On the Waterfront

BFI Film Classics

by Leo Braudy

"I could have been a contender, I could have been somebody." So speaks the haunted former boxer Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) to his brother Charley (Rod Steiger) in a scene from On the Waterfront (Elia Kazan, 1954) that is one of the most famous in all cinema. Set among unionised New York longshoremen, Kazan's film (from a screenplay by Budd Schulberg) recounts Terry's struggle against corruption and his ultimate, hard-won victory. The marvellous performances of Brando, Steiger and Eva Marie Saint (as well as Karl Malden and Lee J. Cobb), Boris Kaufman's photography and Leonard Bernstein's score all justify the film's fame. But On the Waterfront is also notorious, regarded by many as an attempt at justifying the decision on the part of Kazan (and Schulberg) to name names before the House UnAmerican Activities Committee. That controversial decision is still incendiary today (as was evidenced in the furore that surrounded Kazan's Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement in 1999). With Kazan's death in 2003 and Brando's in 2004, a reappraisalof On the Waterfront is timely and necessary. In this definitive study, Leo Braudy tells the complicated story of the film's production. He revisits the facts behind the controversy of Kazan's testimony but, above all, he analyses the elements which contribute to the enduring appeal of On the Waterfront: the Method-inspired acting, the music and cinematography, the use of authentic locations and its powerfully symbolic depiction of post-war American values.

Genres: Film

80 pages, Paperback

First published April 30, 2005

About the author

Leo Braudy is among America's leading cultural historians and film critics. He currently is University Professor and Leo S. Bing Chair in English and American Literature at the University of Southern California. He lives in Los Angeles.

Reviews

[Tom Stamper · Rating 3 out of 5]

Braudy believes the HUAC comparisons are a bit overstated and he doesn't much like the ending that tries to be upbeat although important things are unresolved. Steiger didn't much like Kazan for testifying before HUAC, but he took the part. There is a lot of good analysis on Brando's choices and specifically the scene where he picks up Eva Marie Saint's glove. I didn't know that Budd Schulberg's novelization is about Karl Malden's priest and he comes off less saintly in that book. Braudy finds him a dubious sort of character in the movie too, a guy who stirs up trouble and doesn't mind who gets hurt. Brandon won the Oscar for this one and went ahead and took it although I heard he would later discard it. Having always thought of Eva Marie Saint as the icy blonde from North by Northwest, I am surprised on every viewing of this movie that she has such an earthy presence. Personally I find Brando more interesting here than in Streetcar. This would be my favorite Brando movie if not for the Godfather.

[Tom Romig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leo Braudy's intelligent, lively account reflects his lifelong study and appreciation of my favorite film. Replete with nearly 90 crisp stills from the movie, the work provides background on the Jersey longshoremen's plight of the time, casting issues, Budd Shulberg's and Elia Kazan's HUAC testimony, the arduous development of the screenplay, the Hoboken locations used in the film, Fr. John Corridan (model for Karl Malden's Fr. Barry), and much more.

All the pivotal scenes are considered in detail, as are the characters and the actors who portrayed them. Of special interest is the tension between Shulberg's emphasis on the social problem theme and Kazan's attention to character, a tension that energizes the film itself. Subtleties of directing are considered throughout, with such observations as this helping the reader come to a fuller understanding of the film: "[Kazan] was closer to Stella Adler's view of Stanislavsky, in which actions precede emotions, than to Lee Strasberg's, in which emotions precede actions."

The discussion of the character of Terry and Brando's nuanced portrayal brings into focus one of the contradictions in the film. Terry manages to escape manipulation by Johnny Friendly only to succumb to manipulation by Fr. Barry. The movie ends in ambiguity: has Terry really become his own man, what are the chances he and Edie will be able to sustain a relationship, have the dock workers really broken the chains of the mobsters or are even more powerful figures behind Johnny Friendly still in control?

Braudy's informed and enthusiastic analysis promises a richer, deeper enjoyment of this preeminent film.

[Orin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rather excellent essay on the film and the context of the times. Braudy delves deeply into the issues of the times, all that HUAC/McCarthy stuff, as well as the choices of the filmmaker and the business of making a movie. I watched the film twice last night, once raw, once with the commentary tracks. Both were good.

[Lindsay Diggs]

This came out on my birthday (the book. and by birthday, i mean April 30. not the year
It's a sign