Back in 1954, Marlon Brando starred as former boxer turned dockworker, Terry Malloy, in On the Waterfront. He must decide between loyalty to the mob-run union or testifying for justice after helping lure a worker to his untimely death.
The film is based on Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism from the late 1940s, covering the racketeering, extortion and corruption of the New Jersey waterfronts. A critical and box-office success, this classic crime drama is considered today one of the greatest films ever made.
The movie was nominated for 12 Oscars, going on to win eight, including Best Picture, Best Actor for Brando, Best Director for Elia Kazan and Best Supporting Actress for Eva Marie Saint, who is still alive at 102. Back in 1998, the American Film Institute ranked it as the 8th greatest American movie ever made. Interestingly, it’s Leonard Bernstein’s only original film score that wasn’t adapted from a theatrical production featuring his songs.