Do you like the youthful, 1950s Elvis, or the fat, 1970s Elvis? The same question might be posed of Marlon Brando, who you remember either as the black-and-white Terry Malloy in On the Waterfront, or the all-too-colorful Don Corleone in The Godfather.

I prefer Brando in On the Waterfront. His portrayal of over-the-hill boxer and struggling dock worker Malloy is one of the great performances in the history of film. Unlike Arthur Miller's none-too-subtle The Crucilble, Elia Kazan's On the Waterfront can be experienced without knowledge of a deeper message than the surface story, which depicts one man's struggle against a corrupt union. But, of course, there is a deeper story, and it was as unfashionable in Hollywood then as it is now.

Marlon Brando left us with some great performances in the 1950s, and again in the 1970s. And then he disappeared for a while. He left us permanently yesterday, passing away at the age of 80.