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Glose reaainaoion the WAnRFRONT

1931 2010

FILMSTEXT

GARYSIMMONS

I the previous issue of ScreenEducation (no. 56), I wrote thefirst of two articles on On theWaterfront (Elia Kazan, 1954).'Conscience. Confession andContext in On the Waterfront'focused on the range of ideasthat underpin the film, and Ialluded to the ways in whichthe film establishes mood,tone and character. In thissubsequent analysis I willexplore the ways in which thegrammar and syntax of thefilm validate these ideas ofconscience and confession.

Throughout the three-actnarrative of On the Waterfront,the film's protagonist, long-shoreman Terry Malloy

Brando), undertakes a personaljourney of self-awareness andredemption in a world ofcorruption and sin. From theopening sequence, Ten^ isestablished, if only by associa-tion, as complicit in the shadyunderworld of the docks. T>iefilm's second act sees him gaina certain understanding of theeffects of his personal involve-ment, and articulates hisgrowing ambivalence towardsthe criminal world in which hedwells. The third part of the filmis redemptive, as Terry fightsfor 'rights', not only for thelongshoremen, but also forempowerment against thecorruption and immorality of anevil world. This film is rich with

imagery, dialogue and design,and steeped in Christianiconography. A careful fusion ofcinematic elements plays outto create a narrative ofconscience, confession andcatharsis in a polarised worldof good and evil.

Establishing immorality

Throughout Qn the Waterfront,a strong sense of place isevoked and is always infusedwith meaning. Cinematogra-pher Boris Kaufman distils acityscape that is most oftenmenacing, insular andclaustrophobic. Scenes aretypically set in constrictedspaces, such as the dark.

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1931 2010FILM<TEXT

cavernous cargo holds; thepigeon cages Terry keeps;seedy bars; and the narrow,dingy alleyways filmed tightlyto register a sense ofentrapment, alienation andsuffocation. Even the diffusedlight of day is shrouded in ablanket of fog and mist.Visibility is often limitedduring the film, a metaphorfor the impaired vision andmoral uncertainty of itscharacters. The neighbour-

sordid world in which thosewho stand up to the unbri-dled authority of the venalLongshoreman's Union arepunished without pardon. Theshadows of this world maskcriminality, corruption andamorality.

The opening image of the filmhas a scrupulously arrangedmise en scène that works tovisually enhance this senti-ment of sordid, concealed

Friendly (Lee J. Cobb), devisetheir schemes and scams toextort every cent they canfrom browbeaten, disenfran-chised stevedores andunsuspecting cargo owners.Next to their seat of power isa smaller boat with anominous crucifix that willbecome an abiding symbol ofthe film. The faceless men ofthe union emerge from theiroffice. There is a sense ofmob psychology and blind

isihility is often limited during the film,a metaphor for the impaired vision andmoral uncertainty of its characters.

hood after dark is straight outof a fiim noir. Light ptays onpuddles; the coldness of theair is palpable. Oblique linesof clothes and the contours ofthe protruding grates ofexternal stairs confirm asense of disquiet in this dark,unwelcoming, urban under-belly. Nothing is what itseems. This is a squalid and

corruption. The puny office ofthe union floats precariouslyon a pontoon, dwarfed in anestablishing shot by thejuggernaut of an ocean linerand the vastness of thewharves. Yet it is in this tiny,shabby building that thepower brokers of the union,led by a gangster union bossironically named Johnny

obedience in their closedranks. A sense of machobrotherhood Is established.Their movements, accompa-nied by the discordantpercussion from composerLeonard Bernstein's atmos-pheric and dramatic score,create disquiet.

The lines of conflict are soon

established in this openingsequence. The men are theself-serving sycophants ofJohnny Friendly, and complywith his orders withoutquestion. The self-madeJohnny Friendly holds court,his every move beingapproved by his yes-men, hisevery wish their desire. Hissophistry in justifying hismoney laundering knows nolimit. He brooks no dissent.There is something psycho-pathic in his persona. The barthat Johnny Friendly owns isInfected with a malignantmasculinity. Easy money,surreptitious deals andpersonal protection are therewards of membership tothis exclusively male tribe.Thugs and parasites havesold their souls for what theyperceive as eternal life.

This same Faustian bargainwill become central to Terry'sown narrative as he plumbshis soul in response to theculture of easy murder andcover-up. This openingsequence sees Teny, aself-confessed 'bum', set upto unknowingly lure rebellious

co-worker Joey Doyle to hisdeath at the hands of themob, a punishment forspeaking out about JohnnyFriendly to the WaterfrontCrime Commission. To thefrightened longshoremen,Joey went too far. To theunion hierarchy, he was a'canary', a 'cheese-eater'.But to Terry, Joey was 'not abad kid'. His death is thebeginning of a test ofcharacter and nerve for Terryin the face of brutality andcorruption.

