Wednesday, August 25, 2010

On the Waterfront


In this black and white film, an ex-prize fighter turned longshoreman, Marlon Brando, struggles with his conscience after he witnesses the murder of another longshoreman, a murder that was ordered by his mob leader boss. As this movie was filmed in 1954, I wondered why the director decided to film this movie in black and white. I think part of the reason why this movie is filmed in b&w is to enhance the gritty and dark nature of the story. The working and living conditions appear bleak when the sun does not sparkle as it is reflected off the water or the flowers and lush vegetation appear monotone in front of the apartment complex. Depicting the rough living conditions of the longshoremen is a key element of the story; this helps explain why the longshoremen comply with the D&D (dumb and deaf) rule – they have to keep their jobs to survive and feed themselves and they turn a blind eye to the corruption of the mob union leaders.

Overall, a powerful movie with a few dramatic shots (the one where Brando and the girls are running down the alley and the truck comes around the corner!).

Quote on repeat in my head: I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let's face it. It was you, Charley.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

The General


Again, I am impressed with silent films and their ability to keep me engaged (See post on City Lights). With all the special effects of modern day movies, how could a movie in which no one speaks and the only special effect is the music played by the orchestra compare?

In this movie, Busty Keaton, actor and director, plays Confederate locomotive engineer who attempts to recover his two loves stolen/kidnapped by Union spies. His two loves are his train, The General, and Annabelle Lee. His lonely pursuit of these two across enemy lines is hilarious! Actually Buster Keaton’s sense of humor originally reminded me of Charlie Chaplin. I thought, “Who is this copycat character and what makes him so special?” Quoting from Entertainment Weekly’s website:

Charlie Chaplin was perhaps the most famous person on the planet for the first half of the 20th century; since then, Buster Keaton has slowly risen in esteem, to the point where he's now regarded as Chaplin's superior in filmmaking (true) and in comic genius (endlessly arguable). What's undeniable is that Charlie's sentimental sensibility was rooted in the music hall and vaudeville of the past, while Buster was a poker-faced modernist who pointed to the future.

Watching the movie, I saw that the two are very different and I prefer Buster Keaton. The humor is more developed and sophisticated in nature (not just dropping anvils on people’s heads). The scenes that I thought were funny required some choreography and I think that it's important to a modern day audience that is accustomed to movies with tons of special effects and drama, ie Transformers, Avatar, Titanic. Let me know what you think when you see it.