The master and his finest moments:
Now Brando has innumerable moments of sheer genius and the easy ones are so engraved on our consciousness, that even if anyone has not seen the scenes / movies, they would be familiar with the scene.
Streetcar - The Napoleonic code, where he clears the table. Stellaaaa
Julius Caesar - friend’s roman speech
Waterfront - cab scene, glove scene with Saint. The climactic walk
Godfather - opening scene
Tango - monologue with dead wife
Apocalypse - the horror the horror

These everyone is aware of, but there are moments of sublime beauty in a number of movies which are not as famous and that is what i am talking about.

The Freshman: My favourite Brando moment on screen is from the freshman. The sight of a 64 year old overweight man ice skating and that too so gracefully is awe inspiring and Brando is exquisite to watch.

Burn: Brando's death scene in Burn. the look on his face when he walks the dock and turns when he is called out hoping to see his friend but sees a total stranger who stabs him, is haunting. In a span of seconds, Brando conveys 2 extreme emotions.

Teahouse of the August Moon: Brando's monologue in the opening credits of Teahouse of the august moon are brilliantly played and his body language is amazing to watch.

Reflections in a Golden Eye: Brando when he puffs his hair waiting for the enlisted man to show up in Reflections, is so real and natural, that one can only gape in amazement, as to how can anyone think of something like that at such an awkward moment.

Mutiny on the bounty: When Brando’s inner conflict is visible on his face and he takes a whip and then just hangs it on Captain Bligh’s shoulder and says - take your flag with you. You are expecting him to give Bligh a dose of the whip but words can hurt more and that’s what Brando does.

there are countless other moments, some well known some not so well known, but each moment has the magic of something new, which only Brando could deliver.

Brando in the Wild West.

The Wild West is a genre which has been explored in minute detail by Hollywood from the time Cinema came into inception. A lot of stars, directors have put their spin on things. Some stars have made legendary careers out of the west (John Wayne, Clint Eastwood etc.)

Now when the greatest actor decided to tackle the Wild West, what does he do. He does things his own way and puts his own brilliant spin on the WEST.
Marlon Brando has acted in 3 movies which can be called outright westerns.
One Eyed Jacks (which he directed)
The Appaloosa
The Missouri Breaks

One Eyed Jacks – Brando directs and acts wonderfully to conjure up a story of revenge and love which has a lot of subtext for the characters to convey. Have a post on it already. This is without a doubt one of the finest westerns ever, have some of the juiciest dialogues ever. A sample below -

You might be a One eyed Jack around here, Dad. But I have seen the other side of your face.
Get up, you big lard of guts
Sure kid, you will get a fair trial and then I will hang you myself

Brando directs wonderfully and is a picture postcard movie to see.

The Appaloosa – A decent movie, no great shakes, Brando does his brooding bit, has some genuinely wonderful moments, again lovingly shot. John Saxon as the villain has a great role and Brando’s brooding goes well with Saxon’s bravado. Has an arm wresting match between the 2 with a scorpion for company. A wonderful moment, which stays with you long after you have seen the movie. A movie which was released when Brando’s career was on the downswing, it failed at the box office but definitely not as bad as the critics would have it.

The Missouri Breaks – The most eccentric western ever. Again have a post on it. This has no redeemable characters and has Brando with Nicholson. 2 of the biggest icons of pop culture together as adversaries in different western. An eccentric western which debunks every traditional western tradition. Great ride with Brando holding sway over the proceedings. The ends result being one of Brando’s most mesmerizing star performances. He is odd, funny, sadistic, quirky and more while Nicholson is the lovable composed rogue.

What all these movies do is provide us with the fact that Brando was never predictable 9 times out of 10. The routine was something which he hated and thus came the unexpected, the strange, the wonderful magic of Brando unleashed on a genre, which has always been good guys v/s bad guys, leaving no room for the grey in between.

83 today. Happy Birthday Marlon Brando.

Coming up soon on the blog. Brando's westerns, brando's greatest acting moments, brando's pairing with other great actors (deniro, pacino, clift, taylor etc.)

