The Wild One

6.5

Considered relevant due to a titular performance by acting guru Marlon Brando, The Wild One may have upset many in its time, but feels rather tame after more than 50 years. The fast-paced drama spins the tale of an uproarious motorcycle gang as they take over a small town, giving the townspeople no choice but to strike back.

The film begins with a message branding it as a warning to society. As it progresses, both the mischievous gang and the defensive citizens commit equally heinous acts, blurring the line between good and evil. I'm intrigued to see what the film would have ended up being without the enchanting performance by Brando luring the audience onto his side. The entire ordeal is photographed beautifully in black and white and features some of the most effective and mesmerizing day-for-night scenes.

The acting is great, especially considering everyone having to go toe-to-toe with Brando. The real problems with the film lay in the script, which chooses to depict its characters very unevenly. On one hand, Brando's Johnny feels fleshed out and human but is cast along side cut-out sidekicks who offer little more than comedic relief. His rival Chino, played by Lee Marvin is engaging to begin with but by the end all but disappears. What hurts most is Mary Murphy's Kathy, Johnny love interest who starts out strong but halfway through descends into cliche, starry-eyed swooner territory. Still, their scenes together are the strongest moments peppered throughout the film.

After an hour of setting up an all-out culture war between the straight-edge town folk and the combative bikers, the film doesn't exactly erupt into the slew of violence you'd expect. The conflict makes for an impressive and though-provoking thesis implying that neither side is justified and both are equally responsible for creating friction between one another. This interesting dynamic is never really followed-through upon and the film ends abruptly. Its true that most noteworthy issues in society have no definitive answers but that doesn't necessarily make for a satisfying ending to a film.