Production Company: Samuel Goldwyn Company
"Everything'll settle down nicely. Unless we have another war, then none of us have to worry because we'll all be blown to bits the first day. So cheer up, huh?" - Butch Engle
Setting
Boone City (fictional), United States
The Plot
Three World War 2 heroes return home, meeting on the same flight and share a cab dropping each other home as they nervously step out and into their old/new lives. Captain Fred Derry [Andrews] was married for less than 20 days when he went to war and finds his wife has a new job and an apartment he can't seem to find; Sergeant Al Stephenson [March] comes home to his now grown up kids and tries to fall back in love with his charming wife Milly [Loy]; sailor Homer Parrish [Harold Russell] lost both hands in the Navy and has to adjust to life back at home with parents and fiancee with his surprisingly agile hook hands.
The Review
The film avoids any particular angle on WWII or war in general, focusing more on the post-war issues of readjustment to normal life. One minor character had a whinge about the US fighting a war that wasn't theirs to fight, which was interesting as a previous Best Picture Oscar-winner Mrs Miniver helped convince them to get involved in the first place!
Naturally the film needs a touch of drama so bring on the predictable love triangle, a battle with alcoholism, the argument of love vs pity, and a good ol' man-on-man punch up. There we go, much better! I was a tad jealous as the men flew home in the windowed nose of a plane, the view certainly put Emirates' nose cameras to shame. I enjoyed the wise counsel from Homer's Uncle Butch, owner of the local watering hole, a combination of calming yet depressing at the same time. Quite the talent.
The cast interacted well and the plot had a serious side interspersed with plenty of fun along the way, though one theoretically important supporting character just vanished form the story-line and one major subplot also ended when it had a chance to conclude. What is it with loose ends in films? Grrr...
It did show me an angle of war I had never previously considered: coming home to normality. After the cheery welcomes and a chance to sleep in your own bed, life can seem strange when you've become used to danger...you can also feel in the way amid a family who has become used to you only being around via letters in the mail. Imagine leaving you kids in their early teens and coming to see them as adults, the robbery of war goes beyond the battlefields and lasts long after it's over.
Naturally the film needs a touch of drama so bring on the predictable love triangle, a battle with alcoholism, the argument of love vs pity, and a good ol' man-on-man punch up. There we go, much better! I was a tad jealous as the men flew home in the windowed nose of a plane, the view certainly put Emirates' nose cameras to shame. I enjoyed the wise counsel from Homer's Uncle Butch, owner of the local watering hole, a combination of calming yet depressing at the same time. Quite the talent.
The cast interacted well and the plot had a serious side interspersed with plenty of fun along the way, though one theoretically important supporting character just vanished form the story-line and one major subplot also ended when it had a chance to conclude. What is it with loose ends in films? Grrr...
It did show me an angle of war I had never previously considered: coming home to normality. After the cheery welcomes and a chance to sleep in your own bed, life can seem strange when you've become used to danger...you can also feel in the way amid a family who has become used to you only being around via letters in the mail. Imagine leaving you kids in their early teens and coming to see them as adults, the robbery of war goes beyond the battlefields and lasts long after it's over.
The Slap
This goes to Marie Derry [Virginia Mayo], the mysterious wife of the Captain...after waiting half the film to meet her she turns out to be a bit of a cow!
This goes to Marie Derry [Virginia Mayo], the mysterious wife of the Captain...after waiting half the film to meet her she turns out to be a bit of a cow!
No comments:
Post a Comment