THE WILD ONE was considered so shocking in its day that it was banned in the UK and remained so for many years. Now, of course, its laughably old-fashioned, almost a parody of what it was originally intended to be. At its centre is a somewhat pudgy Marlon Brando, the wild one of the title, the antics of whose motorcycle gangs causes all sorts of consternation in a small American town. Brando, himself, is meant to be some sort of existential anti-hero, (What are you rebelling against? Whattaya got), but despite the Stanley Kowlaski pose, hes miscast; he seems so much smarter, so much more distant from the rest of his gang. The director was Laslo Benedek, who at least tries to give the film some kind of raw edge, (one scene, where heroine Mary Murphy is being chased by the gang down some very mean streets, he handles superbly), but the producer was Stanley Kramer who imposes that straight-laced morality of his into every scene. We are meant to condemn these hooligans just as we are meant to empathize with Brandos tenderness; after all, hes just a crazy, mixed-up kid with a good heart. Anyone seeing this film for the first time will wonder what all the fuss was about.
Posted on: Sun, 20 Jul 2014 12:35:56 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015