Caught between twoworlds

The perverse humour ofJohnny Friendly's lackeys inresponse to the death of JoeyDoyle, and their code ofsilence in the face of murderand violence, provides one ofthe polarities that will definethe ambivalence and vacilla-tion of Terry's internal strugglebetween right and wrongthroughout the film. Terry hasbeen seduced by the falsesense of brotherhood andbonhomie of the mob.Indeed, his brother, Charley

Malloy (Rod Steiger), is a keyplayer with the mob. Blood isthicker than water, anaphorism that has multiplemeanings in the context ofthe disposal of bodies on thewaterfront. But the ambiva-lence in Terry is palpable. Hehas been split in two by hisunknowing collusion in thedeath of Joey. Terry is 'nothimself: and in a world ofblind loyalty, these hints ofunease over the death ofJoey Doyle and Ten7's claimthat he should have been toldabout the silencing of Joeyculminate in noticeabletension in a bar scene.tension that Charley tries tosmooth over. Charley remindsTerry about 'who his friendsare'. The coercive power ofmob psychology is demon-strable as Terry leaves the barand slides into the foggynight. The fog is consistentlysynonymous with moralconfusion and blurredperception, not only in Terry,but also in the deliberateavoidance of the reality ofcorruption and its personaland social ramifications forthose who work on the

waterfront. From the momentTerry slides out the door andinto the fog, he is, despite hisdenials and his obfuscation, achanged man.

The changed Terry is wrackedby guilt. For much of the film.he is a prisoner of his ownmaking, incarcerated by hisown denials. He is like one ofthe caged pigeons he keeps,circled by hawks. He is tornby a developing sense ofresponsibility and is full ofrestless apprehension. Hechews gum expressively,shrugs, lags behind, pulls hiscollar up and stuffs his handsin his pockets. All of thesenervous, almost evasivemoments represent a starkcontrast to the goons inJohnny Friendly's orbit.Although they are just asinarticulate, the henchmenseek safety in twos andthrees; in their film noir trilbiesand long overcoats, theyexude power and useintimidation as a weapon. Thehenchmen make eye contact,while Terry frequently looksaway, afraid to face the truth.

Terry vacillates between thecorrupt values of JohnnyFriendly and a world of moral-ity and goodness embodiedin the characters of FatherBarry (Karl Maiden) and Edie(Eva Marie Saint), JoeyDoyle's sister, whose griefturns to anger and a quest forjustice. Their role in TerryMalloy's crisis of conscienceand heart is made explicitearly. They sense the cracksIn Terry and see his Innerdoubt. Father Barry repre-sents all that is antithetical toJohnny Friendly. Inside thesanctuary of the church, hechides the longshoremen fortheir conspicuous andcorrosive silence. He appealsto their latent sense of justice.Father Barry elicits a commit-ment from another docker,Kayo Dugan (Pat Henning),after the priest shows that heis prepared to match his ownChristian rhetoric with action.Tired of the bullying and theperpetual stnjggle of thelongshoremen's life. Kayoalso wants change. But hepays a heavy price, becominganother martyr for the cause.

1931 2010

A call to armsDuring the scene of Kayo'sfuneral, which culminates inFather Barry's oration, there isa strong Christian activistmessage backed by Christianimagery - in keeping with theopening sequence of the film.Father Barry fulminatesagainst a lack of moralcourage on the waterfrontand argues that there is ashared responsibility forKayo's death. The Christiansymbol of the cross forms ashadow on the wall as FatherBarry gathers his thoughts.Down in the cargo hold thearrangement of characters ispoignant. The sacrificialvictim, Kayo, lies dead, withhis close friends nearby. Terryis in the cargo hold, on themargins. Edie clings to herfather. Above are the powerfulgangsters and those whohave been bought off. FatherBarry appropriates the cargohold as a pulpit. As he speakswith the passion of Christ, hisvoice penetrates and rises.The camera uses its verticaland horizontal axes toregister the power relations ofcharactere. As much as the

oration, which uses theanalogy of the Crucifixion, isthe clear focus of thissequence, the order ofcamera shots that radiate outfrom the imposing figure ofFather Barry to the funeralcongregation is crucial. Hisimpassioned speech toucheshearts and draws thelongshoremen in. Above, theunion thugs are disturbed bythe 'heresy' of Father Barry'sviews and the potentialinfluence of the words onlongshoremen.

As Father Barry pontificateson shared guilt, the cameracuts to a chastened Terrywho looks away, knowingthat he is the target of thebarb.

