Rent It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
4.3 of 5 from 382 ratings
2h 10min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
George Bailey (James Stewart) has spent his entire life in the small town of Bedford Falls. Despite his yearning to see the world, George has always sacrificed his personal ambitions for the sake of his family and the local community, settling down to marry his childhood sweetheart, Mary (Donna Reed), and raise a family. However, when a huge amount of money goes missing from the savings and loans company he panics and finds himself preparing to commit suicide. However, he is shown the error of this idea by Clarence (Henry Travers), an angel who has been sent to Earth in order to earn his wings. To this end, Clarence shows George just how badly Bedford Falls and its residents would have turned out had he never been born. - Actors:
- James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Thomas Mitchell, Henry Travers, Beulah Bondi, Frank Faylen, Ward Bond, Gloria Grahame, H.B. Warner, Frank Albertson, Todd Karns, Samuel S. Hinds, Mary Treen, Virginia Patton, Charles Williams, Sarah Edwards, William Edmunds, Lillian Randolph, Argentina Brunetti
- Directors:
- Frank Capra
- Producers:
- Frank Capra
- Voiced By:
- Joseph Granby, Moroni Olsen
- Writers:
- Frances Goodrich, Albert Hackett
- Others:
- William Hornbeck, John Aalberg
- Studio:
- Paramount
- Genres:
- Children & Family, Classics, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch if You Like To Be or Not to Be, 10 Films to Watch if You Like: Elf, 10 Films to Watch if You Like: The Bishop's Wife, 12 Films of Christmas Past, 12 Films of Christmas Present, 12 Scrooges of Christmas, A Brief History of Film Weddings: Part 1, All the Best: A Celebration of New Year Movies, All You Need to Know About Dump Month Movies, Award Winners, Films to Watch if You Like It's a Wonderful Life, Films to Watch If You Like..., Holidays Film Collection, inema Paradiso's 2023 Centenary Club: Part 2, Paramount's Laughing Thirties, Romantic Film Pairings for Valentine's Day, The Biggest Oscar Snubs: Part 1, The Cinema Paradiso Kissing Montage, A Brief History of Film..., The Instant Expert's Guide, The Instant Expert's Guide to Frank Capra, The Instant Expert's Guide to Powell and Pressburger, The Ultimate Christmas Films Collection, Top 10 Screen Kisses (1896-1979), Top 100 AFI Movies, Top 100 AFI Passions, Top Films, What to Watch Next If You Liked Scrooge
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 08/11/2010
- Run Time:
- 130 minutes
- Languages:
- English Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- DVD Regions:
- Region 2
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.33:1 / 4:3
- Colour:
- Colour and B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Theatrical Trailer
- Trivia Tracker
- Picture Comparison
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 04/11/2019
- Run Time:
- 131 minutes
- Languages:
- English Audio Description Dolby Digital 2.0, English Dolby Atmos, English Dolby TrueHD 2.0, French Parisian Dolby Digital 2.0, German Dolby Digital 2.0, Italian Dolby Digital 2.0, Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0, Latin American Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0
- Subtitles:
- Danish, Dutch, English, English Hard of Hearing, Finnish, French Parisian, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin American Spanish, Norwegian, Swedish
- DVD Regions:
- Region 2
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Restoring a Beloved Classic in 4K
- Original Cast Party Home Movies and More!
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Reviews (3) of It's a Wonderful Life
What if? - It's a Wonderful Life review by Steve
Capra's perennial classic didn't make its costs back, and was released to a critical shrug. Strange that a film that is essentially about sacrifice should so underwhelm a world coming out of war. But now just the names, Harry Bailey, Bedford Falls, Potter/Pottersville are paradigms. Now it's just as curious that eventually America embraced so tightly such a nakedly socialist film.
The plot reads like proto-Twilight Zone. George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart) has reached the end of himself. Having sacrificed his life for others, he faces financial destruction and decides that suicide would be the best way out. After a bang on the head, and a couple of drinks, Bailey is confronted by a guardian angel and the world as it would have been had he never lived...
So far, so whimsical. The film though manages to absorb its undoubted sentimentality in the utter desolation of its premise. We see Bailey squeezed of his dreams until he is empty and standing on that bridge in the dark of his home town, staring down with fear into the void of the river.
Hard to imagine that anyone but Capra could have carried it off. And that cast... It's a Wonderful Life is a wonder; an extraordinarily emotional experience, a sustainedly bleak encounter that ultimately offers up an overwhelming catharsis. But it is also the film where Capra finally got swallowed up by the darkness. His ending is an act of mercy on his audience. We are all living in Pottersville now.
2 out of 2 members found this review helpful.
Classic Christmas Film - It's a Wonderful Life review by GI
What can one add about such a beloved slice of classic Hollywood as this? A film that is so rich in detail that it's worth watching just to study the mise-en-scène throughout. James Stewart, in his first role since returning from duty in the Second World War, is perfect, an actor who could play comedy, action, hard man and softy with believable precision that it's so easy to forget just how good he was. And Donna Reed, not only a tremendously beautiful woman but an actor of class and skill. Stewart plays George Bailey, an ambitious man who lives in the small town of Bedford Falls where his family run a small building and loan company. The company is coveted by the town's odious rich man Potter (Lionel Barrymore) but he is continually foiled from acquiring it by George who gets stuck in the town after his father dies. He finds happiness in love with Mary (Reed) and raises a family but is always a little disappointed with his life and then a chain of events leaves George facing ruin and he contemplates suicide. But he is given a very special gift by a strange old man, the chance to see the world as if he had never been born. This is a film about community, about morality and ultimately about materialism and even if it is a film that exemplifies the 'male gaze' dominance of Hollywood this is a remarkable piece of cinema. I can see why this remains a popular Christmas film, because it's themes resonate today even if they are only observed subconsciously and because ultimately it's a film that gives you that warm feeling long after it's over.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
The Christmas Classic - It's a Wonderful Life review by CP Customer
Corny but wonderful - a great performance by James Stewart.
1 out of 2 members found this review helpful.