Fans of present day action films may not want to watch this movie. The only violence (most are off-screen) is the final brawl between Brando's Terry Malone and Lee J. Cobb's Johnny Friendly. And there is an awful lot of blood for a film of that time, and on black and white they looked ugly.  That's it. Action fans, skip this film. It is boring. It contains some of the best cinematography and performance that won Brando the best actor award, and nominations for THREE of it's supporting players. Who cares right? Where are the explosions? Where are the fart and bodily fluid jokes?

There, I have warded off unwanted readers. Before I go on with my comments, there is a little back story that I would like to share. You might have heard of HUAC (House of UnAmerican Committee) which looks for ex-communists, especially the sympathisers in Hollywood. The whole episode served as a background for Irwin Winkler's wonderful movie, Guilty By Suspicion. Those who did not name names of friends or colleagues who were seen in the gatherings or dinners during their participation, were blacklisted by Hollywood Studios. One of them was screenwriter Dalton Trumbo (Sparctacus and Pappilon). While there were many, standing by their conscience and never betrayed their friends, Elia Kazan did otherwise. In 1952, Kazan was already famous with films like A Streetcar Named Desire and Viva Zapata, both with Brando. Others hated what he did. It became a personal demon which he exorcised with this film.

Brando plays Terry Malone, a longshoreman, who had come under a local mobster, Johnny Friendly's arm since he was a kid. He was an ex-prizefigher and his brother, Charlie, is Johnny's book-keeper. He was trapped. Then came a day, when he had witnessed the death of his friend, Joey Doyle. He was later asked to testify, which he refused. He didn't stay like that for long. He gets involved with Joey's sister, played by Eva Marie Saint, and had himself cleared on the 'conscience' issue by the local pastor played by Karl Malden.

Movie buffs will know the "I coulda been a contender" scene and line. It is usually hailed as the best single perfomance in the history of Hollywood. Here Brando is at his best (though I think he outdid himself in Apocalypse Now), rightfully earning his first Academy Award. Brando is Brando. So, I looked further and found myself intrigued with the supporting players. Lee J. Cobb's performance is unmistakably the most influential amongst the many mob characters to come. I recall something similar in De Niro's Capone in The Untouchables. Too bad, he had to share his Academy votes with Karl Malden and Rod Steiger, who played Malone's brother Charlie.

Kazan is in his finest form here. He could be identified with Terry Malone's character. He seemed to justify his own 'ratting' at the HUAC, where more than a single incident pushed Terry to testify against Johnny Friendly. Several scenes in the movie are not at all coincidental. Watch it and you will now what was Kazan thinking before shooting.

I read elsewhere that some critics complained that the film was used on Kazan's behalf, seeking symphaty. Fine. I'd say, forget all that and watch the movie. It still makes a compelling entertainment. At least for the outstanding performances and the cinematography.