THE YOUNG LIONS (1958) WWII in 167 minutes

THE YOUNG LIONS are two GIs (Dean Martin, Montgomery Clift) and a German officer (Marlon Brando), and the time it takes to tell their intertwining stories sometimes seems to drag as long as the war, itself. But each man gives us a unique point of view about various aspects of WWII, including conscription, German nationalism and Nazism, concentration, collaboration, bravery and cowardice, military injustice, anti-Semitism, and more. While LIONS has more roar than bite and tops no one’s list as superior movie-making, still, it's entertaining and offers some pretty good performances: Brando as a literate, war-loathing son of a shoemaker; Clift as a sensitive Jewish private whose fight is with his fellow soldiers as much as the enemy; and Martin (in an especially good performance) as a spoiled Broadway producer who, after trying to cut corners, finally steps up to the plate. (Trivia note: Dino took over the role when Tony Randall fell ill. The move solidified Martin's solo film career after his split from Jerry Lewis two years earlier.)