The Front (1976)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Martin Ritt

Writer:

Walter Bernstein (written by)

Release Date:

17 September 1976 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

America's Most Unlikely Hero.

Plot:

A cashier poses as a writer for blacklisted talents to submit their work through, but the injustice around him pushes him to take a stand.

Plot Keywords:

1950s | Cashier | McCarthyism | Bookmaker | Communist Menace

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 3 nominations

Cast

Woody Allen	...	Howard Prince
Zero Mostel	...	Hecky Brown
Herschel Bernardi	...	Phil Sussman
Michael Murphy	...	Alfred Miller
Andrea Marcovicci	...	Florence Barrett
Remak Ramsay	...	Hennessey
Marvin Lichterman	...	Myer Prince
Lloyd Gough	...	Delaney
David Margulies	...	Phelps
Joshua Shelley	...	Sam
Norman Rose	...	Howard's Attorney
Charles Kimbrough	...	Committee Counselor
Josef Sommer	...	Committee Chairman (as M. Josef Sommer)
Danny Aiello	...	Danny LaGattuta
Georgann Johnson	...	T. V. Interviewer

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Iceland:L | Sweden:11 | USA:PG (Approved No. 24495) | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

This is the last on-screen film project for Zero Mostel.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: When Howard and Florence kiss in the park , the Bi-Level George Washington Bridge can be seen in the background. In 1952 when this movie takes place, the bridge only had 1 level.

Quotes:

Florence Barrett: A writer looks for trouble.
Howard Prince: No, wrong. A lunatic looks for trouble.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Simpsons: The Front (#4.19)" (1993)

Soundtrack:

Daisy Bell

Excellent

Martin Ritt's and Walter Bernstein's excellent and very entertaining revenge film! Woody Allen is a bookie/restaurant cashier who, in order to help out a blacklisted writer-friend, agrees to front for him. Previously oblivious to the horrors of the blacklist, Allen soon realizes that people are not only unable to work, but are literally being destroyed. Director Ritt and screenwriter Bernstein, both victims of the '50s communist witch-hunt, exact their revenge by creating a character who, for all intent and purposes, is an everyman --- one capable of telling the government to go "F" itself!

The large cast --- some of whom were also blacklisted --- is splendid. Herschel Bernardi, Lloyd Gough, Michael Murphy, and, best of a ll, Zero Mostel offer great support and Allen, in a rare acting only role, manages to give what is arguably his best screen performance. He brings his humor --- it's hard to believe some his dialogue, particularly in his scenes with leading lady Andrea Marcovicci --- isn't ad libbed, but also creates his deepest characterization. He's especially powerful when he attends the funeral of a blacklisted friend.