'The Best Years of Our Lives' (William Wyler, 1946)

Title: 'The Best Years of Our Lives'

Release Year: 1946

Director: William Wyler

Cast: Fredric March, Dana Andrews, Harold Russell, Myrna Loy, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo and Cathy O'Donnell.

Plot: After returning from war, three soldiers will have to face a society that has changed while they were fighting, for better and or worse.

Review: When I chose this movie, critically acclaimed and a box-office hit of its time, I did it cause I wanted to see a psychological portrait of the scars that war leaves in soldier's minds. 'The Best Years of Our Lives' doesn't quite live to such expectations, but does a nice job, trying to explain the thought adaptation of its three leading characters.

Each of them has compelling stories; from the day to day technical problems of losing both hands, to the return home to a society that has forgotten that you fought for them and in which you must keep doing a low profile job to maintain yourself economically.

The well-casted leading men

March, Andews and Russell (who was a real life amputee) are at their best portraying each of them, creating compelling actors with thought-provoking stories. My only complain might be the tendency to patriotism and happy endings that drowned movies those days, especially for the cheesy performance of Cathy O'Donnell, which spoils the love story of her character with Harold Russell's one, something that doesn't happen with the beautifully constructed relationship of Captain Fred Derry and Peggy Stephenson.

It isn't a proper Hollywood ending if it hasn't got a good final kiss for the love story, is it?