WasAnnon
Slow pace in the most part of the movie.
Matylda Swan
It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.
Caryl
It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.
jlgAltman
I'LL BE SEEING YOU (1944) will, for once and for all, change all perceptions of Hollywood during WWII. This very adult, mature and touching film deals with a soldier suffering from PTSD and a woman on furlough from prison for the holiday season. Devoid of all sentimentality, I'LL BE SEEING YOU deals frankly with the impact of war on soldiers while equally dealing with the hardships facing Americans during the war and in particular the plight of women, not as they wait for their men to return but as they are exploited both for labor and sex. What's perhaps best about I'LL BE SEEING YOU is that it stays clear of easy plot points and conflicts you may expect and instead paints a portrait of sadness and hardship but simultaneously the true and right way we humans should behave. Simply stellar!
PimpinAinttEasy
Great performances by GINGER ROGERS and Joseph COTTEN make this otherwise slight film worth watching. The film had a great premise but after a point you realize that the makers were only interested in making a feel good movie with a few dark elements. And the supporting cast except for SPRING BRYINGTON is pretty awful. They included a lot of loud and obnoxious characters as a foil for the two melancholic and understated leads.Joseph COTTEN's performance needs special mention. He is such an effortless actor who puts his remarkable screen presence to great use. GINGER ROGERS was a little too beautiful and well dressed to pass off as a woman out on parole.The film does have a christmasy feel to it despite some gripping scenes (like that very violent fight with the dog). Ginger Roger's family was particularly annoying and their presence during the interactions between the two leads curtailed any meaningful plot development.(6/10)
mark.waltz
If there is ever a domestic drama of what we were fighting for this war for, this movie is the prototype for that kind of film. Two strangers, both in their own prisons, one physically and the other metaphorically, meet on a train, spend the Christmas holidays together, fall in love and must part. She is Ginger Rogers, in prison for manslaughter (on a charge that obviously should have been dismissed) and he is Joseph Cotten, suffering from severe shell-shock. They are star-crossed lovers fated to be parted, but with hope still lingering in their hearts, they will end up together.Spring Byington and Tom Tryon are Rogers' gracious aunt and uncle, bringing temporary joy into their lives as the holidays come and go, from a very Merry Christmas to a romantic New Year's Eve. Each of them face psychological trauma (she is even afraid to step one inch beyond the state line which they arrive at while walking along the river bank) as their love grows, but they are soothed by the beautiful title song, one of the most fabulous war themes ever written, and still popular today. (A memorable "Designing Women" episode wisely utilized it as one of Jean Smart's character's fantasies).Cotten's shell-shock is dealt with in the most subtle of ways, his manner changing when a group of boys run around the streets shooting toy guns, and an overly chatty soda jerk (Chill Wills) going on about his own war experiences. A frighting encounter with a vicious dog and some politicians who question Cotten about his political believes also subtly express the horrors that Cotten is feeling inside.The only fly in the ointment is Shirley Temple, a precocious teenage girl who fulfills that well-known saying about good intentions. Her character wouldn't be so annoying if this wasn't an exact replica of practically every role she'd play during the 1940's, particularly in the same year's "Since You Went Away". Fortunately, the romance between Rogers and Cotten is so moving that it overshadows this minor mishap. While the lover's farewell scene isn't as famous as the Jennifer Jones/Robert Walker farewell in "Since You Went Away" (ironically produced by the same man as this film, David Selznick), it gives way to the feeling that in spite of its horrors, World War II was the most romantic war in history.
MartinHafer
It's funny, but despite having seen and reviewed a bazillion different movies, I'd never heard of this film until I saw it on Netflix recently. Since I really liked Joseph Cotten (a highly underrated actor, if you ask me), I thought I'd give it a try--and I am glad I did, as it's a dandy old film--full of sentiment and romance.The film begins with Cotten meeting Ginger Rogers on a train. She is going to visit her Aunt and Uncle for the Christmas holiday, though he does not know that she's on furlough from prison. He is also on leave--from a military psychiatric hospital where he's recuperating from a serious injury as well as post-traumatic stress disorder. Considering he served on Guadalcanal (one of the longest and most horrible battles of the war), it's perfectly understandable that he is a bit of a mess. What is surprising, though, is that the movie even addresses this. Very, very few films made during or even soon after the war talked about the psychological effects of war. This one dared to talk about the psychiatric cases resulting from such horrors.Partly because she is ashamed and partly because she doesn't want Cotten to be further burdened after she learns of his struggle, Rogers keeps her incarceration a secret to him. It's funny, because when you learn about why she was jailed, it seems that nowadays she'd never have served a day in prison as she accidentally killed a man who was trying to rape her!! I think the problem was that she couldn't prove it and juries were less likely to believe that rapes occurred back then. Regardless, she says nothing and they spend many lovely moments together during both their vacations. He, in particular, likes being able to hang out with her family, as he has none of his own.There's much more to the film than this, but it gets very high marks not only for its willingness to talk about combat fatigue but because it is highly romantic and sweet. It's a great sentimental film that doesn't manage to get gooey or sickly sweet--just nice and a decent film for the holidays. Watch this hidden little gem.
