I have never seen another movie that takes as much time to show the characters in normal, day to day ordinary circumstances, so that we get to know them slowly. Nowadays movies so often show the "good" characters early on put in certain circumstances (threatened, attacked, betrayed) in order to coerce us to respond to them. By contrast, this movie shows returning man going about his business, and each of the returning characters make the kind of small mistakes that make them more human, more approachable. More than in any other movie I felt I was meeting new friends rather than following a story. Yet the stories themselves are good. This movie is in my top 5. I found it similar to Its a Wonderful Life, which I love too, but less obvious and less overly dramatic. Other good things about the film -- you can learn about the 1940s dress, manner of speaking, sense of humor; the movie has more thoughtful dialogue than two average current movies; the cinematography is excellent, with especially thoughtful character positioning in group scenes; there's a cameo by Hoagy Carmichael.
Review of The Best Years of Our Lives
