It's a Wonderful LifeToo often in life, we lose sight of the people in our lives that make our world a better place. It's a Wonderful Life is a perennial Christmas classic, a story filled with a noble, moral lesson, about the costs of responsibility and the oft-forgotten fruits of our labor, the effects of our actions on others...how we matter. Life-affirming and yet progressively dark and occasionally bleak, the story follows George Bailey (James Stewart, in a watershed role) as he weathers the challenges of upholding his resident town of Bedford Falls in opposition his desires to flourish away from its confines, and how this Atlas-like effort to uphold his world changes him.
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It's a Wonderful Life starts in media res, with our "God's eye view" looking over individual houses, hearing the voices of those concerned for the forlorn George as they pray for him. Before we've even met George Bailey, we understand that he is important, beloved by so many people. And our visit into the heavens--portraying celestial bodies as angels, a clever touch on the part of filmmaker Frank Capra--enlightens us about the impending suicide of the very same George Bailey. Little by little, George has been worn down by his irrepressible yearning to see the world. A subscriber to National Geographic at a young age, he has been planning several trips across the world that never seem to come to fruition. George's upbringing may not have been perfect, having been permanently deprived hearing in his left ear at a young age, but it was as a result of an act that establishes his heroism and selflessness, which are revealed to also be indelible parts of his character. Just as he's about to"start his life" away from Bedford Falls, he is stopped short. But those pauses, those misfortunes, propel him along another path, a life that is richer for many other reasons--the most important revelation of this life is his relationship with Mary (Donna Reed). It's clear from his childhood days that Mary has always had a love for George, but George (like most men too fool to notice right away) doesn't really pick up on it until he's in one of the earlier fits of anger--a preview of his later tirade in his darkest hour--and his impromptu visit to Mary's seems destined in retrospect. Mary loves George, but it's important to note that she is not complicit with his anger. She understands his rage and frustration, but does not simply abide it. Yet her love is genuine, evidenced by her passion and understanding, even when he is being a jerk. And so, too, is George's for her, expressed in a beautiful moment when he realizes that he's been running from his love for her all along.
I've heard It's a Wonderful Life best described as "A Christmas Carol" in reverse: a man who is not miserly or cruel is ground down by life, and little by little transformed into a "warped, frustrated young man", sardonically phrased by town "Scrooge", Henry F. Potter (Lionel Barrymore). George has sacrificed and sacrificed...and when a mistake happens (albeit a mistake to the tune of eight-thousand dollars), his spirit shatters like glass, and the shards fly out to the detriment of those he loves. George has lost his way, and in his eyes even a prayer won't save him, so he decides to end his life. However, his prayer is answered in the form of angel (second-class) Clarence (Henry Travers), who in an act of inspired elucidation, allows George to experience what life would be like without him ever being born. When he is witness to how poorly off those he loves are in the absence of his charity, he begins to understand just how important he has become in the lives of so many people, and he cannot stomach the idea of causing that kind of pain to be inflicted upon those he loves. Even at the edge, his love pours forth, and his eyes are opened. It's an important lesson that is often forgotten, especially by those who feel the pains of loneliness and despair creeping upon them. Just as it was in 1946, it is today that life can weigh us down and we lose sight of how we can influence the world--the responsibility that comes with it, yes, but also the joy of knowing that someone's life is better because you're in it. Even upon its release, It's a Wonderful Life was regarded as a sentimental film, "overly optimistic and facile", to quote Bosley Crowther, a critic of the era. Perhaps, yes, but the message is clear and relatable, a sentiment that at one point or another we have all felt, that bearing down of life, that feeling that nothing we do matters and we'll always be spinning our wheels. Again, it's easy to lose sight of the big picture...and if it takes a motion picture to remind us how we matter, maybe Frank Capra et al deserve a set of wings for the trouble.
Recommended for: Fans of a heart-warming Christmas tale with an identifiable story and circumstances that remind us that though life is hard, it is also worth living.
I've heard It's a Wonderful Life best described as "A Christmas Carol" in reverse: a man who is not miserly or cruel is ground down by life, and little by little transformed into a "warped, frustrated young man", sardonically phrased by town "Scrooge", Henry F. Potter (Lionel Barrymore). George has sacrificed and sacrificed...and when a mistake happens (albeit a mistake to the tune of eight-thousand dollars), his spirit shatters like glass, and the shards fly out to the detriment of those he loves. George has lost his way, and in his eyes even a prayer won't save him, so he decides to end his life. However, his prayer is answered in the form of angel (second-class) Clarence (Henry Travers), who in an act of inspired elucidation, allows George to experience what life would be like without him ever being born. When he is witness to how poorly off those he loves are in the absence of his charity, he begins to understand just how important he has become in the lives of so many people, and he cannot stomach the idea of causing that kind of pain to be inflicted upon those he loves. Even at the edge, his love pours forth, and his eyes are opened. It's an important lesson that is often forgotten, especially by those who feel the pains of loneliness and despair creeping upon them. Just as it was in 1946, it is today that life can weigh us down and we lose sight of how we can influence the world--the responsibility that comes with it, yes, but also the joy of knowing that someone's life is better because you're in it. Even upon its release, It's a Wonderful Life was regarded as a sentimental film, "overly optimistic and facile", to quote Bosley Crowther, a critic of the era. Perhaps, yes, but the message is clear and relatable, a sentiment that at one point or another we have all felt, that bearing down of life, that feeling that nothing we do matters and we'll always be spinning our wheels. Again, it's easy to lose sight of the big picture...and if it takes a motion picture to remind us how we matter, maybe Frank Capra et al deserve a set of wings for the trouble.
Recommended for: Fans of a heart-warming Christmas tale with an identifiable story and circumstances that remind us that though life is hard, it is also worth living.