Jimmy Stewart, a.k.a. George Bailey, was the hero, not Mr. Potter
… from the un-hero, Ben Shapiro
Next, they will be trying to re-create Ebenezer Scrooge.
Yes, Dickens’ fabulous creation was the nasty villain in “A Christmas Carol.” However, Scrooge actually undergoes a transformation into a philanthropic sort of person.
Mr. Potter in “It’s a Wonderful Life” does not undergo any such change, yet he is now being portrayed by some political creatures as a positive character, the hero of Frank Capra’s classic Christmas movie.
The true hero was George Bailey, played by Indiana Pa.’s native son Jimmy Stewart.
However, now Capra’s beloved movie is being called a “"sort of quasi-socialistic FDR parable intended to promote the New Deal" by a morally-challenged midget.
Seriously.
First, the story of George Bailey.
The angel saves George Bailey
Who was George Bailey, the hero who is now being portrayed as a villain by this midget?
George Bailey has spent his entire life giving of himself to the people of Bedford Falls. He has always longed to travel but never had the opportunity in order to prevent rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town. All that prevents him from doing so is George's modest building and loan company, which was founded by his generous father.
But on Christmas Eve, George's Uncle Billy loses the business's $8,000 while intending to deposit it in the bank. Potter finds the misplaced money and hides it from Billy. When the bank examiner discovers the shortage later that night, George realizes that he will be held responsible and sent to jail and the company will collapse, finally allowing Potter to take over the town.
“It’s a Wonderful Life,” IMDb, Plot, 2021
Shapiro interpretation
The belief of a right-wing political commentator is that the skinflint banker who is trying to take down George Bailey and those middle class people who will not deal with his bank is actually the hero.
Ben Shapiro, his studio adorned with Christmas decorations, claims the real hero of "It's a Wonderful Life" is Mr. Potter, the evil banker.
In what world would Lionel Barrymore's character be the hero of this movie? Maybe Ben favors the colorized version, too?
After giving an outline of the movie as little Ben sees it, Shapiro said, "Also Lionel Barrymore is correct on a financial level. The villain of this piece is actually the hero because if Jimmy Stewart gets his way all of Bedford Falls collapses."
Actually, when the community came together and saved Bailey, Bedford Falls is saved, too!
Shapiro also omits from his warped analysis that Mr. Potter steals $8K dollars from Bailey's brother, when he left it in Potter's newspaper at the bank. George panics, and when he goes to Potter for a loan, he's rebuked and attacked. This was the moment that sends George Bailey down the road of contemplating suicide.
John Amato, “Shapiro insists Mr. Potter is the red hero of ‘It’s
a Wonderful Life’,” Crooks and Liars, December 12, 2021
Shapiro is an Orthodox Jew, according to his bio, so why he is celebrating Christmas is another mystery.
However, I digress.
Mr. Potter is a crook, a misanthrope, and Capra cast him this way for a reason. Potter is played by the legendary Lionel Barrymore, who does a great job showing the contrast. of
George Bailey being saved by an angel
Perhaps Shapiro does not like angels, either. Not sure if his religion is anti-angel, but the spiritual Bailey who is desperate is rescued by the angel.
There is symbolism that Shapiro, a Harvard law grad, is not able to fathom — or refuses to fathom.
This is actually intended to be a spiritual, uplifting movie that goes beyond just the story of Christmas.
A socialistic parable?
Shapiro thinks this is a socialistic movie that is intended to be anti-capitalism. Capra’s intentions were interesting,
Shapiro claims the movie was a "sort of quasi-socialistic FDR parable intended to promote the New Deal."
Wrong. Maybe he should read about the motivations of Frank Capra.
Frank Capra never intended "It's a Wonderful Life" to be pigeonholed as a "Christmas picture." This was the first movie he made after returning from service in World War II, and he wanted it to be special--a celebration of the lives and dreams of America's ordinary citizens, who tried the best they could to do the right thing by themselves and their neighbors.
John Amato, Crooks and Liars, December 12, 2021
So, this was intended to be a positive, pro-people, pro-American narrative, not necessarily just a Christmas story.
Rewriting history and now fiction
Shapiro and others are trying to erase slavery from textbooks and eliminate all references to people like Harriet Tubman and Martin Luther King, Jr.
They are also trying to eliminate fictional pieces that they do not like.
And now, “It’s a Wonderful Life,”
Republican idiots like Shapiro are so focused on rewriting the history of this country, they feel the need to rewrite classic movies in their right-wing extremist framing.
Throughout the movie Lionel Barrymore's character was horrible, but to conservatives like Shapiro, he's the hero because he was able to lie, cheat, and steal from the entire community, making himself richer at the expense of the entire town.
John Amato, Crooks and Liars, December 12, 2021
Is nothing sacred any more?
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