Its a Wonderful Life may well be Frank Capra's masterpiece. It is the film where his positive outlook on life, his humanity, his humane portrayal of the characters, shines through most brightly. All of Capra's works present his philosophy on life and love, but this film defines that philosophy, and still stands as the greatest Christmas movie of all time.
Yes, your inner child says "Not it's not, that would be A Christmas Story, thank you very much!" and your inner cynic wants to laugh the whole thing off and say that Lethal Weapon is the greatest Christmas movie. Both wrong. This film is the best holiday film of all time for quite a number of reasons. Not How the Grinch Stole Christmas, not Die Hard, It's a Wonderful Life.
The film deals with the darker side of the holidays, the depression, the self pity, the nihilism, despair and disappointment that so few filmmakers have the courage to address. In fact, the second act begins with Jimmy Stewart, the warmest and most friendly actor in history, attempting suicide! To start from such an incredibly low point takes confidence.
It is because of this ugliness, this darkness and pessimism, that it is so heroic to see Stewart's George Bailey overcome the odds and learn to love his life again. True optimism only counts in the face of adversity. Anyone can be positive in one of those weepy made for cable Lifetime movies where nobody ever really faces any true challenges, but Bailey faces the worst challenges of his life, and learns to face them with a sense of hope.
The film ranks with Rocky as the greatest Happy Tears movies of all time. If you're not crying by the time the film ends then... You probably weren't actually watching the film! Put down your Nintendo DS or crossword puzzles for just a couple hours and actually watch the film! It is a triumphant display of how optimism and hope always trump negativity.
The movie actually flopped on release for some reason or other. Capra was always a director you could rely on to make a lot of money for the studios, but for whatever reason, this one just didn't grab the initial audience. Luckily, it did go on to become one of the most popular movies of all time on cable, in second runs, and on video and DVD. Still, at the time, it almost sank the director's career.
Film legend has it that Capra had pegged Stewart from the start and would accept nobody else in the lead. Not true. In fact, he WANTED Henry Fonda, but Stewart was a close second. Fonda would have been a great lead in Bailey's shoes, but Stewart owns and defines this role better than any other actor possibly could have. We can imagine what might have been, but we can't imagine loving Bailey so much as anyone but Stewart.
The movie had a number of alternative endings written, and one or two of them filmed. Interestingly, the "spoof" ending shown on Saturday Night Live, with Stewart leading the entire town to Potter's house for a good old fashioned whoopin', isn't far off from one of the alternative endings that was actually filmed by Capra's cast and crew! - 40732
Yes, your inner child says "Not it's not, that would be A Christmas Story, thank you very much!" and your inner cynic wants to laugh the whole thing off and say that Lethal Weapon is the greatest Christmas movie. Both wrong. This film is the best holiday film of all time for quite a number of reasons. Not How the Grinch Stole Christmas, not Die Hard, It's a Wonderful Life.
The film deals with the darker side of the holidays, the depression, the self pity, the nihilism, despair and disappointment that so few filmmakers have the courage to address. In fact, the second act begins with Jimmy Stewart, the warmest and most friendly actor in history, attempting suicide! To start from such an incredibly low point takes confidence.
It is because of this ugliness, this darkness and pessimism, that it is so heroic to see Stewart's George Bailey overcome the odds and learn to love his life again. True optimism only counts in the face of adversity. Anyone can be positive in one of those weepy made for cable Lifetime movies where nobody ever really faces any true challenges, but Bailey faces the worst challenges of his life, and learns to face them with a sense of hope.
The film ranks with Rocky as the greatest Happy Tears movies of all time. If you're not crying by the time the film ends then... You probably weren't actually watching the film! Put down your Nintendo DS or crossword puzzles for just a couple hours and actually watch the film! It is a triumphant display of how optimism and hope always trump negativity.
The movie actually flopped on release for some reason or other. Capra was always a director you could rely on to make a lot of money for the studios, but for whatever reason, this one just didn't grab the initial audience. Luckily, it did go on to become one of the most popular movies of all time on cable, in second runs, and on video and DVD. Still, at the time, it almost sank the director's career.
Film legend has it that Capra had pegged Stewart from the start and would accept nobody else in the lead. Not true. In fact, he WANTED Henry Fonda, but Stewart was a close second. Fonda would have been a great lead in Bailey's shoes, but Stewart owns and defines this role better than any other actor possibly could have. We can imagine what might have been, but we can't imagine loving Bailey so much as anyone but Stewart.
The movie had a number of alternative endings written, and one or two of them filmed. Interestingly, the "spoof" ending shown on Saturday Night Live, with Stewart leading the entire town to Potter's house for a good old fashioned whoopin', isn't far off from one of the alternative endings that was actually filmed by Capra's cast and crew! - 40732
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Slot 2 is the Gameboy Advance port on your NDS console. Download New Movie People tend to call people who they have recently seen. The game features classics such as, Here Comes the Sun and Octopus Garden.
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