Since You Went Away

During World War II, Hollywood regularly offered home-front audiences big, heaping gobs of escapist entertainment, but from time to time the major studios presented films that recognized the enormous sacrifices being made by American families. Smoothly directed by John Cromwell and sensitively acted by a great ensemble cast, the glorified tearjerker Since You Went Away (1944) is arguably the best of its kind. Claudette Colbert, at that time only a few years removed from her regular glamour-girl parts, is profoundly affecting as the stoic mother of two teenage daughters (played by newly minted star Jennifer Jones and former child superstar Shirley Temple) coping with the absence of the family patriarch, an Army captain fighting overseas. Famed producer David O. Selznick adapted the script himself from Margaret Buell Wilder's novel Together, imposing upon the narrative an episodic structure that allows for engrossing subplots and close-up character studies. Both Colbert and Jones were Oscar-nominated for their performances, but the other cast members--including Joseph Cotten, Monty Woolley, Hattie McDaniel, and Lionel Barrymore--are terrific as well. And with America once again on a war footing you may be surprised just how relevant it seems today. Presented with a decent transfer but no extras, this is highly recommended. (E. Hulse)[Blu-ray/DVD Review—Nov. 14, 2017—Kino Lorber, 177 min., not rated, DVD: $19.95, Blu-ray: $29.95—Making its latest appearance on DVD and debut on Blu-ray, 1944's Since You Went Away features a fine transfer and a DTS-HD 2.0 soundtrack on the Blu-ray release, but no extras. Bottom line: this Hollywood Golden Age classic makes a welcome debut on Blu-ray.]