Western Values

Rating: 10/10 (5 January 2010)

James Stewart, The Legend.
How does one begin to describe those moments when a scene of a film just captures you; moves your soul into a realm of emotion you weren't remotely near the hour before? I'm not sure myself, but this film nails it.
Even if most see Stewart as the bumbling nice guy (and find it annoying) one must admit this role was made for the guy. And to also note that this was his first role after the war--and to top that off his first intimate scene he partakes in with the beautiful, lovely Donna Reed is a complete showstopper. Seriously, the only prop is a phone and just reading the desire on Reed's face and watching Stewart change from stand-offish to surrendering to his own deep desires, is something I can say is rarely achieved. Capra & Co., I say again, you nailed it!
The crazy thing about watching "It's A Wonderful Life in the 21st Century is that we can certainly comment on how times have changed for better or for worse, and concerning public discourse and general values, I think mostly for the worse.
"It's A Wonderful Life" is definitely a product of it's time, but it is much more than that in the sense of morality, mortality, and the influence of early 20th Century Western values that have been slowly stomped on and questioned over the years since. In today's world of nihilism and "the end is nigh" and "humans suck", I think most folks have lost sight of what good there is in living. Instead, we virtue signal and hate our neighbors while we should take a second to see we are more alike than we want to admit. This film has all of this presented in George Bailey's story; that he has sacrificed time after time his personal wants in the sake of helping others (great moral compass), and also proving (unbeknownst to him) that he's greatly affecting everyone around him. So by the time he is looking back on his life and it isn't how he originally planned it out, he is deeply upset and sad, because well, who wouldn't be? Not everyone will ask God for help (as Bailey does) because we are all different and believe different things, but it takes some deep inner reflection for George to realize he's had it really good. There is not a better film out there that represents these values and helps us formulate the very same conclusions with our own lives. It is a vast understatement that our minds can not wrap themselves around how different things would be if we didn't meet or help the numerous amount of people we've come in contact with in our lives.
At the core of this film is the solid, concrete foundation of Western Values that seems a lost concept to all the millennials my age who demand the ways of socialism, are secular, and statistically claim the future is dark and weary. A far cry from the message of George Bailey's revelation that he himself fights through the tears to see his friends and family gather around the Christmas tree at his home.
In other aspects, take note, Henry Travers is one of the best character actors of his time, and his presence is always welcome on-screen. Usually playing the lovable-fatherly type. The stunning Donna Reed does a great job as George Bailey's wife. And last but not least, Lionel Barrymore, who perhaps plays one of the most vile characters to grace the silver screen, is perfectly cast in his role as Potter. When you put all the above together (amazing story, acting, production) what do you get? The winning formula for Frank Capra who is the mastermind to really give this world a movie that sincerely touches the heart in more ways than one.
The whole scene toward the end pretty much had me in tears... and that's what a great movie's capabilities should be. Something that has you ask yourself questions and really make you think, 'Life IS worth living" or "I really do effect everyone that knows me whether they recognize that or not." And that's everything Capra's film did to me.
I hope we never lose sight to the greater things in life; friends, family, love-while we are in a world buried in dirty politics, polarizing figures, partisan smear jobs, cynicism and hate because there are so few movies out there where you can walk away saying, "I want to really live my life."
As the old man in the film says,
"Youth is wasted on the wrong people!"