Ambivalence As a Theme in "On the Waterfront" (1954): an Interdisciplinary Approach to Film Study Author(S): Kenneth Hey Source: American Quarterly, Vol

Home , Boris Kaufman, Karl Malden, On the Waterfront, Ordinary People, Robert Sklar, Walter Wanger

Ambivalence as a Theme in "On the Waterfront" (1954): An Interdisciplinary Approach to Film Study Author(s): Kenneth Hey Source: American Quarterly, Vol. 31, No. 5, Special Issue: Film and American Studies (Winter, 1979), pp. 666-696 Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2712431 Accessed: 02/07/2010 10:41

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use.

Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=jhup.

Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transmission.

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

The Johns Hopkins University Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to American Quarterly.

http://www.jstor.org AMBIVALENCE AS A THEME IN ON THE WATERFRONT (1954): AN INTERDISCIPLINARY APPROACH TO FILM STUDY

KENNETH HEY BrooklynCollege of theCity University of New York

THE STUDY OF FILM IN AMERICAN CULTURE POSES SOME INTERESTING challengesto theperson using an interdisciplinarymethod. First, as an historicaldocument, film has contextualconnections with the contempor- ary world.The people who makea filmbring to the projecttheir own interestsand attitudes, and these various perspectives, when added to the collaborativeprocess, forge a productwhich resonates in someway with society.Second, as a workof art, film requires textual analysis similar to drama,photography, painting, and music. But as an aestheticobject whichcombines different artistic media into a singleexperience, film requiresan analyticalmethod which considers all contributingdisciplines. Finally,as an arthistorical object, film stands at theintersection of on- goingtraditions in themedium's own historyand of theoreticalinterests alive at thetime the film is made. To singleout one featureof thefilm (e.g., its historicalcontext or a self-containedmeaning in thetext) is to sacrificethe filmfor somethingless. To avoid examiningthe relative contributionsof all themajor participants is to missthe unique feature of thiscollaborative art form. As an exampleof the collaborativefilm process and as an objectof culturalsignificance, On the Waterfront(1954) has few competitors. Bringingtogether some of the best and mostinnovative artists in theirre- spectivemedia, the film was an attemptto weavetogether the threads of two contemporaryevents with the strandsof aestheticthemes derived fromseveral different artistic media. Unlike many intriguing films which lose theirappeal as societychanges, this twenty-five-year-old film continuesto evincethe intended moral outrage from viewers ignorant of its On the Waterfront 667

'4M - 4)

0>>i-~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -~ .~ | R 4)4 41 > or~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~o~

Q ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~- wI o 4U 4) I0 * 1 | 1 ; 1 4 | E g E Q~~

* A

hi~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _4XQ 668 American Quarterly historicalbackground and to receive harshcriticism from detractors awareof thefilm's origins.' On the Waterfronttells of TerryMalloy (played by MarlonBrando) whobegins as an ignorantand complacentmember of a corruptgang that controlsthe longshoreman'sunion. Terry previously boxed profession- allyfor the mob and obedientlytook "a dive" so themobsters could win bigon theopponent. He now contentshimself with a "cushy" dockjob and a "littleextra change on the side." The mob, headed by Johnny Friendly(played by Lee J. Cobb) withthe assistance of Terry's brother, Charley"the Gent"(played by Rod Steiger),applies "muscle" discipline wherenecessary; when a dissidentmember breaks the "D and D" rule ("Deaf and Dumb") and talksto the CrimeCommission, the mobsters have himkilled. Edie Doyle (playedby Eva Marie Saint),sister of the film'sfirst murder victim, Joey Doyle, triesto unravelthe mysteryof unioncorruption, hoping to uncoverthe identityof her brother'smur- derer.Joined by Father Barry (played by Karl Malden),she soonconcen- tratesher attentionson Terry,whose basic philosophy("Do it to him beforehe does itto you") clasheswith the Christian morality ("Aren't we all partof each other") she has absorbedat a conventschool. Terry's indifferenceto Edie's pleas eventuallyleads to the murderof "Kayo" Dugan(played by Pat Henning), whose violent death extracts an emotional eulogyfrom Father Barry. After the mob kills Charleyfor protecting his brother,the younger Malloy seeks revenge.Father Barry convinces Terryto vent his anger in open testimonybefore the State Water- frontCrime Commission. But the impersonality of formaltestimony fails to appease Terry's desire for vengeance,and he confrontsJohnny Friendlydirectly. Although he loses theensuing fist fight, he seemsto win a "battle" by circumventingFriendly's authority and personallyleading the men back to work.(See Figure1.) The followingstudy will seek to explainhow and whyOn the Water- frontcame to be. As a methodof explaining the film's origins and meaning,each collaborator'scareer, point of view, and majorinterests will be discussedbriefly and fittedinto the evolvingproduct. When all of the artists'efforts are consideredas partof the whole,a singletheme pre- dominates:ambivalence. The filmargues openly that injustice can be remediedthrough existing political institutions; but it graftsonto this basicliberal position the suggestion that individuals are frequently casual- tiesof theconflict between right and wrongin societyand thatthe individual'sresponse to theclash ofabsolute moral standards is ambivalent. In the film,the "thesis" of evil (JohnnyFriendly) is confrontedby its

I For example, see Roger Tailleur, "Elia Kazan and the House Un-AmericanActivities Committee,"Film Comment,2 (Fall 1966), 43-59. On the Waterfront 669

"antithesis"of good (FatherBarry and Christianmorality); the new "synthesis"(Terry Malloy) miraculously fuses selfishness and selfless- ness, but as an individualstaggering beneath the burdenof moraldeci- sions,he remainsunconvinced of therightness of eitherextreme. The idea fora waterfrontdrama came from a personwho had nothing to do withthe final product. In 1949,Arthur Miller, flushed with the success of two Broadway plays (All My Sons, 1947; Death of a Salesman, 1949), directedhis considerabletalent toward the social strugglethen being wagedon the Brooklyndocks. His play,The Bottomof theRiver (also titledThe Hook) toldof the misadventures of Peter Panto who in thelate 1930stried to organizedissident longshoremen in Brooklyn'sRed Hook district.According to the longshoremenwith whom Miller talked, mobstersfeared Panto's rapid rise to popularityand had him killed, dump- inghis body in theEast River.In 1951,when the first script was finished, Millercontacted colleague Elia Kazan, suggestingthat they work jointly on thefilm.2 Kazan, aftercompleting his studiesat the Yale School of Drama in 1932,had joined boththe innovativeGroup Theatre and the energetic CommunistParty, but his radical fervor soon waned and he severedParty affiliationsbecause of a conflictover artists' prerogatives and freedoms. Fromhis 1930sexperiences in dramaticart and radicalpolitics, Kazan developedan aesthetictheory which favored optimistic realism and as- sumeda politicalposture "left of center and to theright of the Communist Party."3 A deftcreator of dramatictension on stage,Kazan usuallydi- rectedBroadway plays thatprojected his liberalideas. Fromhis work on the GroupTheatre's Golden Boy to his directionof TennesseeWil- liams'A StreetcarNamed Desire (play, 1947;film, 1951) and of Arthur Miller's All My Sons and Death of a Salesman, Kazan had helped shape studies of inhumanexploitation, bestial degradation,and aimless materialism,as well as statementsconcerning moral responsibility. But the pessimismwhich often infused these social dramaswas not wholly suitedto the optimismof a scrappingand successfulimmigrant like Kazan. In On theWaterfront, he wouldresurrect Clifford Odets' "golden boy" and make his own "originalgolden warrior," Terry Malloy, rise fromhis beatingand depose momentarilyhis corruptadversary. Kazan would also revive Tennessee Williams'characters from A Streetcar Named Desire. In the play, Kazan had directedVivien Leigh to play

2 ArthurMiller, "The Year It Came Apart," New York(Dec. 30, 1974-Jan.6, 1975), 42. For Peter Panto's story,see Allen Raymond, WaterfrontPriest (New York: Henry Holt, 1955), 65-66. 3Elia Kazan, cited in Michel Ciment,Kazan on Kazan (New York: Viking, 1974), 20; quote in followingparagraph, 71. 670 American Quarterly

