It's a Wonderful Life main backdrop
It's a Wonderful Life main poster

It's a Wonderful Life

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8.3/10 • 4.5K

1946-12-202h 10m

DramaFamilyFantasy

It's a wonderful laugh! It's a wonderful love!

A holiday favourite for generations... George Bailey has spent his entire life giving to the people of Bedford Falls. All that prevents rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town is George's modest building and loan company. But on Christmas Eve the business's $8,000 is lost and George's troubles begin.

Directors
Frank Capra
Editors
William Hornbeck

Top Billed Cast

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  1. James Stewart

    James Stewart

    George Bailey

  2. Donna Reed

    Donna Reed

    Mary Hatch

  3. Lionel Barrymore

    Lionel Barrymore

    Mr. Potter

  4. Thomas Mitchell

    Thomas Mitchell

    Uncle Billy

  5. Henry Travers

    Henry Travers

    Clarence

  6. Beulah Bondi

    Beulah Bondi

    Mrs. Bailey

  7. Frank Faylen

    Frank Faylen

    Ernie

  8. Ward Bond

    Ward Bond

    Bert

  9. Gloria Grahame

    Gloria Grahame

    Violet

Reviews6

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barrymost Avatar

barrymost

Aug 18, 2019

10/10

It's practically an American tradition to watch this film with family at Christmas time each year. I just saw it for the first time myself a couple weeks before last Christmas, and I loved it. It's an uplifting, inspiring, dramatic, and at times laugh-out-loud funny story, with a cast that probably couldn't be improved upon if you tried. And, of course, it's directed by the superb Frank Capra, whose work I greatly admire. James Stewart gives a raw, totally honest performance, as the unforgettable George Bailey, who on Christmas Eve is shown exactly why the world, or at least Bedford Falls, can't do without him. And, there is my favorite line in the whole movie, out of so many memorable quotes, delivered perfectly by Lionel Barrymore, as the evil Mr. Potter: "And a happy new year to you. In jail!"

Media

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  • It's a Wonderful Life poster
  • It's a Wonderful Life poster
  • It's a Wonderful Life poster
  • It's a Wonderful Life poster

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Status
Released
Original Language
English
Budget
$3,180,000.00
Revenue
$9,644,124.00
Keywords
small townangelsuicide attemptholidaybankgreat depressionfamily business black and whitenervous breakdownold housenewlywedmagic realismtold in flashbackalternative realityguardian angelhigh school dancechristmassentimentalcheerfuloptimisticxmas eve