Mr. Smith au sénat

Frank Capra and James Stewart were nearly unsurpassed at the task of taking the kind of story that is optimistic but that borders on being trite, and making it into a satisfying, worthwhile movie. In "Mr. Smith Goes To Washington", they accomplish this with a little help from Jean Arthur, Claude Rains, and Edward Arnold. It's not quite on the level of "It's a Wonderful Life", but it is as good as almost anything else of its kind.

Stewart's performance is important right from the beginning - hardly anyone else could have been believable as the earnest unknown who suddenly becomes an important political figure. Even his wide-eyed appreciation for what he sees in Washington comes across believably. As the story gets more complicated and his character is developed further, Stewart is even better.

The secondary characters are also important, because the story itself is a rather stylized, though still worthwhile, statement about politics. The characters are more believable than are many of the plot developments. Rains contributes a lot as Stewart's troubled colleague, and Jean Arthur is a natural for this kind of role. Arnold plays his devious character well. Capra holds it all together with his craftsmanship, keeping the story on track and getting the most out of the situation.

Besides a brilliantly written story, and brilliant acting by James Stewart, there is one element of this movie that can't be overlooked: Jean Arthur's acting.

With her voice and facial expressions, she pulls you through the storyline. The movie may be about Mr. Smith (Stewart), but much of it is seen through Saunder's (Arthur's) eyes. When she falls in love with Smith, we can't help but do it too.

This is Capra's opus, and contains not one, but two of the best acting performances I've ever seen.

Accomplished, honest and heartfelt, this will reinspire you to believe in the goodness of people even though the messages conveyed by those in power these days suggest anything but. James Stewart plays the innocence and naivety required for the role to perfection while you can genuinely believe that Jean Arthur has actually fallen for him for real. The great Claude Reins fills the boots of the corrupt senator with aplomb while Edward Arnold reminds us of a few of his type that are still around today. Probably the best film you'll ever see with the most mundane of titles.

A senator suddenly dies and a replacement needs to be named. The other senator for the state, Joseph Paine (Claude Rains), along with Jim Taylor (Edward Arnold), his corrupt businessman backer, decide to name a truly surprising candidate, one Jefferson Smith (James Stewart). He's meant to be nothing more than a seat warmer so that Paine and Taylor can push through a new piece of legislation concerning a dam, meant to make them filthy rich. Unfortunately Mr. Smith is something they've rarely seen and are utterly incapable of understanding: a good and honest man. And a boy scout to boot.

The film is corny and filled with pathos. Phrases like "the American dream", "truth and honesty", "reliability", and so many like those, get thrown around all the time. Politicians are nothing more than hungry jackal fat cats, aiming to filch the hard-earned pennies of the good American people. True way of life is to be found outside, on the prairies where grass leans on the wind. On the mountains reflected against the noon sun. I could feel my spleen turning red, white and blue as I watched this film.

And yet, despite all that, the film is magnificent. Perhaps it's because 'It's a Wonderful Life', another film from director Frank Capra, also stars Stewart, but for some reason or other this film reminds me of Christmas. Because Christmas is also corny and filled with pathos. It is. But it's also the best time of the year. When it's okay to be a bit sentimental. Or a lot sentimental. When it's okay to remind ourselves of the values we all hold dear, but which we usually don't talk about because it's seen as embarrassing.

Hopefully people still watch this film. Because even though it's old, and corny, and sentimental, and even a bit silly, it's values, themes and lessons are as relevant today as they were back then. Perhaps even more so.

Now, I must admit that this is one of my top five favorite films. There is a warmth, idealism, and kinda simple feeling of hope, that makes one believe that things will work out in the end. Capra knew exactly what he wanted, and it shines. Jimmy Stewart, in the role of his life, makes us believe, what we know is almost impossible in todays crass world.

Claude Rains is incredible as Senator Smith's evil mentor. Jean Arthur, as his confidant, plays the part so well,that we just want her to save the day.

The final scene, where the filibuster is taking place, is among the greatest ever made.

BUT THE PROOF, YOU ASK?

In the early 80s, I showed this film, over three days, to a group of 15 year old inner city teenagers. I taught Political Science in a very difficult school in Chicago. It was a new class, and not all of the "best" students took it.

I decided to show this film at the end of the year, just to see how long I could keep the students attention. I didn't expect much. Fifteen is a very tough age to keep any kind of attention span, and it was at the end of the day, 2:30 -3:15 pm. which made things worse. As the film began, there was rustling in the seats, boredom, that famous oh what a waste of time look...Mind you, this is 43 year old film, about a white Senator, in those "old" days, and being shown to a totally Afro-American crowd of 15 year olds, late in the day, (over a three day period, which meant the students would have to wait till the next day to see what was going on. ..By the end of the third day, Capra had worked his magic, and the entire class was spellbound by this film. They were there till the very end, and you could see how much they enjoyed seeing a film, that they wouldn't have looked at in a thousand years..Comments were wonderful. Any film that could accomplish this, more than 40 years after its conception, to a crowd that no one would believe would have any interest in, deserves to be truly called a "great film."