Cheers,

Brandofan

Drama, Historical, Musicals, Comedies (romantic, spoofs, slapstick), Westerns, War movies, Sci-fiction horror etc. A 60 year career, with 40 movies, 1 Television performance, about half a dozen theatre productions - so he had less than 50 outings to play just about every character in every possible genre.

He had his greatest success in dramas and which resulted in Brando redefining screen acting for ever. But he had gems in nearly every other genre which are the works of a genius
Have listed down my favourite movie from each genre.
Drama - On the Waterfront / The godfather. (depends on which side of the bed i get up from)
Historical - Mutiny on the Bounty (it really gets on my nerves that it gets unjustly criticized)
Musicals - Guys and Dolls (the only one he did, great one at that)
Comedies - The freshman (have already raved about it on every occasion possible)
Westerns - One Eyed Jacks (this movie hits u in the gut, always)
War movies - The young lions (vastly underrated classic despite being a huge hit)
Sci-fiction horror - The island of Dr. Moreau (probably his worst film ever).

SO Marlon Brando did it all, and did it his own way, and that way has never been traveled upon again by anyone...

Brando defined versatility and how - 1953, the year of the first cult bike movie and also the year of Marc Antony.

The same year Brando portrayed a rebel bike leader - Johnny Strabler in the Wild One and also Marc Antony in Julius Caesar. Which other actor - male female animal robot can boast of that. Not only was he brilliant in both, he created characters which have become synonymous with rebellion and as well for opening doors for American actors who want to tackle Shakespeare.

Who can forget - Brando's retort to the query - what you rebelling against? The rejoinder is a part of pop culture - Whattya Got!!

Who can forget a sexy Anotny who comes into his own and steals the movie from stalwarts like James Mason, john Gielgud when recites the famous - Friends Romans Countrymen. Never was Shakespeare more dynamic and vibrant.

That was the magic of Brando, the king of actors, no matter what the character was.

Marlon Brando never trusted himself with comedy, and yet was very good at it. Besides the great heavy dramatic parts he is most famous for, there is only 1 comic performance for which he won rave reviews _ the freshman. a work of pure genius.

Brando and his comic movies:
The teahouse of the august moon - a delightful romp in post war Japan, where Brando plays a Japanese interpreter who hoodwinks the US army captain, played by Glen Ford. Brando is very good at it and excels in the physical comedy. His body language is very good and the most important thing called timing, he has in plenty. The opening and closing monologues played directly to the camera are hilarious. A must watch and a huge hit when it was released.

Bedtime story - Brando is again in good form, in a movie which has unfairly been criticized.
Candy - a disaster of a movie has Brando and the rest of the cast hamming away.
The countess of Hong Kong - a movie 30 years too late, this would have been very successful had it released in the 30s. Brando has his moments, but the film as a whole just does not take off. Of course there are scenes where Brando is genuinely funny when he is figuring out where to hide Sophia Loren in his cabin and there is incessant knocking on the door.
The freshman - a brilliant movie and a great performance. already have a post on it.
Don Juan Demarco - good solid film and Brando is in good form and has amazing sexual chemistry with Faye Dunaway, the high point Brando and Depp enjoying playing of against each other..
Free Money - a bad film, with Brando having fun and that’s about it.

Besides these Brando has given performances where he has indulged in comedy even though the genre of the movie may be different: Guys and Dolls - great film and the anti western Missouri Breaks, where he gave a twist to his character and played him as a sadistic hit man who has his quirks which resulted in the comic elements. Suffice to say that Brando was mesmerizing in this film.

SO the man had it all, and he did it all.

Brando, Taylor and Huston. WOW...the greatest actor ever, sharing screen space with one of the greatest actresses ever and both being directed by one of the greatest directors ever, is something that should be savoured.

Reflections in a golden eye, is one of those movies which strikes you in the gut for showing life as the miserable bitch it can be. First the movie is a sold effort and leaves you feeling a lil shaken about life's complexities and how we have no say in it.

Taylor gives a great performance as the shrill / sassy / sensitive / sarcastic wife who feels nothing but contempt for her husband but can be very nice to others in her life.

