On The Waterfront

Well, this week we watched another doozy.  You told us at the beginning of class that you didn't think a lot of us would like it.  Since I generally like movies that are very abstract, I thought that I wouldn't fit into the crowd that you were referring to.  I am still not entirely sure what side of the fence I am on, so I guess that means that I am riding that bad boy.  So here is my analysis: I don't know.

My evaluation now. . .  I thought that Brando was very deserving of his award that he won.  The character that he played fits into the group of the all-time great performances for the simple reason that he underwent an immense character development.  Tell me I'm wrong, I don't care (unless you take points away..), what makes a great performance to me is a convincing portrayal of character development.  If the character never changes, then why the hell are we watching?!  We, as the audience, want to be captivated by a character who is multi-dimensional, always surprising us and changing their ways, causing us to shift in our seats with excitement.  Brando, playing the role of Terry Mulloy, completely conquered this aspect of film-making.  He started off as a tough, sometimes smartass boxer who, like everybody else in the film, looked out for himself.  Of course, when the girl comes around, Edie, he starts acting differently because he is in love.  Love drives him to going to the church for the small rebel alliance-esque meeting, and love drives him to confessing to calling out Tony.  This one is a little tricky, because from the naked eye it seems that Father Barry is the one who brought this out of him, but indirectly I think that it had to do with Edie.

This movie is great (yes, I have decided that I do indeed like it) because it fits so many different molds, which makes it enjoyable to a larger population.  First off, it focuses on the character.  The development of Terry is as important as anything else in this film.  Secondly, it focuses on ideas.  It focuses on moral implications, which is when Terry is torn as to what he should do, what side he should be on.  It focuses on social problems, obviously with the plot surrounding such problems with the union, which point directly at what was more likely than not actually going on in the country at the time.  Lastly, it focuses on the struggle for human dignity.  Terry was a boxer, but due to betting he had to throw fights when he knew that he could have just as easily won.  "I want to be somebody," he says.  More than once, he is referred to as a bum, and to him, this is as bad as somebody insulting his mother.