On the Waterfront

¶ … Waterfront Timeless Elia Kazan's 1954 "On the Waterfront" is a mixture of crime-romance with hero-drama. Marlon Brando is cast as the protagonist, with Rod Steiger as his brother, Lee J. Cobb as the union mob boss, Karl Malden as the local priest, and Eva Marie Saint as Brando's love interest. In essence, Kazan directed a simple story of good against evil, moral values against corruption, and what it means to sacrifice oneself for the good of others.

However, Kazan's direction turned this simple message into an incredibly powerful film that will never age. Kazan assembles a brilliant cast of characters. Brando plays Terry Malloy, an ex-prize fighter and longshoreman who has taken falls in the past, especially during his boxing career, to satisfy his older brother Charlie, played by Steiger, who works for union mob boss Johnny Friendly, portrayed by Cobb. Terry is a simple guy who does what he is told without asking too many questions.

When Terry unintentionally sets up Joey Doyle to be killed by Friendly's goons, he begins to question himself, especially when he meets Joey's sister, Edie, play by Eva Marie Saint. She's a good Catholic girl who is attracted to Terry and believes him to be honest and forthright. She sees through Terry's tough-guy image to his softer side that cares for his pigeons on the rooftop. She enlists the help of Father Barry, played by Malden, to help find who is responsible for her brother's death.

The two discover that Friendly goons have taken over the longshoreman's union and that Joey was killed because he had talked to the authorities. They try to organize the longshoreman to rebel, however, Friendly lets it be known that anyone who speaks out will suffer the consequences. Father Barry and Edie prey on Terry's conscious, encouraging him to do the right thing by testifying against Friendly. When Charlie is killed, Terry's courage and conviction is tested to the limit of endurance. The characters are brilliantly woven together.

Although the theme of the movie is universal, good against evil, Kazan brings it to modern day life by telling it through contemporary situations between the longshoreman unions and organized crime. By filming in black and white on location, with the waterfront docks as a background, Kazan gives the story authentic life. It may be an old theme, but Kazan brings new life. There were several scenes that Kazan's direction made powerful and memorable.

To show just how Friendly ran the docks and how this effected the men, Kazan shot a scene in which one of Friendly's goons throws tokens up in the air and watches the men scramble for them. A man had to be picked, had to have a token to work on the docks. This scene shows the desperateness of the men and how Friendly operation controlled their livelihoods. Kazan used the roof scenes with Terry and his pigeons to give a glimpse into his character, the real Terry.

The taxi cab scene with Terry and Charlie shows the intimacy between the two brothers as Charlie breaks down upon hearing Terry's confrontation that Charlie was responsible for ending his fighting career. Kazan used the ship's horn to block Terry's confession to Edie, allowing the audience to only hear bits and pieces, however, the look on her face lets the audience know that he has told her the truth.

Kazan could have used complicated dialogue to convey the message of these scenes, however, he instead, shot them simple and uncomplicated, thus adding more power to each scene, the less said the better. The main characters are sympathetic. Edie appears the strongest in the beginning, she knows right from.