'The Men'

Marlon Brando's debut film remains, unfortunately, as fresh as ever, as it deals unflinchingly with ever-pertinent issues of the long and painful readjustment process for wounded veterans. A paraplegic Brando is one of several vets undergoing difficult physical therapy. Of course, there are emotional scars, too -- for Brando, a cynical fellow vet (a surprisingly good Jack Webb, of 'Dragnet' fame), and Brando's fiancée (Teresa Wright), who begins to realize what a handful he's going to be as a husband. Fred Zinnemann (who'd address peacetime military life again in 'From Here to Eternity') directs with his usual thoughtfulness and sensitivity, and Brando proves an intensely physical star from the get-go, even without moving the lower half of his body.