Between his last acting stint in a two-part ep of "China Beach" and what turned out to be his final role-eight years later-in this indie drama, handicapped World War II vet Harold Russell made some news back in 1992 when it was revealed he sold his Best Supporting Actor Oscar-for The Best Years of Our Lives-in order to help pay for his second wife's-his first having previously passed-surgery (among other expenses) over the objections of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. After he died, the person who bought it returned it to the Academy. Anyway, here he's Blessed William, a cigar store proprietor, who helps counsel many of the stuck-in-town losers who've fallen on hard luck. A young man named Phillip is returning after a failed acting career and reacquaints with many of these down-and-out people he used to know from various schools as well as Blessed William. And, yes, one of them is a girl he had a crush on. I'll just say this was quite a touching and occasionally funny slice-of-life drama. So that's a recommendation for Dogtown. As for Russell, he continued in life until his death on January 29, 2002 in a nursing home. Having just watched all his film work since Veterans' Day, I'll end this review by saying: You had a life well-lived, Mr. Harold Russell!
