This piece of authentic homespun Americana is still one of a handful of truly great films made by its director William Wyler. It won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, something almost unheard of for an American film at the time. It's simplicity itself; a tale of Quakers during the American Civil War and very smiliar in style and tone to Andrew McLaglen's "Shenandoah". Gary Cooper, (never better),is the peace-loving farmer, Dorothy McGuire, (equally good),is his wife and Anthony Perkins, (brilliant in only his second film and picking up an Oscar nomination),is the son who goes off to fight.

Wyler, who himself served in the Second World War, was too canny a director to make an outright anti-war film though the message of the picture is clear. He was also too good a director to fudge it. It may move at a quiet, almost stately pace while remaining one of his most overtly cinematic pictures. A huge hit in its day, it seems now to have all but disappeared.

"Friendly Persuasion" is the story about a Quaker family living along the Indiana border during the Civil War. Given that Quakers are pacifists, the family stays out of the action and tries to maintain their separatist ways. However, the husband (Gary Cooper) seems to have more trouble than usual trying to keep this separation, as lots of temptations seem to get the best of him (such as music and his desire to best his Methodist neighbor). As for the wife (Dorothy McGuire),she seems like a giant wet blanket--a veritable black hole that sucks all the fun out of everything! If it's fun, she's against it! As for their three kids, all of them also struggle with temptation and external influences that challenge their commitments to the simple Quaker lifestyle. Ultimately, when Southern raiders attack, each member of the family is faced with the decision to sit by passively, fight for their country or run.

This is a lovely film to watch for many reasons. It's obvious that the director, the great William Wyler, took his time allowing the story to unfold. Along the way, there were lots of nice vignettes that served to give this film a lot of heart and a nice gentle sense of humor. In addition, the actors did a very nice job and the end result is very enjoyable--at least up until the end. The end just annoyed me because several of the characters seemed so untrue to who they were throughout the rest of the film. In addition, any respect you had for their religious commitment was negated by some of their actions. The wife, for instance, actually AIDS the Confederate soldiers--and I thought although the Quakers would be against violence, they would NOT condone treason. And, as for the father, after Confederates just killed his friend and one of them tries to kill him, he hits the guy and tells him to just go away. Huh?! It was as if the writers just didn't know how to wrap all this up and I felt dissatisfied--especially after investing well over two hours on the movie.

My opinion is that the film is a lovely narrative but the writing at the end just left me cold.

Jess Birdwell (Gary Cooper) is the head of a Quaker family in Southern Indiana. It's 1862 and it's been two tough years of war. Eliza (Dorothy McGuire) is his loving wife and Josh (Anthony Perkins) is his eldest son. Doubts about joining the war start seeping in. When rebel raiders approach, there is a difference of opinion.

Well, that's an odd little broad-comedy detour with the Hudspeth women. This movie deals with tough important issues. I really like getting a sense of Quaker life and believes. They don't always fit with the broad humor. The ending feels a bit condensed. The battle feels cut short. It's an interesting and different wartime movie. Of course, its most important aspect may be its connection to McCarthyism through its writer. That does add something but the pacifism in the movie is somewhat watered down. There are lots of competing influences here and it's an interesting case study.