Other Titles • It's a Wonderful Life (1946) • Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life • The Greatest Gift • Ist das Leben nicht schön? (1962)
Synopses for It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
1.
Now perhaps the most beloved American film, It's a Wonderful Life was largely forgotten for years, due to a copyright quirk. Only in the late 1970s did it find its audience through repeated TV showings. Frank Capra's masterwork deserves its status as a feel-good communal event, but it is also one of the most fascinating films in the American cinema, a multilayered work of Dickensian density. George Bailey (played superbly by James Stewart) grows up in the small town of Bedford Falls, dreaming dreams of adventure and travel, but circumstances conspire to keep him enslaved to his home turf. Frustrated by his life, and haunted by an impending scandal, George prepares to commit suicide on Christmas Eve. A heavenly messenger (Henry Travers) arrives to show him a vision: what the world would have been like if George had never been born. The sequence is a vivid depiction of the American Dream gone bad, and probably the wildest thing Capra ever shot (the director's optimistic vision may have darkened during his experiences making military films in World War II). Capra's triumph is to acknowledge the difficulties and disappointments of life, while affirming--in the teary-eyed final reel--his cherished values of friendship and individual achievement. It's a Wonderful Life was not a big hit on its initial release, and it won no Oscars (Capra and Stewart were nominated); but it continues to weave a special magic. --Robert Horton
(36 votes)
2.
No one is born to be a failure. No one is poor who has friends. Simple thoughts that were the inspiration for one of richest, most uplifting, most beloved American films ever made. Frank Capra's classic tale of George Bailey and five Oscars including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor after more than 50 years it remains as powerful and moving as the day it was made.
(33 votes)
3.
A good but slightly ineffectual man tries to off himself after an error that really wasn't his fault. In Christmas carol fashion, his crusty-but-lovable guardian angel shows up to give him a tour of the world without his presence, and it isn't a pretty place. Moral courage, small-town American life, civic cooperation, and family love are glorified; corporate greed and self-involvement are vilified; at the climax, a blanket of snow like spun sugar makes everything pure and clean like redemption itself. The DVD version contains a behind-the-scenes featurette and an interview with director Capra. Academy Award Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (James Stewart), Best Editing, Best Sound.
(30 votes)
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