FLOP CULTURE
From FBI-investigated Oscar loser to classic Christmas cockle-roaster: how Frank Capra’s 1946 miracle movie took decades to get its wings…
How It’s A Wonderful Life failed to make BO tills ring.
Why it was a good idea (on paper)
With the war over, returning bomber pilot James Stewart was ready for his comeback: a reunion with favoured helmer Frank Capra, his director in Oscar-winners You
Can’t Take It With You and Mr. Smith Goes To Washington.
What went wrong?
Even perfect films suffer teething troubles. Multiple writers struggled to adapt Philip Van Doren Stern’s source story, The Greatest Gift. RKO first tried to mould the project for Cary Grant before selling it to Capra, who frequently clashed with credited writers Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, original DoP Victor Milner, and composer Dimitri Tiomkin. Trying to sell the role of George Bailey to Stewart, Capra called the story “the lousiest piece of shit…” Stewart was hooked, but even he doubted his talents, needing co-star Lionel Barrymore to chivvy him along.
Redeeming feature
Everything. Between its profound yearning and the emotionally expansive Stewart, Capra’s resonant fable of despair and redemption is timeless and technically wondrous.
What happened next?
Ushered out for Christmas, the film met mixed reviews. Audiences were equally wary: for those seeking post-war uplift, Bailey’s suicidal anguish may have cut too deep. Falling $525,000 short of breaking even, it also drew FBI interest, suspected of pro-commie ideas.
The Best Years Of Our Lives thrashed it at the Oscars and Capra’s career floundered; the indie studio he co-founded, Liberty Films, was put up for sale. Still struggling with anxiety, Stewart later embraced ever-darker material. Meanwhile,
It’s A Wonderful Life remained neglected until 1974, when it entered the public domain after a failure to renew its copyright. Repeat TV showings finally helped bank its classic status.
Should it be remade?
“Give him a break, God…” After the colourisation, a Muppet makeover, and the (duly forgotten) made-forTV variations, any further remake bids need their wings clipped. KH