Robert Anderson's adaptation of his own legiter keeps the essentials in proper focus.

The film's details -- indeed, its very timidity -- still ensure fascinating viewing.

Surprising as it may seem, in the light of the screen's Production Code, which generally compels evasion of the more delicate sexual subjects in American films... Tea and Sympathy has been given a strong and sensitive screen rendering.

For the most part, [Minnelli's] touch is delicate and contemplative; it is to his credit that the full integrity of the acting endures, and that not all of the themes that might have made the filming of Tea and Sympathy prohibitive have been sacrificed.