Brando delivers one of his great performances and it is a shame and a blot that this act has not been accorded the status it deserves. No Oscar nomination, I can’t believe it. A repressed homosexual could have been a caricature, it would have been a putting off experience for the viewer. Brando plays his role in such a way that he is able to convey the anguish that his character will be feeling. The little nuances that he brings are astonishing and so very real and simple. This movie contains according to me the greatest breakdown scene ever put on film - when Brando is thrown by the horse and proceeds to whip the horse and then subsequently cries / breaks down, the emotion is scary. I had goose bumps when I watched it.

This film was a huge failure when it was released in 1967. The audiences I don’t think were prepared for a film like this. The remarkable thing about this movie is that there is not one happy person in the entire film. Brando is a repressed homosexual lusting after a private in the army, having his own troubles. Taylor his wife is having an affair with a Col and not happy with her married life. The private is lusting after Taylor and has a creepy way of satisfying his lust – he steals into Taylor’s bedroom in the night and smells her clothes.

This film along with a host of other Brando films from the 60s are now getting reevaluated and getting the recognition that they deserves.
Watch the film but don’t expect to come out all happy and gay (pun intended), this film will tell you that there are places and scenarios where misery and tragedy go hand in hand. Happiness is a mirage for the people living in those places.

Marlon Brando is a fop in Mutiny on the bounty, how can he play a British naval officer in the 18th century as effeminate, he ruined the film with his star tantrums etc...

These are some of the ways the Brando Bounty is remembered. According to me this is the best of the bounty films and the new DVD which has it does the film full justice. Critics forget that the movie was nominated for 7 Oscars including best picture and what a picture it is. Brando delivers one of his great performances. He totally breaks away from the conventional hero of Gable in the earlier bounty and puts his own spin on the character. It might not be historically accurate but his performance and the film are great fun.

The movie is a treat and is an epic personified. Big canvas, locations, grand music (the soundtrack is masterful), great stars with Brando leading the way.

Brando's character (Fletcher Christian) interpretation inspired Depp when he went about doing Pirates. Brando showcases why he is the best ever by trying to do something different. The film bombed when it was released because i think the audiences wanted a conventional hero. Brando is the antithesis of conventional and that's his greatest asset.

The latter day audiences are lapping up this version of the bounty and like a lot of Brando’s earlier stuff reevaluating his 60s work. well bounty is a ride to die for.

Treat for your eyes and senses and has some of the most delightful banter between a superior officer (Bligh) and his junior (Christian) in movie history.

The dvd has some great extra features and is a great buy and much needed. This mutiny has a lot of bounty to offer.

This Xmas my present to myself is - The Marlon Brando Collection. Am getting it tomorrow and I can't wait to see -

• Mutiny on the Bounty (have seen it once only). I love this film and it is the best of the Bounty movies by far. brando is exquisite in this film.
• Julius Caesar - an all time classic with one of the greatest screen moments, the Friends, Romans speech by Brando. (again have seen it once only)
• Reflections in a Golden Eye - Never seen it, from what i have heard it boasts of one of Brando's great acts. Elizabeth Taylor to boot, and under the helm of John Huston. Will be a great treat.
• Teahouse of the August Moon - Brando as a japaneese who totally hoodwinks Glen Ford in a delightful comedy. (again have seen it once only)
• The Formula - Brando in 3 scenes pitted against another great talent in George C. Scott. The film has been universally panned, but still want to see him, deliver the great line that i have heard so much about - We are the Arabs.

It is definitely going to be a great new year for this brandofan.

BRANDOFAN
One Eyed Jacks is a trio of aces.
Saw it last evening for the 2nd time and was blown away by the fact that it is not like a shoot em up western but allows for the characters to build their stories. One of the most beautiful movies to look at.

Brando shines as an actor and does a remarkable job directing the film. there are touches in everyone's performance which seem like they have been made up at that very instant, a typical brando trademark.

Brando looks great and his line - "dont be doin her like that", in the saloon is an absolute delight. the menace that he conveys by just saying it dead pan, is chilling...

