It's a Wonderful Life

Rating: Null/10 (22 September 2013)

It's a Wonderful Life (1946) was produced and directed by Frank Apra. The film is about George Bailey, played by James Stewart, who dreams of leaving Bedford Falls, his home town, to travel around world. Unfortunately, a chain of events prevent him from realizing his dream. His father, who owned the family savings and loan, had a stroke. After the death of his father, George agrees to manage the savings and loan until his brother graduates from college. However, his brother gets married and accepts a job working with his father in law. George continues to run the family business. He eventually marries Mary, (Donna Reed) his childhood sweetheart, and they settle down to raise their four children.
On Christmas Eve, Uncle Billy, played by Thomas Mitchell, loses the $8,000 bank deposit. He absent mindedly placed the money in a newspaper, and gave the paper to Henry Potter, (Lionel Barrymore). Henry Potter was the major shareholder in the Bedford Falls Building and Loan. Potter keeps the money because he wants the bank to fail, and George to go to jail. George and Uncle Billy are unable to find the money. George asks Potter for a loan. Potter turns him down, and reports him to the authorities. George gets drunk and tries to commit suicide by crashing his car into a tree. After realizing that his plan did not work, he staggers to the town bridge. Before he can jump, Clarence, (Henry Tavers) his guardian angel, jumps in and pretends to be drowning. George rescues him and he discovers that Clarence is his guardian angel. Clarence convinces George that he has a wonderful life, by showing him what life in Bedford Falls would be like without him.
The theme of the film is that every life is important. Everyone is important, and everyone contributes to the greater good. George based his worth on the things that he did not accomplish. Therefore, he believed that Bedford Falls would be a better place without him. George was so focused on the negative that he forgot about the good things that he had accomplished; and all the people that he had helped. Through a series of flashbacks, Clarence convinces George that his life was important. Sound was used throughout the movie to provide transitions between two sequences. The actors projected naturalness, sincerity and truthfulness. Henry Potter and Clarence Odbody provided the theme of good and evil throughout the movie. The movie reminded me of Ebenezer Scrooge, by Charles Dickens. The movie shows us the importance of recognizing the good that we do in life.