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Pigeons In On The Waterfront, Directed By Budd Schulberg

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On The Waterfront directed by Elia Kazan, and written by Budd Schulberg tells a story about a group of labor racketeers in Hoboken, New Jersey. Terry Malloy, one of the main characters, works for the union head and at the end of the movie is faced with a tough decision to either testify in court against his friends and become a so called “rat”, or do the wrong thing and disappoint his lover Edie. Terry portrays himself having a tough exterior, yet he is extremely conflicted and vulnerable on the inside. A common theme throughout this movie are pigeons and I believe they symbolize who Terry Malloy is as a character. Birds are known for being confined in cages and are restricted from spreading their wings to fly. Terry, metaphorically, is …show more content…

While watching this movie I picked up on the peculiar personalities of these teenagers and loved how they went against what it was like to be “normal” seventeen year old. We have all watched the high school movies of an “average teen” who is star of the football team and dates the cheerleader. Yet, Jim, Pluto, and Judy surprised the audience with their unexpected roles that they took on and the characters that they played. Instead of playing it cool and backing down to the popular kids like Buzz, Jim stood out with his bizarre personality and didn't really care if he was well liked or not. We are filled with these ideas that a man should be masculine and not stand out. Pluto however, is different then this expectation. Pluto comes from a broken family and looks up to Jim. I loved how Ray gave Pluto a more feminine side and showed that boys can cry, have feelings, and idolize other boys too. Lastly although Judy is the gorgeous popular girl, she is not like the others. Judy ends up straying from the crowed and follows her heart to be with Jim. The true importance of this movie is that it is okay not to be what others think are “normal” and that you will find more happiness being yourself then conforming to everyone

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