Edge of the City (1957) - Poitier gleams in Ritt's idealistic debut

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The firetruck red of this poster for Martin Ritt's Edge of the City indicates the socialist politics it promotes

A young man arrives to the New York Harbor without any inclination to share his name or his background but eager to find employment. He finds a good friend but also trouble with a corrupt foreman.

Edge of the City is the debut movie for Martin Ritt (Hud (1963)), an attempt at social realism that lifts relevant issues such as racism and exploitation of manual laborers. It was written by Robert Alan Aurthur (The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse (1951-55)), based on his last hour-long episode on the said show titled A Man Is Ten Feet Tall (1955).
Edge of the City is a film with a clear, liberal authorship, - SPOILER the mysterious hero (John Cassavetes (The Virginian (1966), TV-series)) turns out to be a deserter! -  but it undeniably seems a bit superficial.
Sidney Poitier (Duel at Diablo (1966)) is wonderful as the film's second hero, a rather flawless character, obviously an inspirational, idealized American negro character intentionally written to collide head-on with the racist stereotypes often found in American films at the time. Additionally, Ruby Dee (Touched by An Angel (1999), TV-series)) is strong as his wife; Cassavetes is good, and so is Kathleen Maguire (Flipper (1963)) as the blond, (whom Cassavetes doesn't exactly fall for, - in fact, the film contains an innuendo of homosexuality on the character's part, which was also very uncommon at the time, and which the MPPCA noted but allowed since it is so subtle that most probably misses it), and Jack Warden (The Cosmic Voice (1986)) as the villainous foreman. Inevitably, the film is reminiscent of Elia Kazan's masterpiece On the Waterfront (1954), whose heights it doesn't reach, but it is still a solid, incensed crime drama.

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 493k $
Box office: Reportedly 760k $
= Big flop
[Edge of the City premiered 4 January and runs 85 minutes. Financing studio MGM figured they couldn't play the film in the segregated South and budgeted the film lowly, giving black-listed Ritt only 10k $ and 15k$ for Poitier. Cassavetes' paycheck is not known. Shooting took place in New York, including in Harlem and at a Manhattan railroad yard. The release was delayed, because the studio was uneasy with the film's controversial theme of interracial brotherhood, but following a successful screening, it was released and met with praise by the NAACP, Urban League and the American Jewish Committee, but also with boycots in the South and small audiences. According to MGM, the film made 360k $ (47.4 % of the total gross) in North America and incurred a 125k $ loss, despite fine reviews. The film was nominated for 2 BAFTAs, - one for 'Best Film from Any Source' and one for Best Foreign Actor (Poitier). 1,848 IMDb users have given Edge of the City a 7.2/10 average rating.]

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