On the waterfront was really great. Marlon Brando was absolutely perfect for his part. Terry Malloy is a sort of defeated man who finds a reason to fight again, and Brando's portrayal of the character was fantastic. My favorite scene is towards the end when Terry is talking to his brother in the back seat of the car. A lot of Terry's true thoughts and feelings about his life and details about his past are revealed in the scene. You learn about the situation with his brother and how he was forced to throw the fight that would have given him a shot at the title. It is an extremely gripping scene and it adds an extra layer of importance to everything that takes place later at the docks. In my opinion there is a kind of dual message in On the Waterfront. One side of the coin deals with Terry and his personal struggles, which has a great message about self-worth and perseverance. On the other hand you have the film's larger message about tyranny and oppression by those in power, which concerns all of the characters in the movie. The two messages kind of culminate together at the end when terry goes to the docks to confront Johnny. During the scene Terry is finally able overcome his issues while at the same time put down the oppressors, which in my opinion helps to give him a sense of importance and value. He becomes more than just some bum in the eyes of the people around him and he earns their respect. The movie is extremely impacting and I think it's one of the best we've seen in class.
Review of On the Waterfront
