Rating: 
Summary: A MAUDLIN FLAG-WAVER SUPREME
Review: A maudlin flag-waver supreme, this is strictly for the ladies, and their handkerchiefs. This World War II saga is set during the time the 'boys' are away at war and is primarily a long lament for them, as well as a recruiting poster and a "do-your-bit-for-the-war-effort" rally. If this film doesn't cause you to enlist in the military, start a scrap materials drive, or volunteer in a soldiers' hospital, nothing will. A capable and attractive cast helps this 2-1/2+ hour sermon to nationalism. Today, it would be offensive to the Japanese when one man mocks the epicanthic eye fold of them and refers to them as "Japs."Guy Madison makes his film debut in the short bowling alley scene with a few lines, and he was actually in the military at the time (wasn't everyone?). He should have been used in more films (rumor has it that the Hollywood execs said he was too handsome to be realistic, though it must be admitted that he tends to be a little bit wooden) but did perhaps his best work in another WWII film: "Till The End Of Time" two years later. "Since You Went Away" was also the debut film for another actor also neglected because he was excessively handsome: John Derek as an extra, but I couldn't find him in the movie as shown un-cut on PBS. He was the father of Bo Derek, but we won't hold that against him. Max Steiner's score is beautiful, but far from greatness, yet if I am not mistaken, a part of it constituted the basis for the main theme for the 50s TV series "Father Knows Best." In a way, this film is a time capsule, and can be enjoyed on that level alone.
Rating: 
Summary: The train platform farewell is peerless
Review: among sentimental tearjerkers in this classic tale of the brave American women who keep the homefires burning during the dark days of WWII. The title refers to all that is happening to one American family while the father is away at war. Claudette Colbert stars as the mother with Jennifer Jones and Shirley Temple as her daughters. Joseph Cotten is the old family friend who may or may not be in love with Colbert, Monty Wooley the crusty lodger the family takes in to earn some money. Through Wooley enters into the family his grandson Robert Walker, a shy soldier with whom Jennifer Jones eventually falls in love. "Since You Went Away" is second only to "How Green Was My Valley" for annual tearfall in my lowly opinion. Made at the height of the actual war, this movie captured and preserved for our later generations the terrible experience of trying to go on with a normal life as loved ones were facing death at the front. Yet there is joy too for this family as they go about the ordinary things through which our happiness comes. There are other vignettes depicting minor characters, featuring situations familiar to the wartime audience, which now are like so many time capsules for us more than fifty years after the war. A wonderful movie that would move even the most cynical viewer, "Since You Went Away" is tops in my books.
Rating:
Summary: all time favorite
Review: excellent movie. has been a holiday classic in our home since i was a little girl.
Rating:
Summary: Selznick's Second Masterpiece!
Review: Gone with the Wind will always be David O. Selznick's supreme masterpiece. But right behind GWTW is this ravishing, tear-jerker concerning a mother and her two daughters during World War II. The gorgeous black and white photography, creating shadows and drama, the fireplaces always crackling cozily, the snow outside, the by-gone lifestyle of the early l940s, these are just one layer of this classic to enjoy. Claudette Colbert is perfect as the heroic mother-wife of the Hilton clan. The last scenes, where she finds a gift from her husband whose off somewhere around the world fighting the enemy, is heart-breaking.And it takes place beneath a Christmas tree! Even the yule-tide wrapping is endearing since it's another relic from a long-gone era. I watch this movie several times a year, but especially during the Christmas holidays, because its scenes of snows and warm hearths really do belong to an era when we once enjoyed something called a White Christmas. This movie should have swept all the Oscars, especially the redoutable Max Steiner for his stunning musical score. An even better way to spend a wintry weekend is to curl up with both Gone With the Wind and Since You Went Away and you'll be one happy viewer!
Rating:
Summary: Nicely acted, overlong wartime drama.
