The boldest book of our time... Honestly, fearlessly on the screen!

Starring: Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Deborah Kerr, Donna Reed, Frank Sinatra, Philip Ober, Mickey Shaughnessy, Harry Bellaver, Ernest Borgnine, Jack Warden

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"That's what I like about you, Sergeant: you have confidence. It's also what I dislike about you." – Karen Holmes to Sgt. Warren

Why watch this? It's an inside look at 1940's Army life, ugly warts and all.

Plot Summary: This critically successful film follows an Army regiment at Pearl Harbor a few weeks before the attack. A new soldier joins them, and immediately is pressed to join their boxing club. He refuses for personal reasons, and this makes his life a living hell. However, his sergeant, Warden, begins to respect the lad. Sgt. Warden himself is having an affair with this commanding officer's wife.

Dad's Preview: This complex story illustrates the often confusing and self-destructive life of soldiers, and the many entities that support them: fellow soldiers, officers, night clubs, and women who both admire their patriotic courage and despise their Army life. The film won 8 Oscars, including Donna Reed's supporting portrayal as a jaded hooker. That's right, the same Donna Reed who played wholesome Mary in It's a Wonderful Life (1946).

Columbia Pictures