Tad Pole " . . . and kind of empty," shell-shocked WWII fighter "Zachary Morgan" tells secret jailbird-on-furlough "Mary Marshall" when she asks if War is like the panoramic newsreels ubiquitous in the early 1940s, when I'LL BE SEEING YOU is set. Zach has been bayoneted by a Japanese opponent, and Mary has pushed a drunken, would-be rapist out the cad's own 14th Floor window. Zach is depressed because he cannot easily hit a nearby lamp post with a rock like he used to, and Mary is anxious since she must go back to prison for another three years. Fortunately, Zach's hospital for "neuropsychiatric" sergeants and Mary's women's correctional facility are adjacent to each other. I'LL BE SEEING YOU was another effort by America's War Department (which had the final say on ALL WWII films) to condition the country to the realities of conflict. On the one had, War had left the U.S. with just a handful of male draft board rejects stateside, with tendencies to misbehave amid the sea of womenfolk left behind by all the able-bodied guys abroad, leading to many situations involving flying leaps of one sort or another. On the other hand, lots of G.I.s were bayoneted or worse. I'LL BE SEEING YOU instructs civilians on the Homefront to SECURELY chain up their dogs when the "walking wounded" are on the prowl, and to consider readopting the one-time Western practice of "branding" threats to social order, such as female killers on furlough or parole. With so many ELIGIBLE women around (like Mary's little cousin, Barbara, shown here as somewhat of a nymphomaniac), it was crucial NOT to let the thinned-out stock of American manhood sow ground better left barren.

bkoganbing Written originally in 1937 the song I'll Be Seeing You struck a right chord in the wartime American public and enjoyed a big revival during the World War II years. A whole lot of artists recorded it, Bing Crosby's Decca record was the biggest seller. It was inevitable that someone would use it as a title for a film and David O. Selznick was the one who brought it to the big screen.Watching the film I'll Be Seeing You I was struck by the fact that this film showed the essential difference between the two warring global factions. There's no way that two protagonists in Nazi Germany or Bushido Japan would be in a film like this, one of them being a shell shock surviving soldier the other one being a woman convicted of a homicide and on a furlough from prison. You could never show in Nazi Germany anyone who was less than a fierce Teutonic warrior. Democracies take account for human frailties, may it ever be so.Joseph Cotten is our shell shocked soldier who's seen combat and it's shattered his nerves. His hospital doctors think a little time among some real ordinary American civilians might do him so good so he's furloughed from the hospital to visit his sister, but he finds she's moved away. So instead he decides to spend time with the family of a girl he met on the train.That girl is Ginger Rogers who was convicted of a homicide, but a flashback sequence where she explains what happened to her cousin Shirley Temple shows Ginger might not be the hardened criminal one might imagine. In fact with a better she might have beat the rap. Still for good behavior she gets to spend the Christmas/New Year's holidays with aunt Spring Byington and uncle Tom Tully her closest relatives. So these flawed and wounded souls meet and fall in love and the story runs pretty much along the lines that most wartime romances do, especially in World War II years. Both Cotten and Rogers do some really fine work in their well rounded portrayals of these people. And David O. Selznick rounded up a good cast to support them. Besides those already mentioned, take note of Chill Wills as the owner of a diner who was in the first World War and talks about his battle with shell shock which unnerves Cotten as he hasn't told Rogers yet. In fact the whole point of the film is both protagonists trying to summon up enough nerve to tell the other.Of course the title song is heard at critical times in the film, but never too obtrusive. I'll Be Seeing You is a fine example of the wartime romance World War II movie.

edwagreen Ginger Rogers gives a restrained performance as a quiet victimized young lady who is sent to prison after accidentally pushing her drunken boss out the window.While on furlough, she meets Joseph Cotten, who is battle scarred. The two strike up a memorable friendship, and Rogers tries to keep it from him where she is going back to.Tom Tully and Spring Byington are just wonderful as the aunt and uncle she goes to during her leave. She brings Cotten to their home and they accept him with dignity and kindness. They are a wholesome couple promoting wonderful family values. Shirley Temple is their teenager daughter, outspoken, but kind in this 1944 film.Of course, the picture proves that you can't hide things; they have a way of coming out. Nevertheless, the performances by Cotten and Ms. Rogers are warm and memorable.

wes-connors On a train filled with holiday travelers, beautiful Ginger Rogers (as Mary Marshall) reads "Chic" magazine as soldiers fill the empty seats beside her. Quiet, seemingly preoccupied Joseph Cotten (as Zachary Morgan) strikes up a conversation with Ms. Rogers, who assumes Mr. Cotten is on furlough. Rogers explains she's a "traveling saleslady" on Christmas vacation. She is on her way to "Pine Hill" where her aunt Spring Byington (as Sarah) and uncle Tom Tully (as Herbert) await. Cotten claims he's visiting his sister in the same town. Both Rogers and Cotten are covering secrets with lies...Cotton checks into the local Y.M.C.A. while Rogers rooms with typical seventeen-year old Shirley Temple (as Barbara)...It's repeatedly reported Ms. Temple had trouble with a pivotal scene near the end, when she tells Rogers a revelation was blurted out accidentally; credit director George Cukor for stepping in to re-shoot, and Temple for making it more believable. This is a top-quality production by Dore Schary for David O. Selznick. Writer/adapter Marion Parsonnet and co-star Cotten were never favorites with "Oscar" or other award-giving organizations, or they might have been nominated for "Screenplay" and "Best Actor" awards; both jump the gun with an uncommon look at war wounds, before the contemporary war (WW II) was over.******** I'll Be Seeing You (12/44) William Dieterle ~ Ginger Rogers, Joseph Cotten, Shirley Temple, Spring Byington