BlancheDuBois as "an ambivalentfigure who is attractedto theharsh- ness and vulgarity"surrounding her at the same time she fearsand rejectsit. For thewaterfront drama, Kazan wouldtransfer the character ambivalenceto TerryMalloy, converting Blanche DuBois intoan effec- tive Edie Doyle, and the befuddledMitch into a forcefulFather Barry (bothplayed by Karl Malden).Stanley Kowalski and TerryMalloy (both playedby Marlon Brando) would share several characteristics-an inabil- ityto expressthemselves clearly, an incapacityto controlor even com- prehendtheir situations and actions,and a vulnerabilitywhich belies a certainsensitivity. But unlikeKowalski, Terry Malloy would be per- mittedto growand change.Kowalski's bestial drives mixed with brute strengthwould give way, under persistent moral preachings, to Malloy's survivalinstincts tempered with human indecisiveness. Kazan's successfulGroup Theatre experiences, his fleetingglance at radicalpolitics, his personalrise fromimmigrant boy to Broadway's "gray-haired"wonder, and his early Hollywoodpopularity (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn,1945; Boomerang and Gentleman'sAgreement, both 1947)led himto believein the value of his own workand in the real possibilityof reform.But Kazan stoppedshort of naiveidealism. When confrontedwith large, historical forces, the individual becomes a victim who may,despite a heroiccharacter, flinch and recoil,as did Emiliano Zapatawhen offered the reins of the Mexican government (Viva, Zapata!, 1952).Thus, by thetime Arthur Miller contacted Kazan abouta waterfrontfilm, the two Broadwaycollaborators had sharedseveral artistic experiences,but Miller's clearly defined goods and evils,so evidentin All My Sons, did not blendwell withKazan's admixtureof optimismand moralambivalence. Despite this differencein perspective,the two authorscollected Miller'scompleted script and headed west to seekfinancial backing. After feelersto Kazan's studio,Twentieth Century-Fox, proved unsuccessful, thetwo appealed to HarryCohn, president of ColumbiaPictures. Cohn, whoshowed interest in theproject, contacted Roy Brewer,whose advice on laboraffairs Cohn considered essential. Brewer headed several Holly- wood unionsand servedon theMotion Picture Alliance for the Preserva- tionof American Ideals, an organizationof conservative filmmakers who foughtcommunism in Hollywoodby aidingthe House Committeeon Un-AmericanActivities (HUAC). He suppliedunion workers and pro- jectionistsfor filmshe consideredpolitically acceptable and made it impossiblefor filmmAkers disdainful of HUAC to securea crewin Holly- wood.4Cohn and Brewersuggested that the authors convert the water-

I Robert Sklar, Movie-Made America: A Cultural History of American Movies (New York: Random House, 1975), 258-59. On the Waterfront 671

frontmobsters into communists. When Millerand Kazan refused,Brewer retortedthat the creatorswere dishonest,immoral, and un-American.5The power behindthis hardline position must have seemed ominous to Kazan in 1952 when he received a subpoena fromthe House Committeeon Un-American Activities to testifyconcerning his knowledge of com- munistactivities in the 1930s. Accordingto Kazan, On the Waterfrontwas "partly affected" by his two appearances beforethe celebrated House Committeeon January14 and April9, 1952. "I went throughthat thing," he lateradmitted, "and it was painfuland difficultand not the thingI'm proudestof in my life,but it's also not somethingI'm ashamed of."6 No doubt, Kazan confronted his unfortunaterole as friendlywitness withthe perspectivethat he was trapped between two opposing and irreconcilableforces of evil, neither of which deserved his allegiance. However, he also must have seen that the federal governmentand the strongpro-HUAC sentimentlodged in Hollywood could destroyhis career. The general "good" he perceived in the exposure and criticismof the AmericanCommunist Party's activities could be easily fused withthe individual"good" of his personal success. "It is my obligation as a citizen," he told the committee, "to tell everything."7 Like "golden boy" Joe Bonaparte, Willy Loman, and even Blanche DuBois, Kazan saw himselfas anothervictim of social and politicalforces which corrupteven the most honorable intentions. With the committee as audience, Kazan read a carefullyprepared statementwhich containedthree clearly framed sections. First,he admit- ted and repudiatedmembership in the CommunistParty. "I was a member of the CommunistParty from some time in the summerof 1934 until the late winteror early springof 1936,when I severed all connectionwith it permanently.... I had had enough anyway. I had had a taste of police- state livingand I did not like it." Second, he explained the depth of his complicityby describinghis missionand by listingpeople withwhom he had worked.

For theapproximately nineteen months of my membership, I was assignedto a "unit" composedof thoseparty members who were,like myself, members of theGroup Theatre acting company.... Whatwe wereasked to do was four- fold: 1) to "educate" ourselvesin Marxistand partydoctrine; 2) to helpthe partyget a footholdin the ActorsEquity Association; 3) to supportvarious "frontorganizations" of the party; 4) to tryto capturethe Group Theatre and makeit a Communistmouthpiece.

5 Miller, "The Year," 43. 6 Elia Kazan, interview,"Cinema Grand Illusions," The Real Paper (May 30, 1973), 24. 7 Elia Kazan, testimony,Hearings Before the Committee on Un-AmericanActivities, House of Representatives,82d Cong., 2d sess., Apr. 10, 1952, 2408. All quotes in the followingparagraph, 2408-13. 672 American Quarterly

All thepeople Kazan namedhad previously been named, and thushe did notactually lengthen the HUAC list.But he gave legitimacyto theCom- mittee's witch hunt, and-not insignificantly-insuredhis future employmentin Hollywood. In thethird section of his dramaticpresentation, Kazan defendedhis careersince leaving the party and triedto showthat his artisticactivities werein no way un-American."After I leftthe party in 1936except for makinga two-reeldocumentary film mentioned above in 1937[The People ofthe Cumberlands], I was neveractive in any organization since listed as subversive."In characterizinghis artisticefforts since 1936,Kazan de- scribedDeath ofa Salesmanas a storywhich "shows thefrustrations of thelife of a salesmanand containsimplicit criticism of his materialistic standards";he called Viva, Zapata! "an anti-communistpicture." He laboredto showhow even the most critical works were essentially Ameri- can inintent, purpose, and effect. Depicting himself as a staunchdefender ofdemocracy, Kazan assertedthat concern for the social problems of the 1930shad drawnhim to theCommunist Party but that the Party's preoc- cupation with political subversionhad actually harmedreal social reform.8 Priorto his second appearancebefore the House committee,Kazan wrotea lengthyletter to theeditor of The Saturday Review, defending the anti-communistmessage of Viva,Zapata! In explicatingthe democratic theorybehind the film'saction, Kazan describedZapata (played by MarlonBrando) as "no communist;he was thatopposite phenomenon, a manof individualconscience." 9 The truereformer was an individualist whofought for the same ends as didthe Communist Party, but consulted his consciencerather than ideologywhen makingpolitical decisions. Kazan submittedhis entireletter to theHouse committeeas partof his formalstatement. In the same issue of The SaturdayReview, Norman Cousinsdelineated the essential differences between a communistand a liberal."A Communist,although he pretendsto be independent,always takeshis orderfrom above; a liberalmakes up his own mind.A Com- munist,because he takesorders from above, is sometimestrapped by an overnightchange in Partypolicy; a liberalcan changehis mindbut he does so slowly,painfully, and by his own volition."10 Three days after

8 For a broader study of this point, see Daniel Aaron, Writerson the Left (New York: Avon, 1961, 1969), 388-407. 9 Elia Kazan, "Elia Kazan on Zapata!" The Saturday Review (Apr. 5, 1952), 22-23. For a longer study of Viva, Zapata!, see Paul J. Vanderwood, "An American Cold-Warrior: Viva, Zapata! (1952)," in John E. O'Connor and Martin R. Jackson, eds. American ffistory/AmericanFilm: Interpretingthe American Image (New York: Ungar, 1979), 183-201. 10Norman Cousins, "Can an AmericanBe Trusted?" SaturdayReview (Apr. 5, 1952),20. On the Waterfront 673 testifying,Kazan purchasedadvertising space in theamusement section of The New YorkTimes. In the two-column,page-long "Statement," Kazan defendedhis actionsbefore the Committee and calledupon other liberals to come forward."Secrecy," he wrote, "serves the communists."In May 1952,Clifford Odets, whom Kazan had namedas a formermember of the Communist Party, appeared before the Committee andreiterated the emerging liberal theme. "One mustpick one's wayvery carefullythrough the images of liberalismor leftismtoday," he toldthe subcommittee,"or one mustremain silent."" Odets,Kazan, and others like themhad evidentlychanged their minds "slowly, painfully and by [their]own volition" because they chose, as TerryMalloy would choose, notto remainsilent. Yieldingto politicalhysteria on theright did notappeal to all liberals. Kazan's performancebefore the committeeincensed his associate,Ar- thurMiller, and the two embarked on an artisticduel which lasted into the 1960s.Miller fired the first round with The Crucible(1953), an apparent studyof witchcraftin PuritanSalem. Accordingto Miller,"the witch- huntwas a perversemanifestation of the panic whichset in amongall classes whenthe balance began to turn[away from communal unity and] towardgreater individual freedom.' '12 Millertried to link the Salem witch-huntswith Washington red-baiting. While hoping to avoidspurious connectionsbetween witchcraft and communism,he did seek to explore hystericaland oppressiveresponses to individualacts of conscience. Kazan's returnvolley in theartistic duel, On theWaterfront, made mobstercontrol over the waterfrontanalogous to CommunistParty control overthe individual. But the film did not confuse communism per se with gangsterracketeering; it soughtto exploretwo formsof oppression. Millerand Kazan, theliberal duellists, were firing at each otherby firing in oppositedirections. Standing back to back,Kazan firedat thepolitical leftwhile Miller fired at theright. Kazan's roleas a "friendlywitness" before the House Committeeon Un-AmericanActivities and Miller'sefforts to capturethe "witch-hunt" in dramaticform left undeveloped their ideas fora filmon waterfront crime.After testifying, Kazan contactedauthor Budd Schulberg. Son ofa famousHollywood producer, B. P. Schulberg,the youngwriter had grownup surroundedby famous people and greatwealth. After graduat- ing fromDartmouth College, he returnedto his hometown,wrote

