1940s

The 1940s were an interesting time in cinema history given the first half of the decade was impacted by World War 2 while the second half was dealing with its after effects. Despite the challenges that the war presented to film production, the 1940s was one of the most profitable times for movie studios in Hollywood and the decade actually produced some of the most successful films in cinema history.

The Studio System

The film industry in the 1940’s continued to be dominated by the major movie studios, including Warner Bros; Paramount, MGM, Twentieth Century Fox, United Artists, RKO Radio and Universal. Each studio held contracts for actors, actresses, directors and writers where they were paid a weekly wage to produce a certain number of films and couldn’t work for any other film studio during their contracted period. Unlike today, where actors and directors are paid per film. The studio system continued to work under the Production Code that had been set in the 1930s. These were a strict set of guidelines which aimed to ensure films were presenting moral content to its audiences. They were essentially censoring themselves by avoiding offensive language, nudity, drug use and any negativity towards religion and politics. Studio bosses were generally very concerned about producing films that could be potentially controversial for fear of the effect this may have on their ticket sales.

World War 2:

At the beginning of the decade many of the Hollywood studios were hesitant to produce films that presented an opinion on American involvement in the war efforts. They were still somewhat dependent on the foreign market and didn’t want to offend their international audiences. However, by 1941 Hollywood was clearly in support of the war and ultimately became one of the biggest producers of American propaganda. Hollywood studios were used to produce training films and other propaganda including the film 'Sergeant York' in

1941 starring Gary Cooper as a decorated war hero who saved many lives in WW1.

This was not the first film to present the nazi’s as a threat to America, however, it was clearly made with the intent to inspire its audience members to enlist with the film’s tagline announcing ‘America's Greatest Modern Hero! Timelier today than ever... a thrilling and inspiring story of the kind of men that America is made of!’ Gary Cooper himself was unable to enlist for WW2 due to his age and recurrent injuries so he felt his involvement in this film was his way of contributing to the war efforts.

In 1942 The Bureau of Motion Pictures was created as a way to avoid a repeat of World War 1 where films depicting war were generally over exaggerated and caused unnecessary hysteria and racism. The Bureau’s role was to work directly with Hollywood to produce educational films about the war, review scripts and help answer the question “Will this picture help win the war?” The Bureau was run by Lowell Mellett who was appointed by then President Franklin D Roosevelt. It was Roosevelt who saw the important role that Hollywood could play in rallying the troops. When he appointed Mellett to the Bureau he said “The American motion picture is one of the most effective mediums in informing and entertaining our citizens. The motion picture must remain free in so far as national security will permit. I want no censorship of the motion picture.” The Bureau's most successful project was an educational series called 'Why We Fight', directed by Frank Capra. The Bureau of Motion Pictures was abolished in the spring of 1943 but not before it was able to influence the production of moral boosting films that promoted the American way of life.

The war affected many major industries and Hollywood was no exception. Set construction was affected by funding cuts, filming locations were limited due to blackouts and male film stars and directors were in short supply as many had enlisted or were called to duty. Among the list of notable names to join the service were Clark Gable, James Stewart and director Frank Capra.

The Films

Citizen Kane

At the beginning of the decade, Orson Welles co-wrote, directed and starred in Citizen Kane. The film told the story of the fictional newspaper tycoon Charles Foster Kane and an investigation into the meaning of his dying word, “Rosebud”. The character is loosely based on real life media magnate William Randolph Hearst who was reportedly so upset by the film that he tried to stop its release. As a result, a lot of the movie was filmed in secret. Orson Welles was praised for his revolutionary filming techniques and innovative sound techniques as well as his performance in the main role. The film won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and was named the greatest American movie of all time by the American Film Institute.

Casablanca

Of all the wartime films of the 1940s, one of the most recognisable and definitely the most quotable was Casablanca. It starred Humphrey Boggart and Ingrid Bergmann and tells the story of Rick Blaine who runs a nightclub in Morocco that helps refugees escape to America in the early days of World War 2. When his ex-girlfriend brings her new husband to him for help, complications arise. It won 3 Oscars and in 2006 it was named the best screenplay of all time by the Writers Guild of America.

