Since You Went Away: A Brief History Of The 1940s

The 1940s
The 1940s were a turbulent time for the American people. A second World War spanning throughout the first half of the decade, the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the fear of communism left people with a sense of uncertainty. And yet, the 1940s were also a time of optimism and harmony. Coming out of the Great Depression and focusing on the war effort gave people a “sense of purpose exhilaration, and community”-- and that carried over into the post-war years.
This applied to Hollywood as well, which had some of its most successful years in the 40s. “The 1940s were a time of big stars and big audiences where the studios, with their armies of talented technicians and performers, reigned supreme.” However, the industry did not always make an effort to correctly reflect the social, political, and economic landscape of America during that time period.
One such example of this is the countless war films the studios released throughout the 1940s.
The majority of these films’ purposes were patriotic uplift, raising war morale, and maintaining commitment. John Ford’s They were Expendable (1945) is an example of this. The film’s characters are “viewed as heroes, men free of any fear of anxiety about the war.” Another film with the same purpose is David O. Selznick’s Since You Went Away (1944). Films that did show the gruesome realities of war were often prevented from releasing to the public. John Huston’s documentary Battle of San Pietro is one such example. The intense, haunting images of “exhausting soldiers, cemeteries of dog tags, and terrified peasants” led to it getting banned. Another example is the 1946 documentary Let There Be Light by John Huston. Its portrayal of psychologically traumatized veterans of the war caused massive controversy. The army banned the film after its production, citing fear of demoralizing post-war
recruitment.
Film noir, a screen style, became a hallmark of 1940s Hollywood. Consisting of dark, oppressive moods, “film noir works constructed worlds where paranoia was the dominant feeling, and almost nobody could be trusted.” Women were often the focus of the film. Another characteristic of this screen style was “bizarre and seedy minor characteristics, ritualized violence, sexual alienation, and ambiguous endings.” Some of this dark film style derived from budget limits, but much of it was a conscious choice made by directors. The film noir style contrasted with the optimistic, bright view of life Americans had in the 1940s. One example of film noir is Scarlet Street (1945) by Fritz Lang. Another example is Michael Curtiz’s Mildred Pierce. Both films have elements of film noir-- low-key lighting, lightning, dark moods, and seedy characters. Since film noir contrasted with the reality of the 1940s, it highlighted the optimism present. This led to many films with this screen style to result in happy endings, where good prevailed.
Another way Hollywood differed from reality in the 1940s was how it dealt with social problems. Many in the industry made an effort to attack racism and bigotry. Two unique films, Crossfire (1947) and Gentleman’s Agreement (1947), dealt with the issue of anti-Semitism in a serious manner. Additionally, numerous films dealing with racism were released in the latter half of the 1940s. Home of the Brave (1949) is one example. Featuring a black actor, it dealt with racism as a psychological problem. All in all, the 1940s revealed the strong liberal influence in Hollywood-- one that confronted social issues head-on.