This greatest of all Christmas films is darker than most people think. It builds up to such a catharsis that many forget how bleak it gets along the way. It’s the saddest feelgood movie ever made. At its heart, it’s about a man with big dreams who never achieves any of them—and it’s not because he’s a loser. In James Stewart’s marvel of a performance, George Bailey is a powerhouse personality, gregarious, ambitious, and not a man to be pushed around. He’s also neither tragic nor necessarily anyone’s victim.
No, his life takes the exact opposite direction than he wants because he’s selfless. He wants to travel and go to college, but it seems that he’s been put on this Earth to save his family’s savings-and-loan business, a folksy, community-minded institution in a small town otherwise run by a sneering millionaire slumlord (played to the cartoonishly evil hilt by Lionel Barrymore). Every time Stewart finally has a chance to get the hell out of town, some new problem comes up that keeps him home. His sacrifices always sting. His every dashed hope hurts. But he never asks for credit and never asks anyone to feel bad for him. He can’t even conceive of that.
On the bright side, he does get Donna Reed out of the deal. She’s never looked more beautiful onscreen.
Director Frank Capra is a strong storyteller and his seasoned skills are on full display here (as are his characteristic cornball tendencies), but the film’s great genius is Stewart. He gives us everything he’s got, from his effortless charm to his great ability to be haunted and defeated. We believe Stewart when he’s riding high and we believe him when he’s ready to jump off a bridge. He’s loud and likable, but some of his best moments are the quiet ones where he sincerely tries to put a happy face on his latest disappointment or becomes temporarily seduced by the prospect of a selfish act. Stewart brings a uniquely whole humanity to George Bailey and you can’t imagine another actor in the part.
Based on Philip Van Doren Stern’s short story “The Greatest Gift”, which was originally self-published as a twenty-one-page Christmas card for his family and friends.