The Best Years of our Lives

One of the most successful films of the decade, statistically speaking, is ‘The Best Years of our Lives’. It follows the story of three men and the challenges they face upon returning home from war. It was one of the highest grossing films of the 1940s, winner of seven Oscars including Best Picture, and earnt itself a place in the AFIs top 100 American movies of all time.

Beginning of Film Noir:

The early 1940s saw the emergence of a new genre; Film Noir. Literally meaning Black film, this style of movie was typically a crime drama which conveyed a dark and sombre mood. It can generally be characterised by its low key lighting, a cynical hero and the femme fatale. Although the term ‘film noir’ was not coined until 1946, and more widely used retrospectively, it is generally accepted that the first noir film was ‘Stranger on the Third Floor’ in 1940, a murder mystery which was revolutionary in its use of black and white patterns, dark shadows and symbolism. Unfortunately, audiences at the time felt it was pretentious and so the film was initially a failure at the box office. Other significant film noirs from the 1940s include ‘The Maltese Falcon’ starring Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor, 'Double Indemnity' written and directed by Billy Wilder and ‘Gilda’ starring Rita Hayworth in one of her most recognisable roles. For many, the film noir genre was reflective of the general mood of audiences as a result of the war.

For others, the war had an opposite effect on their choice of films as many wanted to escape from the heaviness of the daily news and find some joy in their day. As a result, comedies and nostalgic films were very popular amongst audiences at the cinema. Films such as Yankee Doodle Dandy and Meet Me in St Louis were an escape back to the lost era of the early 1900s while films from comedy legends, Abbott and Costello, Bob Hope and the Marxx brothers gave audiences a much needed laugh.

The Directors

Howard Hawks

One of the great directors of the 40s was Howard Hawks with his influential film ‘Sergeant York’. According to IMDB, It was actually Michael Curtiz who was supposed to direct the film while Hawks was lined up to direct Casablanca. After the two shared that they were struggling with their respective films, they actually decided to swap! Hawks said Casablanca was a very different film to what he thought it was going to be when he was in the directors chair. He eventually got his chance to direct Humphrey Bogart in 1944 film To Have and Have Not and again in 1946’s The Big Sleep.

Frank Capra

After an extremely successful run of films in the 1930s, Frank Capra spent the beginning of the 40s making educational films for World War II with a seven part series titled ‘Why We Fight’. The series featured films with titles like ‘Divide and Conquer’ and ‘War Comes to America’. By 1946 Capra was perhaps feeling as fatigued as his audiences by the heaviness of war propaganda when he made the feel good Christmas classic ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’. He has said that it was one of his favourite of all the films that he made.

John Ford

Ford holds the record for winning the most Oscars for directing in history with four wins. He is one of only three directors in the Academy’s history to win two consecutive Oscars; winning in 1940 for his film The Grapes of Wrath and again in 1941 for How Green was my Valley. The Grapes of Wrath was also listed in the AFI top 100 American movies of all time. Like Capra, John Ford put his career on hold and enlisted in the war efforts of World War 2 and made significant contributions to the production of American propaganda.

We also give honourable mentions to William Wyler and Alfred Hitchcock who also made award winning films in the 1940s, however some of their even bigger contributions to cinema came in the 50s and 60s so we’ll discuss them further in our videos for both of those decades.

The Actors

Humphrey Bogart

The actor of the decade was Humphrey Boggart. He made 27 films in the 1940s alone some of which are the most recognisable of the decade including Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon and The Treasure of Sierra Madre. He tops the list of Male American film legends by the AFI and regularly makes the list for greatest movie actors of all time.

James Stewart

Jimmy Stewart made 11 films in the 1940s, however, if you look at his filmography there is a noticeable gap between 1941 and 1946 due to the fact that he fought in World War 2. Upon his return from the frontline he began filming on inspirational Christmas film ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ with Frank Capra. It is believed that Stewart was actually suffering from PTSD at the time of filming and found the process to be cathartic and ultimately said the character of George Bailey was the favourite he has ever played.

