Movie: The Best Years of Our Lives (Movie Review Sample)
Being able to interpret history goes beyond just reading books and articles. Many today look at cultural outlets like films, music, magazines, and other forms of entertainment to get a better understand of how societies presented and understood issues of the day. These could be salutary portrayals or subversive criticisms. For this assignment you will choose of the films listed below or the television series and write a paper analyzing the film based on the questions provided for each one. The three films are provided in Canvas in the Pages Tab, however you will have to find The Twilight Zone episodes on your own; they are available on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, amongst other sources.
Essays should be no shorter than 750 words and preferably no longer than 1000. You must use at least three sources to bolster your arguments including but not limited to class readings, film reviews, academic articles (check JSTOR and Google Scholar), or websites [for websites please consult with me in advance on their validity]. Your papers will be in MLA format with 1 inch margins, double-spaced, in 12 pt Times New Roman font and include citations for your sources. Please use Chicago Style citation with footnotes and a works cited page, including citations for lines taken from the movie. Remember to consider the time period in which each film was made and how each comments upon their respective time period.
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and is ranked as one of the best American films ever made according to the American Film Institute as well as the Internet Movie Database. Write an analysis of the film’s depiction of the anxieties of returning veterans and difficulties of post-war demobilization. In your analysis consider the following questions to guide you: What are the problems the three leads face in adjusting to peacetime American society? Consider how one is married with children and relatively wealthy, the other is married to a wartime bride he hardly knew and works a lower-class job, and one is physically disabled from the war. What are things that have changed since they have been away and what are some of their barriers to doing what they want after serving their country? Does this film give a hopeful impression of the future for returning veterans and the United States?
The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit (1956) is a film about someone who would be considered an "organization man" one whose loyalty to his company and demands with keeping up an image of success and prosperity lead to difficulties in his personal life. Memories of the war and his past are another factor that haunt him and haunted numerous others in 1950s society, implying a deeper mark of the conflict on those who fought it. Write an analysis of how the film presents or deconstructs the "Organization Man" of the 1950s. Consider the following questions when writing your analysis: How does this film present the “organization man” complacency of the time with Tom, his boss, and their families? What pressures does the main character Tom have in his life and why is he not satisfied with his life when he seems to have everything that 1950s society advertised for happiness? Do you think the film is supporting or indicting the image of the happy American suburban family life of the 1950s? Does it endorse or criticize American business life of the day?
Advise and Consent (1962) is a film about political intrigue that was advertised as being “ripped straight from the headlines.” Analyze the film's depiction of American politics in the early 1960s and describe how it depicts certain political movements and ideologies of the time. Consider these questions in your analysis. How does the show the influence of the Red and Lavender Scares on American politics. How does the Red Scare and the fear of looking soft to the Soviet Union affect certain congressmen’s views? For example, Leftingwell being asked if he is an “egghead” or how he would negotiate with the Soviet Union? How is the fear of homosexual inversion or being found out addressed and portrayed? What overall impression does the film give of the American government? I recommend using scenes, characters from the film, and real life events that influenced the film to bolster your answers.
The Twilight Zone (1959-1964) was a landmark series in the history of television that continues to influence storytellers into today. Throughout its five-year run from 1959 to 1964 it told tales that shocked, surprised, frightened and even enlightened audiences. However, it was indubitably a show od its time with several episodes showcasing the fears, anxieties, and flaws in ideology prevalent in American Cold War logic. For your essay analyze three of the six episodes of the Twilight Zone listed – “The Monsters are Due on Maple Street,” “Third from the Sun,” “A Stope at Willoughby,” “The Shelter,” “Two,” and “Four O’Clock” – on how they critique Cold War influenced notions that dominated thought in the United States at the time including the Red Scare, social conformity, and Mutually Assured Destruction. Write an essay on which themes the episodes have in common or how three episodes display three different anxieties common to the 1950s-1960s, Cold War context.
source(book):
Eric Foner. Voices of Freedom: A Documentary History. Sixth Edition, Volume 2 (W.W. Norton, 2019)
Eric Foner, Give Me Liberty! An American History. Volume 2 (Norton 2014)
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The Best Years of Our Lives
Based on the struggles of war veterans trying to return to normalcy, the movie The Best Years of Our Lives paints the harsh reality of life after the war. The film explores the criticality of financial and economic power and the variations it has on life and life experiences. The movie follows the lives of three primary characters, Fred Derry, Al Stephenson, and Homer Parrish, wh are all former World War II combatants returning home. In comparison to the other characters, Al Stephenson is the only one that returns to a stable family with some semblance of social, physical, and financial balance.
