It’s a Wonderful Life is the Most AUTHENTIC Christmas Movie
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 ม.ค. 2022
- What is ‘Authenticity?’ I argue that the movie It's a Wonderful Life straddles two opposite poles of authenticity: on the one hand, it has the honesty to express the depths of bitterness, disappointment, and despair we might reach (thus making it one of the most relatable films of all time), while, on the other hand, it also shows us that our feelings about life might be wrong. Ultimately this films wants to show us what life really is: the authentic vs. the counterfeit.
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MUSIC
Archangelo Corelli, 12 Concerti Grossi, Op. 6 - Concerto no. 8 in G minor (Christmas Concerto)
Archangelo Corello, 12 Concerti Grossi, Op. 6 - Concerto no. 4 in D major - I. Adagio - Allegro
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Suite No.1 in D minor - II. Divertimento
P.I. Tchaikovsky - Symphony No.5 in E minor Op.64 - II. Andante cantabile
Symphony No. 6 In B Minor, Op. 74, 'Pathetique' - I. Adagio, Allegro Non TroppoSaint-Saens: Symphony No. 3 "Organ" - Finale
On the 10th day of Christmas, TH-cam apparently decided to stop blocking my video... It may get removed again if Paramount decides it doesn't fall under fair use, but I wanted to release it anyway. Anyhoo, hope everyone had a great Christmas/New Year. I'm thankful for all the connections I was able to make with people around the world last year, even if it was something as small as a comment on a video. I'm thank for all of you, more than you'll know.
Cheers mate, belated happy Xmas, but happy New Year. Ho ho ho 😁
@@mixerD1- Thank you, my friend. The same to you as well!
Holy day blyessings bro, insightful creations
@@Dyal_Gobinde_Singh Thanks bro!
Isn't the movie public domain it's so dumb they can copywriter strike it. The story it's self is copywriter though.
As another person described it, It's A Wonderful Life is not only the best Christmas movie, but maybe even the best movie ever made.
Blind since birth? That must be strange.
I only question "maybe even" in your statement.
nonsense
It's a magnificent film, a masterpiece but using "best movie ever made" - in terms of General Semantics, cheapens the whole art of film-making. What happens to Ford, Wyler, Wilder, Welles, Hitchcock, Kubrick, Coppola, Ozu, Lean, Powell-Pressburger, Reed, Lumet, Bergman, etc.
What's funny is that it wasn't a smash hit when it was released in theaters! It wasn't appreciated until they started airing it on TV.
From the moment when George yells, "MY MOUTH'S BLEEDING BERT!" through to the end credits I can't help but helplessly smile the whole time. George finally accepted that bad things have happened and that that's ok. Things will always get better in the end.
Also, "To my big brother George, the richest man in town." Is the single best tearjerker line in movie history.
I don’t get that things will always get better because they don’t. But my takeaway is that no life is insignificant. We all make an impact even when we feel our life has no meaning anymore. George changed the fate of everyone he touched. His light made the world a better place because of the true sacrifices he made
Same here, Auld Layne Sayne and Hark the Herald Angels Sing being played on the piano often make me tear up when I hear them
You're right, Harry's as-good-as-it-gets 12-word toast to his "big brother George" is one of the best lines in movie history -- a culmination of everything that George has experienced in his "what if I'd never been born" life, with Clarence as his traveling companion and guide. But did you know this line is not included in the American Film Institute's 100 Greatest Movie Quotes of All Time? Always makes me wonder about the real reasons those "100 Quotes" were selected. And maybe for similar reasons, in the 10th anniversary update of AFI's Greatest Movies of All Time (2007), "It's a Wonderful Life" was dropped from #11 to #20.
Even this analysis is a tearjerker.
Even here in Germany we watch this movie every Christmas with the whole family.
Every visitor who happens to come by is dragged in front of the TV set and has to wait until the movie is finished.
Many watch it every Christmas from then on. ^^
Wholesome. It represents in my mind what the season should be about: Community, family, friendship, self-sacrifice.
Frohe Neujahrsgrüße aus Texas!
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After thirty odd years and five kids I finally sat down and watched this movie and my god, absolute perfection. Really enjoyed this, keep up the great work
Your still the most underrated channel on TH-cam. Please never stop doing these fantastic videos.
1000% agree
Despite the volume of TH-cam I watch, I rarely comment or otherwise interact with the channels/videos I watch. I felt moved to make an exception in this instance. Your channel has quickly become one of my favorites on this platform. I have a passion for both cinema and philosophy but am also the only person I know who studies or appreciates either subject to the same extent. Your content is interesting, thought provoking, motivational, challenging, comforting, and makes this faceless profiles owner honestly feel less alone. I love your channel and just wanted to sincerely say, thank you. All of your hard work means a great deal to myself and I'm sure many others.
