Soldier's Home

Richard Backus portrays the prodigal son, returning home, in this PBS version of Ernest Hemingway's short story.

It is tragic because, while there are no visible physical injuries, the soldier has been irreparably damaged psychologically. As this was to be World War I, the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder was not yet known, although many young men were suffering from it.

Nancy Marchand (A familiar face from TV's "Lou Grant" series, in the 1970's) portrays the mother, wishing for her son to return to work, for everything to remain status quo. Unfortunately, that does not seem to be an attainable goal, for this soldier is now alienated and depersonalized; questioning his very existence.

This is an excellent short film, which used to be made available to high school students: Reminiscent of many Vietnam era stories ("Coming Home", "The War at Home", and many others) this is a very good short film not to be missed.