Film

As a kid my access to television was limited to PBS and recorded nova shows that we rented from the local library for special occasions. One movie we rented was a "classic" movie entitled "It's A Wonderful Life". I could watch this movie over and over again without tiring of it and always gaining a new message from it. It is about a small town and a man who lives there named George Bailey who spends his whole life putting those he loves ahead of his own passions and interests. Celestial beings narrate the movie and watch George struggle to make ends meet and attempt to kill himself so that his family may benefit at least from his life insurance policy. An angel from above gives George the opportunity to see what the world would be like without him, inspiring a new love and appreciation of his life in him.This movie is touching, inspiring, thought provoking, sentimental, funny, and sad. It is difficult to pinpoint why this movie even today brings a huge smile to my face.

The storyline is incredible, encompassing love, struggle, heros, evil, self sacrifice, and friendship. It goes beyond the cookie cutter plot lines that exist in new movies. My copy of the movie is in VHS, a testament to its ancient quality. The values presented in it though, are timeless. It is in black and white, making the content even more important to fill in my imagination of colors that must have existed. It is an older movie, but it is not boring or dry. The language is entertaining and captivating, while remaining true to its era. My friends often roll their eyes at me should I put them through watching this movie with me, but the magic still works on me. I still cry at all the same parts and grin at the end. It comforts me I guess, in a nostalgic, simplistic way. It is after all, a wonderful life that each of us lives. That sounds corny. Maybe that is the appeal of this movie. It is corny while retaining values that are important to me and appealing to my own personal nostalgia.