Since You Went Away

Since You Went Away (1944) is a David O. Selznick production you can watch online on iFILM. Director John Cromwell adapted Margaret Buell Wilder's novel into nearly three hours of American home-front life: no combat scenes, just the weight of waiting, making ends meet, and holding a household together while the man who anchored it is somewhere overseas.

Anne Hilton (Claudette Colbert) rents a room to a cantankerous retired colonel (Monty Woolley), takes a shipyard job, and watches her two daughters — Jane (Jennifer Jones) and Bridget (Shirley Temple) — grow up faster than any teenager should. Joseph Cotten plays the family's oldest friend, a man who quietly loves Anne and keeps it entirely to himself. Hattie McDaniel is the housekeeper who refuses to leave even without a paycheck.

Nine Oscar nominations came the film's way, including Best Picture. Claudette Colbert was up for Best Actress; Jennifer Jones and Monty Woolley competed in the supporting categories; Max Steiner took the score prize. For a wartime melodrama running nearly three hours, it earns every minute. Watch Since You Went Away (1944) online on iFILM.