watching a 1954 film Rear Window, an Alfred Hitchcock film with Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly. Thelma is first class in my book. She is a breath of fresh air. Love this movie !

This film is a hidden gem, rarely shown for some reason. Thelma Ritter excels in everything she does. The supporting cast is excellent too. This is a dark comedy which focuses on single men and women who aren't blessed with good looks. Ritter tries to match them up (for money of course) . Some of these planned unions are successful, some not. A few of the stories have heartbreaking consequences. Look for the amazing Nancy Culp in one of her earliest roles.

The movie's a showcase for Ritter's brand of cranky charm. She's a marriage broker, pairing up lonely people, and dispensing step-motherly advice. There's a parade of familiar supporting characters. Too bad they don't get more screen time, especially the poignant Nancy Kulp and the fast-talking Michael O'Shea. The film's too smooth to be genuinely funny. Still, there're amusing moments, occasional caustic charm, but the underlying theme of lonely people may be a reason director Cukor doesn't go for big laughs. I agree with the reviewer who thinks Crain too cool and detached to get into the swim. On the other hand, Brady surprised with a somewhat animated performance, unlike his usual stolid screen presence.

This is also a movie that really needs Technicolor. Instead the dull grays do nothing to underscore a lighter mood or heighten New York City locations. Anyway, Ritter certainly deserves top billing, which instead went to the better-known Crain who doesn't get much screen time until the last third. Plus, it's to someone's credit that a middle-age woman gets so much attention in a medium not known for the aging or plain-faced. Overall, it's an amiable film with an unusual central performance, a poignant topic, but also with an over-stretched script, likely to accommodate movie star Crain.

Thelma Ritter stars as the titular marriage broker, a no-nonsense yet sensitive woman who helps plain Janes and shy fellows find love. When she meets the titular model, Jeanne Craine, on the brink of a romantic disaster, she can't help but give her a nudge in the right direction. They accidentally swap purses, and Thelma finds a love letter written from Jeanne's married lover. Thelma uses compassion, wisdom, and common sense to try and persuade Jeanne to leave him. "I know all about those characters that go around telling a girl, 'You know what I am? I'm a heel.' You know what they are? Heels." There are some sadder moments in this movie, but most of it is extremely comical and charming. When Thelma helps the lonelyhearts, it's often very funny and true to life. One woman lies about her age, and when she finally reveals the real number, Thelma quips that she'd already written that number down on her registration form. Another client has trouble holding onto a girlfriend, so Thelma has to tell him exactly what to do at all times. She's truly a wonderful woman who, despite her own single status, puts her heart and soul into helping others find love. Sure, she gets a commission whenever there's a wedding, but she continually goes above and beyond the call of duty even when money's not involved. She hosts a Sunday meet-and-greet at her house every week, bakes treats, supplies a warm fire and entertainment, hoping the folks who are shy or unattractive can find someone who sees beneath all that.

For me, the only flies in the ointment are the ending (about which I'm very forgiving) and the romance between Jeanne and Scott Brady. Scott is a former client who jilted his fiancé at the altar because he wasn't ready for a commitment. Within days, Thelma has set him up with Jeanne; they're both clearly rebounding, and Scott rushes Jeanne into the bedroom so quickly, it's hard to see a difference between him and her married fellow. But the rest of the movie is such a gem, it's easy to overlook those little flaws. It has a wonderful message, adorable music, and a very sweet character beautifully portrayed by Thelma Ritter. Plus, as a bonus, western character actor Jay C. Flippen gets to put on a new hat as a Romeo! This delightful, heartwarming comedy inspires love and kindness, and shows there's a little marriage broker in all of us.

If you've got Thelma Ritter in the cast you really don't need much more. This is a cute movie but without Thelma in one of the leads it would be nothing worth seeking out.

She is funny and tender, wryly mischievous and always wonderful. As for the rest of the cast Jeanne Crain is lovely, although the 50's hairstyle does her no favors, and less brittle than usual. Scott Brady is handsome but doesn't really register strongly, he was always a better character actor than leading man. Speaking of character actors the supporting cast is chockful of some great ones. Nancy Kulp, Miss Jane herself, has a small role that pre shadows that part. Jay C. Flippen, Zero Mostel and Michael O'Shea are the most recognizable of them but all the actors and actresses give terrific performances.

