Great Moments From Cinema - 17

The Greatest Gift Of All
Movie: It’s A Wonderful Life (Liberty Films Inc.; 1946)
Director: Frank Capra
Screenplay: Philip Van Doren Stern (story) and Frances Goodrich & Albert Hackett
Major Cast: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore and Henry Travers

Film Synopsis: When ‘George Bailey’ (Stewart) wishes that he hadn’t been born, an angel (Travers) shows him what life would have been for others if he had never existed.

My Favorite Moment: “ Please! I wanna live again. I wanna live again. Please, God, let me live again.”

Why I Like It: If there was ever a doubt that cinema is the noblest and the most life-affirming medium of reassurance for people, then this film ought to dispel it. A movie which symbolizes the genre of ‘feel-good films’, it is Frank Capra’s greatest gift to mankind.

‘George Bailey’ had always sacrificed his personal happiness and ambitions so that someone else could benefit. The immortal Jimmy Stewart gives the performance of his illustrious career and has poured his heart and soul into portraying the pain and frustrations of the title character. ‘George’ wanted to travel the world when he was young but stayed back to help his family when his father had a stroke. He wanted to go to college and be an engineer but instead ran his fathers lending company, which helps poor people afford homes. After marrying the girl of his dreams (Reed), he wanted to take her for a honeymoon, but gave away all his money to people who were suffering due to the market crash. His whole life has been spent helping others in need. He educates his younger brother, doesn’t stop him from leaving the town for a better career and refuses a lucrative job offer from the evil ‘Mr. Potter’ (Barrymore), because he knows that ‘Potter’ would destroy any hope that the poor people of ‘Bedford Falls’ have of one day building their own houses. ‘George’ never had an opportunity to even leave his small town, when all he wanted as a youngster, was adventure. What he does have is a loving wife, adorable kids and a grateful community. However, one day on Christmas Eve, his uncle misplaces $8,000 and banks come to foreclose. With pent-up frustration of all these years, ‘George’ finally looses his sanity, fights with his wife and in despair goes to commit suicide on a snowy night.

Travers is his guardian angel who saves him and as ‘George’ wishes he had never been born, he is shown how his life touched so many people and how the town of ‘Bedford Falls’ and beyond are better because of him. As he realizes his mistake, ‘George’ comes back to the bridge from which he was about to jump and pleads with God to let him live. Then, with all the magic that only movies can create, it starts snowing, signifying that he is back to his reality. Overjoyed, he comes back home to see that the entire town has collected money to help their favorite son and his younger brother raises a toast with the famous words, “To my big brother George: The richest man in town”. It is another one of those emotionally charged endings for a film which has the highest moral lesson. Life may be full of despair, but not futile and that there is a silver lining to every deed. If anybody forgets this, then they need to see this movie again and again and again….till the following words which the angel teaches ‘George’, are etched in their subconscious, “Remember, George: no man is a failure who has friends.”.