Cary Grant

Cary Grant was somewhat of a free agent which was unusual for the time. After completing his contract with Paramount Pictures in the mid 30s, Grant had control over the films he made resulting in a whopping 23 films made in the 40s alone. He had great comedic timing and a certain charm that appealed to audiences. He’s generally considered to be one of the greatest actors to have never received an Academy Award to recognise his talent. Grant began his association with Alfred Hitchcok in 1941 with the film ‘Suspicion’ and worked with the director a total of four times including the film ‘Notorious’ in 1946.

Sir Lawrence Olivier

Sir Lawrence Olivier began the decade with roles such as Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice and Maxim De Winter in Alfred Hitchcock’s award winning film Rebecca. Olivier returned to Britain to join the armed forces there. After spending a year learning to fly he had intended on joining the Royal Air Force but ultimately he ended up mostly making propaganda films one of which was Henry V. The film was a reminder for the British troops what exactly they were fighting for and Lawrence Olivier went on to become known for his intense performances in Shakespeare productions both on and off the screen. He demonstrated this again in 1948 when he starred in Hamlet which he also directed.

The Actresses

Katharine Hepburn

After previously being called ‘box office poison’ due to a number of flops in the 30s, Kathryn Hepburn came back in the beginning of the 1940s with smash hit The Philadelphia Story. She made 11 films between 1940 and 1949 and was nominated for several awards for her work during the decade including two oscar nominations. She is recognisable for her distinctive voice and became known as one half of Hollywood's most iconic on screen and scandalous off screen couples due to her 26 year affair with Spencer Tracey.

Bette Davis

Bette Davis continued her success in the 1940s with films such as Dark Victory, The Letter, The Little Foxes, Now Voyager and Mr Skeffington. She earned herself oscar nominations for Best Actress every year between 1941 and 1945. We’ll discuss Davis in more detail in our video on the 1930s where we look at her oscar winning performances.

Joan Crawford

Joan Crawford was another great star of the 40s. Interestingly Crawford was not a fan of Bette Davis and vice versa. They had a long standing feud with each other although both would remain professional when they were required to work together. Early in the decade Crawford was actually losing roles to newcomers in Hollywood so she decided to cut ties with MGM after 18 years with the studio and signed with their rival Warner Bros. This turned out to be a good move when she was cast in Mildred Pierce in 1945, a film that allowed her to show her range as an actress and earnt her the Academy award for Best Actress in a Leading role.

Ingrid Bergman

Ingrid Bergman comes in fourth on the AFI’s list of Greatest American Screen legends. She made 14 films in the 40s including the award winning Casablanca and Alfred Hitchcock’s film Notorious. She won her first of three Oscars in 1945 for her work in Gaslight and is actually one of the most Oscar-awarded actresses. Hollywood fell in love with Bergman not only for her beauty but for her talent as well. She was known as a hard working and determined actress who was prepared to do whatever was necessary for a role.

Teresa Wright

Teresa Wright is perhaps a name that is not as well known as say Kathryn Hepburn and Ingrid Bergmann, however, she is actually one of the most successful actresses of the 1940s having starred in two oscar winning films of the decade and winning an oscar herself for best supporting actress for her work in Mrs Miniver. She made ten films in total during the decade including, ‘Pride of the Yankees’, 'Shadow of a Doubt’ and ‘The Best Years of our Lives’. She is the only actress ever to be nominated for an oscar for her first three films after making her debut in 1941 in The Little Foxes.

Barbara Stanwyck

If Cary Grant is considered the best actor never to have won an oscar, then barbara Stanwyck would be his female counterpart as she is generally considered the best actress to never receive an oscar. Although she was honoured with an honorary award in 1982. Standwyck produced some of her best work in the 40s including Ball of Fire, Double Indemnity and Sorry, Wrong Number.

We’d also like to make mention of Ida Lupino who was an excellent actress during this decade in films such as high Sierra, The Hard Way, Ladies in Retirement and Pillow to Post. We’ll be discussing her further in our article on the 1950s when she took a step behind the camera to become one of the first female directors in a typically male dominated environment.

Despite all the odds, the 1940s will go down in history as one of the most successful decades in film and entertainment. In fact, Audience attendance was at a record high and haven’t been matched since. It really is no wonder the 1940s is considered the peak of the Golden age of Hollywood.