You’re welcome! I’m they same way: I don’t usually engage on TH-cam, so I very much appreciate you taking the time to say these things. I need to hear it. Every word is strengthening.
You've encouraged me, the least I could do is return the favor in some small way! These topics, thoughts, and concepts are so vital to understanding and appreciating this life of ours. They often seem lofty of intimidating causing many to avoid them all together. You do truly perform a service to your fellow man by breaking these ideas down and making them more easily understood while still challenging the viewer to then consider and implement them personally. I'm usually not one to heap praise on another but I really do appreciate you and your channel.
I still live in the city where I was born, realizing that wherever I was to go, I would still have the same problems.
One of the sacrifices I made by doing the right thing for someone else was to give up my love for a woman and set her free for her own preservation.
I also was a caregiver for my Mother for over 20 years.
I am gratified because I served others. Now, I am turning 70, with all the time and money that is beyond anything I would have thought possible.
This might be my favourite video of yours yet (and that's saying a lot), probably because of my own experiences with suicide, bitterness, envy, living crushed between regret of the past and fear of the future... Every year I can't contain my tears when I read "No man is a failure who has friends" while I hear Auld Lang Syne. This year I don't wish for anything in my life to get better, I'm so tired of wishing and waiting and hoping, I just want to live in the present and appreciate the wonderful things that I already have in front of my eyes. Thank you, I'll be thinking about your words in this video for the rest of the week.
We all go through the dark night of the soul. Mine took place in the early 90’s. As dark as it was i still got up the next day and kept going given the circumstances. I’m so blessed and I would not change a thing……
Watching this every year is a holiday highlight.
*Merry Christmas ya’ old Building and Loan!!!*
This is my favourite quote too! Love saying it.
I rarely comment on videos, but man... that felt like a great late christmas gift. It's a Wonderful Life already had a special place in my heart. I will treasure it even more now. Thank you and be blessed.
"It's a Wonderful Life" is one of just two movies that I've seen that I think are (and I say this as a devout bookworm) every bit as powerful as most classic novels. Thank you for this video essay. You've made me love this movie even more.
P.S. The second of those two movies is "La Vita e Bella." I don't know if you've seen it, but I would trip if you ever did a video essay on it.
Great film
I’ll have to look it up
Nobody talks about La Vita e Bella and im so glad someone else understands how powerful of a film it is. We had to watch it in school and i was one of few students who were just amazed and couldn't look away. It definitely deserves to be on whatever tier of beautiful classics like It's a Wonderful Life belongs are on.
We read the script as a drama unit and watched the movie. I felt like George because I wanted to get out of teaching and pursue my own passions. By the end of the movie I was sobbing like a baby. This movie examines interconnections and the bonds we form with people like no other. It's one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen. It also made me more grateful to be in my students' lives.
You're not doing a bad job of touching 35,000 lives in a distinctly benevolent way; thanks and happy new year.
Honestly, you wander Christ-like through my favorite films and resurrect them. Mine eyes are opened, the son is risen, the way, the truth, and the life; and the light has come. These analyses are a delight for the soul.
I feel the same way. I couldn't have said it better
It's interesting how we never see Potter return the money (that was not his).
You've made a lot of great points in this!
This movie means a lot to me. I rewatch it whenever I'm feeling extra down about life, and it always gives me this new hope.
I don’t come to TH-cam to get into the Christmas spirit, but wow did this ring in the season for me. I’m crying over here! Thank you for this wonderful video!
WOW! I have NEVER heard such a psychological/moral/philosophical review of "It's a Wonder Life"! Incredible! I am not sure that I will ever see the movie the same way again! Thank you!
Just getting around to this one. I can't watch more than 2 videos of yours in one sitting and I tend to wait a week or so between viewings. I need time to thoughtfully enjoy them. They are like a culinary masterpiece. It isn't right to eat those every night, but they are the meals I'll remember. This video in particular struck me.
