“Nothing phenomenal”: the movie James Stewart called his all-time favourite
You would be hard-pressed to find a 20th-century actor who worked quite as efficiently as James Stewart, only rubbing shoulders elsewhere with the likes of John Wayne, Henry Fonda and Clint Eastwood. Appearing in some of the era’s greatest movies, Stewart represented the quintessential American everyman, often portraying the morally superior hero of any given story.
Taking to the industry in the 1930s, Stewart started off in theatre before accepting tiny roles in major Hollywood movies. Yet, it wasn’t until his supporting performance Of Human Hearts in 1938 that his career would truly kickstart, opening doors that allowed him to star in such later successes as You Can’t Take It with You in 1938 and George Cukor’s 1940 classic The Philadelphia Story.
After taking a hiatus from the glitz of Hollywood to become the first major movie star to enlist in the American army during WWII, Stewart returned to the industry as a beloved hero in more ways than one. Wasting little time to reassert his profile, Stewart collaborated with Frank Capra to release one of his most celebrated movies, It’s a Wonderful Life, becoming a Christmas classic of the 20th century and beyond.
Inspired by Charles Dickens’ timeless Christmas Carol tale, Capra’s movie starred Stewart as George Bailey, a suicidal businessman struggling to make ends meet who is visited by an angel who shows him how much his life is worth. Also featuring Donna Reed and Thomas Mitchell, the film has long been recognised as one of cinema’s most uplifting movies, speaking to the inherent value of existence no matter the personal struggle.
Reflecting on the legacy of the movie in 1987, Stewart said of the movie: “It wasn’t the elaborate movie set, however, that made It’s a Wonderful Life so different; it was the story. The character I played was George Bailey, an ordinary fella who thinks he’s never accomplished anything in life.” A fantasy tale rooted in realism, the film was initially disliked by critics but, later in the 20th century, gained the adoration of movie lovers worldwide.
Continuing, he added: “It seems to me there is nothing phenomenal about the movie itself… It’s simply about an ordinary man who discovers that living each ordinary day honourably, with faith in God and a selfless concern for others, can make for a truly wonderful life.”
For the cinematic everyman James Stewart, it would merely become one of his first movie hits of a glittering career, later collaborating with Alfred Hitchcock for the 1958 Oscar nominee Vertigo, as well as with John Ford and John Wayne for the iconic western The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance in 1962. Yet, for Stewart, nothing felt better than inspiring a nation with his festive classic.
Concluding his thoughts on the film, he added: “A friend told me recently that seeing a movie I made more than 40 years ago is a holiday tradition in his family. That movie is It’s a Wonderful Life, and out of all the 80 films I’ve made, it’s my favourite. But it has an odd history.”
Take a look at Stewart in one of the most iconic scenes from It’s a Wonderful Life below.
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