I'm not going to lie about being introduced to this movie by my mother who wanted to watch it because young Marlon Brando was smoking hot here. Well, after watching it, I do have to agree on that front - the guy is drop-dead gorgeous in this one - but beyond that the film was also showcased a pretty interesting story of gang mayhem, troubled romance, and put to screen the iconic character of biker gang leader Johnny Strabler, whose persona shaped all of the biker gang movies to come after.
The Wild One tells the tale of Johnny and his biker gang crashing a small American town and causing all sorts of trouble until eventually tragedy and consequence strike. The story is told in a very straight and even manner, which makes the whole affair seem almost like a documentary at times. There is no distinct climax or a focused plot-line throughout the runtime which does make the movie a little hard to invest in at times, but to its strength this style also makes the characters and the events more realistic and genuine than your typical film.
Brando as the lead character and the other actors all put up nice performances (even if they will seem a bit dated by today's standards). Some of the sequences and events in the movie do border on ridiculousness, but overall I would say the whole product showcases a pretty in-depth and fascinating look into biker gang culture and the tension as well as conflict between gangs and common folks. In my opinion these are all good enough reasons to watch the movie alone - but honestly if you just want to gawk at a young Marlon Brando in his prime, that's totally fine too.
The Wild One tells the tale of Johnny and his biker gang crashing a small American town and causing all sorts of trouble until eventually tragedy and consequence strike. The story is told in a very straight and even manner, which makes the whole affair seem almost like a documentary at times. There is no distinct climax or a focused plot-line throughout the runtime which does make the movie a little hard to invest in at times, but to its strength this style also makes the characters and the events more realistic and genuine than your typical film.
Brando as the lead character and the other actors all put up nice performances (even if they will seem a bit dated by today's standards). Some of the sequences and events in the movie do border on ridiculousness, but overall I would say the whole product showcases a pretty in-depth and fascinating look into biker gang culture and the tension as well as conflict between gangs and common folks. In my opinion these are all good enough reasons to watch the movie alone - but honestly if you just want to gawk at a young Marlon Brando in his prime, that's totally fine too.