The Best Years of Our Lives

Movie

1946

2h 51m

English

Drama, Romance, War

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It's the hope that sustains the spirit of every GI: the dream of the day when he will finally return home. For three WWII veterans, the day has arrived. But for each man, the dream is about to become a nightmare.

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The Best Years of Our Lives

Movie

1946

2h 51m

English

Drama, Romance, War

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Watch on Hoopla

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CRITIC SCORE

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Cast

Fred Derry

Al Stephenson

Homer Parrish

Peggy Stephenson

Milly Stephenson

Wilma Cameron

Marie Derry

Butch Engle

Hortense Derry

Pat Derry

Mr. Milton

Mrs. Parrish

Mr. Parrish

Cliff Scully

Mrs. Cameron

Mr. Cameron

Luella Parrish

Prew

Mr. Mollett

Thorpe

Novak

Bullard

Rob Stephenson

Woody Merrill

Mrs. Talburt - Perfume Customer (un...

Directed By: William Wyler

Written By: Robert E. Sherwood (Screenplay), MacKinlay Kantor (Novel)

Featured Comments/Tips

Nancy L Draper says...

6 years ago

A really good movie which garnered many well deserved awards, including Best Picture. The story is well written, telling of a difficult time in post-war America from the perspective of three returning servicemen reuniting with their families. The acting is wonderful. Harold Russell, who was from North Sydney, Nova Scotia, is the only person in history to have won 2 Oscars for the same role, as well as having the shortest film career for an Oscar recipient (3 movies). This classic is well worth finding and watching. I give it a 9 (superb) out of 10. [Post-War Drama]

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siggi963 says...

2 months ago

One of the first movies that tackles the problem faced by many war veterans returning home and encountering trouble reintegrating into society. PTSD before it became a household term.

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JoeyvanAwesome says...

11 months ago

Nothing really happens in the almost 3 hours that this is long. It’s not boring per se, but there’s nothing memorable or special about this.

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soonertbone says...

11 months ago

Beautiful (if a tad simple to modern sensibilities) exploration of post-war integration for returning soldiers. It's remarkable as a historical document, to see the attitudes of the time, but of course the struggle never ends so it retains its modern relevance. Part of me wishes Wyler had focused more on the women, as all four were often more interesting than the men (especially Loy and Wright, who are forever two of my favorite actresses of the era.) I appreciated Wyler's direction the most during a few layered sequences, where the deep focus cinematography really paid off. (A phone call gets made at one point while Home triumphantly plays the piano and it's devastating.)

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Featured User Reviews

bladefd

9/10 9 months ago

‘Best Years...’ is a classic post-WW2 drama that focuses on the social issues surrounding American soldiers returning home after being off to war for multiple years. When one thinks of that era, most think about the baby-boomer generation, the affluent futures to come, and the rise of the new Am More

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CinemaSerf

2 years ago

This is really quite a touching story, recounting the experiences of three American veterans of WWII who return home and have to adapt to their new, not always welcoming, circumstances. Frederic March is "Al" who returns to a senior position in a bank - responsible for helping other returning soldie More

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Andres Gomez

6 years ago

Another great Willy Wyler movie.

The story, with time, is quite expectable but the characters are well defined and developed by the cast.

Also, it is a good (and probably, too positive) review of the after WWII war lives of the US veterans.

A must to be seen.

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