On The Waterfront

  The movie On the Waterfront didn't really catch my attention at first. I thought it went on too slow and that there could have been more action. However, I did like the main theme, courage. I feel like the director, Elia Kazan, really pushed the theme because he knew the audience could relate to it. Most people know what it is like to finally stand up to something that they are afraid or wish that they could. I think he wanted everyone to know that they can stand up to their own Johnny Friendly’s.

Father Barry was the one who really encouraged all of the workers to stand up for their rights. Every time the mob killed someone else and tried to hide it, he was there to console the workers and try to convince them to do what was right. I think that for everyone who does something courageous has that one person who helps them gain the confidence that they need. For Terry, that was Father Barry. The part of the movie that really made me think was when Terry's own brother Charley threatened to kill him if he didn't choose the bad side. It made me realize that there will always be people trying to persuade you to do the wrong thing.

In my opinion, the actors fit the characters pretty well. Edie (Eva Saint) comes off as such an innocent young girl who just wants to find out what really happened to her brother and Terry (Marlon Brando) has a tough guy attitude. Edie does a good job of bringing out his sensitive side and helping him do what is right.  Although the actors fit the characters, I still think the movie lacked excitement to keep a younger audience entertained. (SparkNotes Editors, 2004).

Overall, I felt like I knew what was going to happen next in each part of the movie. The only big surprise to me was that Terry’s brother Charley even threatened him. Seeing how Terry stood up to Johnny Friendly was the only thing that really kept me interested in watching the movie.