And anybody who sits aroundand lets it happen, keepssilent about something heknows has happened, sharesthe guilt of it just as much asthe Roman soldier whopierced the flesh of Our Lordto see if He was dead.

The eulogy quickly becomesa metaphorical call to arms. It

is a blend of the religious andthe political. Terry is stirred tothe point that he confrontsTullio (Tami Mauriello), theonly member of the Friendlyclique in the cargo hold. Thisaction alone is a statement ofTerry's intention. Edie knowsthat the seeds of resistancehave been sown as sheapproaches Terry at the endof the sequence. But Terryagain walks away, thefestering torment too much toconfront. He is still caughtbetween a rock and a hardplace.

The biblical Ascension isrecalled in the hauling of thesling with Kayo's dead bodyfrom the cargo hold. Thecamera tilts on its axis as itfollows Father Barry, whostands proudly and withdignity. There is a strongfeeling that Father Barry'simpassioned oration hasmade its mark. Despite thethreatening looks on thefaces of the union powerbrokers, the rank and filehave been humbled, if notgalvanised, by his appeal totheir sense of justice and

culpability in allowing thecorruption and violence onthe wharves to flourish.

The beginning ofambivalence

The film's 'shape-up'sequence (a hiring processdetermining the distribution ofjobs to the dockers for theday) depicts a ritual tanta-mount to grovelling, revealingthe dehumanisation, the lossof dignity and the daily futilityfor many of the longshore-men. There are the favouredand the out-of-favour whosedaily lives are at the whim ofthe union bosses and theirflunkeys. Hopelessness isregistered in the longshore-men's cap-in-hand pleas forwork. Based on the divide-and-conquer ethos, thecharade only serves todemoralise the workersfurther. Throughout the'shape-up' ritual, waterfronthiring boss Big Mac (JamesWesterfield) plays with thelivelihoods of workers with asinister pleasure. Filmed frombehind, he obscures theworkers, who are an amor-

phous ragtag of exploitedand worn-down men. Duringthe scramble for the tags thatwill guarantee them work, thecamera captures the desper-ation on their faces. FatherBarry and Edie are horrifiedby the primal frenzy of theiractions. But. in a bid tosecure work for her ageing fa-ther, Edie takes part in the'shake-up'. She and Terrystruggle for possession of atag. While bmte force winsinitially, when Terry learns thatEdie is Joey's sister, hesurrenders the tag to herTheir position in the fore-ground of the shot intimatestheir future alliance, analliance of good in a world ofimmorality.

This alliance through a sharedworidview is reinforced in thefollowing scene. A secretmeeting at the church isorganised by some of theaggrieved longshoremen whodidn't get work that day. Terryhas been sent against his willby the mob to monitor themeeting, where Edie andFather Barry are vainly tryingto gain information about

Joey's death. Violence eruptswhen the union thugs arrive.In order to escape, the pair isforced together past theneo-Gothic Church, through apublic park where mist andsmoke swirl. As Terry sitsalmost incongruously on thechild's swing, he gentlyplaces a delicate white glove

State Building, is in directcontrast to the enclosed andclaustrophobic spaces of the'dog-eat-dog' world ofwharves and bars, revealingan alternative to JohnnyFriendly's underworld. Thereis a nascent resistance asTen^ starts to shed his oldself and embrace a more

made to Father Ban^ outsidethe Church, which is adjacentto the Hudson River and itstraffic. Like the fog of thefilm's previous sequences,smoke from the fires in thegrates wafts over thisencounter, as though truthhas been rendered opaqueuntil this moment of confes-

Easy money, surreptitious deais and personalprotection are tiie rewards of membership totiiis exciusiveiy maie triiie. Thugs and para-

sites have soid their souls for what they perceiveas eternai iife.

Edie has dropped on hisgnarled boxer's hand. Thismoment is instructive, asTerry has let down his guard.Terry feints and dodgesEdie's compassionate view ofthe world but he is drawn toher irrevocably in thismoment, despite his bravadoand his posturing. Thescene's openness, set to abackground of the Empire

seffless world of moralconviction and obligation.

Confession andredemption

Confession is integral toTerry's atonement. There aretwo linked confessionsequences that are thetipping points for Terry. Thefirst of Terry's confessions is

sion. Importantly, the choiceof setting sees both thechurch and Father Barry nowirredeemably politicised,while the waterfront isexposed as a contaminatedlife-blood that must becleansed.

