Review of The Men

Very good. Very good indeed. Not the strongest of debuts for Marlon Brando but certainly a strong debut from him. He plays a paraplegic war veteran who, straight from his opening monologue, has completely given up on leading a normal life. It takes his wife, Teresa Wright, and doctor, Everett Sloane (who gives a teriffic performance) to literally try to get him back on his feet. There are some excellent, very well scripted scenes, notably the one where Sloane checks on the patients of the ward at the beginning of the film, backed by a superb supporting cast including Jack Webb, Richard Erdman and Arthur Jurado (which is criminally his only screen credit). But it's Brando's film through and through and he's brilliant, giving a naturalistic and, in the end, very touching performance. Worth a watch.

4/5