On the Waterfront (review)

On the Waterfront's gritty realism and sense of workmanship marks the passage film was making in the 1950s, growing into an art form as much as medium for telling stories. There's a deliberateness behind director Elia Kazan's camera angles and the composition of shots. The use of black-and-white film was now a conscious choice, and it feels it here: the images of Terry's harsh world would not have had the same stark power in color. Nor could Hollywood backlot settings have had the down-to-earth, matter-of-fact feel of On the Waterfront's real-world locations. And just as actors' performances were becoming more passionate and earthy -- Brando's raw mystique is well deserved -- characters were becoming more mythic and at the same time more realistic.

Kazan also directed 1947's Best Picture, Gentleman's Agreement. Visually and dramatically, there's a world of difference between these two films: On the Waterfront is more artistic, more symbolic, rougher, more potent. It was film maturing into a sturdier, more robust representation of the world.

Best Motion Picture 1954
AFI 100: #19
unforgettable movie moment:
Brando moans, "I coulda had class. I coulda been a contenda. I coulda been somebody. Instead of a bum. Which is what I am."

previous Best Picture:
1953: From Here to Eternity
next Best Picture:
1955: Marty

previous AFI 100 film:
18: The General
next AFI 100 film:
20: It's a Wonderful Life