Doris Roberts made interfering mothers funny without denying how exhausting they could be. We rate the timing and the warmth, though her smaller film parts deserve attention beyond the television role that came to define her.
Fi1m perspective
Marie Barone makes interference seem an ordinary part of caring for somebody. In Everybody Loves Raymond (1996–2005), Doris Roberts keeps the affection apparent even when the intrusion is hard to bear. Her timing makes the bluntness funny, and the warmth keeps the character recognisable. We admire the way she allows a loving mother to remain such difficult company.
Her earlier film parts offer a quieter way into the work. In Elaine May's A New Leaf (1971), she plays Mrs. Traggert, with May and Walter Matthau providing the unlikely romantic pairing. The pacing slackens in places, but May's attention to Henrietta keeps the comedy from becoming a prolonged exercise in cruelty. We were moved more than we expected, because the film takes that care over Henrietta. Roberts has a supporting place here, in a comedy we recommend for its tenderness as much as its humour.
May's The Heartbreak Kid (1972) casts her as Mrs. Cantrow, again as part of the supporting company. Charles Grodin and Jeannie Berlin do the hardest work, and the uncomfortable early comedy proves difficult to sustain. We prefer A New Leaf, though both films reward an evening spent watching people behave badly. Neither gives the fullest account of Roberts's abilities, but they matter as examples of the ensemble work that preceded her television prominence. There is pleasure in finding a familiar actor in a film that does not revolve around her.
Hester Street (1975), with Roberts as the wise neighbour Mrs. Kavarsky, is another useful place to look beyond the overbearing mother. Wider television recognition came through Angie and Remington Steele before Everybody Loves Raymond gave her the part for which she is best known. Alongside Peter Boyle, Ray Romano and Patricia Heaton, she had a regular part that made full use of her mixture of love and interference. It also made that sort of character liable to stand for the whole actor.
Repeated maternal casting can make the work seem narrower than it is, and the scolding risks becoming wearying when the humour or warmth weakens. Roberts is worth watching for how carefully she manages that risk. Start with A New Leaf for the film; spend longer with Marie Barone for Roberts herself.
Biography
Doris Roberts was an American actress whose career in film, television and theatre spanned seven decades. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, she studied at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York and began working in television in 1948 and on Broadway in the 1950s.
She appeared in numerous films, including The Heartbreak Kid (1972) as Mrs. Cantrow, The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) and Hester Street (1975). On television she played Mildred Krebs in Remington Steele (1983–1987) and is best known for the role of Marie Barone in Everybody Loves Raymond (1996–2005). Roberts received five Primetime Emmy Awards.
