On the Waterfront

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1 hr. 48 min.

Drama

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99%

116 Reviews

Tomatometer

95%

50,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Dockworker Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) had been an up-and-coming boxer until powerful local mob boss Johnny Friendly (Lee J. Cobb) persuaded him to throw a fight. When a longshoreman is murdered before he can testify about Friendly's control of the Hoboken waterfront, Terry teams up with the dead man's sister Edie (Eva Marie Saint) and the streetwise priest Father Barry (Karl Malden) to testify himself, against the advice of Friendly's lawyer, Terry's older brother Charley (Rod Steiger).

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Critics Consensus

With his electrifying performance in Elia Kazan's thought-provoking, expertly constructed melodrama, Marlon Brando redefined the possibilities of acting for film and helped permanently alter the cinematic landscape.

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Matt

Fabulous movie. It seems like Brando's right and left hand are always in different worlds from each other. When he goes to confront Johnny Friendly about (SPOILER ALERT), his right hand is vice-tight around a revolver, while the other is frozen into a tense openness. This is thematically resonant, signaling the two worlds Brando straddles. And Kazan earns that clich label, "the actor's director," by choosing the wide frame to capture it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/04/21

Full Review

Regina P

I finally got around to seeing the movie where Brando says, "I could've been a contender."

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

04/24/24

Full Review

Chris H

A masterpiece about dockside corruption and intimidation and what it does to its victims. Any review of this film will tell you that Marlon Brando's performance was game changing for the film industry and I can see why - anguished, inarticulate, often looking somewhere away from the action - it feels like he's in a different film from the rest of the characters, but somehow he connects all the same. Brando is fascinating every minute he's on the screen but all the cast are terrific, especially Karl Malden, whose priest burns with righteous anger, and Eva Marie Saint, winning an Oscar in her film debut. Lee J Cobb (the chief villain) could have carried the film on his own, but with a film this good, he's surrounded by talent. There's a real ex-boxer turned actor in here, too - Tony Galento - very appropriate.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

04/04/24

Full Review

Domenick

I defy anyone to watch this movie without being blown away by the story, the directing, the script, the acting and the social commentary. One of maybe 10 must-watch movies of the 20th Century.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/13/24

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Merick H

Brando's performance is a tour de force in this captivating film from Elia Kazan. It is a masterpiece.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/10/24

Full Review

Nol P

As a 50 yr old now I had never seen this wonderful masterpiece until today! I was more into action films growing up. So well crafted and acted by Brando and Karl Malden and as close to a 10 out of 10 that you can get, especially in today's lazy new standard of viewing movies! We need much more well scripted movies like this these days!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/09/24

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Elia Kazan

Director

Marlon Brando

Terry Malloy

Eva Marie Saint

Edie Doyle

Karl Malden

Father Barry

Lee J. Cobb

Johnny Friendly

Rod Steiger

Charley

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On the Waterfront: Official Clip - Let's Go to Work!

2:13

On the Waterfront: Official Clip - I Coulda Been a Contender

2:13

On the Waterfront: Official Clip - Present from Uncle Johnny

2:13

On the Waterfront: Official Clip - They Got Charley

2:10

On the Waterfront: Official Clip - Terry's Conscience

2:10

On the Waterfront: Official Clip - This Is My Church

2:12

On the Waterfront: Official Clip - Am I Gonna See You Again?

2:10

On the Waterfront: Official Clip - Terry Asks Edie Out

2:11

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On the Waterfront: Trailer 1

2:31

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Ed Potton

Times (UK)

Malloy makes an unlikely proxy for Kazan, though. A former boxer with the eyes of a showgirl, he was the role of a lifetime for Brando, whose Method-schooled blend of machismo and vulnerability redefined acting for a generation.

Rated: 5/5

Apr 5, 2024

Full Review

Chris Bennion

Times (UK)

The supporting cast is wonderful, but it’s Brando who lights up every part of this film.

Apr 4, 2024

Full Review

Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

The performances in the film have a magnificent intelligence and strength, shaped and guided incomparably by Kazan, a master of Broadway and Hollywood.

Rated: 5/5

Apr 3, 2024

Full Review

Vernon Young

Arts Digest

It has a persuasiveness of characterization, for the most part, rare on the American screen, not because actors are lacking to convey it but because it is so seldom elicited either by their material or their directors.

Jan 17, 2024

Full Review

Mark Johnson

Awards Daily

Known for the powerful portrayal of anguish that permanently changed acting, Marlon Brando gives one of – if not THE – greatest performances of all time.

Jun 8, 2023

Full Review

Dilys Powell

Sunday Times (UK)

The film is splendidly acted. This is the third time that Marlon Brando has played under Kazan's direction, and this time my reservations about his gifts disappear. As the racketeer's errand boy... his performance is magnificent.

Aug 8, 2022

Full Review

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Synopsis

Dockworker Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) had been an up-and-coming boxer until powerful local mob boss Johnny Friendly (Lee J. Cobb) persuaded him to throw a fight. When a longshoreman is murdered before he can testify about Friendly's control of the Hoboken waterfront, Terry teams up with the dead man's sister Edie (Eva Marie Saint) and the streetwise priest Father Barry (Karl Malden) to testify himself, against the advice of Friendly's lawyer, Terry's older brother Charley (Rod Steiger).

Director: Elia Kazan
Screenwriter: Budd Schulberg, Budd Schulberg
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: Columbia Pictures Corporation
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 28, 1954, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 14, 2014
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: 35mm

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