I mentioned to Dawn that we would concentrate on dramas during this month here on Noir and Chick Flicks. She agreed and I figured we would focus on some of the classic great dramas of all time. Dramas that focused on family life, married life, dramas dealing with important issues such as race, women's rights, medical dramas, prison dramas, etc. We could go on and on. But since November is a time of being thankful, I wanted to showcase some dramas that are very emotional and tug at the heart and make you think. So I hope everyone will enjoy this month here on Noir & Chick Flicks. And I decided to kick things off with the 1946 classic film The Best Years of Our Lives, which I recently wrote about on my blog, All Good Things.
This is one of my favorite films of all time, sitting right there nestled in my top 10. The story in this film centers on three returning WW Two veterans after the war has ended. Frederic March is Al Stephenson, who returns to his loving wife Milly (a magnificent performance by Myrna Loy), his two children Peggy (a terrific Teresa Wright) and Rob (Michael Hall). Al returns to an influential banking position, but finds it hard to reconcile his loyalties to ex-servicemen with new commercial realities. He has several scenes where he copes by drinking heavily. Dana Andrews is Fred Derry, an ordinary working man who finds it difficult to hold down a job or pick up the threads of his marriage with Virginia Mayo. He ends up falling for Peggy, and Peggy lets her mom know that she doesn't mind busting up the marriage to be with Fred. I was like, heck yeah, go for it Peggy. That's when I fell in love with Teresa Wright at that exact moment. And the last soldier is Homer Parrish (played by real life amputee Harold Russell) who unsure that his fiancée's (Cathy O'Donnell) feelings are still those of love and not those of pity. Each of these three men face a different crisis in their lives and try to cope and come through it emotionally sound. This movie is awesome. I can't find any faults with it. From the top notch cast to the expert direction by William Wyler to the epic music score by Hugo Friedhofer and the gorgeous cinematography by Gregg Toland. The Best Years of Our Lives is one of the best films ever made.
Facts about the film:
In 1946 this became the most successful film at the box office since Gone with the Wind (1939) which was released 7 years earlier.
For his performance as Homer Parrish, Harold Russell became the only actor to win two Academy Awards for the same role.
Myrna Loy receives top billing as she was the most successful female star at the time.
William Wyler, who served as a major in the Army Air Force during World War II, incorporated his own wartime experiences into The Best Years of Our Lives. Just as Fred Derry did in the movie, Wyler flew in B-17s in combat over Germany, although rather than being a bombardier, as Derry was, he filmed footage for documentary films. Additionally, Wyler modeled the reunion of Al and Milly, in which they first see each other at opposite ends of a long hallway, on his own homecoming to his wife, Talli.
This is the first film role for which Cathy O'Donnell, in the role of Wilma Cameron, receives screen credit. Her film debut was in Wonder Man (1945) as an uncredited extra in a nightclub scene.
In 1946 this became the most successful film at the box office since Gone with the Wind (1939) which was released 7 years earlier.
In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #37 Greatest Movie of All Time.
Samuel Goldwyn was inspired to produce a film about veterans after reading an August 7, 1944 article in Time magazine about the difficulties experienced by men returning home to civilian life. Goldwyn hired war correspondent MacKinlay Kantor to write the screenplay.
The film was directed by William Wyler, with cinematography by Gregg Toland. The film won seven Academy Awards, including those for best picture, director, actor, supporting actor, editing, screenplay, and original score. Cast:Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo, and Hoagy Carmichael. It also features Harold Russell, a U.S. paratrooper who had lost both hands in a training accident.
At the end of World War II, three servicemen meet on a flight to Boone City, their hometown. The men, Air Force Captain Fred Derry, sailor Homer Parrish, and Army Sergeant Al Stephenson, quickly become friends, even though they come from different backgrounds. Al is a banker with a wife and two children. Fred is a former soda jerk from the wrong side of the tracks, and Homer, who has lost both hands in the war. As they share a taxi from the airport, they talk about many favorite places they used to hang out at, including a tavern run by Homer's uncle, Butch Engle. Each share their concerns about the future and how they will adapt to civilian life. Just as they expected, each of the veterans faces a crisis on their first day home. I thought this was a very powerful movie, one you will not soon forget..
I posted one of my favorite scenes from the movie.
Fun facts:
Director William Wyler was furious when he learned that Samuel Goldwyn had sent Harold Russell for acting lessons; he preferred Russell's untrained, natural acting.
William Wyler wanted a completely unglamorous look, requiring all costumes to be bought off the rack and worn by the cast before filming, and making sure all sets were built smaller than life-size. In order to give the film a documentary-style realism, the director drew each member of the crew - props, grips, mixers, etc. - from the ranks of WWII veterans.
This was the first time Myrna Loy had worked with William Wyler and she was wary of his reputation as "90-Take Willy". As it turned out, the two got along very well.
In 1946 this became the most successful film at the box office since Gone with the Wind (1939) which was released 7 years earlier.
Myrna Loy receives top billing as she was the most successful female star at the time.
During the wedding scene at the end, Harold Russell fluffed his lines during his vows. Rather that calling cut and ordering a re-take, William Wyler liked how natural it sounded and this was the take used.
Virgina Mayo, worked as a dancer, then signed a contract with Samuel Goldwyn and performed in several movies with Danny Kaye. She played the dream-girl heroine in: Wonder Man (1945), The Kid from Brooklyn (1946) and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947). In her Hollywood heyday, Mayo was known as the voluptuous beauty in the film, The Girl from Jones Beach.
In 1949's White Heat she played the unsympathetic role of "Verna Jarrett", opposite James Cagney. She was also cast against type as a gold digger in, The Best Years of Our Lives. Her film career continued through the 1950s and 1960s, frequently in B-movie westerns and adventure films. While she also appeared in musicals, Mayo's singing voice was always dubbed.
Virginia and her husband, actor Michael O'Shea (of Jack London film fame) co-starred in: Tunnel of Love, Fiorello, and George Washington Slept Here. She has also starred in Cactus Flower, How the Other Half Loves, and the musical comedy, Good News.
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