Terry's second confession ismade to Edie. where headmits his inadvertent role in

1931 2010

F I L M<TEXT

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her brother's death. Duringthis crucial conversation, thenoise of a ship's whistle andthe percussive sound of abattering ram subsume thedialogue, so that only a few ofTerry's words can be heardover the noisy din of the city.Such impressionistic render-

if she is going mad. She thentakes flight, leaving Terryalone on a pile of rocks, withthe Empire State Buildingvisible in the backgroundthrough the fog. The combi-nation of vastness and thelifting fog communicates thesense that Terry has, in this

dissuade Terry from givingevidence against the mob tothe Waterfront CrimeCommission, a decision hehas made since his confes-sion to Edie. Unbeknown toTerry, Charley has beenthreatened by JohnnyFriendly to prevent the

The fog is consistentiy synonymous withmorai confusion and hiurred perception,not oniy in Terry, hut aiso in the deiiher-

ate avoidance of the reaiity of corruption andits personal and sociai ramifications for thosewho worii on the waterfront.

ing is a deliberate filmmakingdevice used to emphasise thedepth of feeling and the mael-strom of emotions incited bythe confession. The emphasishere is on the weight of theconfession on Edie. Herdistress is palpable in a seriesof close-ups, where sheclutches her face and ears as

moment of confession,crossed over into a newworld.

There is also a thirdconfession-1 ike scene, whichtakes place between thebrothers Charley and Terry inthe back seat of a cab.Charley is futilely trying to

testimony, or pay the price ofhis brotherly love.

The visual crafting of thissequence has the tightconfines of a confession box.The back seat is indeed aspace of transformation,representing the emotionaland moral transition of both

brothers. The horizontalblinds are drawn, the externalworld glows intermittently aslight penetrates the window,producing an intimacy to thespace that matches theintimacy of their conversation.There is a fidgety discomfortIn Charley from the start.Johnny Friendly's threatweighs heaviiy on his usualpoise. Charley tries to bepersuasive but Terry is not se-duced by the promise ofwealth and protectedsecurity. The fortitude ofTerry's power of self-analysisand moral assuredness hasbeen hinted at but notrealised on a verbal level upuntil this point: There is moreto this than I thought.Charley,' he says, as he looksinto the eyes of his brotherwith an almost disamiingcertainty.

This sequence is in manyways a confession of mutuallove. V\flien Charley, in amoment of confused desper-ation, pulls a gun on hisbrother, Terry gently pushesthe gun away with tender-ness. Terry knows thatCharley loves him. The

two-shot conversation abouttheir shared past, overlaidwith a melodic score, is anostalgic acknowledgementof what might have been.Terry feels let down by hisbrother {witness the famous 'Icould have been a contender'speech) and Charley beginsto see the blinding truth inwhat Terry intimates, that hehas failed his own flesh andblood. Charley's usualpanache is dimmed. He ishumbled, knowing that notonly that Terry has madeimportant moral choices, butalso that he, Charley, hasfailed the untenable test thatwill keep him alive. Acceptinghis fate, Charley is killed offby the mob without remorse.His ultimate sacrifice, for abrother he loves, is his ownredemption.

Return of the saviourAfter testifying against the un-ion, Terry throws down thegauntlet to Johnny Friendly.The stranglehold of the unionis threatened by his stand.After suffering a viciousbeating, Terry wills himself towalk to the warehouse. "HieBiblical allusions that havedominated the film culminatein this final scene. Carrying ahook instead of a cross, herefuses assistance. Bloodiedand beaten, but unbowed, hehas usurped the old unionorder, Terry assumes thestatus of saviour, climbing tohis own Calvary. Initially, he isostracised by fellow long-shoremen, but his courage inasserting his 'rights' convinc-es them that shunning himand remaining subservientwill only perpetuate the abuseof power. The longshoremenbecome the disciples in his

flock and watch with amixture of trepidation andadmiration.

The film provides spectatorialidentification through aunique privileging of Terry'sblurred vision. He approachesthe entrance to the ware-house where the day's'shape-up' is about to takeplace, watched by a guard ofhonour made up of his fellowlongshoremen. His confes-sors. Father Barry and Edie,are close to him in hismoment of final redemption.To the crescendo of musicthere is a transitory, perhapseven a pyrrhic, victory in all ofthis. The menacing figure ofJohnny Friendly is never faraway and the vitriol that hepours on those who havebroken his ranks might, infact, be prophetic. In melo-dramatic tradition, the lone

saviour has at least temporar-ily removed corruption andoppression. Individualheroism, imbued with moralcourage, is affirmed in thisfinal act of resistance.

And Terry Malloy is no longera 'bum'. He is the "contender'he always wanted to be.

Gary Simmons taughtpart-time at RMITin 2009. Hepresents sessional lectures atthe Australian Centre for theMoving Image and is a regularspeaker on film in schoolsthroughout Victoria. •

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