On the Waterfront

Realism in film is something that we take for granted today. If you look at movies made today, apart from the big blockbusters realism is never too far away. Whether that’s subjects like This Sporting Life, Raging Bull. or There Will be Blood, people love seeing real life play out in the form of movies. This was not always the case though. In fact many people point to our subject today as the start of realism in film and one that is one of the best American films ever made.

So if you’re like me and you enjoy film and the impact and emptions they convey then grab a glass of your preferred liquid and join me for the next little while. For me that’s a bottle of Yards’ Washington Porter from our friends at Yards Brewery here in Philadelphia. So sit back, relax, and let’s talk about the love if film. Welcome to Glazed Cinema.

On the Waterfront follows an ex professional boxer named Terry Malloy. Terry works for the mob and lives in an apartment in New York City and in his spare time he cares for pigeons that he keeps on the roof of his building. After unknowingly assisting in murder and seeing the injustice caused by the corruption of the mob he works under Terry must decide how to move forward. Does he continue turning a blind eye and be a good soldier or does he stand with those who need him the most to make a difference?

Terry is a low level member of a mob that controls a longshoremen’s union in the New York City harbor. Terry as a mob member gets regular work at the dock loading cargo onto ships And in some cases gets paid while reading magazines as east work. This is in no small part due to the influence of his brother Charley, “The Gent”, played by Rod Steiger. The mob boss Johnny Friendly, played by Lee J. Cobb has a soft spot for Terry and also helps him when he can. It isn’t until he blows the whistle on an acquaintance Joey Doyle that the ropes that bind these three men start to come loose.

The moral compass of the film is undoubtedly Father Barry, played by Karl Malden. He’s a priest who upon seeing his parishioners being cheated at the docks pleads with them to make a stand. With the longshoremen being as they say D&D or deaf and dumb it’s an uphill battle to accomplish.

The mob selects who they want to select to work. People are selected by receiving what looks to be a small coin and only a certain number of slots can be filled each day. Every morning longshoremen line up at the docks for work and every say a large portioof them are turned away, with a lot of the slots going to mob members.

There’s a scene where the longshoremen get restless about not getting work and begin pressuring the man handing out work. The man gets frightened and throws the coins in his hand over the crowd. This leads to a mad scramble with the longshoremen vying for the remaining slots begins. Johnnie Friendly hears about the union speaking with a priest and assigns Terry to sit in kn their meeting as an inside man for the mob and report back. Hearing of everything they have to say Terry begins to sympathize with the men. He also develops feelings for a practicing nun and sister of the man he whistled on Edie Doyle, played by Eva Marie Saint. The question becomes what will Terry do? Stand with the men against the mob or stand against them with his brother?

The film was directed Elia Kazan and was released in 1954. Kazan, who graduated from Yale with an MFA in drama started his career directing and acting in plays in New York City. Among them were works written by Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller. It In the 1930s he started directing documentary films and shadowed the great John Ford to learn more about directing. So in 1941 when he was called upon to direct his first feature film in Hollywood, he was ready. After achieving a successful debut with A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and in 1947 won his first Academy Award for Best Director. He would win the award for second and last time in 1954 with our subject today.

On the Waterfront includes a number of talented performers Including Marlon Brando, Lee J. Cobb, Eva Marie Saint, and Karl Malden, all of whom turn in fantastic performances. The film centers around themes of labor injustice, corruption, and standing up for what you believe in. There’s a great snippet of dialogue when Terry and Father Barry are speaking about testifying agains Johnnie Friendly in which Terry exclaims, “If I spill my life ain’t worth a nickel.” to which Father Barry retorts “and how much is tour soul worth if you don’t?” It’s a question of morality and justice and it’s a question asked of not just the longshoremen, but also to us as an audience.

One of the most famous scenes of the film, which I’ll leave for you to discover is when Terry and his brother Charlie are talking in the backseat of a cab. One of the most famous lines arguably in all of cinema is when Terry says, "You don't understand, I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody. Instead of a bum, which is what I am." It’s one of those scenes that has gone down in film lore and for all the right reasons.