Yesterday I was meeting with a trauma survivor I've been working with for over 2 years. Having all value and meaning destroyed by her care givers in the most horrific ways throughout childhood, she was steeped in addiction when I met her - coping by numbing. Early in her healing journey, there were times when she called me contemplating suicide. I have been trained in those moments to remind people of the value I have seen in their lives. To speak back to them their triumphs and the unique gifts I've seen in them. I remember telling her on one call that her existence was like a masterpiece painting, one that many people had tried to destroy. But just because it was marred, didn't mean it ceased to be a masterpiece. And there was a master at restoration who was beginning the arduous work of bringing the painting back to it's original glory. She had a choice to end it all, but she had to know that 1. she didn't know what tomorrow would bring (what new healing or understanding) and 2. she would be depriving the world of the masterpiece she was created to be. I never realized the similarities to what Clarence does. In a weary time in my life, this is a reminder to keep fighting the good fight. Your commentary on bitterness, motivations, duty, perspective, and presence could all merit replies as long as this one. Just know that your work continually points me back to the truth and to the one who is Truth. Thank you.
God bless you, whoever you are. You have a poet's heart.
I'm always hit with the message of offering grace and forgiveness. What an enduring story...
Please speak to the history of Jimmy Stewart’s WWII PTSD, and how this film spoke to it. And perhaps spoke to other veterans.
It was a wonderful review! It tore my heart out in a good way. Have a great 2022 Emperor.
Never thought I'd want to see "It's a wonderful life" again.
Thanks for the thoughtful review, I had not noticed how dark of a story is presented in the movie. Thanks from bringing that out, it is definitely a reason why the movie touches you so much. Not just nostalgia, but an authentic story!
Happy new year
I would be lying if I did not admit that I was very touched by your video. It probably is your best one yet. Thank you for sharing your presence here on YT with us.
This is an insanely good analysis of one of the best films ever made. I'm a fan.
I'm old enough to cry at the end of this wonderful film.
"Political solutions... simply transfer power among elites." I had to stop what I was doing and go back and listen to that again and reflect on what you meant. How often does that happen while watching TH-cam videos?
The definition of politics I was taught is that it is concerned with competition for resources, where those resources are finite. Such a helpful starting point, but I've never seen it so powerfully explained as here.
Came here for a regular dose of higher culture and truth, but man did you exceed my expectations with so much food for thought.
One of the Greatest Movies of All Time, works on so many levels.
Its funny (very funny at tumes), dark (very dark at times), emotional, thoughtful and truly uplifting.
Just discovered your channel, from your Barry Lyndon video, great stuff, and enjoyed this one hugely too... subscribed.
This is legit. I feel like Capra would have enjoyed your analysis. I know I sure did.
This movie even works (maybe even more so) as a Thanksgiving movie, because it makes you realize what you're really thankful for, what really matters.
This is a beautiful video, but the cherry on the sundae is the phrase "Motzartian frivolity." CHEF'S KISS
I’ve been watching this movie annually for over 40 years and there’s always more to take away, and your video has expanded my appreciation even further by lending observations and insights I hadn’t considered. Thanks!
A very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you, your loved ones, and the great community that supports this channel. The last seven months I've been subscribed has been life-changing and I do not say that lightly. The content of your videos has been a journey for me and I look forward to the future of this channel. My wife has been trying for the better part of twelve years to get me to watch this film and it seems fate finally intervened. Cheers friend.
This made my day! Thank you, my friend.
Again, your so spot on it's not funny! Well done sir well done. That move make me cry thinking of it. Now it will make me emotional for thinking of another perspective. Thanks
Stewart’s performance in this movie is darn near perfect. I got to say that. The reason that this movie is a classic is because of him. Have you ever heard the story about the initial rehearsals of this film? Stewart had just returned back from World War II. Unlike some of his more tough acting friends in Hollywood, he volunteered. He volunteered for combat. He became a bomber pilot. And he was a bomber pilot in mid World War II. The allies had a hell of a time with their daylight raids in the middle of the war. I’m not sure if Stewart bombed anything in Germany or if he just bombed things in Italy. But I just wanna point out the fact that being a bomber pilot required an incredible amount of courage. A really really really incredible amount of courage. And now back to the story: in the initial rehearsals Stewart seems to waver. In between scenes it became apparent that he was really wondering whether he should be an actor at all, because he had seen so many people die in the war had been so horrible. He was questioning whether it was worth it to be an actor. In a sense that echoes your point, from the beginning of the video in which you mention Kamu and suicide: is it worth it? Anyway from what I heard, another one of the actors pulled him aside and said something like this: come on kid, don’t you think you should make this picture? Don’t you think that being able to make art and Xpress yourself was kind of the whole point of the war: to keep people free and good like they are in this movie? Anyway it was something like that! Apparently, Stewart thought about it a bit and then he jumped in with everything he had and never looked back! God bless you, God bless Jimmy Stewart too!
Btw- Another fantastic video! I really love your videos!
It was Lionel Barrymore, who played Potter, who told Stewart that he needed to understand that entertaining people was as valuable as any other kind of honorable work.
