the tale of the classic selfless man's conflicted mind-set and the town that's ingrained in his life

Rating: 9/10 (24 December 2006)

I should be inclined to say that Frank Capra made his masterpiece with It's a Wonderful Life, and it would probably be the obvious, easy answer to make as a movie-lover. And shock of shocks, it wasn't until today (of Christmas Eve of all times, ho-ho-ho) that I finally sat down and watched it- it wasn't a 'family staple' in my house- but I knew I had to watch it, if only to see James Stewart in the seminal role of George Bailey. It is, no doubt, with enough fantastical scenes to make up a couple more movies, and the heart that sits right in It's a Wonderful Life beats with all the vigor and pride of the most schmaltzy- and rightly proud of it- American spirit. That I ended up not finding it to be a truly astonishing movie may be that I'm just a cynic deep down, or that maybe this kind of story, and how it plays out, has ended up being done so many times I practically knew what the story was before going in. It's the most amazing of credits to Capra and his cast and crew that it does hold up this well, and that the sentimentality stringing together much of what happens is actually well earned. But it does teeter on becoming a bit too dated, or rather that it's appeal of being a fable really only works best when dealing with the crux of the character George Bailey, and almost becomes weird in how it leaps from great happiness to the terrible bleakness of modern American life.
Indeed, Stewart was not only the best choice for George Bailey, but the correct one, the kind we'd probably all like to have in our town as the man who despite his better senses commits his life to being there for the ones he cares for. It almost becomes a running gag, however not really funny as much as touching, the way he puts aside his own feelings and self-wants to help save the bank and Bedford Falls from the peril that could come from the dastardly Potter (Lionel Barrymore, cast perfectly for the role as well with his sinister eyebrows and cunning attitude). I first thought it would be all about George seeing life as if he had never been born, but really this is(wisely) kept to the last twenty minutes of the picture. This works because we see how Bailey gets to that point of almost jumping off into the river, which in its selfish way would be, to him, still a selfless act (i.e. worth more than dead). Seeing George's life is like peering into one of those tall-tale American stories where the little guy gets a lot done by just being himself- or at least his better self getting the better of him. All George wants to do as a young man is explore the world, make great buildings and things. But any lofty ambition becomes squashed by reality- of his father's death, of the very sneaky attitude imposed by Potter, and by the townspeople practically needing some hope during the depression. So it's up to him to not only save the town by making a section of the town named after him for low-cost housing, but to marry a girl Mary (Donna Reed) who's fallen totally for George.
What ends up being most memorable, for me, about It's a Wonderful Life is the skill which Capra makes possibly one-dimensional figures very real and immediate, and that in this seemingly simplistic world of right and wrong and good and bad there are the slivers of gray that work their way in. I loved one scene in particular where Potter, desperate to gain back control over his possible monopoly in Bedford Falls, tries to will George away to work for him at far more an amount of money he would make on his own terms with his small bank. It's a tense scene in how devilish Potter comes off, and how Barrymore turns on the ideal of greed and necessity and the ego of a man over the higher principles that George ultimately goes for. It's always fascinating too to see how Stewart plays certain scenes and lines and inflections, moments of surprise and delight which probably hide just the bits of bitterness that build up in him. There's something about the American dream that is called into question in American life, even as Capra likes to jump from sweet touches of light comedy to stark tragedy or danger. There's a great juxtaposition that is made too with the characters of Harry Bailey, George's brother, who goes on to lead the life George might have led had he not saved Harry as a boy, and as well in a small part with Sam Wainwright.
It's through the sort of realistic groundings then that Capra is able to get away with reaching for the fantasy structure that ends up coming out of the film, the typical 'what if' nightmare scenario that has ended up influencing countless movies and TV shows. Like Christmas Carol, though sort of in reverse, it's sort of meant as a lesson in humanity, and how what is carried in a man or what is lacking in it ends up bringing it out or losing it in others. It all builds to help Capra earn the melodrama and ultra-heightened emotions brought out with Clarence the angel. It doesn't mean that, at least for me, there aren't things that end up being dated (however, scenes like the dance-hall bit in 1928, is timeless in its humor), mainly in how the idealism and old-fashioned ways come out in this day & age. But still, it doesn't stop me from saying that It's a Wonderful Life is a must see, if only once, and there's no doubt why it's been revered as one of the great films about the triumph of the human spirit. Grade: A