On the Waterfront Assignment
2:50 The plan to get Joey on the roof is completed.
Describe the camera angle, and the image of the two silhouetted figures on the roof
8:28 Johnny Friendly describes his past.
Family of 10 kids
The family income is a longshoreman’s pension. (Pay out after the death of his father due to an industrial accident)
His mother was a single parent
He had to beg for work in the hold when he was 16.
He fought his way to the top
He was tough, courageous, violent and ruthless.
The hold
The hold is the basement of a cargo ship. Longshoremen (they are called waterside workers in Australia) work to lift cargo out of the hold.
The toughest and most dangerous work was in the hold. Later in the film,
Dugan is killed in the hold
Father Barry gives a sermon about Jesus standing alongside the workers, when he - Father Barry - is in the hold beside Dugan’s dead body and having rubbish thrown at him.
Dugan’s dead body is lifted from the hold.
Terry, metaphorically, lifts himself from the hold by being tough, courageous, violent and moral.
10.50 At exactly this point in the film, there is the image of Terry departing from Johnny’s bar. There is a long shot of his back. The image is framed by the figures of five men, with their backs to the camera and looking at him depart. What could the director have tried to achieve with this shot?
10.57. Johnny has just said to his henchmen, ‘All right, pay day. Compare the way the men are looking so carefully as the pay is distributed. Is there a connection here: with the way pigeons are fed at other times.
The fight over the work tags at 17.24
11.40 Terry and Tommy are on the roof. Terry describes the pigeons. They have sure got it made… The scene is shot with the camera inside the pigeon cage. The camera angle makes it look as if Tommy andTerry are behind the wire. What is Kazan suggesting by using this camera angle?
13,02 Pop Doyle hands over Joey’s coat. The people who wear it are Joey, Dugan and, in the final scenes, Terry. What do they have in common when they are wearing the jacket? What is the jacket a symbol of? Check 58.00.
. 15.00 JP lends money to dock workers. The borrowing rate is 10% a week. What is this scheme? Why do people participate?
19.10 When Father Barry asks the men without work why the put up with it and why they don’t go to the union, Dugan spits at the idea of the union and Jimmy says, ‘The waterfront’s tougher, father. Like it ain’t part of America.’ Compare this statement to the scene at the very end (you can find it at 1:46:40) where Terry leads the men into the shed to begin work. Behind him on a neon sign is the part of the name of the Shipping Line. What are the words we see of that name? What is the symbolic meaning of this image at the end of the film?
19.40 There were local branches of the Longshoremen’s union. Each ‘local’ had a number. Then there is the definition of a ‘trigger’ local. What is the definition?
19.48 Fr Barry and others before him are filmed using a low angle: that is, the camera looks up to them. This is the camera angle for the people speaking with moral authority. Who else in this scene is given this symbolic authority? Compare to the way Dugan is filmed after he is beaten up at 25.50 and following.
23.20 D & D is described. Explain this term.
26.19 Edie asks Terry, ‘Which side are you with?’ What is Terry’s reply? Terry’s view changes in stages during the film. Plot the changes in his attitude by describing them: 39.45 Terry’s philosophy on life
55.01 in Fr Barry’s sermon
1.12.18 in his discussion with Charley
1.17.10 when he tells Edie he will not testify
After he testifies and is still not happy, he decides to confront Friendly.
26.50 ff: Mutt calls Terry a ‘bum’. What does this term mean in American English? Plot the changes in the way this term is used. Compare this to: 47.00 and following: Edie accuses Terry of covering up for his brother. She calls him a ‘bum’
1:15. (I coulda been a contender instead of a bum which is what I am.)
1.34.40 I’m not a bum, Edie
27.50 Terry picks up Edie’s glove. He puts it on his hand. What does this show about his character and his interactions with Edie? 31:10 – 33.15 Describe Edie’s and Pop’s justifications for their actions. What gives Edie the courage to persist when none of the men can?
35.05 Edie is surprised that Terry is interested in pigeons. Describe his interest, and the role of the rooftop in his life. Refer to his description of hawks and his admiration for his lead bird and what he takes from these stories about life. Describe Terry’s face during this scene. Describe the symbolism of the egg. Describe the symbolism of the wire between Terry and Edie.
38.10 Describe Terry’s family and his past. Focus in particular on his relationship with his brother.
40.15 Describe Terry’s reaction and body language and tone when Edie criticises his attitudes.
49.10 Johnny Friendly shows Terry Dugan’s evidence before the Crime Commission. What does this show about corruption at every level? Where is John Friendly in the hierarchy? When Terry is sent back to the hold, where is he in the pecking order?
52.50 Fr Barry’s ‘sermon’ about ‘crucifixion’. What is the reference? What is the significance of him giving this sermon in the hold?
56.31 Dugan is lifted from the hold. How is this a symbol?
1:01 The moral dilemma that only Terry understands is that his brother works for Friendly. What is Terry’s attitude to testifying against his brother?
1.03 Does telling the truth to Edie work? Why is the conversation overwhelmed with the noise of ships and industry?
1.06.10 Why is Terry’s identity as a boxer so important to him?
1.08 A crucial scene. What is Charley being asked to do? How is his dilemma similar to his brother’s?
1.10.30 The most crucial scene. What do the brothers realise about each other? What is the outcome?
(Terry’s decision about what he is going to do as a result of this conversation is not clear until 1:17:10 when he breaks open Edie’s door, tells her his is not going to testify and forces a kiss on her.)
1:20:22 Charley’s dead body: hanging off a hook. How does the film maker show that this is another ‘crucifixion’?
When Terry lifts down Charley’s dead body, it is the first time we see them embrace.
1:24:45 The priest punches Terry to the floor. Like everyone else, (Edie included) the priest uses violence. What is the film’s attitude to violence?
1.29.06 We see Mr Upstairs for the first time. What does this sequence show about John Friendly’s power? 1.32:35 Why has Tommy killed all the pigeons? What is the effect on Terry?
The final confrontation on the docks and with John friendly
Terry is humiliated by Big Mac in front of the others. Terry is defeated in the fight. Terry suffers alone. Terry rises again to lead his followers into a better world. What story is being imitated here?
1.45.12 Why does the priest insist that Terry walks alone?
Overall, what is the role of women in the film?