WHAT I ALREADY KNEW ABOUT THE MOVIE:
1) It's about US soldiers who fought in World War II returning to the lives they left behind.
2) One of the stars wasn't a professional actor, but an actual soldier who lost his hands fighting in the war.
3) I just might cry watching this.
LET ME EXPLAIN...
I came into this movie with high expectations. Ever since I first heard about it in my American Film class, I wanted to see it. With its compelling storyline, I anticipated a great movie, and while the beginning feel of the movie wasn't quite what I was hoping, I ended up loving it by the time it was over.
Never before had a 3-hour black and white movie gone by so fast, with so many great, "real" characters to appreciate and care about (especially Harold Russell, who was a real US soldier who lost his hands in the war). This is an absolutely wonderful movie, and when it ended I asked my wife what she thought. Her response: "The best movie I've ever seen. Ever."
And for those of you who are wondering what the answer to #3 of "What I Already Knew About the Movie" is, I'll admit it. I got misty-eyed several times and only avoided a full-on cry because I fought so hard to keep from doing so.
What makes this a "Top 100" Movie?
From a historical standpoint, it's about America just after World War II. The film even came out just after the war ended, so I imagine that it encapsuled everything Americans were going through at the time. From a filmmaking standpoint, it was an extremely well-done movie with a great screenplay, wonderful cinematography and camera angles, fantastic acting, and characters that were real and gritty while simulaneously noble and great examples of why they're called "the greatest generation". It cleaned up at the Academy Awards, winning 8 of them, including Best Picture (the same year It's a Wonderful Life was nominated, which should tell you something). Another awards tidbit I noticed on imdb.com: "The Best Years of Our Lives" was nominated for 17 total awards from 7 different film institutes, and there was only one it did NOT win (the Oscar for Best Sound). I don't mean to hype up this movie too much, but this was one of the easiest films to answer the question of why it's considered one of the best ever made.
Complaints
This is more my fault than the movie's, but the beginning didn't quite seem as sharp as I was expecting/hoping (it's really hard to explain, so I won't try). Other than that, this film was amazing.
LET ME SUM UP...
My wife says this is the best movie she has ever seen. I had high expectations before watching it, and I was not disappointed when it was over. It has some of the best moments in movie history, some of the best characters in movie history, and it tells a story that really happened for so many Americans. I highly, HIGHLY recommend seeing this film.
MY RATING: 9.5/10
TOTAL # OF FILMS WATCHED: 76
1 comment:
I love this movie!!!
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