Saturday, December 24, 2011

#20 It's a Wonderful Life (1946)


Twas the night before Christmas
and all through Bedford Falls,
George Bailey was stirring,
he was climbing the walls.

He was raving and ranting,
getting sloshed in the bar
and swerving and crying
and crashing his car.

He came to a bridge
and in his miserable state
thought enough was enough
there was too much on his plate.

Is suicide truly painless?
He'll soon find out.
For the end was surely near,
of that there's no doubt.

Sir spoke to the angels,
 told them of George's plight
"Now look here, good Clarence,
you must set things right.

"You must save George Bailey
and make him see good things.
And if you're successful,
you'll  finally get your wings".

But first, some background;
in his past, here's the tale,
He saved his brother from drowning 
and his boss from jail.

All his life he dreamed 
of escaping Bedford Falls
but life got in the way
and kicked him in the...why hello, Mary! 


George liked Mary a lot,
when shove came to push
They went dancing, and swimming 
and she got naked with a bush.


His father asked him to stay
and take over at the  bank.
And protect it from Mean ol Potter,
the town's rich, evil crank.


George said no, 
but then Dad died. 
Potter schemed
and then George sighed.


He took Dad's place
and became a bank tycoon.
He let his brother go to college
and never did lasso that moon.


He married Mary and lived well
and his brother got married too.
I liked it in Cinderella
when she said "Bippity Boppity Boo".


They had three kids
and a wonderful life.
His brother was a war hero
George truly loved his wife.


Then one day George's uncle
went to make a deposit.
He had eight grand
and accidentally lost it. 


Potter found it and hid it
and cackled with glee.
"At last!" he cried.
"George is finished! The town belongs to me!"


George knew the bank auditors
would learn the money was gone.
He screamed at his uncle
at his wife, kids and mom.


That's what put him on that bridge
on that late Christmas Eve.
And that's where Clarence found him
and granted him a reprieve.


George wished he'd never been born
and Clarence made the wish come true.
And when George saw this happen
he became very blue.


His mother was a bitter spinster,
her nerves were frayed
Bedford Falls was named "Pottersville",
and Mary was an old maid.


His old boss was a bum
his kids were gone, too.
And his brother, oh his brother,
was dead.  Yes, it's true.


George wanted his life back
he regretted his words
He begged Clarence to reverse it,
death was for the birds!


Clarence did as he asked
and George whooped with joy
He didn't care about the money,
he was one grateful boy.


He hugged Mary and the kids
and accepted his fate.
He would soon be in jail
it was just too late. 


When suddenly outside,
George heard such a clatter.
He sprang to the door 
to see what was the matter. 


In came Ma and Ernie 
and Burt and Billy
and Violet and Sam 
and Annie and Tilly


The whole town was there 
and they all chipped in
The eight thousand was covered
with a wink and a grin.


"We love you, George, Merry Christmas!"
the town all cheered.
Up in Heaven, Sir smiled
and the dark clouds all cleared.


On the tree, the lights twinkle
and also the bell rings
which everyone knows
 means an angel got his wings. 


Review: Pretty cool timing on this one, no?  Wasn't easy busting out so many reviews to make this one by the 12/24 deadline. But I'm awesome like that. 
Anyway.
No, I hadn't seen this one either. I've got no good excuse, except that I thought I had sort of already seen it without seeing it, you know? As it's been parodied and redone a million times on every TV sitcom from the eighties and beyond. Second only to A Christmas Carol, this movie has been "reimagined" more than any other. But what I didn't know was that I only knew the last half hour. I thought that part was the whole movie, I didn't know it was only the Third Act. I also didn't know how dark and strange this story was going to be, with level of maturity well beyond what I expect to see in an Olden Times movie. 
I knew what was going to happen in the end with the town all giving him the lost money, and I feared very much that it would be a schmaltz-fest, but the movie earns that moment completely, with a deep and fully realized town of supporting characters that truly seem to live real lives separate from just supporting George in this movie, and with a love story that's compelling and realistic and with a great villain in Potter. By the end, not only did I not mind a schmaltz-fest, but I actively craved one. There was no other way to release the tension, to breathe again, and to allow George (and perhaps a viewer or two) to make peace with the fact that life doesn't always go as planned. The movie does such a great job of putting us in George's mindset; experiencing his frustrations at never getting to leave town, and keeping us from seeing what a truly wonderful life George has, just as he can't see it, until the end. It's a great cathartic ending to a truly wonderful and unique movie. 

Stars: Five out of five.

Next, "On the Waterfront" and then, "The General". But those will come next year.  See you then. And, Merry Christmas. 













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