Movies Came Out In (1946)
Winner:
The Best Years of Our Lives – The TCM intro informed me that Bette Davis considered this the greatest movie ever made, so I was like “wow, that’s some high expectations”. Best movie I’ve ever saw? No. Great movie? Yes. The movie is moving and compelling. I can’t believe it came out in 1946, just 1+ year after the end of WW2 and dealt with “PTSD” and soldiers having a hard time readjusting to society after coming back. Amazing to me. I knew about it with Vietnam, but didn’t know that it happened with WW2 veterans as well. Great and powerful film. It’s a little long at just under 3 hours, I think it could have been 2:15 – 2:30 just as easily. Highly recommend this movie.
Henry V – Ok, so it’s post WW2 and the British gov’t pays a significant portion of the funding of this film as a morale booster for England. Have mercy, I don’t know how this was supposed to boost morale. It was long and confusing. 30 minutes into it, I had to stop and read the wiki on it, just to have some kind of grasp as to what was going on. Was it a play, an action film, a combination? This is based on Shakespeare’s play, and I have a feeling that watching this film would NOT have cleared up the book for me. Did not enjoy and was very happy when it ended.
It’s a Wonderful Life – Seen a dozen times, always around the holidays, it’s a pretty good film. A bit on the corny side, and a bit dated now, but I still like it.
The Razor’s Edge – I watched recently and really enjoyed this movie. The story is told from a narrator’s point of view, but he really doesn’t have much to do with the plot lines. The main male character is supposed to be married to the main female character, however, he decides to lead a more “Bohemian” lifestyle (works in a coal mine, travels to India to meet a guru, etc…), whereas the female character continues her normal life. She never stops loving him and when he returns, the plot thickens. I don’t want to give too much away, but the story is actually quite compelling, well told and really good acting. I would definitely recommend watching this film.
The Yearling – I watched recently, however, I’m almost certain that I had seen this film as a kid. The premise is a family of three in the backwoods of Florida in the late 1800’s is always struggling to get by. The boy adopts a deer as his pet, the deer causes mischief, the mom is upset, the child runs away but is reunited. Upon reuniting the mother is able to show affection to the boy, where she hadn’t before due to multiple miscarriages. The movie moves along at a pretty good pace and isn’t too boring at any particular spot. The plot is interesting, but certainly not earth shattering. It was worth watching in a pinch, I suppose.
Brian’s Winner:
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#1946
Ceremony Year (1947) – Movies Came Out In (1946)