On the Waterfront

Pros: Marlon Brando's excellent performance
Cons: none

The backdrop for this classic movie is the world of New Jersey longshoremen’s docks, stronghold of corrupt unions and organized crime. The main character is Terry Malloy, a former boxer and errand boy for the local union boss, Johnny Friendly. Terry is...

Pros: Great perfs from the Actors Studio alum with equally perfect direction from Kazan
Cons: sometimes... a little staged to showcase the acting

On The Waterfront in this newly re-mastered print on this DVD is exceptional as a slice of historical material that is a towering performance platform. Marlon Brando, Eve Marie Saint, Karl Malden, and also director Elia Kazan all shine here. The ...

Pros: Uniformly excellent acting, tight script, authenticity, technical aspects
Cons: Nothing really, although the messages are controversial

Looking back at the 1950s, I have noticed that this is the time when many of film's greatest classics were made. Films like All About Eve, Singin' In The Rain and High Noon were made at the beginning of the decade, while the decade...

Pros: Brando, Eva St. Marie, Lee J. Cobb , Rod Steiger, performances and directing
Cons: Not a "pretty" movie by a long shot, and too real to be fun entertainment

This is a classic, and it includes one of the most memorable
scenes ever acted in movies, and one of the most parodied. I find that when I look back to a film era, and to the concurrent artistic movements in painting, music and other fine arts, the...

Pros: Kazan's Direction, Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing, Locations, Score, & Cast.
Cons: None.

***In Memory of Karl Malden (1912-2009)***After a major hit with 1951's film version of the Tennessee Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire. Elia Kazan was clearly become the hot new director in Hollywood. Yet, he also introduced the ...

Pros: Brando, storyline, visual, original, powerful, tear-jerking
Cons: I didn't watch it sooner!

Sitting at the dock of the bay...watching sensitive and savage Marlon Brando as ex-boxer and dockworker Terry Malloy. I rented this movie from Blockbuster, and am now purchasing it, because it is worth it's weight in Oscar Gold, in which Marlon ...

Pros: Brando, Steiger, Saint and a few memorable scenes.
Cons: The Controversy, Kazan's weak-visualization-in-some-scenes some corniness.

The newly released DVD of On the Waterfront does not bring us a pristine looking version of the film that has been meticulously restored as happened with Citizen Kane. It looks okay over-all and does have some interesting extras. It's also a bit...

Pros: Social commentary, location shooting, black & white cinematography
Cons: Controversial message

"On the Waterfront" is a thrilling, landmark drama. While it remains as entertaining today as it was back in the fifties, it may be difficult for today's audiences to appreciate what this film was to audiences back in 1954.

Marlon Brando...

Pros: Marlon Brando's exceptional performance, Eva Marie Saint's incredible debut, Karl Malden
Cons: A bit dated, but easily overlooked

"On the Waterfront" is a dramatic masterpiece in which Marlon Brando shines exceedingly. His emotional distress throughout the movie is experienced by both his character and the audience. The basic plot: Marlon Brando works on the waterfront which is ...

Pros: Acting, direction, writing. Filmed in gritty, documentary fashion.
Cons: Melodrama, many (But not myself) question film's messages.

This story, about a dockworker named Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) and his battle against union boss Johnny Friendly (Lee J. Cobb), is I consider one of the best movies ever made. Despite this, some have criticized scenes of the movie and even present...

Pros: cast, direction, script, melodrama
Cons: hammy, romance

"On The Waterfront" is a classic film that nearly measures up to its reputation. While the characters are too neatly divided into good and evil, and the drama is sometimes overdone, there's never a dull moment, and the cast and cinematography...

Pros: Good acting, Good Writing, Some character development
Cons: Dated, Politically Homogenous, Sound Quality.

So, you've probably wondered where the jokes pretty much every series does at some point where someone dons an accent and says, "I coulda been a contdenda,'" well, they come from "On the Waterfront." Marlon Brando utters them and if that's your only ...

Pros: Great acting, Great directing, a classic, one of the greatest performances in history
Cons: Politically, it may be reprehensible

He's so good, it's like everyone else is moving in slow motion. In the 1950s, Marlon Brando and James Dean revolutionized how the world approached film acting. Nothing shows it like this film. The entire cast and crew crafts one of the great classic...

Pros: Marlon Brando
Cons: You'd have to tell me

I love this movie. It is a true classic and one of my top ten favorite movies. Marlon Brando delivers his greatest performance ever in this one, and that is saying a lot since he is one of the greatest actors ever (I think he IS the greatest)....

Pros: good acting, perfectly captures '50's generation
Cons: none

On the Waterfront, a quintessential social conscience film, shows the corruption of labor as seen through the personal conflict of one man. Terry’s relationships with the other adults is that of a slowly maturing child, which is eager at first, then...