The story is that brando and malden rob a bank in mexico and are on the run, brando stays back to stall the mexican law enforcement people, while Malden goes to get fresh horses. Malden decides not to go back ( a beautiful scene which shows how money blinds all) and keep the loot for himself.

Brando is imprisioned and breaks out after 5 years and goes looking for revenge. Malden has become a sheriff and has married a mexican and has a step daughter (pinna pellicer - beautiful). Brando comes back and plays Malden saying that nothing happend to him...then the sotry unfolds.

Has a whiplashing scene which has to be seen to be believed. A brilliantly acted and directed western. Was a box office hit but could not be termed so outright coz brando's inexperience behind the camera made the shoot linger on and on...

he took time to make the film but it was well worth the time. A great supporting cast - with Ben Johnson deleivering a cracker performance.

Brilliant!!

Its a pity he dint direct more often...

BRANDOFAN

Brando's screen deaths have had a lasting imapct on our socio culture. Out of 40 odd movies Brando has died 11 times. Some of those deaths are legendary - Don Corleone dies while playing with his grandson (the orange peel in the teeth) - The Godfather, Col. Kurtz is butchered by Willard - Apocalypse Now, Paul shot - Last Tango in Paris, etc. The list is endless...

My personal favourite is when William Walker is stabbed on the Quemada port - Burn. The film beings on the port and ends on the port and the look on brando's face and the way he succumbs to his wound is heart renching.

He made dying look awesome.

BRANDOFAN
Bed Time Story gets a bad rap from critics and everyone, its brando's attempt at slapstick comedy and he is a revelation.

Brando, Niven conning ladies out of their money is a hilarious film and if the premise seems familiar to audiences, - yes this movie was remade as Dirty Rotten Scroundrels with Michael Caine and Steve Martin. Both are good films, but i prefer the Brando vehcile.

Watch it, its not an all time great film but a nice comedy which makes u laugh with its tomfoolery.

BRANDOFAN
When you have a movie with 2 of the very best actors of all time and mix that with one of the most lovable stars ever and even then when you mention the movie to an average moviegoer he gives you a dumb look can be very unsettling.

The Young Lions - Marlon Brando, Montogomerry Clift and Dean Martin. Yes Marlon and Monty + Deano in a cracker of a WW2 film and not many people have heard of it today.

The movie was a huge hit when it released in 1958 and is considered a classic, but has your average joe seen it, don’t bet on it.

Needless to say that it is one the best WW2 films ever and it tells the story from both the American and German viewpoints. Brando plays an upright NAZI officer who believes Hitler will bring pride to the German people. Little by little he realises that NAZI policy is evil and how the human being in Brando's character cannot live with the NAZI policies.

MONTY plays an American Jew who joins the army and how he is subject to racism in the army. Deano is his friend in the army. Brilliantly shot with great acting needless to say. This is thought provoking movie which clearly highlights that when it comes to acting, BRANDO is definitely the biggest LION. Brando and Monty never meet in the film but the 2 story’s run parallel to each other.

Watch it at the earliest and to savour great stars and great actors all coming together in a great movie, which is just not about bombs and bullets but human emotions.

The lions roar in style!!!

BRANDOFAN
Brando's top 10 acts:
Terry Malloy - On the Waterfront, Paul - Last Tango in Paris, William Walker - BURN, Don Corleone - The Godfather, Stanley Kowalski - A streetcar named Desire, Col. Kurtz - Apocalypse Now, Carmine Sabitini - The Freshman, Maj. Penderton - Reflections in a Golden Eye, Marc Anotony - Julius Caesar, Ian Mckinsey - A dry white season.

Diverse roles, spread across in his career, broke a lot of ground with those performances and set benchmarks which have yet to be matched.

BRANDOFAN
With which male co star did Brando have the best chemistry??
The contenders: - Karl Malden - On the Waterfront, Anthony Quinn - Viva Zapata, Red Buttons - Sayonara, David Niven - Bed Time Story, Yul Brynner - Morituri, Al Pacino - The Godfather, Jack Nicholson - The Missouri Breaks, Mathew Broederick - The Freshman, Jhonny Depp - Don Juan DeMarco.