11 CliffordOdets, cited in Lately Thomas (pseud.), When Even Angels Wept: A Story Withouta Hero (New York: WilliamMorrow, 1973), 175. Elia Kazan, "A Statement,"New YorkTimes (Apr. 12, 1952), 7. 12 ArthurMiller, "The Crucible," in ArthurMiller's Collected Plays (New York: Viking, 1957), 228. 674 American Quarterly extradialogue for various studios, and releasedhis firstnovel, What MakesSammy Run? (1941). This searing critique of money-hungry execu- tivesin the film industry not only singed the coats of all capitalists,it also avengedhis father'spremature ouster from Paramount Studios. His second novel,The HarderThey Fall (1947),updated and expandedOdets' GoldenBoy, detailingthe moralfailings of comfortableand dependent employeesof a corruptboxing syndicate. Schulberg followed this cynical blastat complacentself-interest with The Disenchanted (1950), a partially autobiographicalnovel which simultaneously traced the demise of Manley Halliday(known to be F. ScottFitzgerald) during the filming of Love in Ice (WalterWanger's Winter Carnival) and the slow disenchantment of a fresh,young screenwriter (Shep/Schulberg) with 1930s socialist thought.13 In each ofthese novels, Schulberg created a powerfulcharacter whose success dependedupon pitiablehumans who coweredbefore the very forcethat exploited them. While exploring the curiousdynamics of a socialstructure which propelled the most vicious hoodlums to thetop, the threeworks recorded the slow and agonizingincapacitation of a lone victimstruggling to maintaindignity in a hostileenvironment. From his firstnovel, whichcondemned ambitious Hollywood capitalists, to his third,which followed the demise of an "artist"in Hollywood'sfilm fac- tory,Schulberg sketched a debasedand graceless society which protected and rewardedthe powerful for trouncing upon the weak. Shortlyafter his third novel appeared on themarket, Schulberg's atten- tionwas divertedto theNew Yorkwaterfront. In 1949,Joseph Curtis, an aspiringfilm producer with Hollywood connections, had foundedMonti- cello Film Corporationfor the sole purposeof convertingto celluloid MalcolmJohnson's New YorkSun articleson unioncorruption. In 1950, thearticles, which won Johnson a PulitzerPrize, appeared in bookform. Withthis popular momentum, Curtis convinced Robert Siodmak to direct the filmand asked Schulbergto writethe script.Despite his original hesitancyto returnto an industryhe had laceratedmercilessly in his fiction,Schulberg agreed. Measuringthe distancebetween successful people and social rebels,Schulberg explained his fascinationwith the film'ssubject matter. "The epic scale of the corruptionand violence intriguedme. Onlya fewblocks from Sardi's and Shor'sand other places whereitinerant social philosophersassemble to discussthe problems of theday, guys who said 'no' to industrial-feudalismwere getting clobbered

13 Budd Schulberg,What Makes Sammy Run? (New York: Random House, 1941); The Harder TheyFall (New York: Random House, 1947); The Disenchanted (New York: Ran- dom House, 1950). On the Waterfront 675 and killed."14 Invigoratedby the importanceand scale of the project, Schulberginvestigated, planned, and finished Crime on theWaterfront by thespring of 1951,but due to grievouserrors in the financial planning, the scriptwas languishingin production limbo when the House Committeeon Un-AmericanActivities summoned the author to Washington. As a disillusionedex-member of the Communist Party, Schulberg chose to obey the subpoena.Testifying on May 23, 1951,he admittedParty membership,explained Party methods of controllingdissident writer- members,and named formerassociates. He arguedthat the limited choices availableto the 1930sreformer matched with the urgentneed to do somethingmade Partymembership seem reasonable."I joined," he toldthe committee, "because at thetime I feltthat the political issues thatthey seemed to be in favorof, mostly I recallthe opposition to the Nazi and Mussoliniand a feelingthat something should be doneabout it, thosethings attracted me, and therewere some others, too." 15 He sepa- ratedoffenders into those who joined the Partyto advance basically humanitariancauses and thosewho wishedto manipulatethe humanists to advance totalitarianends. Ideologicalfanatics within the Partyex- ploitedsocially credible writers who soughtto studysociety's ills. Irri- tatedover the Party's attempts to regulatehis own writing, Schulberg left theorganization. In his testimony,he contendedthere were communists and innocentcommunist dupes, and the "innocents"were reallysolid democratsfighting for legitimate causes. In 1952,with the Curtisproject still in financialtrouble, the rights to Crime on the Waterfrontreverted to Schulberg.Shortly thereafter, Kazan, whowas interestedin making a filmon corruptjudicial processes in an easterncity, contacted Schulberg. Because theyhad both been involvedin abortedfilm projects concerned with waterfront crime, they quicklyagreed to developa realisticstory based on mobstercontrol of longshoreunions. Drawing upon personal investigations, two previously completedscripts, and Johnson'sCrime on the Labor Front,the two collaboratorsfamiliarized themselves with the details of waterfront conditions.16 From 1946 to 1951,the docks in New York and New Jerseywere rampantwith illegal activities. Attempts at reform,as demonstratedby theill-fated effort of Peter Panto, proved fruitless. After a wildcatstrike in

14 Budd Schulberg,"Waterfront: From Docks to Film," New YorkTimes (July11, 1954), II, 5. Also, "Suit Seeks Profitsof On the Waterfront,"New YorkTimes (Oct. 19, 1954),24. 15 Budd Schulberg, testimony,Hearings Before the Committee on Un-AmericanAc- tivities,House of Representatives,82d Cong., 1st sess., May 31, 1951, 583-84. 16 Malcolm Johnson,Crime on the Labor Front (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1950). For a broaderview of waterfrontcrime, see Daniel Bell, The End of Ideology: On the Exhaustion of Political Ideas in the Fifties (New York: Free Press, 1960, 1962), 197-205. 676 American Quarterly

1945focused national attention on thewaterfront, William F. Warren,the workers'popular leader, reportedly "fell and hurthimself' on thejob, andbefore reappearing on thedocks, made a public"confession" that he had been "a dupe" of the CommunistParty. In 1948,a second major strikereached its peak soonafter the New YorkAnti-Crime Commission subpoenaedmobster John M. Dunn, who whileawaiting execution in prisonpromised to name the man knownas "Mr. Big"-called "Mr. Upstairs"in the film.While most workers assumed "Mr. Big" to be financiermillionaire William "Big Bill" McCormick,dockworker specu- lationthought New YorkCity's Mayor, William O'Dwyer, better suited the description.But Dunn renegedon his threat,the strikewas settled withforce, the Anti-CrimeCommission recessed, and MayorO'Dwyer ranfor reelection. By November1952, when Kazan and Schulbergstarted writing their story,the New Jerseyharbor, the specific location for the film, was the settingof frequentassaults, firebombings, beatings, and mobsterac- tivities.With the year comingto a close, the New York State Crime Commission(the Commission in the film) made known its findings. With a sweepof media sensationalism, the Commission charged the obvious: the docks werebattlefields for entrenched corruption. Workers were forced to take extortionaryloans forguaranteed work, and illegalstrikes were called to extractlarger fees fromshippers. Union leaders abused elec- tions,bookkeeping practices, and pension systems; and shippers, to insure againstloss, remainedsilent. Drawing upon this vast cityscape of corruption,Kazan and Schulbergran througheight different scripts, each of whichexposed illegal activities on theNew Yorkwaterfront while provid- ing the authorsan opportunityto explaintheir position on analogous contemporaryevents of seeminglygreater national significance. The themeswhich emanated from Kazan's and Schulberg'sHUAC testimonies-thebeguiled innocent manipulated for unwholesome pur- poses; individualresponsibility to thedemocratic whole; preference for individualmorality over ideologicalfanaticism-were literary in nature and religiousin tone,and theyhelped the authors shape the raw material ofwaterfront crime. Likewise, the testimonial ceremony, which included confessinganti-social activities, identifying associates and theoriesre- sponsiblefor those misguided endeavors, and recommendingmore desir- able ways of expressingsocial concern,suggested dramatic form. The threestages of theirtestimony became the threemajor steps of Terry Malloy'sconversion. The firstsegment of thefilm exposes Malloy'sas- sociationswith the corrupt gang; a secondsegment depicts his discovery of corruptionas well as the depthsof his own guilt;the finalsegment showshim battling for his own "rights." On the Waterfront 677

Each segment has a ritualized scene which summarizes the action. The "shape-up" scene discloses the dehumanizingconditions fostered by union corruption. A union leader throws "brass checks" on the ground where longshoremenwrestle to retrievetheir guarantee of one day's work. Terry,shown separatedfrom the centralscramble, is given a "cushy" job as a rewardfor setting up JoeyDoyle for"the knock-off."A "martyrdom" scene in the middle of the film includes Father Barry's orationover the dead body of "Kayo" Dugan. The "waterfrontpriest" pleads with the men to come forwardand speak because silence only serves the mobsters. A "testimonial" scene at the Crime Commission hearingscompletes the trilogy.The legal institutionsreceive reinforce- ment,and Terryconfesses to societyhis complicity.The state's principal investigatorthanks Terry profusely,explaining that his actions "have made it possible fordecent people to workthe docks again." This speech echoes the one RepresentativeFrancis E. Walter addressed to Kazan afterhis HUAC appearance: "Mr. Kazan, we appreciate your coopera- tion withour committee.It is only throughthe assistance of people such as you thatwe have been able to make the progressthat has been made in bringingthe attentionof the Americanpeople to the machinationsof this Communistconspiracy for world domination."17 In the film,confession and reassurance release Terryfrom his past transgressionand enable him to reclaim his "rights." The firsttwo ritual scenes-the shape-up and the martyrdom-were borrowedfrom Johnson's Crime on the Labor Front. The prize-winning reporterfor the New YorkSun characterizedthe longshoreworking conditions"as not befittingthe dignityof a humanbeing," a themeconsistent withthe testimoniesand previouscreations of both Schulbergand Kazan. The city's districtattorney claimed thatthe abject conditionson the docks were "a directresult of the shape-up system." 18 Johnson'sdescription of the typicaldockside call forworkers-the morningshape-up-was to fit neatlyinto the Kazan-Schulberg script:

