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On the Waterfront

Screening on Film
Directed by Elia Kazan.
With Marlon Brando, Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb.
US, 1954, 16mm, black & white, 108 min.

Winner of the 1954 Academy Award for best picture, On the Waterfront features Marlon Brando’s immortal portrayal of Terry Malloy, a withdrawn tough-guy with a troubled conscience. Having committed a series of petty-crime "favors" for the New Jersey mob, Terry has been guaranteed a cushy job with good pay at the local harbor so long as he agrees to ignore the horrendous crimes and injustices that take place there. When he is made an unwitting accomplice to murder, however, Malloy must choose between turning his back on his friends and family and confronting the call of his conscience. Filmed at the height of the McCarthy hearings, On the Waterfront explores one of the most controversial issues of 1950s America: whether to name names.

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