[Their names are symbolic: Alex represents the heroic and majestic leader Alexander he Great, but in this case "A-lex" - a man without law or ""a law unto himself.He boasts of his new-found respect: "People looked at me differently and they knew I was with somebody.] Its major competition came from Leo McCarey""s ""feel-good"" filmGoing My Way- undoubtedly,Double Indemnity""shard-boiled themes and cold cynicism hurt its chances for the top prize, during the war years.There have been two years of stalemated fighting, according to a narrator, who sets the warfront scene on the Western Front:War began between Germany and France on August 3, 1914." Prewitt courageously remains a highly principled individualist and soldier:Look.I told Holmes and I""m tellin"" you.I ain""t fightin"".I quit fightin"".You guys want to put the screws on, go right ahead.I can take anything you can dish out.Career soldier Sgt.Warden, who doesn""t reject Prewitt outright, is seen as a smart, honorable and fair soldier by Corporal Buckley (Jack Warden):He ain""t like the others.