On his return, he received a promotion due to his military experience; he assumed the role of in-charge of small loans for returning ex-military men. This promotion puts him in a predicament when his empathy for fellow veterans has him giving unsecured loans. The change places him in a dilemma as the economic dynamics of his profession require that he chooses profits for his organization while his morals levitate him towards helping his fellow servicemen who sacrificed their all serving in the military. He also battled with reconnecting with his children; they are all grown up now, and he missed a significant part of their childhood, which creates a "barrier" between them. Further, AI's relationship with his wife is complicated, especially for him, due to the time they spent apart. Therefore, to deal with his inability to reintegrate socially, AI turns to alcohol and, eventually, develops an addiction. Ex-soldiers' social relationships strain, an undying need to start over, and difficulties completing tasks are linked to mental disorders and alcohol dependence.[Anna Zogas, “‘Invisible Injury: Military Veterans and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in the VA Healthcare System,” (Seattle: University of Washington, 2017), pp. 1-14).]
The second veteran returning home is Fred Derry, who, similarly to AI, is in a problematic marriage. Nonetheless, and unlike AI, he has a menial job. Fred, who previously worked as a soda jerk returns to his former career after returning home. Nonetheless, he has difficulties finding another job despite his military experience. In contemporary society, the idea of holding back one's military record from resumes is seemingly a wise choice when searching for employment to avert the stigma and insinuation of PTSD. These ideations emanate from the perception that ex-servicemen lack any other skills or public misunderstanding of their skillsets.[Daniel Mercer, “Former Soldiers Struggle to Find Jobs in Civilian Life,” The West Australian (The West Australian, April 14, 2016), https://thewest.com.au/news/australia/former-soldiers-struggle-to-find-jobs-in-civilian-life-ng-ya-104056)]
Initially, after his return, Fred and Marie live on the money he earned as an air force officer, leading a peaceful life. Despite the financial wellbeing, the change from the military to civilian life both frustrates him and upsets his marriage with Marie. While the apparent lack of chemistry possibly resulted from their rushed marriage, Marie is clear that her unhappiness is due to dissatisfaction. In her quest for personal gratification, she has an affair that Fred unpleasantly discovers.
With his mental state already in limbo, Fred has to deal with social and financial imbalance without the support of his closest friend (AI). At this same time, his interest in Peggy (AI'S daughter) is exposed. Besides returning to a changed family, AI also returns to a changing work environment where his former subordinate is now his supervisor. Consequently, he gets into a physical altercation; despite the argument arising from his desire to protect their pride of service, it leads to him losing his job. While the quarrel is possibly a result of post-traumatic stress, to have one's sacrifice scorned and mocked as misguided demeans the gravity of his sacrifice. Therefore, Fred and Homer feel their employers muddy their morality and dignity despite all they gave for the peace that now reigned. The societal denial of war incites anger and cultivates a feeling of rejection in former war veterans.[Mary Jane Smith and Patricia R. Liehr, Middle Range Theory for Nursing, Third (New York: Springer, 2014).]
It is Homer that perhaps gave the most exceptional service of all three. Before the war, he was a football quarterback, physically sound and capable of caring for himself. However, he returns home, having lost both his hands and incapable of performing simple tasks. In his condition, he is unsure of his girlfriend's love and isolates himself not only from his girlfriend but the world. Homer's physical injuries result in a familiar situation for injured war veterans: depression, and self-denial. Such reactions are common among ex-military servicemen with less than half returning from the Iraq and Afghanistan war choosing to seek help over self-isolation. Eventually, Wilma (his childhood sweetheart) has her parents encourage her to end her relationship with Homer. Homer's situation embodies the rejection that war v
