Reviews (106)

AFI top 100-8 Oscars -Best Picture 1954-Best Actor Brando!!
With the famous quote: "I could-ha been a contend-ha. I could have been somebody!!"
AFI (American Film Institute) voted "On the Waterfront" into the top 100 films in the last 100 years. Winner of 8 Oscars including the "BIG 3" - Picture, Director-Elia Kazan and Actor-Marlon Brando. This Remastered Sight and Sound DVD gives us an outstanding Full-Screen Black & White Classic presentation. Fantastic cast - Marlon Brando, Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger, Karl Malden And Eva Marie Saint (first starring role).
Shot on location "On the Waterfront" in New York / New Jersey during the winter time. Actually done outside on location!! This added to the realism of the rough neighborhoods surrounding the waterfront.
In Summary: Terry Malloy (Brando) an ex boxer tries to fit into the longshoreman union "On the Waterfront". Treated as a patsy by Union Leader crook (Cobb) and protected by his brother (Steiger) Union strong arm. He is set up in a union troublemakers death. The sister (Saint)of the slain troublemaker and Priest (Malden) try to befriend Terry (Brando) into betraying the corrupt union boss and turning states evidence.
A brilliant cast performs flawlessly (especially the famous "Contender Scene between Brando & Steiger")and shows us the rough, crude world of the waterfront of the 1950's. This DVD is a remastered Black & White picture and sound presented in a Full Screen format. Many extras including "Contender" explain and reveal many background facts regarding this Classic Film.
This movie shows us what was happening "ON THE WATERFRONT".

The quintessential Brando performance...
Marlon Brando's performance alone justifies watching this movie. Without mentioning any of On the Waterfront's other merits, it could be given 5 stars simply because of his brilliant interpretation of his role as Terry Malloy, the confused and inarticulate former prize-fighter. In addition to Brando's performance, On the Waterfront features great performances from the other actors, a compelling and realitic situation, and some really moving scenes and speeches.

In On the Waterfront, Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) moves from an apathetic, cynical bum to a fighter who stands up for what he believes in. At first, in order to get work, Malloy cooperates with the corrupt union (it really is more like a gang) that runs things in the waterfront area. Although the union has murdered several people, the police cannot break it up because nobody has the courage to stand up and testify against it. But by the end, through the guidance of a passionate priest and the beautiful, idealistic daughter of his murdered friend (Eva Marie Saint, who gives an excellent, Oscar winning performance in her first movie), Malloy finds the courage to testify against the union's boss, Johnny Friendly.

Admittedly, the film does have its faults - the soundtrack, for instance, is overdone, and sometimes the director, Elia Kazan, gives the impression that he is trying to make certain scenes very deep (which strangely enough takes away from them). Overall, however, On the Waterfront is a great film - a classic in the true meaning of the word. Again, it is worth seeing for Brando's performance alone!

I LOVE THIS FILM
It is unfortunate that it took Brando's death for me to realize the acting genuis he was. In this movie he brought forth such a vulnerability that you wanted to root for him. His acting is brilliant, I can understand why he won an Oscar for this performance. I now know what true acting genius is, it was Brando. Highly recommend this movie.

Somewhat dated but still compelling classic drama
I recently re-watched Elia Kazan's ON THE WATERFRONT in honor of its late star, Marlon Brando. His performance as Terry Malloy is often considered one of his greatest (and he won an Oscar for it to back it up), and there is no doubt that this is a performance of spontaneity and great emotional realism that must have awed a generation of filmgoers who watched him. He truly brings his character---a former boxing champ tortured by pangs of conscience as well as disappointment---to authentic life in a way that is somewhat heightened yet always convincingly down-to-earth.

As for the film surrounding this great performance, it has inevitably lost some of its power since it made a splash in the '50s (during the height of McCarthyism, and during which Kazan testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and named names), but it still offers an emotionally compelling experience overall. If sometimes Budd Schulberg's screenplay seems a tad too overwrought (particularly in the final scene, too overtly symbolic), Kazan and his cast never allow it disintegrate into tiresome preachiness. If Brando's performance can be said to be "extraordinary" (and it is certainly something to watch), the other actors are hardly upstaged. I don't know if Eva Marie Saint really deserved an Oscar for her performance here, but perhaps that has more to do with her more conventional character than with her performance, which is good enough. Karl Malden, as the activist Father Barry, fares better: he is convincingly noble and impassioned in his role as, arguably, Malloy's conscience. And Lee J. Cobb is also good as the corrupt Johnny Friendly: while the script does not necessarily develop human sides to the character, Cobb admirably makes him convincing nevertheless rather than merely a one-note snarling villain.

Despite its topical origins---this film is often seen as Kazan's justification for testifying at the HUAC---the plot still resonates pretty strongly today. I mean, who wouldn't feel the same internal dilemma in the same kind of situations that Malloy gets into in this film? Feeling like you should do your duty as a citizen in the face of great corruption, and yet afraid of what might happen to you if you do? I think everyone can at least understand Malloy's tortured conscience in this movie---maybe, other than Kazan himself, Marlon Brando understood it most of all---and perhaps that is why, despite some of its more dated elements, this film continues to endure. Notwithstanding its political background, ON THE WATERFRONT remains a gripping drama to this day.

