This 1954 black and white film “Easy Out?” is U.S. Navy Training Film MN-7904, produced by The Jam Handy Organization. The film was made to make clear to U.S. Navy personnel the devastating consequences of receiving a Bad Conduct Discharge from the service. Long story short anyone who is dishonorably discharged shames his family, won’t be able to impress women, and will be unable to receive any veteran benefits, etc. (A Bad Conduct Discharge (BCD) can only be given by a court-martial (either special or general) as punishment to an enlisted service-member. Bad conduct discharges are often preceded by a period of confinement in a military prison. The discharge itself is not executed until completion of both confinement and the appellate review process.) Among the actors is Ellen Burstyn, age 21 at the time this film was made.
It opens panning a neighborhood. A child rides a tricycle. A telegram delivery guy arrives by bicycle and hands the telegram to a woman wearing a full apron. She has a 1940s hairstyle with her hair tightly rolled up. A cuckoo clock hangs on the wall. She dials a rotary phone (:40-3:20). The family walks to the train station. A large advertisement for Camel Cigarettes is seen. The young girl wears a flower headband that ties under her chin and waves a flag. The mother wears a 1950s small hat and short dark gloves. A man wears a suit with small bowtie and hat. An elderly woman wears a two-piece suit, flower hat and corsage pin, multiple long necklace chains, and short white gloves. The train arrives. Paul, the discharged serviceman, wearing a white suit, receives hugs. He kisses his girlfriend, who holds her gloves and clutch purse (3:21-6:23). The dinner plates have bits of food left in front of the family. One stands to make a toast. Another smokes a pipe. The family asks the sailor questions. His mother wears a cameo pin as the top button. He angrily reacts. The dining room wall has a tall plate rail above the molding boxes. The little girl says good night to her brother. He gets up to take his girlfriend home (6:24-9:52). In the car in front of her family’s house, they kiss and hug in the dark. Her large double pearl earrings are seen as they sit and talk in the car. She is disappointed and then angry when he tells her he purposely received a BCD (bad conduct discharge). She jumps out of the car. He follows and grabs her arm. She takes her ring off and hands it to him. He looks down at it (9:53-14:27). Paul goes to the AJAX MFG Co. He throws down his cigarette and straightens his tie before going into the employment office. He is warmly greeted and given a chair. He puts a cigarette in his mouth, it wiggles as he talks, and lights it. The hiring man hands him a paper that needs to be signed by a VA representative. They shake hands (14:28-16:40). Filing cabinets line the wall at the VA office. After looking at the BCD papers, the VA man informs Paul he is entitled to nothing as a result. Close-up facial emotions are shown as they talk. They stand and shake hands. A large Navy Career for You poster hangs on the wall (16:41-20:27). Upset, he walks down the sidewalk and kicks a tricycle. He continues walking through the neighborhood. Dejected, he sits on porch steps, puts his face into his hands, and cries. He wears the engagement ring on his pinkie. He looks at his BCD paper. He stands up and walks again down the sidewalk, his hands in his baggy 1950s suit pants (20:28-23:20).
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
