It isn’t Christmas without classic Hollywood movies. One particular movie from this time period serves time and again to go beyond the Christmas holiday and yule tide seasonal festivities to bring audiences a deeper meaning. Frank Capra’s beloved classic starring James Stewart and Donna Reed, “It’s A Wonderful Life” leaves audiences to bear witness to a man with limitless potential, and his ultimate sense of duty to his community, intertwining the Christmas holiday as a backdrop for his tale.
READ MORE: Frank Capra’s Katharine Hepburn & Spencer Tracy Political Dramedy ‘State Of The Union’ Getting A Remake
Like Stories of Old presents a video essay exploring this idea of individual vs. community in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” and explicates on how “It’s A Wonderful Life,” and its ideals are timeless. With background knowledge on the hero’s journey, we learn George Bailey (Stewart), like many of us, yearns to be the hero of his own story, he is destined for something greater. George’s individualism and sense of destiny are constantly in conflict with the connections and duty he finds for his family and community, against the formidable Mr. Potter. Potter manifests into the idea of a corrupted individualism, the antithesis of what George Bailey represents.
While George represents all the good and sacrifice a person can make for their fellow man, he still sees each failure as a tormenting reminder of his lack of uniqueness or heroism. These attacks on self-worth are explained in two ways: an encouragement to author your own life and a discouragement to be a member of a community. Plagued by the ideas, George never sees himself as a hero by his acts of kindness and selflessness and his willingness to devote to the community of Bedford Falls. By the end of “It’s A Wonderful Life,” George’s situation does not change but more so his attitude towards it. As we revisit the life of George Bailey, we not only see how George gave much to his community, but what the community did to build and better him. Clarence the Angel reveals a message we all should find contentment in. Though our dreams resonate with us and our individualism is our driving force, we should not punish ourselves when the adventure we dreamed does not come to fruition. Our world has nightmares, but it also has dreams.