The interesting part is that 3 out of the above won Oscars as best supporting actors in the mentioned films opposite Brando.

My take would be Broderick - The Freshman as they both seemed like they were having lots of fun. Liked each and the fun element showed up on the screen.

Male bonding between a 66 year old and a 28 year old. All that in the backdrop of a spoof on the godfather...wow!!

BRANDOFAN
Have said this before and will say it again, for those getting a sense of deja vu, tough!!

Reclusive Brando is now becoming very visible Brando. Bio Pic being planned (Hopkins to star as the older Brando), his last film back on track - Citizen Brando and all the major Studios are issuing DVDs of his films. And to top that there is going to be another auction of his memorabilia.

Now what am I looking most forward to is purchasing the DVD of BURN and reliving Brando's self professed greatest performance. I saw it when I was about 18 and was blown over; want to see if it is true that BURN just gets better with time.

Gillio Pontercorvo, Ennio Morricone and BRANDO, 3 masters, 1 great motion picture.

BRANDOFAN
Brando can sing!!
Guys and Dolls is proof. One of the all time great musicals and the biggest box office hit of 1955, has Brando as the main lead and he is ably supported by THE VOICE - Sinatra. Now only a mad man will say that Brando is a better singer than Sinatra, but to give Brando his due he sang well and carried of the role brilliantly...like wise only a mad man will say Sinatra is a better actor than Brando.

Guys and Dolls is a very important film in Brando's career. It is the first light hearted movie he made. All his movies before this were heavy dramatic stuff. This is the first movie where Brando is having fun and what fun it was.

Great songs, great acting and great stars...GUYS and DOLLS is 4 star entertainment all the way.

It also proves his range, which other actor ever can say that they went from a paraplegic soldier to a loutish blue collar worker, to a Mexican revolutionary, to Shakespeare, to a rebel biker, to a washed out boxer / dockhand, to Napoleon etc....

Guys and Dolls, watched it for the umpteenth time and loved it...

BRANDOFAN

Brando and his chemistry with his female stars is a topic on which there is not much to be said as Brando in his 40 odd outings acted with the same leading only twice. Jean Simmons in Desiree' and Guys and Dolls.

Both movies were commercial box office hits. The former was not lapped up by the critics while the critics loved the latter.

So i would say that he liked working with Jean Simmons and they definitely had chemistry.

Vivien Leigh, Kim Hunter, Eva Marie Saint, Angie Dickinson, Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren, Maria Schneider etc are the most notable of leading ladies that he has worked with and yes there was chemistry with them, except for Loren.

My personal favourite Brando co star would be Angie Dickinson in The Chase. The looked very comfortable with each.

Brando is the exception that he had a legendary career and din't have a constant leading lady unlike Spencer Tracey - Katherine Hepbrun,
Erroyl Flynn - Olivia DeHavilland, Humphrey Bogart - Lauren Bacall etc.

Says a lot for the man's talent and career, that he did it on his own steam without the benefit of having a much adored leading lady to support him.

BRANDOFAN
Superman Returns and Brando is his inner voice offering him advice.
Marlon Brando's voice is the moral guiding force for the new Superman, whenever our caped crusader is in doubt about his role in society; Brando is there on hand to dish out some wisdom...
The Brando footage is great to see and the movie as a whole is good fun. Is it better than the original? NO, but it still is a good ride for 2 hours+.

The best part is that Brando's voice sounds terrific and one can nearly visualise Brando on screen just by hearing his voice.
See it to not only our favourite superhero's return but also for the return of Brando.

BRANDOFAN
The reclusive Brando is now the Prolific Brando...
Superman Returns and so does Brando and thats not all, Brando's last film that he was working on before his death is being completed - Citizen Brando, Big Bug Man should be out sometime this year and the BRANDO biopic is being developed and Anthony Hopkins is part of the cast to portray the older Brando..that will be out next year...

A treat for Brando fans and cinema by large...