Call 'Since You Went Away' schmaltzy, cliched, idealized, propaganda, soapy - whatever you like: I LOVE this movie. It was made when we called them movies, not films, not cinema.

Every Christmastime I HAVE to watch 'Since You Went Away'. The laughter - that good, clean kind of fun laughter that gets trashed nowadays by the many who like to affect "sophisticated" jadedness - it provokes from my heart, and the tears it pulls from my eyes are worth every second of this Selznick masterpiece (in my opinion this movie trumps the overblown, talky, overpraised 'Gone With The Wind').

I laugh and cry, especially, watching and listening to the gifted, lovely Hattie McDaniel handling her role, a good measure of which was written in the period's typical "Negro dialect," with dignity and aplomb. If I had to be stranded on a desert island with one person I'd hope it could be McDaniel, a woman who embodied grace under pressure.

Claudette Colbert simply glows throughout. Jennifer Jones oozes smoldering sexuality, but manages to convince us that she's a teen verging on responsible adulthood. Shirley Temple tugs at your heartstrings. McDaniel radiates strength, stamina, and tenderness. Monty Woolley irritates and charms. Joseph Cotten brings a healthy dose of class and charm. Agnes Moorehead infuriates - she was one of the most talented actresses ever to grace the screen. Robert Walker exemplifies the innocence that war guts from the young, and the sacrifice made, like his character, by thousands of young people in defending, and assuring the legacy, of America's founding ideals.

Have your tissues - a whole box - handy. And let 'Since You Went Away' make your heart soar.