Ms. Taylor
Period 1
"It's a Wonderful Life" was made in 1946. This movie was directed by Frank Capra who regarded the film as his personal favorite. Although it was not considered as a great movie when it was made, this film became known as the classic Christmas story around the 1970s. This classic is a film that can be enjoyed by anyone.
For all good classics, there has to be a good storyline. In this movie, George Bailey has always set aside his own dreams for the good of others. He is the type of person who always does whatever he can to help people in need. This has always come at a price for him. As a kid, he saved his brother's life, but became deaf in his left ear. Later, he also saved his employer from being sent to jail when he noticed that his distressed employer mistakenly put poisonous pills in a case meant for a sick boy. When he grew up, he had dreams of leaving his hometown to travel the world. These dreams were put off many times in order for him to help the Building and Loan Company, a company established by his father and Uncle Billy. Without his help, there would have been nobody to stop Mr. Potter, who is a very rich man and has never has liked anybody, from buying all of the property in the town. One day, his bank loses $8,000 and he knows that he will be blamed for it. Believing that everyone would be better off without him, George Bailey considers suicide as his only option. An angel named Clarence is sent to try to help George Bailey and must find a way to convince George not to commit suicide.
The best movies always establish the time when the story takes place. In this movie, many events that have occurred throughout the time period were tied into the story. At one point in the movie, there was a run on the bank. George Bailey went to check on the bank and found out that all of the money in the safe was gone. George and his wife, Mary, sacrifice their own money that was meant for their honeymoon and used it to reassure everyone that there was nothing to worry about. By helping the company, he again sacrificed his chance to travel. Later on, World War II started. Since he was deaf in his left ear, George was not allowed to help in the war. While all of his friends did great things to help with the war effort, he was stuck at home living his normal life. George Bailey lived through these events which also prevented him from traveling the world.
What really makes this movie a classic is the realistic aspects of George's personality. Although George was a good man, he was not a perfect person. Throughout the movie, he was always frustrated that he had to put of his dreams of traveling the world in order to help others. He sometimes takes out his frustration on other people, although he has never meant any harm. Despite the fact that George has is short-tempered at times, he still is friends with most people in the town. He is the type of person who is willing to do whatever he can to help others. His friends have always shown how grateful they are in return. George's most important characteristic is that he is willing to direct the problem towards himself in order to protect others. There was one part of the movie when his uncle lost the $8,000 that he was supposed to deposit. Instead of letting his uncle take the blame, George claimed that he lost the $8,000, even though he knew that he would be sent to jail. George Bailey has many characteristics that allows many people to connect with him.
"Its a Wonderful Life" is one of the greatest Christmas films. This classic film is one of the many movies that never grows old no matter how many times you see it. This timeless classic is a story that can keep the attention of the viewers and is a great movie for all ages to see.
Work Cited
"It's a Wonderful Life (1946) - IMDb." The Internet Movie Database (IMDb). Web. 12 Feb. 2012. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038650/.
"It's A Wonderful Life (1946)." Greatest Films - The Best Movies in Cinematic History. Web. 12 Feb. 2012.
I liked your review of "It's a wonderful life.Your best argument for the movie was the personality factor. The specific example of the money problem George's uncle really spoke to his character, for not everyone would do what he did in that situation.
ReplyDeleteThere wasn't any ethos in there. You could've added examples of other Christmas movies to strengthen what it means to be a great Christmas movies, and it would show you have authority on the subject, for you have watched many "classic" movies. There wasn't really any logos in there, but that wasn't really nessesary. The pathos was by far your strongest; I liked the phrase "timeless classic", for it is euphonic and makes me think of a Disney Movie or something along those lines. Since you made the main paragraphs about each aspect that made the movie great, I would say that it was well organized. The only thing I would advise would be to try to define what is in a good storyline, or why a piece establishing the period makes it a better movie compared to movies where this does not take place. Overall, it was a really well-written piece.