The sceneis anypier along New York'swaterfront. At a designatedhour, the longshoremengather in a semicircleat theentrance to thepier. They are the menwho load andunload the ships. They are looking for jobs, andas theystand therein a semicircletheir eyes are fastenedon one man. He is the hiring stevedore,and he standsalone, surveyingthe waitingmen. At thiscrucial momenthe possessesthe power of economiclife or deathover them, and the menknow it. Their faces betray that knowledge in tense anxiety, eagerness and fear.They know that the hiring boss, a unionman like themselves, can accept

17 Kazan testimony,Hearings, 2414. 18 Johnson,Labor Front, 137. 678 American Quarterly

themor rejectthem at will. . . Now the hiringboss moves amongthem, choosingthe man he wants,passing over others.He nods or pointsto the favoredones or calls outtheir names, indicating that they are hired.For those accepted,relief and joy. The pinchedfaces of the othersreflect bleak disap- pointment,despair. Still they linger. Others will wander off inconsolately to wait anotherchance.19

The potency of this scene in the filmresults fromcamera positioning. When Big Mac (played by JamesWesterfield) blows his whistleto call the workers, the camera stands behind him, permittinghis large figureto obscure the huddled longshoremen.During the scramble for tags, the camera is low to the ground, capturingfacial expressions; character movement is downward, and the camera seems to press the viewer against the dirtydockside surface. When Edie, who has come to the " shape-up" to studythe causes of union corruption,tries to retrievea tag for her father,she comes in contact withTerry Malloy. He overpowers her and recovers the contestedtag forhis friend,suggesting that muscle prevails on the docks. But when Terrylearns thathis femaleadversary is the sister of the kid whom he "set-up for the knock-off,"his "conscience" convinceshim to surrenderthe tag to her. Thus, the conflictbetween muscle and moralityis established. During this encounter,the camera firstframes Edie and Terry's contest in the foregroundwith the longshoremen'sstruggle in the background.When the scramblegives way to moral considerations,the camera changes position,isolating their con- versationand makinga special case withinthe generallydemeaning environment.The moral "conscience" which Edie embodies altersthe situation. For the scene as a whole, the camera presentsthe viewer withthe factsof the story(a sense of viewinga "real" event in the workers'daily lives), the filmmakers'opinion about the story(Mac and his associates have the power; the workersare oppressed and unorganized),and Terry's special relationshipto the depicted waterfrontconditions. Through camera positioning,the scene establishes conflictsto be explored as the film progresses. To Kazan and Schulberg,the disciplinewithin the communist"unit" of the 1930s depended upon similar insults to personal dignity."The typical Communistscene of crawlingand apologizing and admittingthe errorof my ways," 20 as Kazan described the practice, degraded human intelligence,and the film's "shape-up" scene was intended to capture such dehumanization.After Mac throwsthe last tags on the ground,exas- peration leads to pushing,which eventuallyleads to chaos. In the film,

19 Ibid., 133-34. 20 Kazan testimony,Hearings, 2410-11. On the Waterfront 679

this centralexpository scene attemptsto highlightthe hopelessness and futilityof longshoremenin a place "which ain't part of America." Johnson'sportrait of waterfrontconditions also contained a model for the film's moral catalyst,Father Barry. As associate directorof the St. Xavier School (Manhattan), Rev. John M. Corridan, the "waterfront priest," deliveredsermons, held meetings,contributed advice to troubled longshoremen,and exhortedthe dock workersto strikeand rebel. On the violent New Jerseydocks, where the filmwas actually shot, Corridan delivereda virulentattack on union corruption.His sermon,"A Catholic Looks at the Waterfront,"was reproducedin Johnson'sbook:

You wantto knowwhat's wrong with the waterfront? It's love ofa buck.... Christalso said "If youdo itto theleast of mine, you do itto me." Christis in theshape-up.... He standsin theshape-up knowing that all won'tget work andmaybe He won't.... Somepeople think the Crucifixion took place only on Calvary.... Whatdoes Christthink of the man who picks up a longshoreman's brasscheck and takes 20 percent interest at theend of the week? Christ goes to a unionmeeting . .. [and]sees a fewwith $150 suits and diamond rings on their fingers.21

As his words make clear, Corridanapplied the moral teachingsof Christ to waterfrontunionism, and this unadorned social gospel reinforcedthe dualism between brutalityand innocence which had figuredprominently in previousworks by Kazan and Schulberg.Because of the familiarset of visual symbols attached to Christianmythology as well as the moral authority and political safety of such a conservative institution,the filmmakersexpanded and made essential Father Barry's role in convinc- ing TerryMalloy to testify(see Figure 2). The filmmakers,both formermembers of the CommunistParty, used Father Barry's funeraloration to air theirrejuvenated ideology and to challenge silent liberals to speak out against past totalitarianactivities. The emotionalspeech introducesthe idea of shared guiltand encourages action to combat and defeat the mobsters. As the shrillaccusations re- sound throughthe ship's hold, the forces of chaos (the "mugs" who throw cans and tomatoes) are silenced (Malloy punches Tillio on the chin). With the camera searching high overhead to find Friendly and Charley,it is obvious thatthe power relationshipshave not changed. But the men begin to realize thattheir silence only serves theiroppressors. While Father Barryspeaks, the shadow of a cross-likeform rises on the wall behindhim. Afterthe speech, Dugan's body ascends fromthe work- er's hell (the lower depths of the ship) accompanied by Father Barryand

21 Johnson,Labor Front, 223. 680 American Quarterly

>0t)

_g(tIdOLOA

.4~~~~~~O.

'i''o l...... >.o . .. ; W E On the Waterfront 681

Pops, two saintlyescorts for the workingman'smartyr. The men stand withtheir hats off,unified at least momentarilyby thisritual. Whereas the shape-up belittledthe workers,this affirmativescene "resurrects" their self-image.The action of the men at the shape-up was downwardto the ground;here it is upward toward the sources of oppression. A "testimonial" session with the Crime Commission, the thirdritual scene in the film,completes the film's structuralargument. Corruption and human indignity,exposed in the shape-up and then condemned over a martyr'sbody, are finallymade public before a tribunalwhich seeks to punish those responsible. In the Commission hearing room, mobsters,newspapermen, commissioners, and interestedcitizens have a designatedplace in a physicallyordered environmentwhere legal processes are conductedin the open forall to see. Unlike the drearyalleys and dingyasylums of waterfrontcriminals, the brightlylighted and crowded room encourages photographersand reportersto publishwhat theyhear. Investigatorsdoggedly pursue the illegalityhidden behind unions without accountingbooks and withoutelections. The degraded competitionbe- tween workers in the shape-up has become a fair and open contest between equal adversariesmade possible by a legal systemwhich insures individual"rights." Totalitarianirreverence is supplantedby democratic dignity.

* * *

In the springof 1953 withthe scriptcompleted, Kazan and Schulberg wentto Californiato seek studiobacking. Afterseveral rejections,Twen- tieth Century-Foxpurchased the rights,and then immediatelyreleased them. A foreign-bornproducer was stayingin the hotel room across the hall fromthe anxious screenwriters,and casual conversationled to an agreementwhereby Sam Spiegel assumed all productionresponsibilities forHorizon Pictures. Spiegel had arrivedin Hollywood in 1938 and soon startedproducing minor films under the name S. P. Eagle. His unsteady career gained stabilityin 1947 when he and JohnHuston foundedHorizon Pictures. AlthoughSpiegel rarelyintruded forcefully into a film's crea- tion, he usually selected stories which concentratedon the dignityof humanbeings (e.g., AfricanQueen, 1951). Thus, his decision to back The Golden Warriors,the film's new workingtitle, was consistentwith his otherHollywood investments.22

22 ArcherWinsten, "Reviewing Stand," New YorkPost (July6, 1953), 22; JamesF. Fixx, "The Spiegel Touch," Saturday Review (Dec. 29, 1962), 13-14+; Thomas M. Pryor, "Spiegel and U.-I. Back Kazan Film," New YorkTimes (June 13, 1953), includedin Spiegel clippingfile, New York Public Library,Lincoln Center. 682 American Quarterly

