The greatness of the film comes from the film making it
clear that something needs to be done about the corruption on the waterfront,
but also making action against the mafia seem insurmountable. This story should seem contrived and done to death (as should the romance of the film), but it's the way director Elia Kazan and the performers handle the material that elevates it.
The film is about
choices and crises of conscience. The film opens with Marlon Brando making a decision that he quickly
regrets and that leads to the death of an innocent man, the brother of his romantic interest Edie (Eva Marie Saint). He didn’t want that; he
deceived himself into believing the guy would only get roughed up. The whole
lot of longshoremen have done this same sort of self-deception,
turning a blind eye to the illegal activity of Johnny (Lee J. Cobb) and his goons.
No one wants to take a stand. Deep down they know they
probably ought to, that they can’t keep on like this much longer. Their wages
have slowly gotten cutback as have their hours. And these are all working
class people who can only take this for so much longer. However, they don’t say
anything because they know there’s not much work for them elsewhere. Why
shakeup the status quo when it could mean you can’t provide for your family, or worse get killed.
Brando is one of these guys. He doesn’t want to call the
wrath of the mob down upon him. His brother Charley (Rod Steiger) is the right hand man in the
mob and Brando’s become ensnared in their web, forced to do odd jobs for them. But
deep down he knows it just isn’t right. Brando had a chance to get out of this
working class life; in the film’s most famous scene, he tells his brother
Charlie that “I coulda of had class; I coulda been a contender. Instead of a
bum which is what I am lets face it”. It's every bit as powerful to deserve the cultural lexiconical nature it's reached. His brother kept making him take the fall
and his boxing dreams were squashed, and it's Brando at his best.
Brando brings deep humanism to the role of Terry Malloy. He’s a sensitive
soul underneath all that outward machoness. We sympathize with this guy. He’s a
product of circumstances. Finally he can’t take it any longer. Inspired by
Father Barry (Karl Malden) and Edie, it dawns on him that if he doesn’t do something about it, no one
will and the mob’s grasp will continue over the union, strangle-holding the
workers.
The film is filled with such a sense of place. Boris Kaufman's cinematography
evokes a sense of loss and longing. It’s constantly contrasting shadows and
lights, perhaps suggesting how caught up in this hanging, seemingly inescapable
darkness Terry is. This sense of place is also helped along by some
tremendously sympathetic and realistic depictions of the working class as well
as the church. Through Father Barry, the film paints a well-observed picture of
Catholicism. The religion is never an overt element of the film but rather just
a part of this world it’s engrossing us in (it would be a less honest a portrayal if
we got no glimpses of the church which plays such a large role in these people’s
lives).
Terry’s relationship with Edie is also nicely handled. The film
makes this a romantic plot but one that fits into the larger story of Terry’s
development. Before he can take on Johnny, he has to be honest with her and
potentially ruin the one good thing he’s made of his life in ages. The scene
where he tells about his role in her brother’s death is a powerful scene that’s
told almost hauntingly wordlessly.
On the Waterfront is
a tremendous film with a powerful story, commanding visuals, and excellent
performances.
Grade: A
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