Ray Liotta’s favourite movie moment: “I love the scene when Brando first talks to Eva Marie Saint”
Ray Liotta’s chiselled look and weathered persona made him the perfect addition to films of the action/crime persuasion. With supporting roles in high-concept dramas such as Goodfellas, Hannibal, The Place Beyond the Pines and Field of Dreams, the actor consistently worked with great performers such as Robert Duvall, Gene Hackman, Robert de Niro and Al Pacino. But with such an extensive body of work, spanning from animated films such as The Bee Movie and comic book adaptations such as Sin City, the actor revealed the stories that he recalled most often and held as his favourite movie moment.
Marlon Brando is one of the most notable actors to carve out space in cinema for the ‘angry young man’, with performances in Apocalypse Now, The Godfather and A Streetcar Named Desire attributing towards his notoriously scary reputation and slightly intimidating screen presence. The actor was never afraid to push outside the box, with a leading role in Bernardo Bertolucci’s controversial 1972 film Last Tango in Paris and the Mankiewicz musical Guys and Dolls. This is partly a testament towards his use of the Stanislavski method of acting, in which he is seen as popularising after using the technique in films catered towards a mainstream audience.
However, Liotta was most fond of one moment from his 1954 film On the Waterfront, in which Brando plays a dockworker swept up in a world of crime, attempting to expose his corrupt bosses and finally leave the waterfront.
The film was directed by Elia Kazan, who is one of the most influential directors of all time and worked with Brando on multiple pictures, as well as with James Dean and Natalie Wood. When describing his creative influences, Liotta said, “For some reason when you said that, On the Waterfront popped into my head. I love the scene when Brando first talks to Eva Marie Saint. When she drops the glove and picks it up, and they’re talking for the first time. I loved that scene. Very well done”.
Many people have analysed the genius blocking of this scene, with the actor picking up the glove yet not returning it to Edie, instead trying it on and stroking it as a way of holding her in the conversation. He knows that he can carry on talking to her as long as he has her glove, with sexual tension running throughout the scene as he tries to prolong the conversation in such an innocent way. It is a beautiful moment that highlights their chemistry as well as Brando’s genius, being remembered as one of the most tender and realistic love stories.
Saint won an Academy Award for ‘Best Supporting Actor’ for her performance of Edie Doyle, whose brother dies at the beginning and sparks a long chain of dramatic events. She was a newcomer to the industry at the time, with critics praising her work and ability to hold her own in scenes alongside Brando, who was already considered one of the greats.
On the Waterfront is considered one of the greatest films of all time, and Liotta’s inclusion of this scene showed an incisive understanding of his craft and deep respect for the medium.