Greatness Never Flags
When director Elia Kazan unveiled ON THE WATERFRONT in 1954, both critics and the public agreed that this was a special film. This is a rare enough phenomenom and repeated viewings over the decades indicate that this film truly deserves to be labeled with that often overused 'great' tagline. Part of the reason why the audiences of the 50s loved OTW was not just the superlative acting of Marlon Brando as Terry Molloy, Eva Marie Saint as Edie or Rod Steiger as Terry's conflicted brother Charley, but rather the very feel and sound of the Hoboken waterfront were faifthfully recreated to the extent that they formed a tonal subtext. Have you noticed that OTW is not a quiet movie? In nearly every scene, one can hear the raucus shriek of railroad cars and ship clanghorns dolefully reminding us that sound can be used to place the actors both spatially and aurally. Remember the scene when Terry tries to explain to Edie his own role in the murder of her brother? As soon as he opens his mouth, a ship's whistle begins to shriek so his words are drowned out. We may not be able to hear, but the look of Edie's face tells us that she heard.

It is too easy to toss around memorable quotes of which OTW abounds: the "I coulda been a contenda" speech, for example. But this film is not great because of them. Rather, OTW is great because it does what all great movies manage to do: to engage us in the fate of its stars. When Brando is beaten to a pulp by Johnny Friendly's (Lee J. Cobb) thugs and has to stagger to reach the warf to report to work and thus break the stranglehold of the crooked union boss on the workers, we can feel each agonized step that Brando takes. It is only the great movies that allow us to feel pain like that. ... Read more

Reviews (37)

Disappointing Experiment
Hitchcock wanted to do something different this time around, but THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY is uneven and tedious at times. Shirley MacLaine is terrific in her screen debut, Edmund Gwenn is great, as usual, and even Jerry Mathers (no, NOT as the Beaver) gives a good performance. But, at 100 minutes, it's overlong and the endless unearthing and burying of poor Harry grates after a while. However, it's a beautiful film, with superb color and a great score by the always wonderful Bernard Herrmann.

A Pesky Corpse
The trouble with Harry is, among other things, that he won't stay buried. It's a bizarre concept, and I imagine that a lot of people will find this movie to be strange. The humour is dark and a little dry, and it's not what an unsuspecting viewer might expect from Alfred Hitchcock. Personally, I like the film, because the humour appeals to me, as do the performances. John Forsthye, Shirley MacLaine, Edmund Gwenn, and Mildred Natwick make a great foursome trying to dispose of the corpse that just won't go away. A very young Jerry Mathers shows up, too, as MacLaine's son, and it's amusing to see him in this film. If you like your humour a little dark and dry, and you can deal with a Hitchcock film that is not typical Hitchcock, than this film is for you. However, if you can't go for that, than this film is probably one that you should skip.

Hitchcock's very "off center" black comedy
In the classic "Twilight Zone" episode "Five Characters in Search of an Exit," viewers are introduced to just that: a ballerina, an Army officer, a clown, a tramp, and a bagpipe player seeking to escape from a cylindrical prison. At the end of the show, it is revealed that they are actually dolls that want "out"" from their round "home".

While the four major characters in "The Trouble with Harry" are not dolls, they are definitely trying to "escape" from a prison of sorts, a prison of guilt over Harry's death of which they feel responsible. In a series of coincidences/mishaps stars Edmund Gwenn (a former ship captain), John Forsythe (a painter), Shirley MacLaine (single parent), and Mildred Natwick (a spinster) either "kill", "bury", or "resurrect" the dearly departed. But, Harry proves to be an illusive corpse.

None of the eccentric characters shows much remorse because Harry wasn't a very likeable person; in fact, there is a lot of witty repartee between them as they discuss that to do with him.

While this is far from one of "The Master's" best, it benefits from delightfully droll performances, a light-hearted Bernard Herrmann score, and post card-like images of New England, the film's setting.

Rounding out the cast are a pre-"Beaver" Jerry Mathers as MacLaine's son, Mildred Dunnock as a local shopkeeper, and Royal Dano as the shopkeeper's police deputy son.

Dano had a long career as a character actor and can be heard as the voice of Abraham Lincoln at the Disney theme parks' "Hall of Presidents".

Good.
'The Trouble With Harry' is yet another fantasic mystery from Alfred Hitchcock. Although I don't remember the storyline too much, I remember liking it enough to give it a four-star review.

Harry just lies there
Gerry Mathers is playing in a field and some shots are fired. Soon he comes up on a body. We are now prepared for suspense and mystery. Turns out pretty formula; everybody and nobody could have done it. At first it seems slow and weird as no one acts normal even for a movie character. They are all slow, nonchalant, and distracted. Harry gets dragged around and buried in controversy. Soon you can really get warped up in the story and anticipate the end. The movie never picks up you just have more loose ends to keep up with. No one cares who bumped Harry off as along is it does effect him or her.
The draw to the movie now days and maybe then is the cast of characters and the introduction of Shirley MacLaine. Edmund Gwenn looks pretty old here and is remembered also for his performance in "Outward Bound" (1930) 25 years earlier. There is still a Hitchcock feel. So sit back and enjoy it for what it is. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Good comedy
Billie Burke has just lost her fortune on the eve of her daughter's marriage.Son-in-law Dennis O'Keefe is convinced his financeer father, Adolphe Menjou, can get it back.The problem--Menjou is more of a con manliving off a dole from his opera-star wife.Script is weak, but has itsmoments.I especially like Billie Burke practicing her double-takes.Thismovie, while a pleasant comedy, is not up to O'Keefe's inspired roles inthe original Brewster's Millions and Up in Mabel's Room. ... Read more