Outsideof financial support, Spiegel's contribution was limitedto casting,which itself followed a circuitousroute. Kazan evidentlyhad Frank Sinatrain mindfor both the Malloyand FatherBarry parts, but Spiegel wantedto save theMalloy part for Montgomery Clift. Clift was unavaila- ble and Sinatrareportedly demanded $900,000, a sum far beyondthe film'smodest budget. Undecided, Kazan turnedto hisfrequent associate, MarlonBrando, who signeda contractworth $100,000. Kazan wanted LaurenceTierney for the Charles Malloy role, but Tierney was occupied, and so thepart went to anothermember of Kazan and Strasberg'sActors Studio,Rod Steiger.3 In June1953, Lee J. Cobb, anotherGroup Theatre graduate who had justfinished acting in theNew YorkCity revival of Golden Boy, appeared beforethe House Committeeon Un-AmericanActivities and gave exten- sivetestimony concerning Party operations. In hisstatement, Cobb struck a special themewhich matched the developingideas forThe Golden Warriors:"I would like to thankyou forthe privilegeof settingthe recordstraight, not only for whatever subjective relief it affords me, but if belatedlythis information can be ofany value in the further strengthening ofour Government and itsefforts at homeas wellas abroad,it will serve in somesmall way to mitigateagainst whatever feeling of guilt I mayhave forhaving waited this long.' " 24 The themeof guilt and confession, implicit in theSchulberg and Kazan testimonies,was nowexplicit, and itmerged easilywith the waterfront story. In thefilm with the neo-gothicchurch hoveringbehind him, Terry confesses his culpabilityin Joey'smurder to Father Barry; proddedby the priest,he next confessesto Edie Doyle as they wander outside the metal fence which encirclesthe waterfrontcommunity like the wire cage enclosingTerry's pigeons. But theseprivate confessions give Terry little satisfaction, and thepriest re- mindshim that confession before a publictribunal will better serve his "brothers."Thus Cobb's indirectsuggestion that dispensation for social transgressionscan be grantedonly by the institutionsabused blended smoothlywith the motivationsFather Barry was to implantin Terry's mind.Shortly after his Washingtonappearance, Cobb joined the film project. Eva MarieSaint had appearedon televisionfor two and one-halfyears in One Man's Family. A memberof the ActorsStudio, she had her Broadwaydebut in 1953opposite Lillian Gish. Kazan and Spiegelsaw her performand sentAnna Hill Johnstone, Kazan's costumedesigner, to see

23 Sidney Skolsky, "Hollywood is My Beat," New YorkPost (Aug. 26, 1954), 29. 24 Lee J. Cobb, testimony,Hearings Before the Committeeon Un-AmericanActivities, House of Representatives,83d Cong., 1st sess., June2, 1953, 2356. On the Waterfront 683

the show. Johnstoneagreed withtheir choice, and Saint was hired. Other characterswere cast withconsiderably less confusion.Karl Malden, because of previous work withKazan and the Group Theatre, was hiredas Father Barry, and Tony Galento and Tami Mauriella were hired as Friendly's thugs because of their careers in the boxing world which Schulbergknew so well.25 Aftertheir successful collaboration on A Streetcar Named Desire, Kazan selectedRichard Day as the new film'sart director.Spanning more thanthirty years in Hollywood, Day's distinguishedcareer included six AcademyAwards.26 As supervisingart directorat TwentiethCentury-Fox and lateras a freelanceset designer,his creationsalways captureda sense of psychologicalas well as physicalcondition. The resultof his involve- mentin the dockside environment,On the Waterfrontbecame an urban drama depictingthe Americancity as threateningand confining.Closed spaces, dark caverns, alleyways with lights piercing open spaces and blindingthe viewer, laundryhanging on clothes lines creatingdiagonal intrusionsinto the human space, undergroundpassages which swallow automobilesand entrapunsuspecting people, and-afoggy dankness which oppresses humanemotions and obscures perceptions-these are the visuals whichmenacingly accompany Terry Malloy's futileattempt to assess his situation. Day's carefullyselected sites for location shootingin Hoboken, New Jersey,injected physical power intothe dockside cityscape. The riverside piers, with Manhattanlooming like a foreigncountry beyond the longshoremen'sreach, as well as the enclosed apartmentsand barroom,reinforcedthe general theme of corruptionand degradation.These physical settingswere complementedbeautifully by the photographyof Boris Kaufman, whom Kazan hired based upon documentaristWillard Van Dyke's recommendation.27Kaufman was the youngerbrother of Dziga- Vertovand MikhailKaufman, both of the Soviet Kino-Pravdafilm group. DuringBoris Kaufman's earlydays in the Soviet filmindustry, he learned thephotographic trade from his brothers.In 1928,he leftthe Soviet Union with his parents and soon collaborated with Jean Vigo on A Propos de Nice (1930), Zero de Conduite (1932), and L'Atlante (1934). Arrivingin the United States in 1942, Kaufman began his American career as a documentaristfor the United States governmentand eventuallyas a free-

25 George Lait, "Eva Marie Saint," Columbia Pictures PublicityRelease (Feb. 1954), n.p.; "WaterfrontFilm Dramatizes the Real," Business Week (Aug. 7, 1954), 94-98. 26 "Obituary," Variety(May 31, 1972), 68; also, several unpaginatedclippings are in the RichardDay file,New York Public Libraryat Lincoln Center: Variety(Aug. 20, 1952) and New York-WorldTelegram (Dec. 29, 1937). 27 Skolsky, "Hollywood"; Kazan and Van Dyke were both membersof FrontierFilms. 684 American Quarterly

lance cinematographerin New York City. From these early experiences he developed his style. He preferredblack and white to color because mood and overall conceptionor "idea" could be moredirectly communi- cated. He liked early morningand late afternoonshooting because light sources naturallymodeled three-dimensionalobjects and because soft shadows on dimlylit objects could exploitthe black and whitehues in the filmstock. Finally,he preferredclear days fordistant shots because aerial perspectivecould naturallyaffect and smoothenhard edges. For human, close-up work,Kaufman waited for cloudy days when diffusedlight better exposed facial features.28 Kaufman believed that image and theme should be united and that cinematographersshould be concerned primarilywith visual continuity fromscene to scene. These interestsaffected his work forOn the Water- front. Since the film was shot in story sequence, Kaufman's greatest worry involved constancy in lighting.To solve this naggingproblem, which was compounded by New York City winterweather, he burned trashfires in the area while shooting.The resultwas an evenly diffused light,although the filmcontains a few mismatchedtakes which do break the continuity.This simplesolution to a technicalproblem added meaning to the mise-en-sceneand helped coordinate atmospherewith character development.Due to a pressingshooting schedule, manyshots, including the entirefinal scene, were taken at night.To insure visual continuity, Kaufman complementedthe artificiallighting with a sprayedmist, which helped disperse the concentratedlight.29 Blurred lines definingclosed spaces and an incessantfog obscuring open vistas visualized correctlythe moral confusionwhich the charactersexhibited in words and actions. Kaufman's work matched Day's dingysets, and the tightspaces and cramped camera angles offerimmediate clues to the theme of ambivalence. The closeness of the objects and characterssuggests intimacy, as when Terry and Edie actually communicatewithin a crowded frameat close range (on the roof, in the saloon, in the corner of her apartment). But tightshots and crampedcompositions also suggestentrapment (inside the birdcage,the Friendlybar pay-offscene, the ship's hold, Edie's ter- rifiedface as she hears Terry's confession). Open spaces with distant views appear only on the rooftop,suggesting a romanticimage of impossible or at best temporaryescape fromthe streetsand work below.

28 ChristopherBaffer, "From Poland withLove: Tributeto Boris Kaufman," Backstage (Nov. 12, 1976), 30. For Dziga-Vertov and the Kino Eye, see Richard Meran Barsam, NonfictionFilm: A CriticalHistory (New York: E. P. Dutton, 1973). Also, JayLeyda, Kino: A Historyof the Russian and Soviet Films (London: Allen and Unwin, 1960). 29 Edouard L. de Laurot and Jonas Mekas, "An Interviewwith Boris Kaufman," Film Culture, 1 (Summer 1955), 4-6. On the Waterfront 685

Otherelements of the film help frame social and moralambivalence as thecentral theme of On the Waterfront.Speaking about his HUAC testimony,Kazan confided:"I don'tthink there is anythingin mylife to- wards whichI have moreambivalence." He comparedhimself to his filmiccounterpart: "Terry Malloy felt as I did.He feltashamed and proud of himselfat the same time. He wavered betweenthe two.... He feltlike a fool,but proud of himself.. . . That kindof ambivalence."30 Terry's actions do reveal ambivalentfeelings. Attractedand repulsed by "cops" and "crimeinvestigators," Malloy reluctantly moves away from thevulgarity of the boxing-mobster world and toward the respectability of establishedinstitutions. The mobstershave derailedTerry's boxing career,leaving him nothing but vague memories of fights he shouldhave won, but he continuesto aid theirefforts to frightenand controlthe frustratedlongshoremen; in so doing,he remains"a bum." The situation comesinto focus when Charley offers Terry a foreman'sjob in returnfor silenceand supportat the CrimeCommission hearings. Acknowledging his indecisiveness,Terry blames his brotherfor not protecting him from the city's "hawks." He leaves, tryingto resolvethe conflictbetween attachmentto his brother,a mobster,and to his laboring"brothers," whose lives are dominatedby the mob. Charleyalso faces dual al- legiances,but his criminalpast is beyondredemption. When he triesto convinceFriendly that his younger brother just needstime to freehimself fromthe preachments of FatherBarry and Edie, Friendly,reflecting Ar- thurMiller's world of clear choices, gives Charley his options: "You can have it his way or you can have it yourway, but you can't have it both ways.... On yourway 'deep thinker.'"Charley chooses to breakwith mobsterdogma and acts out of personalconcern for his brother;having actedout of "conscience,"he is eliminated. In a morallyexpedient world, actions often militate against personal feelings,creating ambivalent reactions. As Terryand Edie strollthrough a neighborhoodpark, they talk cautiously, wanting both to staytogether and to separate.He feelsguilty because ofJoey's murder and is worried she willdiscover his crime; she is repelledby Terry's friends but wants to talkto him.According to Kazan, theglove which Edie dropsand Terry retrievesoffers them the needed excuse to remaintogether.31 The social environmentpulls them apart, but their feelings bring them together with thehelp of a personalobject. Terry tries on herglove, almost as ifhe were aboutto "tryout" hermoral values. He had wornboxing gloves for the mobsters,and he willnow try to fit into the white glove of virtue. After he has

