Hail the Conquering Hero

"MIRACLES DO HAPPEN!"

1944 1h 41m EN

👍

7.1

SOLID

★7.1TMDB · 79

ComedyWar

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Having been discharged from the Marines for a hayfever condition before ever seeing action, Woodrow Lafayette Pershing Truesmith delays the return to his hometown, feeling that he is a failure. While in a moment of melancholy, he meets up with a group of Marines who befriend him and encourage him to return home to his mother by fabricating a story that he was wounded in battle with honorable discharge.

“MIRACLES DO HAPPEN!”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

YouTubeRent

Fandango At HomeRent

Apple TV StoreBuy

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Eddie Bracken
Woodrow Truesmith
Ella Raines
Libby
Raymond Walburn
Mayor Everett J. Noble
William Demarest
Sgt. Heppelfinger
Franklin Pangborn
Reception Committee Chairman
Elizabeth Patterson
Martha - Libby's Aunt
Georgia Caine
Mrs. Truesmith
Al Bridge
Political Boss

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Preston Sturges
Writers: Preston Sturges
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

82 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Preston Sturges, shot by John F. Seitz. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Werner R. Heymann. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Stuart Gilmore shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Eddie Bracken and Ella Raines and Raymond Walburn carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "MIRACLES DO HAPPEN!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0036891 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 79 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Preston Sturges directs. John F. Seitz behind the camera. Werner R. Heymann scores. Stuart Gilmore cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

182 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Preston Sturges, shot by John F. Seitz. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Werner R. Heymann. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Stuart Gilmore shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Eddie Bracken and Ella Raines and Raymond Walburn carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "MIRACLES DO HAPPEN!".
7IMDB entry: tt0036891 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 79 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
9Classified under 23 themes, including "small town", "mother", "hero", "truth".

The technical file

Cinematography: John F. Seitz
Original score: Werner R. Heymann
Editing: Stuart Gilmore
Costume design: Edith Head
Makeup / hair: Wally Westmore
Runtime: 101 min · 1h 41m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Hail the Conquering Hero (1944)

Awards

National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Preston Sturges

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2026-02-09
★ 7/10
The US Marine Corps reckons excessive sniffing could compromise operational readiness, so it has discharged chronic hayfever sufferer “Truesmith” (Eddie Bracken). He’s no coward, and feeling somewhat ashamed buys some serving soldiers a few drinks in a bar. They take pity on their down-at-heart friend and concoct a wheeze that will enable him to go home to his widowed mother (Georgia Caine) with his head held high. The train arrives into town and off he gets, bedecked in medals and instantly hailed a hero, straight into the middle of their mayoral election campaign. Some of the townsfolk are fed up with the incumbent “Noble” (Raymond Walburn) whose son “Forrest” (Bill Edwards) is dating “Libby” (Ella Raines) who used to be the gal of our fêted arrival, and so with her taking time off from her friancé to make him feel at home and with “Doc. Bissell” (Harry Hayden) agreeing to surrender his political ticket it looks like “Truesmith” is going to be riding high. The thing is, though, the more momentum he gathers the less comfortable he is with the lies he has been telling, largely encouraged by his marine buddies, so soon he must decide whether he will go with the flow of deceit, or impose some integrity on the proceedings. It has a wartime warmth to it, this, and both Bracken and Walburn deliver quite entertainingly as things snowball out of control but never beyond the realms of decency. It takes a little swipe at the pomposity and paraphernalia of civic electioneering whilst reminding us of the courage of not just those away at war but of also of those at home, at war in their own way too. There’s plenty of fun to be had from a script that is presented amiably by a characterful supporting cast that create quite a sense of community. The nature of the ending is quite life-affirming without straying into propaganda territory, and I did quite enjoy it’s whimsicality.

Production companies