TopTenREVIEWS presents the movie reviews of On the Waterfront (1954)

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On the Waterfront (1954)

RANKINGS:

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All Time

of 190,179

75

1950's

of 8,943

18

1954

of 2,416

3
Crime
- Crime All Time
  
  of 6,082
  
  16
  
  Crime of 1954
  
  of 76
  
  1
  
  Crime of the 1950's
  
  of 670
  
  5
Drama
- Drama All Time
  
  of 38,020
  
  50
  
  Drama of 1954
  
  of 172
  
  2
  
  Drama of the 1950's
  
  of 1,913
  
  13

Ratings and rankings are based on number of movie, review scores, awards & other criteria.

On the Waterfront (1954) is ranked overall as out of 4 stars

Overall Rating:3.5617

Avg Critic Score:3.4303

On the Waterfront (1954) Movie Reviews

Expert Review Summary

Click on the numbers to the right of the graph to see reviews of that rating

61.84%

35.53%

Good

0.00%

(0)

1.32%

1.32%

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Featured Reviews

Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)

So says Terry Malloy, the longshoreman who testifies against his union in ``On the Waterfront.'' The line, said by Marlon Brando, resonates all through the picture because the story is about conscience--and so is the story behind the story. ...read the complete On the Waterfront movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)

ReelViews (James Berardinelli)

The recipient of eight Oscars (including Best Picture), On the Waterfront represented a defining moment in the careers to two key participants: actor Marlon Brando and director Elia Kazan. ...read the complete On the Waterfront movie review at ReelViews (James Berardinelli)

Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)

On the Waterfront is a hard-hitting but pretentious melodrama about union corruption on the New York docks. It is directed by Elia Kazan ("A Streetcar Named Desire") and penned by Budd Schulberg. ...read the complete On the Waterfront movie review at Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)

Reviews by score:

See all (47) "Excellent" Reviews

Arizona Daily Star (Phil Villarreal)

The difference between pre- and post-1950s cinema - before and after Brando - is as pronounced as moving from black and white to color....read the complete On the Waterfront (1954) review at Arizona Daily Star (Phil Villarreal)

See all (27) "Very Good" Reviews

eFilmCritic.com (Jay Seaver)

Ten minutes' difference in getting out of work, and this is a completely different review, because it means I catch the train instead of the bus, I reach Kendall Square an hour earlier, meeting up with L plenty early enough to take in the preview we had...read the complete On the Waterfront (1954) review at eFilmCritic.com (Jay Seaver)

Reviews by score:

There are no "Good" Reviews

See all (1) "Fair" Reviews

Chicago Reader (Jonathan Rosenbaum)

It's hard to deny that Marlon Brando's performance as a dock worker and ex-fighter who finally decides to rat on his gangster brother (Rod Steiger) is pretty terrific....read the complete On the Waterfront (1954) review at Chicago Reader (Jonathan Rosenbaum)

See all (1) "Poor" Reviews

Empire Magazine (Kim Newman)

Brando won the Oscar he did accept (he refused his award for The Godfather ), and Cobb makes for a great villain....read the complete On the Waterfront (1954) review at Empire Magazine (Kim Newman)

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