Stewart was in the same bomber group as George McGovern, future Democratic nominee for President. If I recall correctly, most of their flights were over the Yugoslavia/Greece part of German occupied Europe.
Wow. Wow. Wow! Thank you so much for this video. This is a fantastic overview of the themes and morals of this film, lots of good solid references! Love it. Definitely sharing!
One more little reference I thought of while listening to this is one from Dickens' The Chimes (a story that has a lot in common with this one actually, not so much that Toby "Trotty" Veck was never born, but what might happen if others listen to the advice of others, and if Toby believes their postulation that "the poor have no right to exist." )
At the end of the story Dickens says this:
Had Trotty dreamed? Or, are his joys and sorrows, and the actors in them, but a dream; himself a dream; the teller of this tale a dreamer, waking but now? If it be so, O listener, dear to him in all his visions, try to bear in mind the stern realities from which these shadows come; and in your sphere-none is too wide, and none too limited for such an end-endeavour to correct, improve, and soften them. So may the New Year be a happy one to you, happy to many more whose happiness depends on you! So may each year be happier than the last, and not the meanest of our brethren or sisterhood debarred their rightful share, in what our Great Creator formed them to enjoy."
Keep up the good work! Your videos are easily in the top 1% of all TH-cam content.
I wish I could like this more than just once. Brilliant and heartfelt. Thank you.
This is one of the coolest things I’ve ever watched. You’ve got a real talent at this. Can’t wait to go watch the movie.
WOW! This was just THE BEST analysis of this film. Absolutely nailed it on all points. You really made me think even more deeply about the subtext of this film even more than I ever have before - and it’s one of my favourite movies of all time! Chef’s kiss
“Sometimes to do what’s right we have to be steady, and give up the thing we want the most, even our dreams” - Aunt May, Spider-Man 2 (2004)
I enjoyed your reflection on this film. I don’t enjoy watching it. It’s too grim for me. But my husband loved it, and your comments may prompt me to rewatch it. Thanks too for using the Saint Saens Organ Symphony. It’s over the top, but I like it!
Yes it's back! Live long to fight another day against the TH-cam copyright system, Empire of the Mind. 🤗
Thanks for this...I hope you had a Merry Christmas and I hope you have a happy, prosperous New Year!!
Your videos are a gift. I cherish each of them. Thank you
That was really good. You unlocked so much depth to this film. Thank you.
I appreciate all of your videos. But this one's got to be one of the best. Cheers.
I love your analysis! Your channel rocks.❤🎄
Greatest video I have ever seen on TH-cam in my 32 years alive. Absolutely wonderful and moving analysis. Spot on
WELL DONE. thank you for sharing this .... truly watching it now with 'enhanced' vision. A wonderful gift to see something previously known with new eyes now . 🙏🏼 🌷
WOW.
Thank you so much for this. It's the best analysis of this film I've ever seen.
so much WOW!! That conclusion was both challenging and encouraging! So powerful. I know this video is 2 years old, but I just discovered it. I was looking at other video essays on this film BECAUSE I didn't see the film this year. I usually watch it every year and just didn't this year. I've seen it dozens of times and caught new details every time, BUT your essay made me see it in a whole new light AND made me see my own life in a different light too. It's a slow snowy Saturday, so I'm going to rewatch your video (check) and then watch it's a wonderful life!
Thank you for this video. It made me think and I needed it.
Jimmy Stewart was a Bomber Pilot in WW2. He was removed from Flying after he was labeled as "Flak Happy" or what we call today PTSD. He stayed in the Air Force reserves being promoted to General in 1959. How ever in 1946, after the war ended he was suffering from PTSD, having nightmares, not eating and having flashback to bomber missions where a lot of men got killed. Many of the actors on the set will tell you when George Baily is on the verge of a total collapse, Stewart was not acting.
Your clips are exemplary. You deserve wider views. Thank you 🙏 for doing this. I hope you continue to bless us with more of them in 2023. Health & happiness in 2023 🎉❤
Fantastic essay and a great message.
What a great video! Thank you for creating and posting!
excellent work as always
The duality of man. George and Potter exist parallel to one another. Capra also was able to sneak the fact that Potter is never punished for his behavior past the ethics code. Films back then required the villain be punished.
This movie plays on NBC every time just as me and my family get home from Christmas Eve mass and it’s a tradition for me to watch it every year.
This is phenomenal. Well done.
Thank you for your thoughts. Very enlightening. You have opened up this movie, which I love, to ideas I hadn’t completely noticed before.
