The Young Lions (1958)

WW2 drama that follows the lives of three young men, one German and two Americans, during wartime.

Director:

Edward Dmytryk

Writers:

Edward Anhalt (screenplay), Irwin Shaw (novel)

Stars:

Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, Dean Martin

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Marlon Brando	...	Lt. Christian Diestl
Montgomery Clift	...	Noah Ackerman
Dean Martin	...	Michael Whiteacre
Hope Lange	...	Hope Plowman
Barbara Rush	...	Margaret Freemantle
May Britt	...	Gretchen Hardenberg
Maximilian Schell	...	Capt. Hardenberg
Dora Doll	...	Simone
Lee Van Cleef	...	1st Sgt. Rickett
Liliane Montevecchi	...	Françoise
Parley Baer	...	Sgt. Brandt
Arthur Franz	...	Lt. Green
Hal Baylor	...	Pvt. Burnecker
Richard Gardner	...	Pvt. Crowley
Herbert Rudley	...	Capt. Colclough

Storyline

The destiny of three soldiers during World War II. The German officer Christian Diestl approves less and less of the war. Jewish-American Noah Ackerman deals with antisemitism at home and in the army while entertainer Michael Whiteacre transforms from playboy to hero.

---

Plot Keywords:

prisoner of war | british army | u.s. army | german army | world war two | 

---

Taglines:

20th CENTURY-FOX PRESENTS ALL THE DAYS AND NIGHTS OF the Young Lions (original print ad - mostly caps)

---

Genres:

Action | Drama | War

---

Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French German

Release Date:

2 April 1958 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Young Lions

Filming Locations:

Yuma, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,550,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

167 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) 4-Track Stereo

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to the book "Picture This! -- A Guide to Over 300 Environmentally, Socially and Politically Relevant Films and Videos" by Sky Hiatt, this movie took three re-writes before the Pentagon of the United States government approved its script.

---

Goofs

In the scene where Noah meets Hope's father a shadow of the moving camera and operator can be seen on the church steps as they walk away from the graveyard.

---

Quotes

Michael Whiteacre: Sometimes I think I give off a scent or something, you know, rouses the female.
Noah Ackerman: Hmm?
Michael Whiteacre: Those girls.
Noah Ackerman: Where?
Michael Whiteacre: Oh now wait a minute. You mean to tell me that you didn't--Oh your antenna's turned off.
Noah Ackerman: No, I frankly didn't notice.
Michael Whiteacre: Oh, you're sick.
Michael Whiteacre: Have you ever had a girl?
Noah Ackerman: Have I ever had a girl?
Michael Whiteacre: That's what I thought!

---

Connections

Referenced in I'm Photogenic (1980)

---

Soundtracks

How About You
(uncredited)
Lyrics by Ralph Freed
Music by Burton Lane
Performed by Michael Whiteacre at his party

User Reviews

An interesting drama that is very well done

"The Young Lions" is a war movie from the late '50s, but it is different from any other war movie I have seen.

The film tells the story of three very different soldiers told from three very different points of view. The first (portrayed by Marlon Brando), supplies one of the most interesting aspects of this movie : he is a Nazi named Christian Diestl who isn't completely sure he agrees with what Hitler is doing, but isn't quite sure he disagrees either. The second is Noah Ackerman (Montgomery Clift), an American Jew who is very sweet and shy. The third is Michael Whiteacre (Dean Martin in the role that proved he wasn't just a crooner who could play comedy-- he was a crooner who could do drama, too!), a singer who is battling fear but doesn't want to be a coward. Though all three leads are great actors and are good in their parts, I would have to say that this is Clift's movie, though Martin ran him a close second. Brando is great, and I love Dino to pieces, but Monty really steals the show in this one. His performance as Noah is very touching and real.

All in all, an interesting drama that is very well done. I would definitely recommend it.