Our friend Justin is really going to shrug when he reads this – We tend to go on for hours and hours about this one person, but whatever…
We're big fans of times past – black and white film, jeans and white tees, and people who were true originals. There's one actor that both of us in Belle Mare really adore; Marlon Brando. He captures the essence of what it means to be authentic. Not just in his films, but more so because of his personality off screen (he bought an island, crusaded along with Martin Luther King, and yes, he kissed Larry King on the lips)… so here is a tip of the hat to times gone, and people who play by their own rules.
Love this video!! Most people associate rebellion with James Dean because of his role in Rebel Without a Cause. But, it was Marlon who producers really wanted in the film. Why? Brando was a notorious bad ass. For instance: One day at school Marlon rode his motorcycle through the halls, and got expelled. Which is kind of cool to know when you're watching The Wild One. This is also just a great chance to see him before he broke his nose… he dabbled in boxing.
Before this film hit the scene, Marlon had perfected this role on the stage. It also ushered in method acting to the mainstream. Game changer. This is also around the time that him and his best friend Wally Cox kept a pet raccoon in their apartment.
Later in his life, he used that very Oscar as a door stopper. It's interesting how someone so good at something thought what he did was ridiculous. He would always say that he is no different than a plumber. We respect that.
The part where Marlon bats his brothers gun down during this scene is famous for the sensitivity he brought to the role. It was uncommon for a man to act like this in movies at the time. Brando was rumored to swing both ways. He also really pissed off Rod Steiger during this scene because he left in the middle of it to go see his analyst.
This is Brando in the seventies. While the film was done in French, he improvised a lot of his lines in this film… this scene in particular. He was notorious for not wanting to memorize his lines. In fact, he had the crew write all of his lines around the set of The Godfather, so he could read them. Next time its on TV look at the way he looks around the room before he talks.
