Our Town

About the production

The film adaptation faced the challenge of translating Thornton Wilder's minimalist stage production, which used no scenery and actors miming daily activities, into a conventional Hollywood film. Director Sam Wood decided to use realistic sets and props while maintaining the play's intimate, conversational tone. The production filmed on a compressed 28-day schedule to accommodate the availability of the cast members. William Holden was cast as George Gibbs after being discovered by a talent scout while working as a radio actor, making this his first leading role in a major film.

Themes

Themes & topics

Historical background

Made in its country of production around 1940, Our Town belongs to World War II-era screens. Its story of change comes slowly to a small new hampshire town in the early 20th century spoke to audiences of the day through familiar genres and topical settings.

Why this film matters

Archivists and historians still cite Our Town when tracing how World War II-era screens filmmakers staged change and comes on screen.

Making of

The making of Our Town presented unique challenges in adapting Thornton Wilder's experimental play to conventional Hollywood cinema. Wilder's stage version famously used minimal sets and had actors miming daily activities like cooking and cleaning, with a Stage Manager character directly addressing the audience. Director Sam Wood and the producers debated how to translate this to film while maintaining the play's intimate, philosophical tone. They ultimately decided to use realistic sets and props but kept the Stage Manager's direct addresses to the camera. The casting process was extensive, with over 200 actors tested for the role of George Gibbs before William Holden was selected. Martha Scott's involvement was crucial as she brought her acclaimed Broadway performance to the screen, though she had to adapt her stage acting for the more intimate film medium. The film was shot quickly on a tight budget, with the crew working long hours to complete the production in under a month.

What critics said

Reviews from 1940 weighed Our Town on pacing, performance, and novelty. Later criticism reads its emphasis on change, comes, slowly through modern standards of craft and representation.

Did you know?

• This was William Holden's first starring role in a major motion picture, earning him $250 per week.
• Martha Scott reprised her role as Emily Webb from the original Broadway production, for which she had been nominated for a Tony Award.
• Frank Craven, who played the Stage Manager, also co-wrote the screenplay and had originated the role on Broadway.
• Thornton Wilder, the author of the original play, was deeply involved in the film adaptation and approved of the changes made to suit the cinematic medium.
• The film was nominated for six Academy Awards but won none, losing Best Picture to Rebecca.
• The original stage production had no scenery or props, with actors pantomiming their activities, making the film's realistic sets a significant departure.
• The cemetery scenes were filmed on a specially constructed set that took three days to build.
• The film's release was delayed several months to avoid competition from Gone with the Wind re-releases.
• Sol Lesser, the producer, paid $75,000 for the film rights to Wilder's play, a substantial sum at the time.
• The film was banned in several European countries during World War II for its 'American propaganda' values.

Awards & recognition

• New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress (Martha Scott, nominated)
• National Board of Review Award for Best Acting (Martha Scott, won)

Visual style

The cinematography by Bert Glennon employed a naturalistic, unobtrusive style that complemented the film's intimate storytelling. Glennon used soft focus and warm lighting to create a nostalgic, dreamlike quality that evoked turn-of-the-century America. The camera work was deliberately simple and straightforward, avoiding flashy techniques to maintain focus on the characters and their relationships. For the cemetery scenes, Glennon used misty, ethereal lighting to distinguish the spiritual realm from the earthly world. The film's visual approach contrasted with the more stylized cinematography common in 1940, instead anticipating the documentary-style realism that would become more prevalent in postwar cinema.

Innovations

Our Town pioneered several technical approaches to adapting stage plays for cinema. The film's use of direct address to camera through the Stage Manager character was innovative for its time, breaking the cinematic fourth wall in a way that felt natural rather than gimmicky. The sound recording techniques employed to capture the film's many intimate conversations were advanced for the period, using newly developed microphones that could pick up subtle vocal nuances. The production also experimented with lighting techniques to create distinct visual atmospheres for the film's different time periods and locations, particularly the supernatural quality of the cemetery scenes. The film's editing rhythm, which allowed long takes of dialogue to play out without interruption, represented a departure from the faster cutting styles common in 1940 Hollywood productions.

