Review of On the Waterfront (1954) by Danielle F — 16 Feb 2009
I'm starting to think I should pay more attention to these old black-and-whites. They always turn out to be surprisingly good. If you had asked me a week ago if I was interested in a gangster film from the fifties starring Marlon Brando I would have turned it down.
But as it was required for film class, I went down to rent a movie I was less than interested in. God, was I wrong. This was an incredible movie about standing up for yourself and your beliefs and not letting intimidation stop you from doing what's right.
It was extremely inspiring and a hundred times better than I was expecting. I am always blown away by the fact that these old films rely on the greatness of their actors rather than musical cues, as we do now.
In the ending scene, when we see Brando finally making his decision and going bravely through with it there on the dock and half-dead, there isn't any major music to speak of. We are not told how to feel by anything outside of the look on Brando's face, his stagger, and his determination.
Nowadays, for an inspiring moment, we hear inspiring music that tells us we should feel inspired. This isn't something I think is bad, but to see a film from the fifties where this type of musical cue does not exist, we feel much more genuine about it.
We are inspired because of the performance of the actors. I think more people ought to branch out into these types of films, they wouldn't be disappointed.
This review of On the Waterfront (1954) was written by Danielle F on 16 Feb 2009.
On the Waterfront has generally received very positive reviews.
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