It really is that good

Took myself down to the IFI tonight to see On the Waterfront. There's a Brando retrospective on at the moment and Waterfront was the first screening. Over the coming weeks, there's going to be screenings of many of his films including The Godfather ('offer he can't refuse' etc..), Apocalypse Now ('the horror, the horror...' etc.) and Last Tango in Paris ('eh, where's the kerrygold' etc.) Anyway, enough has been said about Brando that sometimes it's hard to remember how good he is. He's like Elvis. Actually he's a lot like Elvis. Ridiculously good-looking men who produced fantastic work, knocked the world on its head and died fat, figures of ridicule. He's also like Elvis in that he's been a legend for so long that you forget about the the art. When was the last time you actually listened to Heartbreak Hotel and tried to imagine the impact it had in 1957. Ot just listened to it and marvel at how good it sounds 50 years later?

On the Waterfront is the same. I first saw it about 10 years ago. I think I caught it late at night on tv more recently too but tonight was the first time I watched it in the cinema. It's wonderful. Brando's transformation from mob gofer to conscientious whistle blower is extraordinary. There's a scene in a bar with Eve Marie Saint where his masculine front and indifference to everyone and any emotion is stripped away and his softer side fights to come through. I don't know what he had to do to reveal that insecurity but, God, it's right there in front of you. Phenomenal. In a way, the classic 'coulda been a contender' scene doesn't have the impact you expect. You've seen it a thousand times on clip shows and know it's coming.. There was so much more that took me by surprise. I've never really noticed the scene where Brando's Terry walks with Karl Malden's (and how good is he?) Father Barry and tells him everything he knows but it really stuck with me tonight. Terry leaves the watching priest and goes down to talk to Edie. We don't hear his confession because of a ship's horn blowing in the distance (oooh - we can't hear the whistle blower because there's a whistle blowing!) but we see her reaction and the scene ends with Terry standing on his own with no way of going back and no easy way to go forward.

After that he's got nothing to lose and there's only one thing to do..

If you haven't seen it before and ever get the chance to, you know what to do..