"It's a Wonderful..." Movie!

REVIEW OF IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (Frank Capra, 1946)

SUMMARY
George Bailey had planned to travel around the world, go to college, and become an architect. However, he ends up taking over his father's building loan business and spending his entire life in his hometown. Crushed dreams, financial difficulties, and possible imprisonment push him into despair. That's when Clarence, a second-class angel, comes to help him on Christmas Eve,in order to earn his wings. He shows George what the town would look like if he had never been born.

MAIN CHARACTERS
George Bailey: Throughout the movie, we see George as a child, as a young man, and as a father of four children. One thing remains consistent: George dreams of travelling. He also has a good conscience and knows to make the right decision, as opposed to taking the easy way out for his own benefit. He shows courage and character, at the cost of his dreams.

Mary: She becomes George's wife and supports him until the end. She consistently stands by him, from when they are children until George finds himself in big trouble.

Clarence: George has a hard time believing Clarence is an angel coming to help him. He has no wings (yet!), dresses funny, and says mind-boggling comments. He is not the typical angel, that's for sure! One even wonders how he finally succeeded in earning his wings...

THEME
Several other stories have a similar theme and plot structure. The first one that comes to mind, and probably a major influence for the maker of this movie, is A Christmas Carol from Charles Dickens (1843). In fact, Scrooge undergoes the same realization as George Bailey, that his actions have an impact (negative, in his case) and he decides to change. Both are visited by spiritual beings that show them the value of their life.

A more recent movie starring James Belushi, titled Mr. Destiny (1990), has such a similar plot that I kept getting mixed up between the two. In fact, the tag line for Mr. Destiny is "Would you give up everything you had... for everything you've ever wanted?" The same tag line could very well be used for It's a Wonderful Life...

Several TV series from the 1980's and 1990's also convey the same theme: Highway to Heaven, starring Michael Landon (1984-1989), Touched by an Angel (1994-2003), and Quantum Leap (1989-1993). All have either an angel or a gifted being (a scientist, in the case of Quantum Leap) helping someone by giving them a second chance, or by helping them avoid a catastrophic mistake they are about to make.

MY COMMENTS
This is the kind of movie that made me reflect about my own life. Even though the movie is old and black and white, it still has a great value. I often wonder what would have happened if I made different decisions or taken a different crossroad at critical points in my life. Like George Bailey, I sometimes wonder why some of my dreams never came true, or whether my life has any impact on others. Seeing this movie reminded me of each person's unique value, and the preciousness of Life itself. There is a reason why things happen the way they do. And no matter what I'm going through, it could be much worse! Another lesson I like from this movie is about relationships. At the end, everyone pulls together to help George out of the seemingly hopeless situation he's in. Great movie, great lessons, it makes me feel like watching it again... next Christmas!

RESOURCES
If you are one of the few who have never seen It's a Wonderful Life, or to refresh your memory, please visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_a_Wonderful_Life for a complete summary. You can even watch the whole movie (like I did recently) on http://video.google.com; search for "It's a Wonderful Life" and select "It's a Wonderful Life (1946) - Feature Film".