Raetsonwe Redundant and unnecessary.

Lightdeossk Captivating movie !

TaryBiggBall It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

Portia Hilton Blistering performances.

Tweekums Blake Washburn returns to his home town after serving two years in the state senate. He is more than a little bitter and when he gets a job as editor of his uncle's newspaper he sets his sights on big business; in particular a company owned by the father of the man who beat him in the election. Initially he hopes to condemn the company for polluting the river but it turns out they take pollution control seriously. His next move is to condemn the huge profits such companies make; this proves popular with readers so he continues his campaign. When the owner of the company approaches him to put the other side of the story; one that speaks of how big business has advanced the country he isn't interested… then his little sister is caught up in an accident and he sees that if it weren't for the help of the companies he condemns and the equipment they make she would have died.This story starts well enough as we see how Blake is more interested in running a campaign that will ultimately lead to his re-election and trashing his adversaries than anything else… if these issues really mattered to him he would surely have raised them when he was a senator. Later when we his sister is almost killed in an accident the film suddenly feels like propaganda for big business that even committed capitalists will find it as subtle as a brick to the head. While I doubt many viewers will think his sister might die the accident scene and subsequent rescue are pretty tense. The cast does a good job bringing their characters to life; most notably Jeffrey Lynn as Washburn and Alan Hale Jr. as his friend and co-worker Slim Haskins who thinks the campaign is going too far and is too one-sided. There is also a small but notable early performance from Marilyn Monroe as a worker in the newspaper office. Overall I certainly wouldn't call this a must see film unless you are a Marilyn Monroe completist but it is a decent enough film and at only an hour in length you won't waste too much time watching it.

Syl The Home Town Story didn't win Oscars or probably rave reviews. With the exception of Marilyn Monroe playing a receptionist/secretary at a small town newspaper, the film might as well have been forgotten. The story is about an unelected state senator who returns home to run the family newspaper with help and friendship from Slim (played by Alan Hale Jr. who played the Skipper on Gilligan's Island). Blake Washburn is the main character who comes home to his mother and his 10 year old little sister, Katie, and his fiancé, her school-teacher. Blake writes harsh columns about criticizing big businesses especially McFarland whose son beat him in the election. Blake writes harshly about the industry. It isn't until a crisis that he realizes his wrongs. The film is little over an hour. You only see Marilyn a couple of times. It's not about Marilyn but you see where she starts off.

sol1218 A bit corny in its attempt to show how capitalism works when it isn't corrupted by heartless unsavory and greedy corporate criminals."Hometown Story" has to do with defeated local state senator Blake Washburn, Jeffrey Lynn, who's so embittered over his being turned out of office that after going back to his old job as editor of the Fairfax Herald decides to become a crusader against corporate corruption. Which in reality is attacking his opponents the new state senator McFarland, who defeated him, fathers business.A angry young man with a chip on his shoulder Blake gets so involved in his anti-capitalistic crusade against old man John McFarland, Donald Crisp, over his sons defeat of him in the state elections that he completely overlooks the fact that the plant that he owns is the cleanest most environment-friendly and best run in the state. This make a now frustrated Blake turns his guns, or editorial, against every big business in the country who makes a profit regardless if it's done honestly or not! Trying on Blake's part to create a peoples revolution against big business/capitalism. This mindless action by Blake in 1951, at the hight of the Cold War, could well have had him both arrested and tried by the FBI and US Justice Department for treason!Blake even though a likable guy is so obsessed with getting re-elected that he turns everyone who knows him like his fiancée Janice and best fiend reporter Slim Haskins, Marjorie Reynolds & Alan Hale Jr, against him. This leads Slim to almost end up almost punching him out in a confrontation he has with Balke in his office. It takes a conversation that Blake has with John McFarland to fills the hot-headed editor in with what capitalism did in making America the great country that it is today. Later the near tragic accident that almost killed Blake's sister Kathy, Melinda Portman, and McFarland rescue of her that turned him in his negative ideas of capitalism around. Kathy trapped in a coal mine collapse, together with her new puppy Rags, painfully showed Blake the light as the forces of capitalism and the free market quickly and efficiently swung into action. Old man, and business tycoon, McFarland using all the earth moving equipment that he had at his disposal ended up saving little Kathy's and her dogs life. In the end Blake now finally saw what capitalism had to offer the common working man and woman, and it was good. This all caused Blake to changed his mind as he became the biggest supporter of the capitalist system in the state. Rewriting and reediting all the bad things and press that ever said or wrote about big business making big bucks Blake now sees how important the benefits of capitalism is for the average working man and woman as well. Now with Blakes support all those big bucks will in the end help those, like his sister Kathy, who at first didn't seem to get, or benefit from, them. A bit condescending for my tastes in how great it is for corporations to make obscene profits which, we could only hope, in return helps all of us.P.S Look for a young and scintillating Marilyn Monroe in the film in a bit part as sexy and unavailable, to at least the overly friendly Slim Haskins, Iris Martin. Iris' tight fitting sweaters are enough to make me want to get a job at the Fairfax Herald regardless of what I'll be paid in wages just so I can even get lucky enough to buy Marilyn a cup of coffee and have a chance to talk to her.

vampi1960 the DVD for hometown story has Marilyn Monroe's picture on it,and it states starring Marilyn Monroe.but Marilyn is a supporting actress. its a well made journalism movie about an ex senator(Jeffrey Lynn) who moves on to the local newspaper,as he blames the father of the senator that defeated him,its sort of a morality tale.Marilyn Monroe stars as iris his sexy secretary,after this she went on to star in; Niagara.look for Alan hale Jr(Gilligan's island)as a reporter.its not a great movie but the storyline is good,and its worth it just to see Marilyn Monroe in an early role.the budget for this must've been very low,Marilyn had to provide her own wardrobe.I'm giving this 7 out of 10.