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On the WaterfrontRating: 5 - You ratted on us Elia ! ... er, Terry. In the early Fifties, Elia Kazan was a friendly witness before HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee) which was investigating the activity of communists in the motion picture industry. Kazan named names. To this day, people have not forgiven him --- hence the protests in 1999 when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences elected to give him a Lifetime Achievement Award. People were still accusing him, literally, of being a 'rat'. In the Fifties he took a lot of heat as well and 'On the Waterfront' was his apologia. What does Terry Malloy do -- stay loyal to Johnny Friendly who had the saintly Joey Doyle murdered? Or does he follow his conscience and tell the Crime Commission of what he knows about Friendly and his mob? Does he remain 'deaf and dumb' or does he 'rat'? Even when Terry turns government witness against the bad guys, he is spurned by the stevedores for being a 'rat'. Marlon Brando gives the best performance of his storied career as Terry Malloy, the washed up boxer who could have been 'another Billy Conn'. Lee J. Cobb also tuns in his best film performance as the (in Bosley Crowther's phrase) 'brassy' Johnny Friendly. The music score by Leonard Bernstein is absolutely beautiful. I've seen the film dozens of times; individual scenes are still dazzling to watch. A superior film in every way! Rating: 5 - The quintessential Brando performance... Marlon Brando's performance alone justifies watching this movie. Without mentioning any of On the Waterfront's other merits, it could be given 5 stars simply because of his brilliant interpretation of his role as Terry Malloy, the confused and inarticulate former prize-fighter. In addition to Brando's performance, On the Waterfront features great performances from the other actors, a compelling and realitic situation, and some really moving scenes and speeches. In On the Waterfront, Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) moves from an apathetic, cynical bum to a fighter who stands up for what he believes in. At first, in order to get work, Malloy cooperates with the corrupt union (it really is more like a gang) that runs things in the waterfront area. Although the union has murdered several people, the police cannot break it up because nobody has the courage to stand up and testify against it. But by the end, through the guidance of a passionate priest and the beautiful, idealistic daughter of his murdered friend (Eva Marie Saint, who gives an excellent, Oscar winning performance in her first movie), Malloy finds the courage to testify against the union's boss, Johnny Friendly. Admittedly, the film does have its faults - the soundtrack, for instance, is overdone, and sometimes the director, Elia Kazan, gives the impression that he is trying to make certain scenes very deep (which strangely enough takes away from them). Overall, however, On the Waterfront is a great film - a classic in the true meaning of the word. Again, it is worth seeing for Brando's performance alone!
On the Waterfront |
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