Best Years of Our Lives

Pros: realistic story, great acting, direction
Cons: none

Best Years of Our Lives is arguably the best "homecoming" film ever made. Written by Robert E. Sherwood, this movie gives a frank and realistic view of three returning servicemen and how each adjusts to life after World War II.

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Pros: Cast, story, direction, overall execution.
Cons: None

In behind-the-scenes early Hollywood, few rivalries were as bitter as the one between producer Samuel Goldwyn and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer CEO Louis B. Mayer. One of the original movie wheeler-dealers, Goldwyn found himself over-leveraged when a mid-1920s ...

Pros: Acting, cinematography, story
Cons: None

I know a lot of people put "It's A Wonderful Life" on their list of all time favorites. When it was released in 1946, it was nominated for an Oscar as best picture, but didn't win. I doubt that a lot of people have either seen or heard of the...

Pros: Every part is perfectly cast, the story is riveting and touching.
Cons: A little long for younger viewers.

They don't make World War II movies like they used to -- before all of the special effects that modern movie fans expect in much-hyped "blockbusters" like Pearl Harbor, whose previews didn't inspire me to buy a ticket. But when AMC or TCM shows...

Pros: A masterpiece. Still relevant after 6 Decades
Cons: Let me think about this.

Three Combat Veterans try to resume life as it was before “The Good War” -----1946   B&W   172 Minutes   1.33:1   Aspect Ratio Prologue When I was 9 years old, my Dad loaded us up in ...

Pros: Cast, story, Cinematography
Cons: 170 mins is too much, Ray Teal

Time to talk about one of my other loves, I think. Forget the fact that Teresa Wright is 86 years old and I’m 23, through the magic of cinema, the lovely, sweet Teresa will always be 28. Why that age? It’s the age she was when she appeared in ...

Pros: brilliantly superb acting, breathtaking cinematography, insightful dialogue, heralding message
Cons: Wish they would have waited a little while longer following WWII to express their message

Without a shred of doubt World War II has become one of the perennial subjects of the modern mega-motion picture era. Within the last three decades the Motion Picture Association has rewarded numerous films which relate to the Second World War with the ...

Pros: Great character development, Decent acting, Generally good plot
Cons: Light on DVD bonus features, Slightly overbearing soundtrack (when there is one)

With my relentless pursuit of movies these days, there are surprisingly few movies that I get excited about. Most movies I see these days I either go into completely blind or having heard rumors about it. In an effort to (usually unsuccessfully) include ...

Pros: One of the Greatest Films Ever Made.
Cons: That I Can't See if for the First Time Ever Again.

I'm actually nervous writing this review because it's so difficult to actually put my finger on why I am so very emotionally attached to this film. So, bear with me as I write my very personal opinion about why this is one of the most important films...

Pros: Great Acting
Cons: Soap opera-ish

In what is the most cinematic and lyrical sequence in the black-and-white The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), Fred Derry (Dana Andrews) kills time waiting for a plane--any plane--that will take him out of Boone City and to a fresh start somewhere...

Pros: Acting, Directing, Writing
Cons: Length makes it not as appealing to younger audiences.

The Best Years of Our Lives is a film based on an article about three World War 2 veterans and the p ...

Pros: story, script, characters, cast
Cons: lengthy, sometimes melodramatic

There are many war movies. However, after the Vietnam war, Hollywood believed that a new film genre was born with "Coming Home" (1978): the postwar movie. This genre deals with soldiers after they have returned from the war, and sometimes find...

Pros: Intelligent writing, excellent acting, a realistic setting and warm characters we really care about.
Cons: There really are none if you know the kind of movie it is.

Ask all your film buff friends what their all time favorite film is, and once you get past The Wizard of Oz, Gone With the Wind, and It's a Wonderful Life, don't be surprised to find quite a number of them mentioning The Best Years of Our Lives.
At...

Pros: Wholly inspiring while also being enjoyable
Cons: Another message ignored by those who should be listening

I'm amazed that only one other person has reviewed this movie. The Best Years of Our Lives is another of those films which constitute "eternal truths," that truth being that war is an insanely inhuman injury to all mankind.

This...

Pros: fascinating look at the post-war adjustment difficulties of WW2 vets; historically important
Cons: none

This movie is frank and realistic about the post-war difficulties veterans and their loved ones had in readjusting to civilian life, hardly what one would expect from an era dominated by sentimental spectacles.

The film follows the lives of a...