On the Waterfront (1954)
“I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody. . .” It’s endlessly quotable, and there are also two stories behind the famous scene in On the Waterfront. The first is obvious: “they” forgot to project a screen video behind the car and instead randomly stuck window blinds behind the window. It’s silly, and once you notice it, it’s impossible to un-notice it. The second is a story oft-repeated by Rod Steiger: he shared in interviews that Marlon Brando hurt his feelings by leaving the set after his closeups were done, as Rod had to film his closeups on his own. Everyone’s heart went out to Rod; however, when you hear the other side of the story, your loyalties will undoubtedly shift. Marlon’s mother died during filming On the Waterfront, and he left the set early every day for therapy.
The casting of this gritty classic was difficult, since it was originally written for John Garfield. John would have been perfect for the part, but since he died, someone else had to fill his shoes. Ironically, the man who filled in for A Streetcar Named Desire, another story originally intended for John Garfield, filled in for this movie. Frank Sinatra lobbied heavily for the part, fresh off his Oscar for From Here to Eternity, because the story touched him personally. As a kid from Hoboken (where On the Waterfront was set), he intimately knew the tough characters and crooked situations present in the screenplay. As the story goes, Frankie was promised the part as a bargaining chip to get Marlon Brando interested, and since he was only given a verbal promise, the studio wasn’t held accountable for breaking it. Adding insult to injury, Frankie signed on to play “the lead” in Guys and Dolls the following year, only to find out later that Marlon had achieved the specific name of Sky Masterson in his contract, bumping Frankie down to play second fiddle.
Some movies are just full of more interesting stories behind the screen than in front of it. To me, learning all the stories behind On the Waterfront was far more entertaining than the film itself. It’s a bleak, grisly drama where no one can get ahead and success at the end of the day means not getting stabbed, beaten, or pushed off a tall building. But in the midst of it, there’s a priest who smokes cigarettes and has a perpetual twinkle in his eye, and a hope that a boy from the wrong side of the tracks might find love with a girl from the slightly-better-side of the tracks.
There are some good moments in the film, although I’m usually the first to dismiss it. My favorite scene is when Marlon Brando takes Eva Marie Saint out on their first date. He tries to make a good impression even though he thinks it’s only a matter of time before she realizes she’s too good for him. The iconic music is also symbolic of the protagonist taking a stand alone against the bad guys.
But all in all, I find it overrated. Karl Malden seems to be constantly winking at the camera, telling audiences, “I may be a man of the cloth, but I’m just as tough as all these punks here,” and it’s extremely unrealistic. Eva Marie’s talent is nonexistent, and when she tries to put emotion into the scenes where she mourns her brother’s death, it makes you cringe that those were the takes Elia Kazan kept. Lee J. Cobb is sufficiently menacing, but Rod Steiger, for all his complaining, isn’t given anything to do. Marlon doesn’t put as much into his character as he could have, or maybe as someone else could have. There are moments when he could have injected pain, disappointment, or deep hopelessness, but instead he seemed to be staring off into space. I’m always inclined to cut a person slack when he’s in the midst of a personal crisis off the screen, but I don’t think he should win an Oscar for it.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "The Projection Room" for posting!
More Martin Balsam movies here!
More Marlon Brando movies here!
More Lee J. Cobb movies here!
The casting of this gritty classic was difficult, since it was originally written for John Garfield. John would have been perfect for the part, but since he died, someone else had to fill his shoes. Ironically, the man who filled in for A Streetcar Named Desire, another story originally intended for John Garfield, filled in for this movie. Frank Sinatra lobbied heavily for the part, fresh off his Oscar for From Here to Eternity, because the story touched him personally. As a kid from Hoboken (where On the Waterfront was set), he intimately knew the tough characters and crooked situations present in the screenplay. As the story goes, Frankie was promised the part as a bargaining chip to get Marlon Brando interested, and since he was only given a verbal promise, the studio wasn’t held accountable for breaking it. Adding insult to injury, Frankie signed on to play “the lead” in Guys and Dolls the following year, only to find out later that Marlon had achieved the specific name of Sky Masterson in his contract, bumping Frankie down to play second fiddle.
Some movies are just full of more interesting stories behind the screen than in front of it. To me, learning all the stories behind On the Waterfront was far more entertaining than the film itself. It’s a bleak, grisly drama where no one can get ahead and success at the end of the day means not getting stabbed, beaten, or pushed off a tall building. But in the midst of it, there’s a priest who smokes cigarettes and has a perpetual twinkle in his eye, and a hope that a boy from the wrong side of the tracks might find love with a girl from the slightly-better-side of the tracks.
There are some good moments in the film, although I’m usually the first to dismiss it. My favorite scene is when Marlon Brando takes Eva Marie Saint out on their first date. He tries to make a good impression even though he thinks it’s only a matter of time before she realizes she’s too good for him. The iconic music is also symbolic of the protagonist taking a stand alone against the bad guys.
But all in all, I find it overrated. Karl Malden seems to be constantly winking at the camera, telling audiences, “I may be a man of the cloth, but I’m just as tough as all these punks here,” and it’s extremely unrealistic. Eva Marie’s talent is nonexistent, and when she tries to put emotion into the scenes where she mourns her brother’s death, it makes you cringe that those were the takes Elia Kazan kept. Lee J. Cobb is sufficiently menacing, but Rod Steiger, for all his complaining, isn’t given anything to do. Marlon doesn’t put as much into his character as he could have, or maybe as someone else could have. There are moments when he could have injected pain, disappointment, or deep hopelessness, but instead he seemed to be staring off into space. I’m always inclined to cut a person slack when he’s in the midst of a personal crisis off the screen, but I don’t think he should win an Oscar for it.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "The Projection Room" for posting!
More Martin Balsam movies here!
More Marlon Brando movies here!
More Lee J. Cobb movies here!