30 Kazan, cited in Ciment,Kazan, 110. 31 Ibid., 45. 686 American Quarterly

Edie's glove on his hand, he commentsjokingly about her childish appearance. He acknowledges that she has grown froman ugly kid with braces and braids to an attractivewoman. However, his physicalfeatures have remainedthe same, and he seeminglyconfronts adult responsibility and even sexualitywith ambivalentfeelings. As they stand next to the park's cage-likefence, he remindsher how the Catholic sisterstried "to beat an education" into him,and she commentsthat human understand- ing would have workedbetter. Later, outside the constrictingfence, Edie wears the same whitegloves and listenspainfully as Terryconfesses his role in Joey's murder.The extra-tightclose-up of herhorrified expression and the blaringdockside noises emphasize Edie's shocked reactionto the uglytruth. As in Golden Boy and A StreetcarNamed Desire, the physical and the spiritualare at odds. When Terryand Edie confronteach otherin her apartment,ambivalent feelingssurface again. The Richard Day set is white, mindfulof Edie's association withvirtue, but the walls are badly discolored. Blond-haired Edie in her white slip cowers in the cornerbelow a crucifix.When Terry knocks, she primpsher hair, moves toward the door, and then shouts, "Go away"; the actions and the words contradicteach other. Terry, disregardingthe words,breaks down the door; she retreats,making assertions about his responsibility.Shaking in rage, he yells to her to stop talkingabout "conscience; that's all I've been hearingabout." He then insists, "You love me, Edie," pleading in a mannerquite differentthan his door-breakingact would suggest. Reemphasizingthe split between actions and feelings,she responds: "I didn't say I didn't love you. I said leave me alone." Throughoutthe scene, she retreatsdeeper into her apartment,and he follows, finallyforcing her into a corner and into a passionate and contortedembrace. Unlike Stanley Kowalski's rape of Blanche DuBois, the effectof this manneristfusion of bodies is to join opposingforces. Violence and love, brutalityand tenderness,the physical and the spiritualare finallybrought together. Edie and Terryhave fore- saken theirantithetical extremes and moved to a middle ground where moral decisions are leftto the individual. The finalartist brought into the collaborativeeffort, composer Leonard Bernstein,received thefinished print in the springof 1954. As a studentat Harvard University,Bernstein had studied with WalterPiston, but after graduatinghe undertookadvanced studywith Aaron Copland, an Ameri- can composer who foundfilm work satisfying.Between concertperform- ances, Bernsteinhad penned the music fortwo Broadway musicals and a modern ballet piece for Jerome Robbins called "Fancy Free" (1944). Repeatedly cited as a communistdupe by the House Committeeon Un- AmericanActivities, Bernstein never sufferedfrom the publicity,and his On the Waterfront 687 career continuedits steady rise throughthe 1950s. Confrontedwith the opportunityto writea filmscore, Bernsteinat firstbalked, thinkingthe finishedpiece would be submergedbeneath actors' voices and on-location noises. But the visual power of the filmoverwhelmed his resistance,and he joined the collaborativeeffort. "I was swept by my enthusiasm," he later wrote, "into accepting the writingof the score . . . althoughI had theretoresisted all such offerson thegrounds that it is a musicallyunsatis- factoryexperience for a composer to write a score whose chief merit oughtto be its unobtrusiveness.... But I heard music as I watched; that was enough."32 Because Bernsteincomposed the music afterthe actual filminghad been completedand because he did not know personallyany of the other collaborators,the score forOn the Waterfrontcan be studiednot only as an essential part of the filmbut as commentaryon the story as well. Schulbergwanted harmonicamusic to emanate frominstruments played withinthe camera's eye, therebycontrolling the composer's freedomto weave dramaticcomplexity into the materialof verbal and visual images. Kazan wantedmusic whichwould unobtrusivelysupport the lines spoken by specificcharacters, thereby avoiding generalizations drawn from musical allusions. Both seemed interestedin music whichwould not challenge the primacyof theirideas. The score which Bernsteindelivered to them complementedthe film's theme of ambivalence and even made clearer certainaspects of characterdevelopment. Bernsteinscreened the filmover 50 times, selectingand timingscenes which seemed to need music, and created a highlyconsistent, thematic score. Rhythmicflourishes and hauntingmelodic passages enliven the story's developmentand add nuance and densityto each character's actions. Interestinglyenough, the finalscore's thematiclines, instrumenta- tion, extended crescendi, and dissonance resemble techniques Aaron Copland used in his score forThe Quiet City,the ill-fatedIrwin Shaw play which Kazan directedfor the Group Theatre in 1939.33The major slow themesin the Bernsteinscore are the "WaterfrontTheme" (which opens the film,appears in segmentsthroughout, and reappears in altered form duringthe final scene) and the "Edie/Love Theme" (which announces

32 Leonard Bernstein,"Notes Struckat 'Upper Dubbing,' California,"New YorkTimes (May 30, 1954), II, 5. For score analysis, see Hans Keller, "On the Waterfront,"The Score and I. M. A. Magazine (June 1955), 81-84, and William Hamilton, "On the Waterfront," Film Music, 14 (Sept.-Oct. 1954), 3-15. 33 Harold Clurman,The Fervent Years: The Storyof the Group Theatreand the Thirties (New York: Knopf, 1945), 80. A concert piece of the Copland score is available: Aaron Copland, "Quiet City," Four AmericanLandscapes, Everest 3118; Bernsteinalso salvaged a concert suite from his film score: Leonard Bernstein,Bernstein Conducts, Columbia Masterworks,MS 6251. 688 American Quarterly

Edie's entrancesonto the waterfront stage). The two themesare played togetherduring the "dead pigeons"scene on theroof, offering a musical "reprise"of the mannerist kiss which had momentarilyunited Terry and Edie-and the values theyrepresent. After the kiss, Charley'sbody is discovered;after these two melodies appear intertwined, Terry confronts JohnnyFriendly and gains personalrevenge for his brother'smurder. Thus,Bernstein's score attributes motivation to Terry'sactions. Without suchcommentative musical statements, the causal connectionsbetween characters'thoughts and actionsmight be missed. Aggressiveand assertivethemes etch an acousticportrait of thecor- rupted,urban environment. The " MurderTheme," markedpresto bar- baro in thesheet music, is firstheard as theFriendly gang emerges from its dingywaterfront shack. The percussivethree-voice fugato with its rhythmicirregularity, creates an unsettlingatmosphere and hauntingly presagesJoey Doyle's murder.Bernstein wanted the "MurderTheme" playedbefore each ofthe three murders, thus creating a formalallusion to the tripartiteplot structure,but the musicwas cut fromthe sequence precedingDugan's murder.During a tensedubbing session, Bernstein's positionwas overruledbecause Kazan and Schulbergthought the street soundsand muted dialogue of location shooting were more important.34 A dirge-likeversion of the murdertheme, however, does accompanyDu- gan's riseout of theship's hold. Each of the threemajor themes is attachedto one of the contending factionsof the waterfrontstory. The violentand corruptmobsters are identifiedwith the murder theme; the spiritualand incorruptibleEdie is associatedwith the love theme;and theenvironment in whichthese two antitheticalforces collide is representedby thewaterfront theme. Atmosphericunity, like that gained from Kaufman's misty photography and Day's dismalsets, is communicatedin the musicthrough a fourth, independent"Snap Theme." Even thoughthis agitatedpassage is the mostpervasive musical theme in thefilm, it is notused forliteral commentaryon charactersor plot. At the openingof the film,the "Snap Theme" is interwovenwith the "MurderTheme" duringJoey Doyle's murder,but it soon disappearsleaving the moreaggressive theme pre- dominant.This unique combination of melody and rhythmis heardagain inEdie's apartmentjust prior to thekiss and again during the attack on the basementchurch meeting; later it is givena honky-tonkrendering for the saloon scene. AfterTerry discovers his brother'sdead body,the "Snap Theme" replacesthe "Murder Theme" as Terrygoes to "take it outon theirskulls." The themeis playedrapidly during the fight scene between Terryand JohnnyFriendly with a slowerrendition heard after the fight

34 Bernstein,"Upper Dubbing." On the Waterfront 689 whenTerry's body is discoveredlying half in the water. A complexmetric pattern-5/4and 6/8combined-animates the "Snap Theme," and the ascendingand descendingeighth note pattern gives the theme an active, disturbingsound. This added musical touch accents the dramatic peaks in thestory and contributesto thefilm's overall aesthetic unity.