"It's A Wonderful Life" is, and long has been, my favorite movie ever. And I love that you ended with the finale from Saint-Saen's "Organ Symphony"!
What A wonderful analysis, feeling better. thx
A fabulous effort once again, always captivating and interesting to watch/listen. Brilliant work and all the best for 2022 👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻
18:00 I consider myself your friend that's into symbolism:)
I was thinking about you during that part!
You've added a Chestertonian dimension to this film for me by mentioning him and then by having George be a Chesterton style down home hero by never leaving home.Chesterton was a believer in finding the world without leaving home.George finds all that is worth finding right there.Greatness can be unassuming.
Wasn't Chesterton a magnificent writer? Have you read any of his collections of weekly articles for The Illustrated London News? You'd probably have to get them through a library because as far as I know, they're out of print now. The first volume, which covers 1905 - 1907 ( I think ), is my favorite. Chesterton is my candidate for the greatest mind of the 20th century.
I cry every time I watch this damn movie..l
What a wonderful look at the philosophy of this film!
Some of your points I was able to see on my own before. But you made it even more interesting as you added to it. Great job. I am better having watched and look forward to seeing the film again
Well said and thanks for this😊
Hey mate Happy New Year to you! I hope you had a great Christmas with your family. Thanks again for another excellent video-essay. I haven't seen the film but having seen this I am really inspired too. You definitely promote films in a better way than any trailer or typical critic does so the production company should be thanking you! I'm looking forward to what you have in the pipeline, I always enjoy your content. Warmest wishes my friend!
Thank you, my friend! The same to you as well.
Exceptional analysis. More please.
This was beautiful. You sir, earned a subscription.
Wow! Watched it again and it was so worth it to be reminded of all the wisdom! Absolutely fantastic video! Filled with knowledge depth and spirit! God bless you!
Going to share this with all. God bless and thank you for showing me that my little town might just be worth it. time to go back again.
I have just found this channel and I am absolutely baffled by how low the views are. The story telling, explanation, and above all else, the narration are professional. I hope to see those channel grow in the near future.
One of your best videos to date
Thank you!👏👏👏👏👏👏
Wow. This was extremely well done. I didn't see this movie until I was 35 and I loved it...somehow this video sparked cleansing tears for me. Not sobs. Just waterworks I didn't expect to slip out. Thank you for doing this movie justice and then some.
Excellent!!! Thank you.
Thank you sir. You’re welcome!
It's a wonderful video you've made. Deepens one's sense of this great movie, thanks.
excellent!!!!!! am sharing w/ everyone i know -- right now, we have to deal w/ life and death in ways unimaginable just a few years ago, and we question our value, our worth... our purpose. this brings it home! thank you soooooo much for posting this! and thank God someone put this on my youtube feed so i could watch it!!!!!
Brilliant!
This video had me tearing up several times the way you were explaining the themes, ur such an absolutely underrated channel, I’ve never even seen this movie, yet heard of it plenty, and man what a message this film seems to have. Though I admittedly find the ending of your video a bit of a downer cuz a lot of us don’t have the privilege of a ‘hometown’ or a decent family. I moved all the time as a kid, and in that time I was so far away from my ‘homecountry’ that now i live there again i dont fit in at all and resent it. I’m not trying to say that ur ending is bad per se its just I get the sense this movie appeals not to a small town or the conclusion you made about not being too concerned with going away on travels (because I think thats a genuine part of life exploring and taking risks and its good). I think it appeals more simply to your friends and acquaintances, wherever you may make them, although again i think a lot of us wish we have friends that we have such an impact on.
A beautiful film beautifully analyzed. Fantastic video.
Well done indeed, sir.
The Bells of St Mary’s is displayed in my 2 favorite movies-The Godfather & It’s a Wonderful Life. Thank you for this
This is one of my favorite movies and I have to watch it every year
Excellent video, sir. I’d love to own a copy of this. I love how you put to words how I feel about this great film.
This was brilliant. Reminds me of a favorite title which I early in my life I came to appreciate:
Our world needs more stories like it’s a wonderful life to look to as an ideal. Sure it’s not realistic and how every single situation plays out but it at least gives us something to strive for instead of pessimism and nihilism.
I´ve just found your channel by chance and after watching this video, I can't stop wondering why you haven't got 2 or 3 million subscribers. So unfair...
Yes, I agree with you... this film is the most authentic Xmas film ever...
😢ghgbhfbhvvvvvvfgvvh
Very well done. 😊
Incompressible that this channel doesn't have millions of subscribers
Its A Wonderful Life is possibly the greatest, most important Christmas movie and Christian movie in general this side of The Passion.