Diary of a Sergeant

This is the Army documentary short that inspired William Wyler to cast the star of it-Harold Russell-in his next picture: The Best Years of Our Lives. While D-Day was taking place, Russell had lost his hands during a training accident involving a defective fuse of TNT. So he ended up in a military hospital with other veterans who lost a part of their body. Eventually, a training film called Meet McGonegal in which the title person was showing how he managed to live a normal life with his hooks for hands was seen by this audience of amputated soldiers including Harold who resolved right then and there to do what McGonegal did to function properly again. So we see him struggle a bit before he conquers his fears to function normally again. By the way, the narrator claims he's Harold Russell but that's really not his voice. Still, the real Russell does a good performance demonstrating his skills with his newfound hooks and seems natural on screen which was probably what inspired famed director Wyler to cast him in The Best Years of Our Lives. So on this Veterans' Day, Diary of a Sergeant is a worthy watch.

This is the Army documentary short that inspired William Wyler to cast the star of it-Harold Russell-in his next picture: The Best Years of Our Lives. While D-Day was taking place, Russell had lost his hands during a training accident involving a defective fuse of TNT. So he ended up in a military hospital with other veterans who lost a part of their body. Eventually, a training film called Meet McGonegal in which the title person was showing how he managed to live a normal life with his hooks for hands was seen by this audience of amputated soldiers including Harold who resolved right then and there to do what McGonegal did to function properly again. So we see him struggle a bit before he conquers his fears to function normally again. By the way, the narrator claims he's Harold Russell but that's really not his voice. Still, the real Russell does a good performance demonstrating his skills with his newfound hooks and seems natural on screen which was probably what inspired famed director Wyler to cast him in The Best Years of Our Lives. So on this Veterans' Day, Diary of a Sergeant is a worthy watch.