… that means Its A Wonderful Life is going to be on TV. I’ve decided that this, by far, is my favorite holiday movie. It’s also, despite conservative delusions to the contrary, an amazingly liberal movie. Here’s a representative clip. George Bailey might as well be Chairman Mao in the eyes of today’s conservatives.
ZuZu Bailey: “Look, Daddy. That teacher you cussed out always says: “Every time taxes are raised, a liberal gets his wings.”"
George Bailey: “That’s right. That’s Right.”
George Bailey: “Attaboy, Clarence.”
I don’t see Rep Frank getting a free house in this movie — or was that Rep Dodd? Oh, well…
You guys would fuck up a wet dream.
Nice touch by Capra casting Mr. Potter in a wheelchair in a lame attempt to make him appear even more evil and scary. As if stealing $8,000 and trying to run the only bank competition in the town wasn’t evil enough, he had to make him a cripple, too.
“Sorry about the derogatory stereotype, all you handicapped people. ‘Hey it’s just a movie’. And he was a conservative, too, so what’s the big deal?”
You’re more bitter than usual Dennis, someone take a whiz in your cheerios?
Never felt better, actually, Oliver. Hope you’re doing well today, too.
By the way; I only counted a total of one black person in that whole movie, and she was the Baily family’s housekeeper, presumably the only black person in town from the way Capra presented it. All she wanted was a man. I wonder why Capra didn’t just show her at the end of the movie getting married to a white guy if this was such an amazingly liberal movie and all.
And her line: “I been saving this money for a divorce, if I ever get a husband.”
How can you defend a movie with horrible stereotype like that?
C’mon, dude. This movie’s got all kinds of holes in it to be championing it as amazingly liberal. It’s more big business versus small business than it is capitalism versus your beloved communism.
Besides, that town’s probably got two Lowes and Home Depots now and no small hardware stores, a Walmart Supercenter, and a Kroger and a big regional grocer as the only two grocery stores- forget the mom and pop stores.
And this is a popular movie because it hearkens back to the days people use to remember fondly about community and helping your neighbors. The exact kind of thing people are talking about when they say ‘real Americans’ and ‘we’re losing our country’. In short, the kind of things you and the Heckle and Jeckles here laugh and scoff at.
I love the movie too; I just don’t get the ‘amazingly liberal’ bit.
[i]“By the way; I only counted a total of one black person in that whole movie, and she was the Baily family’s housekeeper, presumably the only black person in town from the way Capra presented it. All she wanted was a man. I wonder why Capra didn’t just show her at the end of the movie getting married to a white guy if this was such an amazingly liberal movie and all.
And her line: “I been saving this money for a divorce, if I ever get a husband.””[/i]
Seriously? The Movie is from 1942, one black person is amazingly progressive, but hey your heartfelt embrace of political correctness is noted. I’m sure you’ll be just as concerned next time a republican caucus sends out a mailer with racist overtones or comment’s on putting the speaker of the house in her “place”.
Because as previously noted, it was 1942. And big guy vs little guy is the ultimate expression of conservatism vs. liberalism. The right is the ideology of monied interests focused on suppressing upward mobility.
“The right is the ideology of monied interests focused on suppressing upward mobility.”
If that’s the idea Capra was trying to convey, then why did he portray Uncle Billie as an incompetent buffoon, nipping at the sauce just as the bank was going to have a run on it?
Because he was too stupid to have a bonded carrier transfer a large sum of money and decided to run it across the street himself, and the bank nearly failed, this is the fault of monied interests? Why didn’t Capra simply film the Potter character cheating Bailey out on an important business deal in the town that had the Bauley Building and Loan losing a large sum of money that created the run instead of because of an incompetent’s foolish error?
Or is that an accurate depiction of liberalism?
You have turned obtuse ignorance into an art form.
I think their argument is One Black Person = Conservative Movie.
Nice touch by Capra casting Mr. Potter in a wheelchair in a lame attempt to make him appear even more evil and scary. As if stealing $8,000 and trying to run the only bank competition in the town wasn’t evil enough, he had to make him a cripple, too.
Are you for real? I see “I’m a Hick” corrected you as well below but I can’t help but remark on the idiocy of this comment. Lionel Barrymore appeared in every role he did after 1938, some 40 odd films, in a wheelchair because of physical ailments.
Barrymore wasn’t cast because he was in a wheelchair. He was cast because he’s a great freakin’ actor.
As to other points made here, Capra was no Communist. Indeed, he spent much of his later years traveling to various international film festivals as a representative of good old fashioned American values in the face of Communist propaganda. Read his autobiography some time. Much of the tail end of it, after he stopped making films, is spent describing these trips and his hatred of communism and Communists. Which is ironic because he had long been accused of leftist Commmunist sympahties becuase of his films. But while I haven’t read Joseph McBride’s book on Capra apparently Capra was quite the right wing reactionary:
http://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/03/books/it-wasn-t-such-a-wonderful-life.html
Classic Dennis.
Lionel Barrymore was confined to a wheelchair in real life due to arthritis.
Where would George Bailey be if the town hadn’t passed that massive stimulus package?
Can a movie truly be considered “Liberal” if it acknowledges the existence of a one true God?
In the absence of depositor’s insurance, the savings and loan is almost ruined by a run. It’s only because they give their honeymoon money to the depositors that they keep it open.
So … they were able to stay in business (and help their fellow man) even without government intervention?
ZOINKS!!!!
But only because they gave their own money to the depositors. A few years later, they could have said, your deposits are insured by the government, quick panicking.
Yes, and how would that have looked? “Newly Wed Fatcat Jets off on Vacation while Poor can’t Pay the Bills”
If today’s White House would have had Final Cut, George would have never been able to save up enough for the honeymoon. The Pay Czar would have seen to that.
It’s truly frightening how much stupid Save is able to cram into just a few sentences.
One day he is going to write a sentence so dense with stupid it will collapse in on itself under the weight of its own idiocy forming a massive vacuum of dumb from which no intelligence will be able to escape.
We are doomed.
And Sam Wainwright is a zillionaire industialist who’s a good guy.
It’s a great movie. You know what i miss, was before NBC bought the exclusive rights to it. I remember Xmas eve and every TV channel would be playing it over and over and over again.
Potter represents movement conservatism’s highest ideal: allowing the most heartless and ruthless bastard the freedom and liberty to dominate the little people. But the flaw is that Potter doesn’t wear the mask of “Christianity”, which I’d think is required to fool wingnuts.
Well, I’ll be satisfied when that horror-show of commie drivel, “It’s a Wonderful Life”, is finally exorcised from the Christmas viewing tradition. This annual festival of reminding the poor and downtrodden that they deserve loans for homes they can’t possibly afford has done more harm to this good country than Mr. Mac and Mrs. Mae could ever hope.
And if they’d quit showing that wackadoodle Ten Commandments every Easter. Talk about giving false hope to the downtrodden
Wingnut spoiler!
Potter loses again this year.
Must admit I love SNL’s “lost ending” wherein they form an angry mob and beat the crap out of Potter.
Republicans are incapable of compassion.
You know why modern Conservatism doesn’t very far with me? The anger and bitterness–several good examples of which are above.
I will only add that while I find a lot to love in Capra’s films (do your self a favor and see You Cant Take it With You if you haven’t) by the 1930s he had arguably become hollywood’s answer to Leni Riefenstahl.