Review: I can guarantee you that if anyone but David O. Selznick had written this movie, it would have been no longer than an hour and a half. As it is, Since You Went Away clocks in at something around 180 minutes, a famous producer's self-indulgence. For the most part, it is wonderfully cast, my favorite role being Monty Woolley's retired colonel who adds a nice compensation to the rampant sentimentality. Claudette Colbert is wonderful, but she can do absolutely nothing wrong in my mind, just as Robert Walker, as her daughter's love interest, can do nothing right. That actor has always irritated me (his sleazy appearance and scratchy voice better served in a sinister role), so take my deeply subjective criticism with a grain of salt. Innocents die, feuds are resolved, tears are shed, and I must say, for someone who can't stand maudlin movies, much of it seemed sincere enough to me and occasionally quite affecting.
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Summary: Fabulous film about life on the homefront during WWII!
Review: I caught this film on television the other day and thought it was just superb! The story focuses on a mother (Claudette Colbert) and her two daughters (Jennifer Jones and Shirley Temple) while the huband/father is away fighting in the war. I thought the cast all gave fine performances...especially Jones and Robert Walker as the two young lovers (though in real life they were in the midst of divorcing each other). Joseph Cotten also gave a fine performance as a family friend! Though long, it will keep your interest throughout...it is a tearjerker at times...well worth watching!
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful film!
Review: I really enjoyed this film and highly recommend it!
I'd give it more stars if I could.
Rating:
Summary: No Wonder We Won!
Review: I respectfully disagree that this is a film for women only. I've loved this film since I first saw it as a teenager. Claudette Colbert was never better than in her role as Ann Hilton; she manages to balance passion and dignity in her own unique manner. Joseph Cotton is unmatched as the family's best friend, so suave and yet sensitive. I've always been a great admirer of the underrated Agnes Moorhead, and she rivals her part in "Dark Passage" with her role as a flighty and selfish man-chaser here. Monty Wooley was every bit as memorable here as in "The Man Who Came to Dinner". Shirley Temple's part was somewhat limited but she proved herself well. I found it awkward when the immigrant co-worker of Colbert recited the Lazarus poem off the Statue of Liberty, particularly in view of the segregation of American society and the military. That couldn't be helped in this production, of course. The entire production is typical of the best of Hollywood then--in other words, yet to be matched by today's filmmakers. The richness of the black-and-white, the basic camera work, the perfect sets. It's why I love these old films. True, this film is a tearjerker. Nothing wrong with that. True, it might be viewed as a form of propoganda. Nothing wrong with that, either. It remains an eloquent testament to a nation and a time when the 'bad guys' were easy to identify. At the least, I hope viewing this will remind all of us to contribute to the WW II Memorial in Washington! BTW when is this coming out on DVD?
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, excellent movie.
Review: I saw this movie on T.V. 39 years ago and have never forgotten what a terrific movie it is.
Rating: 
Summary: The perfect Sunday afternoon experience.
Review: I saw this yesterday on TCM. Yes it is sentimental and patriotic and a bit syrupy in the dialog. But it was released in 1944- meaning it was filmed right in the middle of World War II, so the sentiment and especially the times are aptly reflected. More than anything else, the film's virtues are from the performances. Claudette Colbert reminds me very much of Norma Shearer's matriarch in 'The Women:' warm, intelligent, and very likable, but surrounded by the constrictions and circumstances of the time. (It's interesting to hear her tell Joseph Cotten two hours into the film that she feels useless and is not contributing to the war effort when in fact she's been contributing all along.) Cotten is wonderful as her surrogate mate (still carrying a torch after all these years) and daughters Temple and the beautiful Jones are quite good. There is magnificent b/w cinematography- rich in shadows and geometric patterns, and fine editing which shows off a Norman Rockwell-like presentation of day-to-day life in rural America. The standout scene, of course is Jennifer Jones and Robert Walker (married in real life but separating at the time of the film) parting at the train station. The Steiner score (echoing the chugging of the train) and especially Jones' tearful run after the departing train are especially heartbreaking. (Does she sense her soldier's fate? Note the tragic, almost psychic expression on her face as she reads the engraving on the watch.) Good performances also from Agnes Moorehead and Selznick veteran Hattie McDaniel. Nominated for a ton of Oscars, and deservedly so.
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