Smooth direction by Cukor, a nice pace and highlighted by yet another classic Thelma Ritter performance this is a fine diversion.

Manhattan marriage broker Mae Swasey (Thelma Ritter) has to direct her various romantically-challenged clients throught their courtships with whatever means necessary. She accidentally switches purses with stylish model Kitty Bennett (Jeanne Crain). She decides to meddle in Kitty's love affair with a married man. Meanwhile, she is secretly setting up Matt Hornbeck (Scott Brady) to marry a client.

I love Thelma Ritter. I love all her clients. I love the beautiful couple. Most of all, I love Mae's budding friendship with Kitty. This is a movie of relationships. I love them all. This is very endearing.

Great to see Thelma Ritter, the eternal supporting player (i.e. A record 6 Oscar nominations and, shamefully, no wins) finally get to carry a picture all on her own. No coincidence that it was helmed by the greatest of Hollywood's director of gals, George Cukor, who, as usual, concocts a properly amusing, airy, stylish souffle, with a few dark nuggets of loneliness embedded in the mix for effective contrast.

Whenever Ritter is onscreen, dispensing a nice array of zingers and bon mots and employing her unique ability to move between sassy and sad and back to sassy, often in the same scene, the film is on good, bittersweet comic ground. When, on the other hand, Ritter yields screen time to Jeanne Crain and Scott Brady, neither of whom can do comedy, the film loses interest. Fortunately, Ritter is present about eighty per cent of the time. She is ably supported by a good cast of comic actors such as Nancy Kulp (the future exasperated secretary of "Bev. Hillbillies"), Zero Mostel, Michael O'Shea and Helen Ford. The scene when Ritter's clients are assembled in her apartment for a lonely hearts party is the best in the film and anticipates Danny Rose's Thanksgiving dinner by thirty three years. Give it a B.

This movie was made around the time I was born. And I can remember, when I was a kid, the social pressure on everyone to find a spouse. This film reminded me of that old culture. Thelma Ritter's character is a "marriage broker," and her office is filled with desperately lonely people - both women and men - who seem to recognize that they need a spouse but don't know how to find one. When Ritter's character has a bit of a breakdown, she retreats to what almost seems like an asylum for single lonely people. The whole atmosphere gave this genuinely funny and entertaining movie an overall aura of sadness. I'm so glad that, as I grew up, I saw things change so that marriage is no longer a strong cultural imperative. Anyway, Thelma Ritter is great as the marriage broker, as is Jeanne Crain as the model. Nice surprise appearances from young-and-unknowns like Zero Mostel, Nancy Culp (Miss Hathaway from The Beverly Hillbillies), and Frank Fontaine (famous for a year or two as Crazy Guggenheim on Jackie Gleason's TV show). Definitely worth watching.

Thelma Ritter, the consummate & the greatest of character actresses, is front & center in this Hello Dolly-esque tale of a marriage fixer & her clientele from 1951. Ritter runs her office humorously from the Flat Iron building in New York where a bevy of prospective clients come to & fro. Chief among them is the titular model, Jeanne Crain, who she meets during a mix up w/their purses & a X-ray technician, Scott Brady. In Crain's purse was a letter from her current beau, who's married, & Ritter figures from experience her continued relationship w/the man is a dead end while Brady, who was ready to tie the knot from a previous hook-up decides to ditch his prospective beloved at the altar figuring the single life is a better but Ritter is nonplussed & sees the opportunity to hook them up during her usual Sunday meet up at her place, a rainy Sunday to boot. What follows are the ups & downs of Ritter's business, which comes into focus when her own sister, Helen Ford, comes into town, who 20 years prior had stolen her husband, detailing the path Ritter has gone down on. Ritter, who lets her emotions run across her face silently from scene to scene is like a champion acting teacher showing us how it's done w/line deliveries giving banal dialogue importance as if she was delivering Shakespeare w/bits of business (a wrist flick, a simple side glance) which shows us why she deserved the praise she received. Director George Cukor (The Women/A Star is Born) wisely lets Ritter be the focus of the tale acting like a symphony conductor as she puts her instruments through its paces. Also starring Zero Mostel & Jay C. Flippen as potential suitors in Ritter's pool.