The Best Years of Our Lives Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: The Best Years of Our Lives
Year: 1946
Director: William Wyler
Country: US
Language: English

World War Two raged all across the world for six years between 1939 and 1945. At the end of the War over 60 million people were killed, roughly 2.5% of the world's population. Wives became widows, children became fatherless. The world had changed indeed. After the war life in America was quite different; both men and women were exposed to different experiences and realized they had wanted more out of life. Those who became veterans of the war often took the experiences with them, and it was detrimental to their success as a civilian.

The story concentrates on the social re-adjustment of three World War II servicemen, each from a different station of society. Al Stephenson (Frederic March)  returns to an influential banking position, but finds it hard to reconcile his loyalties to ex-servicemen with new commercial realities. Fred Derry (Dana Andrews) is an ordinary working man who finds it difficult to hold down a job or pick up the threads of his marriage. Having had both hands burnt off during the war, Homer Parrish (Harold Russell), who now has hooks for hands,  is unsure that his fiancée's feelings are still those of love and not those of pity. 

At the time The Best Years of Our Lives was the first film to win eight Academy Awards, and was second only to Gone With the Wind at the U.S box office. It dealt with serious war issues that Hollywood tended to avoid. The title is, of course, ironic. The years after WWII were actually "the worst years of our lives" according to most households, especially if the breadwinner of the house didn't survive. Director William Wyler has made an honest picture about the sobering realities of war. I half-expected it to become far too sentimental, like It's a Wonderful Life, but it remained the same heartbreaking mood throughout. 

All three main characters do their best to uphold a "stiff upper lip", but they've returned from war with great fear in their hearts. Wyler makes no effort to paint these men as extraordinary, nor does he pump in unnecessary drama, they lead fairly average lives, which is the problem. How can these men go from dogfighting Nazis and Japs to sitting at a desk job for most of the day? How can their wives go from working at a job to being a simple housewife? Neither man wants to be "rehabilitated", but they desperately need it. 

I applaud the film for not giving us a cheap typical "Hollywood" ending. Rather it shoots for realism, which involves both despair and hope. Not everything turns out fine and dandy especially for the most disillusioned. It's difficult to keep a sense of patriotism when your whole world has crumbled around you. The picture is full of great acting, especially by Frederic March. The 2.5 hour running time, which at first seemed like a difficulty, is absolutely necessary. It does not drag, rather it gives us just enough time to fully see the consequences of war.

In conclusion, The Best Years of Our Lives is possibly the greatest film about war that I have ever seen. My fiance's father's mother (grandmother-in law?) Shirley recommended this picture to me, as it is her favourite film, and I can definitely see why. It deserved all the Oscars it received, especially the honorary Oscar to Russell for "bringing hope and courage to his fellow veterans through his appearance." This picture is not dated at all and should be admired for generations to come. Praise it! 5/5