* * *

Contributionsof thevarious collaborators are synthesizedin thefinal scene of On the Waterfront.The Kaufmancamera continues to framea blurredimage of the waterfrontsite withspecial attentionto the dingy floatingshack where hoodlums bet on horsesand dispensewith human lives. Longshoremenline the pieroverlooking Friendly's headquarters; angrybut unmovedthey resemble an immenseGreek frieze of noble figuresincapable of action. The docksidefog, the burning trash cans, and thecold airwhich quickly converts each breathinto mist all conspire,as theenvironment has throughoutthe film, to constrainlongshoreman rage and to blurthe connectionbetween power and oppression.In such a setting,only personalrebellion is possible. When Pop casts the evil JohnnyFriendly into the hellish water below, the act balanceshis son's fallfrom the rooftop at the outsetof thefilm. But Pop's conversionto social rebelwill require more than a singlespontaneous act. Here Terry Malloymust act alone ratherthan as a proletarianhero, because-like NormanCousins' liberal-Terryhas changedhis mind"slowly, painfully,and by his own volition." Buteven Terry's conversion seems incomplete. Early in the story, Edie visitsTerry on the roof.As she looks down on the "originalgolden warrior"and his loyalretinue, the camera catches her standing next to a rough-hewn,rooftop antenna. The intersectinglines of the wooden struc- tureform an identifiablecross, which visually foreshadows Father Bar- ry'seulogy to Dugan. Duringa latervisit to theroof, Edie bringsJoey's jacketto Terry.Unlike Edie's glovewhich symbolically allowed Terry to "tryon" a newmorality, Joey's jacket brings with it a heavyresponsibil- ity; Joeytestified and Dugan testified.Each ownerof thejacket was forcedto subordinateself-interest to a highersocial good. "There's more to thisthan I thought,Charley," Terry finally admits to hisbrother. With Edie and hercross intrudinginto Terry's barren world and withFather Barrypeppering the reluctantcrusader with visions of a betterworld, Terry,like an anti-Faust,is beingdragged-kicking and screaming-out of hellinto heaven. In thefinal scene, these visual and verbal references come into play. As Terrystaggers to the warehousedoor to meetthe awaitinggray-haired man,he carriesthe longshoreman's hook, a suggestionof the cross Christ 690 American Quarterly carried as well as the burden placed on the shoulders of longshoremen. Terry wears a sacred cloth, the coat worn by previous martyrs.He is bleeding about the head, a visual allusion to the crown of thorns,and is enervatedfrom the beating(flagellation) he has just received. Edie, who has by now fused the contradictoryroles of lover and saint, triesto help Terry,but is restrainedby Father Barry,who urges Malloy forwardto his duty. He leads the longshoremen-the rejuvenatedflock-to work while the scarredand evil figureof JohnnyFriendly remains outside the closing doors. Kazan has insistedthat the finalscene is not utopian: "I never meant thatwhen theygo back to work at the end of the filmthere isn't goingto be that same corruption startingup a month later."35 But with the dockside Gates of Heaven mercifullyenclosing the laboringfaithful and casting out the malevolent oppressor, Kazan's anti-utopiancomment seems inappropriate.Actually, the Christian symbolism deceives the casual viewer. For one moment, individual revenge and Christian brotherhoodseem united; but undoubtedlythey will separate again. An accurate readingof thisscene requiresattention to filmlanguage. In the final walk, camera point of view shiftsabruptly from omniscient to first-person;looking throughTerry's batteredeyes, we see the blurred and unstable perspectivehe has on the goal being sought.This is not the firsttime subjective camera has been employed; it appears earlierin the filmafter a trucknearly kills Terry and Edie. From Terry's viewpoint,we see Charley's limp body hangingfrom a partially-lightedalley wall. A slow zoom to Charley's face helps the audience anticipateTerry's emotional response. Thus, in the final scene when the firstperson camera returns,the audience should recognize that Terryis motivatedmore by vengeance than by altruism.The film's structuralargument, an admix- ture of ideas borrowedfrom Johnson's book and HUAC testimony,exposes demeaninglabor conditions,explains the reason for these conditions, and suggests a legal solution. Afterthe structuralargument ends with the Crime Commission testimony,the filmchanges perspectives, permittingTerry, like JohnProctor in The Crucible, to demand his self- respect. From the social perspective,which included clear moralchoices, the pointof view shiftsto the participant'sperspective, where outlines are less clear. All the Christianimagery points to a betterworld, but Malloy's perceptionssuggest otherwise. The facts of the longshoremanstruggle prove that littlesubstantially changed afterthis fleetingvictory. "Mr. Upstairs," the man who appeared in the photographwhich Terry smashed prior to testifying,and who flickedoff the televisionset just as Terrynamed the corruptofficials,

35 Kazan, cited in "Grand Illusions," 24. On the Waterfront 691 remainedin power. As mentionedearlier, the film's "Mr. Upstairs"could have been financier"Big Bill" McCormick,but it also could have been ILA presidentJoseph P. Ryan,who stillheld power when the film was released.Nonetheless, his actual identityremained with mobster John Dunnwho died in the electric chair. Regardless of his name, some central figurestill dominated the lives of longshore workers, and Johnny Friendly correctlyboasts: "I'll be back." As thewarehouse door closes behind the victoriousworkers in the last shotsof On the Waterfront,the imageof caged pigeons should returnto the viewer's mind. The warehouse symbolizesboth protection and entrapment.The workers,having for the momentregained control of theirunion, must face the problemwhich originallybrought unions into existence: how can the laborermaintain autonomyand dignity in a capitalistsociety? To Kazan and Schulbergthe problemwas similarfor the modernliberal whose situationthey made analogousto thefilm's labor rebel: how can liberalseradicate the social problemswhich the Communist Party exploited? With its ambivalent ending,the film suggests that the challenges require constant vigilance. The structuralargument blamed corrupt individuals for the failure of a work- able institutionalstructure; the ambivalent ending with its suggestionof continuedcorruption posited the idea thatoppression is inherentin the institutionalsystem. The two positions-theviability of liberalinstitu- tionsand ambivalencetoward individual action-contradict each other. Thus,the film is a curiousmixture of assertions favoring social reform and suggestionsas to thefutility of suchreforms. The musicalscore accentuates the tenuous nature of a reformer'svic- tory.Avoiding a strong,tonic cadence, Bernstein'sclosing musical passages,which are derivedfrom the "waterfront theme," are riddled with dissonance(fourths and flattedninths), rhythmic snaps (sixteenth-note attacksfrom one-half step below the sustainednote), and movinginter- vals whichare severedquickly with hard accents. The finalnote of the score is not a sustainedtonic which would implya stableresolution. Instead,the last note is a staccato,accented eighth note markedquad- rupleforte, and spreadover a chordwhich is saturatedwith half-step dissonance.The visuals,the music,and the dialoguetell of temporary victories,fragile successes which will again be threatenedby corruption. These cinematicelements accurately reflect the historical situation. Even the sanguineRev. JohnCorridan commented that "the arrest,prosecu- tionand convictionof a fewwaterfront criminals will improve the situa- tionon thedocks only temporarily.' '36

36 Corridan,cited in Johnson,Labor Front, 227. 692 American Quarterly

Interestin and disagreementover On the Waterfrontstarted shortly afterits releasein July1954. The SaturdayReview predictably called it "one of the mostexciting films ever made in the UnitedStates," but Harper'sMagazine, slightly more critical of certainliberal positions, de- scribedit as "a safelysterilized and hygienicslumming expedition," explainingthat the storywas "false to thelongshoremen whose lot it pur- portsto depict,false to thededicated individuals who have triedto im- provethat lot, and ultimatelyfalse to itself."The New YorkTimes, after pointingout thatvaluable background material was missing,went ahead to call thefilm "the mostviolent, graphic and technicallybrilliant job of movie-makingto be unveiledthis year." The MorningTelegram (New York)characterized the drama as a "rough,tough baby with the simple passionsof mankindstripped bare." Commonwealsaid the filmwas a "simplificationof the waterfrontmess," but allowed that "the final sceneshave thequality of makinga saint." Timeinsisted the film main- tained"the old sentimentalprejudice that ordinary people are wonderful no matterwhat they do." Life magazine accuratelyreflected the dichotomyof criticalreactions by explainingthat On the Waterfront"is themost brutal movie of the year, but it also containsthe year's tenderest love scenes." Perhapsto confusefurther the connection between historical eventand fictionalpresentation, Anthony (Tony Mike) de Vincenzo, whoselife inspired the character of Terry Malloy, sued Columbia Pictures andSam Spiegelfor $1,000,000 for invading his right to privacy. He wona smallersettlement, as did FrankSinatra who sued the same people for $500,000,a sumhe said had beenpromised him when he was offeredthe part.From Chicago to San Francisco,local longshoreunions, both cor- ruptand honest, sued the film's backers for libelous assaults on thehonor of longshoremen.37 Whilecritical and legalcontroversy surrounded the film, the Academy of MotionPicture Arts and Sciences made its positionclear. On the Waterfrontreceived Oscars forBest Production,Best Screenplay,Best Direction,Best Actor, Best SupportingActress, Art Direction, Black and WhitePhotography, and Editing(Gene Milford).The New York Film Criticsshowed similarapproval by awardingthe filmtheir three best awards:Best Movie,Best Director,and Best Actor.Even themost dis- paragingcritic (Harpers) conceded the film "was beautifullyacted, beaut- ifullydirected and beautifullyphotographed."

