wasn't the first and won't be the last of the classic's I 'get around to', but so far, it's one of the best

Rating: 10/10 (7 December 2012)

I didn't feel comfortable in my skin a few years back. My friends and family considered me 'the movie buff'. In a way, I was. I'd seen about 4,000 movies, and covered literally everything worth watching since 1980, but I hadn't broken into the vault of classic films. I'd seen a few.
Wuthering Heights(9.5/10) and The Wizard of Oz(10/10) were two of my favorite films, both from 1939. I'd also seen 1939's Gone With the Wind(9/10), Dark Victory(9/10), and a few other classics:The Killing, King Kong, Frankenstein, Dracula, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, War of the Worlds, Mr. Smith goes to Washington, and some Hitchcock.
Citizen Kane, It's A Wonderful Life, and Casablanca sat embarrassingly on my watchlist. So did a litany of great classic films.
My journey to fill this void has been an exciting one.
It's a Wonderful Life is a great film for those who haven't given classic film a chance. It doesn't overstay it's welcome. The production values are strong, and the story is a template for many of today's films. Seriously, I can name 500 films from the last 2 decades that use this story/life-lesson, but I can't name one that does it quite as effectively as it's done here.
It's a film that is practically impossible to dislike.
James Stewart is fantastic, and many of the characters in the film teach us life lessons, not just the lead. Words like integrity, generosity, and sacrifice take on a whole new meaning.
The film doesn't really have the holiday vibe I was expecting until the last 40 minutes. The holiday season is nothing more than a platform to remind us of all that is important in life. That aspect of the film surprised me.
Good guys don't finish last. Why? Because when they're down, there's always someone there to pick them up.
I can see all the reasons why there are those like me that shy(d) away from Classic film. You have to take some of the customs of the day and the production stuff with a grain of salt and get past it. Or better yet, understand it. If you do - you'll find what's underneath to be fantastic. A week before the release of "The Hobbit", I think it's important to remember that as much care or more went into productions like this back in the day.
Now, I get all the references to this film that I missed over the last 40 years. I see the shots of the town and the snow that will forever be etched into my mind. It's amazing how all those "production and technology" issues from the time yield more memorable moments and shots than just about anything you'll see at the theater today.
This is a fantastic movie. 95/100