On The Waterfront

"I could've been a contender..."  I about fell over when I heard this! I held off watching this movie but after having a great experience watching Casablanca, I couldn't wait to watch this film. I played it over twice because I never knew which movie this dialogue came from and was so happy that I "got it"... On The Waterfront! 

What a classic!  This movie has all the elements of a classic with the drama, action, romance, the underdog and the all around satisfaction at the end of the movie feeling like justice prevailed.  The only difficult part viewing the movie was my fascination with Marlon Brando's face.  I had to stop and go back to listen to the lines because I was so intrigued with Brando's face and his performance.  His non-verbal cues, his mannerisms were fantastic to watch.  It was as though I should have watched the movie muted first so that I could concentrate more on the dialogue.

I like watching actors first films like Eva Marie Saint in this film.  Her performance in North by Northwest is a favorite because I love suspense movies.  She was also in 2006 Superman Returns.  I had to watch this one after On The Waterfront just to see her again.  To see her age in movies and how aged actors' performances are so fluid is amazing and demonstrates their years of work and talent. She is a beautiful and talented actress. 

The movie was infused with talent from the writer/director, the main actor and actress and the supporting cast.  On the recommendation from my instructor, I took the time to learn just a bit about the director.  It is obvious in the movie that the performances and the direction of the film was personal to the director.  It was also new knowledge to me that this director, Elia Kazan directed the stage and film version of A Streetcar Named Desire.

The famous quoted lines from this movie again gave me better appreciation to the other performers who used this reference.  An analogy is like laughing at at joke without understanding the joke.  It is hard to fake or force an expression without fully understanding why you are supposed to laugh. 

This movie gave me the same feeling as the Rocky films which is similar in many aspects. The Rocky films are not a sports film about boxing but the life struggles of a guy and a love story.  It is a great example of an underdog movie that makes you want to get off your couch when you are done watching to hit a slab a beef. Stallone wrote the film and made the first Rocky for under a million dollars and in less than thirty days.  He wrote the Rocky series from his personal battles and both movies give the viewer a sense of victory.  On The Waterfront is a motivating film of good versus evil and that the good guy can come out on top if you stand up for your beliefs... and in both of these films the guy gets the girl!