On the Waterfront (1954)

An ex-prize fighter turned longshoreman struggles to stand up to his corrupt union bosses.

Director:

Elia Kazan

Writers:

Budd Schulberg (screenplay), Budd Schulberg (based upon an original story by),

Stars:

Marlon Brando, Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb

Top 250 #116 | Won 8 Oscars. Another 21 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marlon Brando	...	Terry Malloy
Karl Malden	...	Father Barry
Lee J. Cobb	...	Johnny Friendly
Rod Steiger	...	Charley Malloy
Pat Henning	...	Kayo Dugan
Leif Erickson	...	Glover
James Westerfield	...	Big Mac
Tony Galento	...	Truck
Tami Mauriello	...	Tillio
John F. Hamilton	...	'Pop' Doyle (as John Hamilton)
John Heldabrand	...	Mott
Rudy Bond	...	Moose
Don Blackman	...	Luke
Arthur Keegan	...	Jimmy
Abe Simon	...	Barney

Storyline

Terry Malloy dreams about being a prize fighter, while tending his pigeons and running errands at the docks for Johnny Friendly, the corrupt boss of the dockers union. Terry witnesses a murder by two of Johnny's thugs, and later meets the dead man's sister and feels responsible for his death. She introduces him to Father Barry, who tries to force him to provide information for the courts that will smash the dock racketeers.

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Plot Keywords:

union | murder | dock | longshoreman | death | 

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Taglines:

It walked away with just about every award there was - and it still could !

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 June 1954 (Japan)

Also Known As:

The Hook

Filming Locations:

Court Street, Hoboken, New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$910,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$9,600,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Horizon Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

As part of his contract, Marlon Brando only worked till 4 every day and then he would leave to go see his analyst. Brando's mother had recently died and the conflicted young actor was in therapy to resolve his issues with his parents. Interestingly, for the film's classic scene between Rod Steiger and Brando in the back of the cab, all of Steiger's close-ups were filmed after Brando had left for the day, so his lines were read by one of the crew members. Steiger remained very bitter about that for many years and often mentioned it in interviews.

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Goofs

In the church scene when the meeting is broken up by the thugs outside there is a long shot with the characters trying to decide which way to run and you can see a boom mic bouncing around for a few seconds at the top of the screen.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Johnny: [to Terry] You take it from here, Slugger.

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits are shown over a bamboo-type mat background.

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Connections

Referenced in Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: Million Dollar Movie Week 2 (2009)

User Reviews

Still Packs A Wallop

Still powerful after all these years, it's easy to see why this film won so many awards. Even though it isn't classified as "film noir," it might as well be, as it has the earmarks of one: gritty, downbeat with a feeling of dread, magnificent black-and-white cinematography, etc.

It's certainly not a "fun" movie but if you appreciate great film-making, you have to rate this near the top of the list Not only is the direction (by one of the all-time greats, Elia Kazan) superb and the photography striking, the acting also is top-rate.

Marlon Brando was just riveting to watch in here and deserved all the accolades he received for his performance. Talk about a guy with mixed emotions and a tormented soul! Eva Marie Saint, as Brando's "conscience" and love interest, proved to be worthy in her role.

The rest of the characters were angry people, always shouting it seemed, always upset at someone. Even the priest, played by Karl Malden, was that way although one of his passionate speeches was remarkable to hear. How many films does one hear about Jesus Christ being everywhere men are? None I can recall, offhand. He, like Saint's character, also influenced Brando to do the right thing.

Lee J. Cobb filled his bill as the angriest of them all, the labor boss who would have anyone killed who dare speak out against his illegal practices, and Rod Steiger was his normal intense self as Brando's older brother. Hey, almost everyone was intense in this film. It gets you involves and wears you out by the end.

Steiger and Brando's conversation in an automobile fairly late in the film ("I couda been a contenda") is one of the most famous scenes in movie history, but I found many memorable scenes in this movie....too many to recount here.

Suffice to say if you are looking for a hard-nosed drama with great acting and photography, a film that still looks and sounds up-to-date in many respects, don't be afraid to give this "oldie" a look. You'll see why it's considered one of the best movies of all time.