Apart from that scene another one of my favorite sequences is when Father Barry speaks to the longshoremen on a cargo liner. One of the men has been murdered after the mob coordinates a pallet falling on him. The father, who is performing last rights and prayer begins to speak up. Hoping to spark something in the men he speaks out against the mob as the mob members throw things at him in an attempt to quiet him. It begins when somebody yells "Go back to your church father". Father Barry begins:

"Boys, this is my church! And if you don't think Christ is down here on the waterfront you've got another guess coming. Every morning when the hiring boss blows his whistle Jesus stands alongside you in the shape of me. He sees why some of you get picked and some of you get passed over. He sees the family man worried about getting the rent and gettin' food in the house for the wife and kids. He sees you selling your soul to the mob for day's pay...How does he feel about the fellas who where a hundred and fifty dollar suits and diamond rings on your union dues and kickback money...and how does he who spoke up without fear against every evil feel about your silence?"

There's more to that speech, but that part of it always gives me chills. It's Karl Malden's delivery, his passion, voice, emotions, and mannerisms that really bring it home. Also, the slow churning rhythm and building of momentum is wonderfully done here as well. The cuts on the faces of those listening, the mob throwing objects at him, and closeups of Terry dealing with his emotions are exquisite, especially given the graininess of the camera.

Another great scene is when Terry speaks with Father Barry about possibly testifying against Johnny Friendly. The two men are outside along an iron fence overlooking the harbor. The father is preaching about Terry’s choices says, “I’m not asking you to do anything, it’s you conscience that’s gotta do the asking.” Terry reflecting retorts, “Conscience, that stuff, that stuff will drive ya nuts.”

Soon the two men see Edie and father suggests that he tell Edie about the night her brother was killed. Taking his advice he meets Edie and confesses. While they speak a fog horn goes off from a nearby ship and all we can do to discern what’s unfurling is watch their body language. Each cut, camera angle, and emote allows the scene to unfold beautifully and is so well done. I always notice the New Hork skyline in the background of this scene as the Empire State Building is by far the largest building in the distance. I always find it interesting knowing what the skyline looks like today.

The skyline in the background I learned was no accident and is a direct result of…well let’s call it a challenge they encountered during pre-production.

I saw an interview with Spike Lee during my research, who was good friends with the writer of On the Waterfront, Budd Schulberg. Budd had told Spike that the film was supposed to be filmed in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn, which in the fifties was a major meat packing district in the city. The mob, who ran that part of town told Schulberg that if they attempted to film there that they would kill him, Kazan, and Brando. They opted out of shooting in Red Hook for those very good reasons and instead moved filming to the docks of Hoboken, New Jersey and filmed everything on location. which is why the skyline appears as it does in the film.

I love this film for so many reasons, but the main reason is how I feel watching it. All the performances are so authentic and story is told with such truth that it infects you. I can’t help but feel for Terry, Edie, and Father Barry. It takes me on a rollercoaster and I always enjoy the ride. So did audiences critics when it was released.

In fact during award season it was nominated for twelve Oscars and won eight of them, including those for Best Actor, Actress, Picture, and Director. The acting was so outstanding in fact that the Best Actor in a Supporting Role category had three actors from On the Waterfront as nominees including Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, and Rod Steiger.

The film is legendary for a lot of reasons and is considered one of the best American films ever made. The importance of this film cannot be overstated. Prior to On the Waterfront Hollywood was completely different in how they approached subjects.

This film took a lot of risks at the time, particularly the subject of the story itself as Kazan opted to shoot a realist film. He wanted to go to grass roots and shoot scenes on location. If you look at films made before On the Waterfront there are few that are so honest and hard hitting. A small amount of pictures dealt with the problems of ordinary people doing hard labor. Even fewer of those were shot on locations, most Hollywood films were shot in studio. This was because there was no market for it at that time, it was an untapped well. The studios thought nobody wanted to see a movie about men working at the docks.

Kazan decided to take that risk and proved everybody wrong when On the Waterfront was released, grossing major box office dollars and proving to be a hit. Brando also flipped the script on the art of acting itself. The way in which he approached the role as a method actor, the range of emotions he delivered on, and the vulnerability was something very unique. His improvisational skills were quite incredible as well. His influence is immeasurable as well. If you look at the generation of actors who came after Brando like Dustin Hoffman, Robert DeNiro, Merryl Streep, the influence of Brando is universal. If you’ve never seen an Elia Kazan film this would be a great film to serve as an introduction.

If you'd like to watch On the Waterfront for yourself you can find it on a variety of streaming services. At the time of this recording you can find On the Waterfront on the Criterion Channel. The Criterion Channel has different pricing structures including $9.99 per month and $99 per year, which is what I chose to do. If you like film I highly recommend trying it out.

You can also find it on Prime Video included with Prime. You can also find it on services like YouTube, GooglePlay, Apple TV and Vudu for $2.99 or $3.99 to rent.

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