37 SaturdayReview (July24, 1954),25; Harper's Magazine (Aug. 1954), 93-95; New York Times (Aug. 1, 1954), 18; Morning Telegram (Sept. 6, 1954), 2; Commonweal (Aug. 20, 1954), 485-86; Time (Aug. 9, 1954), 82; Life (July19, 1954), 45-46; "Sinatra Sues 'Water- front,"' New YorkTimes (Dec. 22, 1954),54; "Union Sues 'Waterfront,'" New YorkTimes (Mar. 18, 1955) in On the Waterfrontfolder, New York Public Library,Lincoln Center. On the Waterfront 693

The themeof ambivalencein On the Waterfront,especially with its partiallyobscured purpose of personal aggrandizement, elicited blistering critiquesfrom some writers.An exasperatedLindsay Anderson blasted the film'sfinal scene as "implicitly(if unconsciously)Fascist." In an articlewhich seemed to plead forpopulist melodrama, Anderson com- plainedabout the "horridvulgarity" of the storyand the "deep human falsityand demagogicdishonesty of argument."He was mostdisturbed thatthe ignorantand befuddledlongshoremen transferred loyalties so easilyfrom one oppressor(Johnny Friendly) to anotherpotential oppressor (TerryMalloy) withoutexperiencing some "sense of liberation." Theyseemed to acceptfascist control as theircondition in life.Aroused and confusedover the ambivalentmessage, Anderson insisted that the finalscene could be takenin only"two ways: as hopelessly,savagely ironic;or as fundamentallycontemptuous, pretending to idealismbut in realitywithout either grace, or joy, or love." 38 Andersonnoticed correctly that the actual conditions which created the oppressive"system" were missing: how did the rackets become so effec- tive;with whom did theracketeers deal; how did theycome to power? Althoughanswers to such querieswere sprinkledthroughout the film, detaileddescriptions of social causes, usually the most compelling feature of realistdrama, were curiously lacking. Even Budd Schulbergacknowl- edgedthis omission: "After years of prowling the New Yorkwaterfront, roamingthe West Side and Jerseybars across fromthe docks, drinking beer withlongshore families in the kitchensof their$26.50 per month railroadflats, and talkingto harborunion leaders, waterfront priests, and Irishand Italianrank-and-file 'insoigents,' our film On theWaterfront left mewith an irresistableconviction that there was stillfar more to say than couldbe includedin myscreenplay." Anderson attributed the film's su- perficialityto directorKazan, butSchulberg adduced technical reasons. Not an indifferenceto the subject,but "the tyrant,the ninety-minute featurefilm" was to blame."The Filmis an artof high points," Schulberg explained,"I thinkof it as embracingfive or six sequences,each one mountingto a climaxthat rushes the action onward.... A successfulfilm mustgo froma significantepisode to moresignificant episode in a con- stantlymounting pattern." What weakenedthe film'sdescription of waterfrontcorruption was attentionto theindividual, moral struggles of TerryMalloy. "The film'sconcentration on a singledominating character broughtclose to thecamera's eye madeit aestheticallyinconvenient-if

38 Lindsay Anderson, "The Last Sequence of On the Waterfront,"Sight and Sound, 24 (Jan.-Mar. 1955), 127-30. 694 American Quarterly not impossible-to set Terry's story in its social and historical perspective."39 As if respondingto Anderson'scriticism Schulberg wrote a novel, Waterfront(1955), which made muchclearer the problemsand attitudes of New York's longshoremen.The essentialdifference between On the Waterfrontand Schulberg'snovel is thedifference between conceptuali- zationand dramatization. In Waterfront,the shipping company, under the directionof an ex-Germanarmy officer, Captain Schlegel, is madeculpa- ble alongwith the mobstersfor longshore oppression; the mobstercon- nectionto themayor's office is madeexplicit, and policecomplicity becomes obvious; the churchhierarchy shows concernover losinglarge contributionsfrom wealthy backers whose lives are negativelyaffected by FatherBarry's investigations; the pigeon metaphor is greatlyexpanded, makingtheir slaughter at thebook's end a muchmore significant event; PeterPanto, the murderedlongshoreman who inspiredArthur Miller's waterfrontscript, is mentioned,and like Panto,Runty Nolan ("Kayo" Dugan in thefilm) is dumpedin theriver. Most important,the rebellion reachesbeyond one character,as severallongshoremen testify at the hearingsand wildcatunion meetings attract more dissidents as themove- mentgathers momentum. But ultimately,Terry's heroic actions bring littlechange, and the mob isolates the troublemaker from the workers and thendrowns him in the river. Even though the background material which LindsayAnderson demanded figures prominantly in the novel,the de- sired "sense of liberation"never materializes. The nunsaccept Katie (Edie in thefilm) back into the fold, church officials reassert control over FatherBarry, the Friendly gang silences Terry Malloy, the Golden War- riorsmurder the defenseless pigeons, and JohnnyFriendly continues to runhis operationfrom jail afterreceiving a mildscolding from his boss. As apathyand angerintermingle, calming the beleaguered docks, Father Barryand Katie contemplate"the way evil oftenintertwines itself with good,and theway life had ofrubbing some of the quality of one on to the other."Ambivalence still blurs the distinctions between right and wrong, denyingrebellion the clearly-defined cause uponwhich revolutionary zeal depends.In suchan environment,progress, as FatherBarry resolves, is notmeasured in "hundred yard dashes, but in mere centimeters, painfully crawlingforward." 40 In thepast decade, comments about On theWaterfront have continued to varyas widelyas theydid whenthe filmfirst reached the public.

39Budd Schulberg, "Why WriteIt When You Can't Sell It to the Pictures?" Saturday Review (Sept. 3, 1955), 5-6. 40 Budd Schulberg,Waterfront (London: W. and J. MacKay, 1955, 1956). On the Waterfront 695

Placingthe film in an existentialistmold, John M. Smithexplained that "the real forceof the film'sending is the endingof self-pityand the assertionof the fundamentalimportance of effort."Andrew Dowdy commentedthat the waterfrontexpose represented"a covertreply to contemptfor the informer." Renee Penington, narrowing the focus of the film,described it as a publicexpression of Kazan's "agony" overinform- ingon hisformer Communist Party associates. Peter Biskind, attempting to stemthe rising tide of pro-Kazan criticism, analyzed the film in terms of power,suggesting that the physical bullies (mobsters) were replaced by moralbullies (Edie and FatherBarry). Neil Hurleyfound On the Water- frontto be boldlyrevolutionary in illustratingthe process of "conscienti- zation,"the psychological path which leads a rebelto revolution.Hurley thoughtthe politically-chargedstory was "one of the greatestsocial realismfilms to emergefrom Hollywood." In a similartone, Laurence Kardishcalled "this stark, uncompromising and oftenbrutal film ... one ofthe high points of the decade." 41 The varietyof material included in the waterfrontstory-organized crime, CommunistParty membership, House Committeetestimony, political corruption-engendered conflict- ingresponses depending on whichelement of the filmmost rankled or delightedthe viewer.But more directly,the parallelarguments-the sanctityof liberalinstitutions and the ambivalenceof humanactions- invited,indeed encouraged, controversy. Whilecomments about the original work continue to reflectdifferent perspectiveson societyas well as on thefilm, the waterfront story itself continuesto resurfacein differentforms. In 1972,Budd Schulbergre- turnedto the boxing world of The Harder TheyFall and wroteLoser and Still Champion: Muhammad Ali. The sentimentexpressed in that title reachedthe screen indirectly when the film Rocky (1976), which borrowed liberallyfrom On theWaterfront, swept the country. Even though the film satirizedMuhammad Ali, depictinghim as a drolland foolish"golden boy," theduality between materialism and love was revived.Instead of corruptmobsters, Rocky had to survivea beatingfrom purely greedy capitalists.In the springof 1977,Muhammad Ali himselfwas reported negotiatingwith Columbia Pictures for a remakeof On the Waterfront withAli as TerryMalloy.42 Although nothing developed after the initial

41 John M. Smith, "Three Liberal Films," Movie (Winter, 1971-1972), 21; Andrew Dowdy, The Films of theFifties: The AmericanState of Mind (New York: WilliamMorrow, 1973, 1975), 39; Renee Penington,"The Agony of Kazan's Informer,"The Thousand Eyes Magazine (Jan. 1976), 8; Peter Biskind,"The Politicsof Power in On the Waterfront,"Film Quarterly,29 (Fall, 1975), 25-38; Neil Hurley, The Reel Revolution: A Film Primer on Liberation (Maryknoll:Orbis Books, 1978), 59; Laurence Kardish, Reel Plastic Magic: A Historyof Films and Filmmakingin America (Boston: Little, Brown, 1972), 208. 42 "Ali's Revenge," New YorkPost (Mar. 1, 1977), 6. 696 AmericafiQuarterly contacts,it is interestingto note the differencebetween Kazan, who submittedto governmentpressure in partto protecthis career,and Ali, who resistedgovernment claims and nearlyhad his careerdestroyed. Clearly,the conflict between authority and individualconscience remains alive. Moreover,resistance to governmentcontrol of quiteanother sort has also shapedthe life of MichaelClemente, boss of I.L.A. Local 968 (calledboth Michael J. Skelly and Johnny Friendly in On theWaterfront). On March6, 1979,the 71-year-old Clemente and anothermember of the VitoGenovese "family" were indicted on chargesof attempting"to cor- ruptlycontrol and influencethe waterfrontindustry in thePort of New York."43When the apparentlydefeated Johnny Friendly defiantly bel- lowed,"I'll be back," noteven the most cautious director or screenwriter couldhave knownthe haunting accuracy of theboast, and no one could havepredicted that the criminal's words would be heardaround the docks twenty-fiveyears later. As the film'sending suggested, the waterfront storyis notyet over.

43 ArnoldH. Lubasch, "Five Indictedin Dock Inquiry;Two Linked to Crime 'Family,"' New YorkTimes (Mar. 7, 1979), BI.