This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

Blistering performances.

A few years ago, this would have been considered a woman's movie, dealing as it does with romantic relationships and family. Now it's basically a time capsule, showing a revealing, if idealized, portrait of the home front during WWII. The stars are certainly attractive and winning. Morgan and Parker manage an exceptional on-screen chemistry that converts what might otherwise be treacle into rather poignant drama. It's not surprising that Parker went on to a number of Oscar nominations.Produced during the war (1944), the movie shows how traditional rituals of courtship, marriage, and fidelity have been undercut by wartime priorities. Morgan and Parker are attracted to each other. But after a brief courtship, they must decide whether to marry since he's being sent off to the war front. For example, she must consider what if he's killed. Then she would be a war widow with maybe a child and no prospects for future marriage. And what of him. Is he asking too much of her. Those letters from home may be a lifeline, but what if he gets a Dear John instead. After all, Janet's (Parker) sister Molly (King) is running around on her army husband. These are the kind of uncertainties the couple must face because of the war's disruption of normal civilian life, while the screenplay does a good job of raising them.I can't help noticing that Jerry Wald acted as the producer for Warner Bros., which means the studio considered this a prestige production. Despite the many location shots, it's not a budget-heavy film. Still, there is considerable care with detail. Note that the lengthy beach scene is staged at the beach with no budget-cutting process shots, which cheaper productions undoubtedly would have used. Then too, the many supporting roles are almost uniformly well-cast, right down to lively little Ellie (Settle).My only real reservation is with Molly's sudden turn-around, a gesture, I suppose, to sunny commercialism. Then too, note the background picture of wartime Japanese Prime Minister Tojo, plus liberal use of negative term 'Jap'. Both would quickly disappear after the war. Nonetheless, the movie remains an entertaining look at how personal relationships were having to adjust to wartime priorities. And is, therefore, worth a look.

This movie, made during the war, shows the other side of the coin from soldiers shooting things up and being heros. Our heros are passing through Pasadena heading from one theater to another.I was hooked from the opening of this movie, and almost missed an appointment to see the ending. The plot is predictable, but that's the whole point. Our boys were still fighting the war when this film was made, and it had a message for both the soldiers, and the women they left behind. The dysfunctional family is well portrayed, and the actors are all belivable. Small slices of small town life are peppered into the action, and the theme is that love prevails.I was surprised that the younger sister Ellie never went on to any other acting, she was funny, smart, and cute as a button.Make sure you bring a hankie, and watch it with someone you love. You'll thank me later.

This film is one of the best I've ever seen. It is truly forgotten and should get more recognition. Dennis Morgan and Eleanor Parker are one of the best on-screen couples. Their chemistry is intense and it's a shame they didn't make any more movies together. Georgia Lee Settle is perfect as Eleanor's younger sister, Ellie. She did not become a star which is highly disappointing. A very funny actress and she should have got more roles. If you are craving an excellent film with Dennis Morgan and romance, this hits the spot! He has never been better!

This is an impressive drama about the other side of the familiar "Dear John" plot in World War II movies -- that is, what the women back home went through in fear, loneliness, and temptation while their boyfriends and husbands were far away, perhaps never to return. If you think of 40's movies as prudish, you'll be surprised by lines like, "I can't remember anymore the way it felt when we made love."Sidebar: A supporting actress, the later-famous Faye Emerson, had just married FDR's son Elliott when this film was released. Also, if you live in L.A., you'll enjoy scenes on the Cal Tech campus and on Mt. Wilson.