The Subject Was Roses

Having done Frank D Gilroy's Pulitzer Prize-winner on Broadway, Albertson and Sheen reprised their roles for this respectable film version, stage director Grosbard made his feature debut, and Neal came back from a serious stroke to complete the team. Sheen's the WWII veteran whose return to a less-than-happy home ignites long-standing animosities between mom and pop (Neal and Albertson), a set-up which may have had some residual resonance during the Vietnam era, but which is mainly a platform for three detailed, honest performances.