The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

Directed by William Wyler

Starring Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, Harold Russell, Virginia Mayo, Cathy O'Donnell, Hoagy Carmichael, Gladys George, Roman Bohnen, Ray Collins, Minna Gombell, Walter Baldwin, Steve Cochran, Dorothy Adams, Don Beddoe, and Marlene Aames

A very interesting look at the lives of soldiers coming home from war, The Best Years of Our Lives is a fine entry in the Best Picture canon. Most war movies of the preceding years wanted to pretend that life for soldiers was perfect, as to boost morale during the war. However, now that the war was over, filmmakers felt more free to show the darker side of life as a soldier. Three returning soldiers (March, Andrews, and Russell) return from the war, and all face different kinds of difficulties. Russell is particularly interesting, as he was a non-actor who had actually lost his hands in the war. His presence brings a sense of realism that few films achieve. Even though it beat It's a Wonderful Life, which has endured as one of the all-time great classics, this is one of the better Best Picture winners of the 40s.

Other nominees: Henry V (Laurence Olivier), It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra), The Razor's Edge (Edmund Goulding), and The Yearling (Clarence Brown)