Edge of the City (1957)

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1. 

   beeswax

   "ClassicLady" said

   quote:

   ...in which he was not preaching the message of the superiority of the Black man....

   
   It sounds like you've been spending a little too much time in the past, "ClassicLady." 11 years ago
2. 

   Siskoid

   In Edge of the City, Sidney Poitier and John Cassavetes are dock workers who strike up a friendship, and that friendship is what the film is about. Poitier offers a complete stranger a hand and something develops, their lives get intertwined, maybe he can help him out of a tight spot... and the question is how far each of them would be willing to go for their friend. The interplay between the two actors could have carried the day alone, and I would have been content with stuff like Cassavetes finding the courage to speak to his parents about the trouble he's in, Poitier setting him up with his kid's schoolteacher, and generally how it's not about overcoming racial tension between them. So it's almost a shame that the third act goes for high drama with its confrontation with Jack Warden's crooked and bullying foreman. First, the film's roots as a teleplay are evident in the kind of sanitized language used there. Warden shouting at Poitier that's he's black comes off as weird and desperate. Second, it forces a down note where I think the audience wants something more hopeful after spending time with these characters. Still liked it, but more at the front end than the back. 4 years 7 months ago
3. 

   Camille Deadpan

   Gosh does John Cassavetes look fine in this movie. I was swooning like a little girl the whole time. 7 years ago

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