The Silver Screen Oasis

And George was in the building and loan business. But everything that seemed to be done, which wasn't very much, was done by Mary. She papered and painted, but the basics (like the infamous newel post) were never fixed. I still believe that she and George were meant for each other, and in the alternate reality, since there was no George, Mary couldn't love anyone else.

George was her soulmate and without him she'd never have been as happy or content. The best way to portray her life without George was as a single woman. I think the thing that rankles is that she's shown as unhappy and scared and the fact that these characteristics seem to go hand in hand with being single.

Alison, don't you think she was unhappy and scared just being in Pottersville? She was a decent woman in an indecent town. She probably took her life in her hands every time she walked to or from work! Being accosted by a strange, wild man yelling her name would have been the final indignity.

I hadn't thought of it quite that way, Pottersville was a grey place. Do you think Pottersville was a lawless place? I thought it was just an unhappy place.

If a policeman could just fire at will into a crowd of people, and said people dropped to the ground without a yelp, then I would think it was pretty wild and wooly. Think about the view of Main Street we get as George rushes to find Mary. Dime a dance halls, gambling halls, pawn shops, raids on the dance halls....pretty wild and wooly!

True, pretty seedy, reminds me of Blackpool.

But, again, that's what bugs me about it. Mary doesn't seem timid at all! She is spunky! If anyone could rise above seedy Potterville, it's Mary Hatch. I just hate that being a librarian and single is a fate worse than death. It's such an old-fashioned view of womanhood. This film was made in 1946, and this just seems Victorian.

BUT these are just arguments and quibbles for fun. I love It's a Wonderful Life.

Sandy K

Good to see you here Sandy

I think one of the messages of this movie is that being kind, helpful and caring for the welfare of the your fellow man are things that rub off on other people. George isn't the only benevolent person in town, the townsfolk help him to the tune of $8,000 dollars and George helps foster a community atomosphere. The atomosphere of the Bedford Falls is a happy one, Pottersville is a unpleasant one, where Potter charges rents that are too high for houses that are inadequate, people are unhappy, they don't look out for one another probably because they have no example to look to, there is no community as such. It's a real message for mankind.

As Clarence said: "Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?"

kingrat wrote: ↑December 22nd, 2022, 12:37 pm Yesterday my husband and I saw It's a Wonderful Life on the big screen

kingrat wrote: ↑December 22nd, 2022, 12:37 pm Yesterday my husband and I saw It's a Wonderful Life on the big screen, along with perhaps fifteen other people.
Though Capra doesn't usually highlight his camera placement, I especially liked the scene at the railroad station where brother Harry unexpectedly arrives with a bride, thus dooming George's hopes of going to college. Capra keeps the camera on George's face as he hurries from the train to catch up with Harry and confirm his worst fears.

I've seen it on the big screen (35mm!) so many times, I've skipped the past few years but still love it.

The long tracking scene at the train station is one I've shown to illustrate what a good actor does with facial expression. The other really notable scene is when Potter tries convincing George to work for him. Turn the sound off & just watch Barrymore's face change expression like he's possessed by spirits. Amazing.

I also love all the teeny little set incidentals most notably: The framed butterfly pictures in the Bailey house when they were kids shows up in George & Mary's house- as if they inherited them from the parents.
And in the run-on-the-bank scene where the camera faces the front door, you see a "girly" pin up on one of the posts hidden from public view. It's kind of like the squirrel climbing on Uncle Billy when he breaks down-doesn't HAVE to be there, but it adds just a little something subconsciously. (Terry Gilliam calls this phenomenon "The Gerbil Wheel")

It was a revelation to me as a teen to discover Uncle Billy was also Scarlett O'Hara's Dad...such versatility! Then of course, I began recognizing Ward Bond EVERYwhere....pretty much always playing Ward Bond.

The "real" Bedford Falls is claimed by Seneca Falls NY and Genesee St looks just like the Genesee St in IAWL. They have a big celebration every Christmas season with appearances by Capra's kids and the only two Bailey kids left. The Bridge that inspired Capra is there too-



The Bridge is in the upper left corner of this pic:

Zuzu: