I'll Be Seeing You (1944)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

William Dieterle

Writers:

Charles Martin (play)
Marion Parsonnet (writer)

Release Date:

5 January 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family | Romance

Tagline:

Both living a secret...each afraid to tell!

Plot:

A soldier suffering from battle fatigue meets a young woman on Christmas furlough from prison and their mutual loneliness blossoms into romance.

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | Prison | Leave | Sergeant | Furlough

Cast

Ginger Rogers	...	Mary Marshall
Joseph Cotten	...	Zachary Morgan
Shirley Temple	...	Barbara Marshall
Spring Byington	...	Mrs. Marshall
Tom Tully	...	Mr. Marshall
John Derek	...	Lt. Bruce (as Dare Harris)
Chill Wills	...	Swanson
Kenny Bowers	...	Sailor on Train

Also Known As:

Double Furlough (USA) (working title)
With All My Heart (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

85 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:S | Sweden:15

Company:

Dore Schary Productions

Trivia:

Director George Cukor was replaced by William Dieterle.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Mary tells the taxi driver the address is 617 North Elm Street, but on the phone she tells Zach the address is 617 Elm Street.

Quotes:

Barbara Marshall: [caught staring at Mary] I was just thinking, that's an awfully nice suit you have on, Mary.
Mary Marshall: Oh, thank you, Barbara. You were thinking of something else, too.
Barbara Marshall: As a matter of fact, I was.
Mary Marshall: [taking of her jacket] Where can I put this?
Barbara Marshall: I'll take it.
Mary Marshall: You may as well tell me, so we can both get it off our minds.
Barbara Marshall: Well, I... I just... Well, you see, I hadn't known that they gave these vacations or furloughs to people that...
Mary Marshall: You don't have to be shy about it, Barbara. I didn't know about it either. Till the warden told me that in this state, and a few other states, they give special furloughs to people for good behavior.
[...]

Soundtrack:

I'll Be Seeing You

I'll Be Seeing You is worth looking for

This is a kind of forgotten Christmas or Christmas-themed movie. I've only seen this a few times on TV over the years but this is a good movie. Ginger Rogers doesn't sing or dance here but she puts in an excellent dramatic performance as a woman on furlough for the holidays from prison. Joseph Cotton is the soldier on leave from the front lines of World War II. Both have psychological problems and no significant other to help them through. David O. Selznick is executive producer here but this film doesn't have the look of an Selznick film with giant sets and big interior shots and sweeping landscapes. Selznick doesn't put his name on it and Dore Schary is Producer but Selznick had the final say in how this was done. William Dieterle directs. He had renowned success with such films as The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Devil & Daniel Webster and would go on to direct Portrait of Hennie, Love Letters, Dark City and September Affair among others. Selznick is reported to have not liked this script and tried changes that Dieterle basically ignored but Selnick did call in director George Cukor to re shoot a scene critical to the plot that involved Shirley Temple. Joan Fontaine was originally offered the Rogers role and this may have been a very different picture with Fontaine starring opposite Cotton but I think Rogers was better for this role and brought more strength and hardness to the character that Fontaine would have been too delicate and vulnerable in. Shirley Temple in her transition from child star into adult roles delivers a fine performance from the supporting cast which also includes Chill Wills and a young John Derek. This film was adapted from the Charles Martin radio play Double Furlough by screenwriter Martin Parsonette. I would give this an 8.0 out of a possible 10 and recommend it.