It’s A Wonderful Life (1946) – Encore Review 2

“I know what I’m gonna do tomorrow, and the next day, and the next year, and the year after that.’ – George Bailey

Number of Times Seen – Between 10 and 20 times (Cable and TV in the 90’s, DVD, 16 Jul 2014, 14 May 2018 and 19 Jun 2019)

Link to original review – Here and Here

Brief Synopsis – A man faced with despair for his circumstances and wishes to end his life is visited by his guardian angel who tries to save him.

My Take on it – This is among my all time favorite films and it’s one that I can watch over and over and =never get bored since it has so much to discover each and every time which makes it even more enjoyable on subsequent watches.

The story itself is superbly weaved in a way that makes it so inspirational from start to finish.

Jimmy Stewart is perfectly cast in the lead role and this clearly remains one of the very best performances of his storied career.

Director Frank Capra knew how to make such a story timeless and due to this fact, this story has become one of the most loved films ever made largely due to its poignant and inspirational message along with the way that the story plays out over the course of the film.

The movie is an emotional roller coaster and allows the viewer to encounter so many emotions along the way; there are scenes which will make you cry and other scenes that will cause you to be overcome by joy and others that will evoke much laughter.

The film encompasses many years of the character’s life and this helps develop the main and supporting characters so well to a point where we can easily feel quite attached to them and only want them to succeed in all that they endeavor largely because we feel as if we’ve known them for years.

Even after more than 7 decades, this film’s message constantly resonates throughout and is just as relevant today as it was back then.

The story can be felt on a very personal level to just about anyone and is filled with universal appeal as the story moves along.

In addition to Stewart, the supporting cast is also superb with Donna Reed, Thomas Mitchell, Lionel Barrymore and especially Henry Travers giving us some of their best work.

Just thinking about this film again gives me the urge to want to experience it yet again.

Bottom Line – Amazing film that gets better and better upon each subsequent viewing. The story is superbly weaved in a way that it is so inspirational throughout. Stewart is excellent in the lead role and this remains one of his very best performances of hos career. Capra knew how to make a timeless story like this work so well that it has become one of the most loved films of all time due to its message and the way that things play out. The movie is able to take its viewer on an emotional roller coaster and even some of the smallest scenes can bring tears to ones eyes while moments later, another scene will cause roaring laughter. The fact that the film encompasses many years of the main characters life helps to develop these characters so well and allows us to become quite attached to them all since we feel as if we have spent so many years getting to know each of them. The message of the film still resonates now after more than 70 years and will continue to do so for many years to come because the story can be seen by just about anyone from a personal perspective due to the universal appeal of the premise and how things play out. In addition to Stewart, the supporting cast is also superb with Reed, Mitchell, Barrymore and especially Travers giving such amazing and memorable performances here. Just thinking about this film makes me want to go and watch it again. Highly Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – For the scene that required Donna Reed to throw a rock through the window of the Granville house, director Frank Capra hired a marksman to shoot it out on cue. To everyone’s amazement, Reed broke the window by herself. She had played baseball in high school and had a strong throwing arm. (From IMDB)

Rating – Oscar Worthy (10/10) (no change from original review)