Music

The musical score was composed by Aaron Copland, one of America's most celebrated classical composers, in one of his rare film assignments. Copland's music perfectly captured the film's blend of ordinary American life and philosophical reflection, using folk-inspired melodies and orchestral textures that evoked New England. The score featured Copland's characteristic open harmonies and clear, transparent orchestration that complemented the film's straightforward visual style. Notably, Copland incorporated variations on traditional American hymns and folk songs, grounding the score in authentic musical traditions. The soundtrack was relatively sparse, with Copland wisely choosing to underscore only key emotional moments rather than overwhelming the dialogue-heavy narrative. This restraint helped maintain the film's intimate, conversational tone while providing emotional depth at crucial moments.

Famous quotes

Stage Manager: 'We all know that something is eternal. And it ain't houses and it ain't names, and it ain't earth, and it ain't even the stars... everybody knows in their bones that something is eternal, and that something has to do with human beings.'

Stage Manager: 'Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it? Every, every minute?'

Emily: 'I can't. I can't go on. It goes so fast. We don't have time to look at one another.'

Mrs. Gibbs: 'It seems to me, once in your life, before you die, you ought to see a country where they don't speak any English and if they do speak it, they speak it in a way you can't understand.'

Stage Manager: 'There's something way down deep that's eternal about every human being.'

Memorable scenes

• Emily's return to her 12th birthday, where she experiences the painful realization that no one truly appreciates the preciousness of ordinary moments while living them, culminating in her heartbreaking cry 'Goodbye, goodbye, world. Goodbye, Grover's Corners... Mama and Papa. Goodbye to clocks ticking... and Mama's sunflowers. And food and coffee. And new-ironed dresses and hot baths... and sleeping and waking up. Oh, earth, you're too wonderful for anybody to realize you.'
• The wedding scene between George and Emily, where their nervousness and love are palpable as they exchange vows in the simple church setting.
• The opening sequence where the Stage Manager introduces Grover's Corners, establishing the film's unique narrative style and intimate connection with the audience.
• The morning scenes showing the townspeople beginning their daily routines, establishing the rhythm and texture of small-town life.
• The final scene in the cemetery where the dead characters watch the stars come out, offering philosophical commentary on the nature of existence and memory.

What audiences thought

Our Town was a moderate box office success in 1940, particularly popular in smaller cities and towns where audiences connected with its depiction of American community life. The film developed a reputation as a 'family picture' and was frequently shown in schools and churches in the decades following its release. Audience reaction was generally positive, with many viewers moved to tears by Emily's return to her 12th birthday and the film's meditation on mortality. The movie developed a cult following among theater enthusiasts who appreciated its faithful adaptation of Wilder's work. In the years since, the film has maintained its appeal through television broadcasts and home video releases, with many viewers discovering it as an introduction to both classic Hollywood cinema and American dramatic literature.

Film connections

Influenced by

• Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize-winning play
• American regionalist theater
• New England literature
• Philosophical drama traditions
• American transcendentalism

This film influenced

• It's a Wonderful Life
• Our Vines Have Tender Grapes
• Picnic
• The Last Picture Show
• A River Runs Through It
• The Sweet Hereafter
• Fried Green Tomatoes

Film restoration

Our Town has been preserved by the Academy Film Archive and the Library of Congress. The original nitrate negatives have been transferred to safety film, and a restored version was released on DVD and Blu-ray by the Criterion Collection in 2019. The film remains in good condition with no significant lost footage, and its restoration has allowed modern audiences to appreciate the cinematography and sound design in their original quality.

Where to watch

• The Criterion Channel
• Amazon Prime Video (for purchase/rental)
• Apple TV
• Google Play Movies
• DVD and Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection
• Classic film streaming services like FilmStruck (when available)
• Public library collections
• Turner Classic Movies (occasional broadcasts)