Review of Coming Home (1978) by James M — 06 Nov 2014

Along with The Deer Hunter, released the same year, Coming Home was amongst the first films to deal seriously with the plight of American soldiers returning from the Vietnam war.

When her dutiful husband goes off to war, Sally Hyde (Jane Fonda) volunteers at a local veterans hospital where she develops a friendship with bitter paraplegic Luke Martin (Jon Voight), whom she originally met when they were at high school.

Upon his release, Luke becomes an anti-war activist and him and Sally have an affair. Soon after, Sally's husband (Bruce Dern) returns from the war with a minor injury, but has returned a very changed person from the empassioned, patriotic man who left.

Many similarities can be made with Oliver Stone's 1989 film Born On The Fourth Of July, which tells the true story of Vietnam veteran Ron Kovic. Though the narrative gets bogged down in the middle with cloying melodrama and an abundance of politics, the two main performances are excellent, winning Oscars for both Jane Fonda & Jon Voight.