In 1942, hundreds of thousands of American soldiers were pouring into Great Britain in preparation for the eventual invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe. They were young men far from home in a war-ravaged country with some disposable income and not all that much to do until D-Day arrived. Surrounding them was a land full of kids, old men and young women with very few British chaps around. Yanks is a story about the relationships that spawned between those American boys and those British girls that encompassed love, companionship, exploitation and everything in between.
When young enlisted men Matt and Danny (Richard Gere and Chick Vennera) roll into England with the U.S. army, it doesn't take them long before they connect with Mollie and Jean (Wendy Morgan and Lisa Eichhorn). But while the cheeky Mollie and the somewhat shy Danny waste no time falling in love, it's a rockier road for Matt and Jean. He's immediately attracted to her, but she has a sort-of-beau named Ken (Derek Thompson) who's serving with the British forces in Malaysia. Ken and Jean are two kids who grew up in a small town with everyone always expecting them to wind up together and it's not easy for her to open her heart to another man, especially an American who wants things his own way.
The same hesitation is seen in the relationship between an army captain named John (Williams Devane) and a lady of the manor named Helen (Vanessa Redgrave). Helen's husband is also away at war and her friendship with John has been platonic for a while, but they both know where it's heading. The truth is that everybody knows the American GI's will be romancing and coupling with the local ladies and no one really knows what to do about it except look the other way.
These filmmakers do a great job slowly unfolding love affairs, both meaningful and not, amidst a simmering stew of resentment, jealousy and cultural clash. Yanks gently captures the amoral nature of war-time living where people try to maintain some semblance of normality and end up just taking what they need to survive. When looked at coldly, there's something seedy about these arrogant Americans swooping in and taking advantage of British women left alone by the demands of war, yet director John Schlesinger never lets the audience forget that life isn't cold. It's warm and it's now and it wants. Strangers brought together by the most horrible of circumstances are still people who want to be loved and hate to be alone.
This film dispenses with a lot of the traditional obstacles that get chucked in the path of lovers. Ken makes only a brief appearance and the disapproval of Jean's parents doesn't seem to keep her and Matt separated for an instant. The story can get away with that because we know where these American boys are going and it isn't back to the States with their British loves in tow. It's to the bloody beaches of Normandy, so neither they nor their new women have much time to waste.
With delicate performances and engrossing direction, Yanks is a good movie. It's not for those who flinch at unvarnished romance, but all but the harshest heart will be able to float along with this film's earnest intentions.
When young enlisted men Matt and Danny (Richard Gere and Chick Vennera) roll into England with the U.S. army, it doesn't take them long before they connect with Mollie and Jean (Wendy Morgan and Lisa Eichhorn). But while the cheeky Mollie and the somewhat shy Danny waste no time falling in love, it's a rockier road for Matt and Jean. He's immediately attracted to her, but she has a sort-of-beau named Ken (Derek Thompson) who's serving with the British forces in Malaysia. Ken and Jean are two kids who grew up in a small town with everyone always expecting them to wind up together and it's not easy for her to open her heart to another man, especially an American who wants things his own way.
The same hesitation is seen in the relationship between an army captain named John (Williams Devane) and a lady of the manor named Helen (Vanessa Redgrave). Helen's husband is also away at war and her friendship with John has been platonic for a while, but they both know where it's heading. The truth is that everybody knows the American GI's will be romancing and coupling with the local ladies and no one really knows what to do about it except look the other way.
These filmmakers do a great job slowly unfolding love affairs, both meaningful and not, amidst a simmering stew of resentment, jealousy and cultural clash. Yanks gently captures the amoral nature of war-time living where people try to maintain some semblance of normality and end up just taking what they need to survive. When looked at coldly, there's something seedy about these arrogant Americans swooping in and taking advantage of British women left alone by the demands of war, yet director John Schlesinger never lets the audience forget that life isn't cold. It's warm and it's now and it wants. Strangers brought together by the most horrible of circumstances are still people who want to be loved and hate to be alone.
This film dispenses with a lot of the traditional obstacles that get chucked in the path of lovers. Ken makes only a brief appearance and the disapproval of Jean's parents doesn't seem to keep her and Matt separated for an instant. The story can get away with that because we know where these American boys are going and it isn't back to the States with their British loves in tow. It's to the bloody beaches of Normandy, so neither they nor their new women have much time to waste.
With delicate performances and engrossing direction, Yanks is a good movie. It's not for those who flinch at unvarnished romance, but all but the harshest heart will be able to float along with this film's earnest intentions.