The Wild One, 1953, as Johnny
Cast: Mary Murphy, Robert Keith, Lee Marvin
Director: Laslo Benedek
Rating
Factoid
– Brando plays his quintessential anti-Establishment role as Johnny, leader of the Black Rebels motorcycle gang in The Wild One.
– Based on an explosive true story originally published in Harper’s The Wild One tells the unsettling tale of two rival gangs whose terrifying invasion of a typical small town results in chaos and, eventually, a man’s death.
– The film reunited Brando with producer Stanley Kramer (The Men).
– The movie was shot in just 24 days at Columbia Pictures’ San Fernando Valley Ranch.
– More than any other, this is the film of Brando’s that cemented his appeal with youthful audiences. Brando became a cult figure thanks to The Wild One, but he was not satisfied with the outcome of the movie – “We started out to do something worthwhile, to explain the psychology of the hipster. But somewhere along the way we went off track…all that we did was show the violence.“
– Due to the film’s violent theme it was banned entirely in Britain until 1968.
– The classic line in the movie – When asked by one local girl “What are you rebelling against”, Brando replies “whadayah got?”
– In this movie Marlon Brando rides a 1950 Triumph Thunderbird 6T motorcycle. It is the first Hollywood film where a motorcycle’s tank badge is clearly displayed.
Quotes from the movie
Johnny: Say, you live here all the time?
Kathie: All my life.
Johnny: We’ve been over to Carbonville at the meet.
Kathie: A bunch of motorcycles came through this way yesterday. They didn’t stop. (Gesturing toward his trophy) Is that what they give you in those races for killing yourself?
Johnny: That’s right. You want it? Hmm?
Kathie: No.
Johnny: (He pushes it towards her on the counter.) Well, go on, take it, go ahead.
Kathie: No!
Johnny: Go on.
Kathie: Can’t do that. You won it. You have to get your name engraved on it, or whatever you do. It’s important to you. You don’t – you don’t give something like that away just like that, not unless you knew a girl real well and, well, you liked her.
Kathie: Where are you going when you leave here? Don’t you know?
Johnny: (scoffing) Oh man, we just gonna go.
Kathie: Just trying to make conversation. It means nothing to me.
Johnny: Well, on the weekends, we go out and have a ball.
Kathie: And what do you do? I mean, do you just ride around? Or do you go on some sort of a picnic or something?
Johnny: A picnic? Man, you are too square. I’ll have to straighten you out. Now, listen, you don’t go any one special place. That’s cornball style. You just go. (He snaps his fingers.) A bunch gets together after all week it builds up, you just…the idea is to have a ball. Now if you gonna stay cool, you got to wail. You got to put somethin’ down. You got to make some jive. Don’t you know what I’m talkin’ about?
Female dance partner: Hey, Johnny, What are you rebelling against?
Johnny: What’ve you got?
Charlie: Let’s stop this. I’ve seen hoodlums like this before. If you don’t get tough with them the minute they get out of line, you’re sunk. (To Bleeker) You are the cop, aren’t ya? If you can’t boot these jerks out, there’s plenty of us that can, even if we have to bust a few heads.
Sheriff Bleeker: That won’t help matters.
Sheriff Bleeker: I’ve given you a couple of chances. I-I don’t know what you’re after….I’m in a spot here. You can do me a favor. You take your boys and go on, and that other bunch too…
Johnny: …I said I don’t make no deal with no cop.
Britches: Oh you remember, the last weekend we went out scrambling. Before the club split up.
Johnny: Oh, yeah.
Britches: How have ya been?
Johnny: Well, I’m still swingin’.
Britches: I didn’t know what happened to ya. Well, it’s been a year I didn’t see you. I thought about you.
Johnny: Listen, I’ll see you later, OK?
Kathie: He was afraid of making a mistake. He was afraid of losing his job. He’s the town joke and I’m stuck with him. He doesn’t got any business being a cop. No more than you have with that [fake trophy]. He’s a fake – like you. Well, you’ve impressed everybody now, big motorcycle racer. Why don’t you take that back so they can give it to somebody who really won it?
Johnny (irritated): Say what? Who are you? Some girl who makes sandwiches or somethin’? Your father wears that hat that says he’s a big important man and you start telling me what to do. Nobody tells me what to do. You keep needlin’ me, and if I want to, I’m gonna take this joint apart. And you’re not gonna know what hit ya.
Gang member: Hey, Johnny, what’s the pitch, are we leavin’?
Johnny: Not just yet.
Britches: We really got ourselves hung on the Christmas tree, didn’t we? Boy, was I green. Was I really green! I thought I was really livin’ it up. I had me a guy and we were really gonna go. But we had a lot of yuks, anyway, didn’t we, Johnny? Well say it, can’t ya say something? Please, Johnny, I won’t get on your back. I wouldn’t do that. But we had a lot of yaks, anyway, didn’t we?
Johnny: (coldly) What do you want me to do, send you some flowers?
Kathie: I’m sorry. I-I can’t fight back. Too tired. It would be better, wouldn’t it? Then you could hit me.
Johnny (berating her attitude toward him): You think you’re too good for me. Nobody’s too good for me. Anybody thinks they’re too good for me, I make sure I knock ’em over sometime. Right now, I can slap you around to show you how good you are. And tomorrow, I’m someplace else and I don’t even know you or nothing.
Kathie: Do you want to?
Johnny: I wouldn’t waste my time with a square like you. What do I want to knock myself out for? I’m gonna take you back and dump you. Come on, where’re you going?
Kathie (desiring him, she softly replies): Johnny. (She gently touches his arm.)
Johnny: Quit that.
Kathie: It’s crazy, isn’t it? You’re afraid of me. I don’t know why, but I’m not afraid of you now. You’re afraid of me.
Johnny (disbelieving): I’m afraid of you? Are you cracked? Come on, get on.
Kathie (walking closer toward him): I wanted to touch you. I wanted to try anyway.
Johnny: Try what?
Kathie: I don’t know. I wanted to make it the way I always thought it would be sometime – with somebody. The way I always thought it might be. You’re still fighting, aren’t you? You’re always fighting. Why do you hate everybody?
Sherrif (to Johnny): I don’t get you. I don’t get your act at all, and I don’t think you do either. I don’t think you know what you’re trying to do or how to go about it. I think you’re stupid, real stupid, and real lucky. Last night, you scraped by, just barely. But a man’s dead on account of something you let get started, even though you didn’t start it. I don’t know if there’s any good in you. I don’t know if there’s anything in you. But I’m gonna take a big fat chance and let you go. There’ll be a hearing on this tire iron business. You’ll get a summons and you’d better show up.
Sherrif (to Johnny): Don’t you want to say anything to these people? What’s the matter? You been hit over the head so often you don’t know when you’re getting a break? You could at least say ‘thank you.’
Kathie: It’s all right. He doesn’t know how
Sherrif: Every one of you monkeys is down in my book, and every stick of damage around here will be paid for. You’ve got ten minutes to clear out. Just stick your nose back in this county, any of ya, and you’ll never see daylight again as long as you live. Now git.
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