SINCE YOU WENT AWAY Movie Review

1944 John Cromwell

Producer-writer David O. Selznick's rosy view of the homefront is a transition film that stands somewhere between the genteel heroics of Mrs. Miniver and the uncomfortable realities of The Best Years of Our Lives. The flaws are undisguised—slow pace, stiff editing, transparent plot, unbridled sentimentality—but the picture is still delightful. Well acted mostly and handsomely produced, it is Golden Age Hollywood storytelling at its most lavish.

A foreword sets the patriotic tone with the words “This is a story of the Unconquerable Fortress: the American Home … 1943.” The camera then pans from the home fire burning brightly on the hearth, to Dad's empty leather armchair, with the faithful family bulldog before it, waiting for the master's return. The house is an idealized “typical” middle-class suburban home created by Mark-Lee Kirk and Victor Gangelin on a huge soundstage. Like everyone else involved in the major creative positions on the film, Kirk and Gangelin received Academy Award nominations; only Max Steiner won for his lush score.

It's Tuesday, January 12, 1943, in an unnamed Midwestern city. Anne Hilton (Claudette Colbert) has just seen her husband off, and is only beginning to realize how seriously his decision to enlist has affected the family financially. She and her daughters Jane (Jennifer Jones) and Bridget (Shirley Temple) can no longer afford to keep the faithful family retainer Fidelia (Hattie McDaniel). They'll just have to economize and perhaps rent out a room to a boarder. Jane—18 and ready—says that their newspaper ad should specify that they want an officer. They get 60-ish Col. Smollett (Monty Woolley), gruff, golden-hearted, etc. But before Jane becomes too upset, charming “uncle” Tony (Joseph Cotten), now a Navy lieutenant, shows up at their doorstep. He's her father's best friend who carries on a mock flirtation with Anne. The other two main characters are divorcee Emily Hawkins (Agnes Moorehead), whose snotty narrow-minded arrogance makes Anne even more angelic, and Cpl. Bill Smollett (Robert Walker), disgraced grandson of the Colonel with whom Jane falls in love.

Selznick's adaptation of Margaret Buell Wilder's novel is an episodic collection of scenes, all designed to show the resilience of American womenfolk. Director and Selznick associate John Cromwell handles the material dutifully, and the action is punctuated with those odd “big” moments that are virtual trademarks of Selznick pictures. A USO dance staged in a cavernous airplane hanger is the kind of show-stopping scene most viewers expect to see. They'll be more surprised by the mystical, holy atmosphere that pervades the swearing in of the nurses' aides, the trip to the bowling alley, and the walk in the hayfield. All of them, and several others, are inflated to near-epic proportions. The one scene that everyone remembers, though, is Jane's saying goodbye to Bill. It's probably the most famous wartime train platform farewell in the history of movies. It turns up constantly in compilations of clips and was even parodied in a famous beer commercial.

Though a bit overstated by today's standards, the performances are excellent. Cotten's glib charmer is precisely the kind of supporting role he was so good at. The same could be said of Agnes Moorehead and Monty Woolley. Robert Walker, however, would be much more persuasive a few years later as the psychopathic Bruno in Strangers on a Train. As the dutiful daughters, Jennifer Jones and Shirley Temple seem constantly on the edge of unintentional comedy, but they are effective, even in the more emotional moments. The six of them are a terrific ensemble, but the action revolves around Claudette Colbert and she, too, manages to keep the rampant sentimentality in check.

To look at the film as any form of realism misses its point. It was made as inspiration, a cinematic reminder that everyone was pulling together and an encouragement to do more. If its propaganda value has deflated, Since You Went Away is still one of the most entertaining examples of its kind, even with a running time of nearly three hours.

Cast: Claudette Colbert (Anne Hilton), Jennifer Jones (Jane Hilton), Shirley Temple (Bridget Hilton), Joseph Cotten (Lt. Tony Willett), Agnes Moorehead (Emily Hawkins), Monty Woolley (Col. Smollett), Guy Madison (Harold Smith), Lionel Barrymore (Clergyman), Robert Walker (Cpl. William G. Smollett II), Hattie McDaniel (Fidelia), Keenan Wynn (Lt. Solomon), Craig Stevens (Danny Williams), Albert Basserman (Dr. Sigmund Golden), Alla Nazimova (Mrs. Koslowska), Lloyd Corrigan (Mr. Mahoney), Terry Moore (Refugee child), Florence Bates (Hungry woman on train), Ruth Roman (Envious girl), Andrew V. McLaglen (Former plowboy), Dorothy Dandridge (Officer's wife), Rhonda Fleming (Girl at dance), Addison Richards (Maj. Atkins), Jackie Moran (Johnny Mahoney); Written by: David O. Selznick; Cinematography by: Stanley Cortez, Lee Garmes; Music by: Max Steiner. Producer: David O. Selznick, United Artists. Awards: Academy Awards '44: Best Original Dramatic Score; Nominations: Academy Awards '44: Best Actress (Colbert), Best Black and White Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Interior Decoration, Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Woolley), Best Supporting Actress (Jones). Budget: 2.4M. Running Time: 172 minutes. Format: VHS, Beta, LV, Closed Caption.