Hail the Conquering Hero

Woodrow Truesmith has been discharged from the Marines for hay fever; his father was a hero killed in the First World War and the son cannot carry it. He writes to his mother that he is at the front and works in a factory instead. Six Marines he meets in a bar take pity on him and send him home covered in medals. The town meets him with a brass band and wants him for mayor. The subject is not the lie but the town's need for a hero. Woodrow tries repeatedly to tell the truth and someone cuts him off every time; nobody wants to hear it because everybody needs the story. The form is fast and loud: four separate bands play at once, crowds talk over each other, and the scenes give no room to breathe. It is among the most densely cut of Preston Sturges' films. It was made in the last year of the war, and both the military and the studio were unhappy with a script they read as mocking servicemen; Sturges had to change sections. It was nominated for the original screenplay Oscar anyway, in a year when he was nominated in the same category for another film as well. Eddie Bracken plays Woodrow, Ella Raines the woman he loves and Raymond Walburn the mayor. Who it is for: viewers who like classical American satire and fast dialogue. Who it is not for: anyone wanting a calm narrative; the film is deliberately overwhelming in its crowding and noise.