"Since You Went Away" would make an amazingly fitting film to watch along with "The Best Years of Our Lives". "Since You Went Away" is an incredibly well-crafted tale about one family as they deal with losses and separations caused by having the men in their lives serving in the armed forces. And, just as well-crafted, "The Best Years of Our Lives" shows men returning home to their families--like a fitting conclusion to "Since You Went Away". Both are highly emotional films, so be sure to have a Kleenex handy--but it's well worth it, as they are two of the very best films of the 1940s. While "The Best Years of Our Lives" won many Oscars (which it richly deserved), "Since You Went Away" only earned one--as the more schmaltzy "Going My Way" swept the Oscars that years. I really like "Going My Way", but it's simply not in the same league as this film--truly a must-see film of the era.
The film begins with the man of the house having just left for the war. You never see the guy--just photos of the actor Neil Hamilton. Left behind are his adoring family--his wife (Claudette Colbert) and two daughters (Jennifer Jones and Shirley Temple). Through the course of the film, the oldest daughter falls in love (with her real life husband at the time, Robert Walker), the family takes in a cranky boarder (Monty Woolley) and the wife entertains an old friend (Joseph Cotten). While the film is very deliberately paced and lacks excitement like a traditional movie, it is completely engaging throughout because the film is so well made. The acting is tops. The direction (more about that in a moment) is tops. And, the writing is tops. The film really pulls you into what it must have been like for the folks at home and your heart breaks several times through the course of the film--just like it happened with families during the war. In a way, it's like vicariously living through their lives.
It's interesting that this David O. Selznick film is shear perfection--just like "Gone With the Wind". I say interesting because the meddling Selznick did EXACTLY what he did with this earlier film--he kept changing directors and actually filmed parts of the film himself because he was such a control freak. It paid off very well in both case--you'd never suspect multiple directors as the camera-work and mood are consistently wonderful.
The bottom line is that the film is amazing and there is NOTHING negative in the least I could say about it. The film comes off as sincere, beautifully crafted and a wonderful glimpse into the past. See this film and you'll enjoy it from start to finish.
By the way, as you watch the film, listen to the wonderful Max Steiner music. He is considered a genius at his craft and here he is at his best. Another thing to listen for are the wonderful nonsense words used by Hattie McDaniel in the film.
The film begins with the man of the house having just left for the war. You never see the guy--just photos of the actor Neil Hamilton. Left behind are his adoring family--his wife (Claudette Colbert) and two daughters (Jennifer Jones and Shirley Temple). Through the course of the film, the oldest daughter falls in love (with her real life husband at the time, Robert Walker), the family takes in a cranky boarder (Monty Woolley) and the wife entertains an old friend (Joseph Cotten). While the film is very deliberately paced and lacks excitement like a traditional movie, it is completely engaging throughout because the film is so well made. The acting is tops. The direction (more about that in a moment) is tops. And, the writing is tops. The film really pulls you into what it must have been like for the folks at home and your heart breaks several times through the course of the film--just like it happened with families during the war. In a way, it's like vicariously living through their lives.
It's interesting that this David O. Selznick film is shear perfection--just like "Gone With the Wind". I say interesting because the meddling Selznick did EXACTLY what he did with this earlier film--he kept changing directors and actually filmed parts of the film himself because he was such a control freak. It paid off very well in both case--you'd never suspect multiple directors as the camera-work and mood are consistently wonderful.
The bottom line is that the film is amazing and there is NOTHING negative in the least I could say about it. The film comes off as sincere, beautifully crafted and a wonderful glimpse into the past. See this film and you'll enjoy it from start to finish.
By the way, as you watch the film, listen to the wonderful Max Steiner music. He is considered a genius at his craft and here he is at his best. Another thing to listen for are the wonderful nonsense words used by Hattie McDaniel in the film.