Saturday, February 20, 2010

#53 On The Waterfront - Marlon Brando didn't always sound like he had cotton balls in his mouth

1954. dir. Elia Kazan, starring Marlon Brando, Lee J. Cobb, Eva Marie Saint, Karl Malden.

Seen it before? No.

There seems to be a trend in the older movies we've been watching. There is always ONE woman who is intentionally there as a love interest (Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Rashomon, The Lady Vanishes, Singin' in the Rain, etc.) otherwise there would be just men in the movie (12 Angry Men). Sam's The Wire comparisons are hilarious because there is some truth to them. It's also like what I have been writing in previous posts...there's something eerie about the past being similar to the present in that clearly we're not getting any more creative with our story lines and essentially that we're not evolving into better human beings and creating better situations for ourselves. People are still greedy. People who ask too many questions still get killed. People who want out get hunted.

Marlon Brando is terrific. Seeing him this young and vital is refreshing compared to watching him as the leader of a strong mob family. It's kind of like watching him before he gets a promotion. I liked the conflict about being brothers and being safe. Where do your allegiances lie? Where can they lie without anyone getting hurt? Eva Marie Saint is great. The woman character/love interest always seems to be strong. I guess she would have to be to deal with what she has to deal with!

Would I see it again? Yes
Would I own it? Eh

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