Three World War II veterans, two of them traumatized or disabled, return home to the American midwest to discover that they and their families have been irreparably changed.Three World War II veterans, two of them traumatized or disabled, return home to the American midwest to discover that they and their families have been irreparably changed.Three World War II veterans, two of them traumatized or disabled, return home to the American midwest to discover that they and their families have been irreparably changed.
- Won 7 Oscars
- 21 wins & 3 nominations total
- Al Stephenson
- (as Frederic March)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Best Picture Winners by Year
Best Picture Winners by Year
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaFor his performance as Homer Parrish, Harold Russell became the only actor to win two Academy Awards for the same role. The Academy Board of Governors thought he was a long shot to win, so they gave him an honorary award "for bringing hope and courage to his fellow veterans through his appearance." Later in the ceremony, he won for Best Supporting Actor.
- GoofsWhen Al introduces his wife and daughter to Fred and Homer at Butch's, he refers to Dana Andrews as Homer and Harold Russell as Fred. This was intended as a consequence of Al being drunk.
- Quotes
[after Peggy tells her parents that they never had any trouble in their relationship]
Milly Stephenson: "We never had any trouble." How many times have I told you I hated you and believed it in my heart? How many times have you said you were sick and tired of me; that we were all washed up? How many times have we had to fall in love all over again?
- Crazy creditsThe character played by Ray Teal (the Axis sympathizer whom Homer Parrish attacks at the soda fountain) is listed in the credits as "Mr. Mollett". However, the character's name is never mentioned or otherwise alluded to.
- Alternate versionsThe film was modified to play on a wide screen and reissued on February 3, 1954.
- ConnectionsEdited into Chain Lightning (1950)
- SoundtracksAmong My Souvenirs
(1927) (uncredited)
Music by Edgar Leslie
Lyrics by Lawrence Wright
Played on piano by Hoagy Carmichael
Definitely a family orientated movie (Cert U) this will appeal to and find favour with all ages, but don't start thinking that this is all gooey, slushy nonsense. There's some quite hard-hitting topics covered, even by today's standards and of course, with our minds on our current troops in Iraq/Afghanistan, equally relevant.
Multi-stranded, which each of the three G.I.'s immediate and extended families and friends being examined, it's about them coping, with varying degrees of success, with home life and getting jobs, now that the War is ended. It's the little observations and stories around them that are so fascinating, as the Heroes of yesterday are now anything but when it comes finding new purpose in a changed world.
The cast is exemplary, not necessarily the biggest stars of the day but the most believable and natural for their roles. Dana Andrews, Myrna Loy and Fredric Marsh are the ones most easily recognisable and their appearances convey a sort of reassuring familiarity and normality. They're all excellent, of course.
Though long, at nearly 3 hours, William Wyler's easy going but assured and tight direction keeps things flowing nicely and it never drags. This, my second viewing, is an enjoyable one as the first and if anything I'm more at ease with it.
Though obviously not as exciting or dramatic as other 'normal' war films, it's a tragedy that it's not more well known. I've never seen it to ever have been on TV, or to my recollection, even Sky Movies, for that matter. Any movie that won 7 Oscars and is currently no. 180 in the top 250 IMDb's films of all time, voted by its voters (us, the public) is hardly one of minority interest.
A friend I lent my DVD to watched it with his family and normally they only go for current films, or ones they know, but they not only enjoyed it, but felt enormously moved by it, too.
If you haven't seen The Best Years... yet, make a mental note to do so. Your life won't change by doing so, but it really is worth the 3 hours of it that it will take. You certainly can't say the same about every film out there....
- tim-764-291856
- May 8, 2012
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Los mejores años de nuestras vidas
- Filming locations
- Ontario International Airport - 2900 E. Airport Drive, Ontario, California, USA(Airplane graveyard)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $2,100,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $23,650,000
- Gross worldwide
- $23,667,133
- Runtime2 hours 50 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1