Movie review - "Tomorrow is Forever" (1946) **

He got too fat in the 50s but during the 1940s Orson Welles could have been a Hollywood leading man - he had looks, charm, great speaking voice, a hot wife in real life, a twinkle in the eye. Yet he only occasionally essayed this on screen - as Harry Lime, the "young man" segments of Citizen Kane - seemingly preferring to put on false noses, accents, beards, and old man make up. He's the handsome young Orson for a few minutes here, playing the young husband of Claudette Colbert who goes off to World War I. He's badly injured and she thinks he's dead, so goes and marries a dull, decent chap (George Brent). He comes back with a beard, accent and adopted child (Natalie Wood) then in a very poor coincidence goes to work for Brent who invites him over to his house to meet his family...

This is an incredibly soapie film, with violins playing over most of the lines, Claudette Colbert suffering nobly, Brent watching on like a bland idiot, and Richard Long being a handsome young lunk as he was in The Stranger. It is of interest for Welles performance which is hammy but not without interest, an appropriate in tone. Wood is really excellent.

The film has a very strong anti-Nazi stance (Wood's parents were killed by Nazis, Long wants to enlist in the Eagle Squadron - it's 1939). There is also talk about a future world where the rich won't own as much as they used to. It never overcomes two big contrivances: how Welles runs into Colbert, and the fact that Long doesn't know his real father is Welles (neither were needed). It's also drawing a long bow that Colbert doesn't recognise Welles but I went with it. Still fans of Welles and Colbert will find this interesting.