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Films are always a window
into an era or a time or a place
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or a man's mind.
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And no one was ever really
a more dominant filmmaker
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{\an8}of his era.
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He made
some of the greatest movies
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in the history of cinema.
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And they're foundational...
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...in the craft of cinema,
the way they're made,
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how they're made.
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And they're fucking
great entertainment.
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Want some fireworks?
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{\an8}In behalf of the Academy,
I present you with this award.
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Capra's personal story
is a story about one man
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who overcame a lot of opposition
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to go from being
an Italian peasant
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to a major
American movie director.
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These films I were making
were my way of saying,
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"Thanks, America",
if you can understand
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that kind of a cliché.
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Gee whiz, so many things
happening all at once.
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{\an8}The kid from Sicily
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{\an8}had developed a way
of showing America
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that all Americans loved.
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{\an8}His career has
an extraordinary decline.
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It's not that you
don't have darkness.
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Real darkness comes forward
in these movies,
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but when we look
into Frank's films
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he says we can endure,
we can survive, we can suffer
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and triumph and live through it.
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It's not a perfect world,
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but there's a place
for you in it.
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That really makes him
America's filmmaker.
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And that's why people watch
It's a Wonderful Life
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every year at Christmas.
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It's not because
they're sentimental.
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It's because
it is a life-saving movie.
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If you find something real
and true in the moment
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in which you're living,
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and you do it well
and entertainingly,
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it will always remain
contemporary and universal.
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I guess this is just another
lost cause, Mr Paine.
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These stories are always
applicable to our lives.
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But they're even more so
when we forget how to hope.
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The world is going through
terrible, terrible turmoil.
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We need to be reminded
that it can still work.
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When you tell us about being
the son of immigrant parents
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and we know about your birth
in Palermo, Italy,
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your Sicilian background,
your arrival in America.
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What propelled you,
what drive was in you?
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It's difficult to look back
and wonder
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and you can only
just conjecture,
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but I did want an education.
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I was ashamed of my parents
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because they couldn't read
or write.
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I wanted to get out
of that ghetto.
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Speaking of the time
when you were 10 years old,
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you said, "I hated being poor,
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"hated the ghetto
and hated America".
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-You were a Sicilian immigrant.
-Yes.
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I came here
when I was six years old
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just old enough to see
and not understand.
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{\an8}He told me the boat journey
was so traumatic and powerful...
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{\an8}...it wiped all the memories
of Sicily out of his mind.
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He didn't understand,
he told me as a kid,
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why his parents
would tear him away
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from their comfortable
surroundings in Sicily.
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Coming over in steerage,
there's no air,
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there's crowded bodies,
there's people being seasick,
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there's a minimum of food.
It's a long trip.
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I would think, an overwhelming
and frightening experience
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for a child.
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When he sat down to write
the story of his life...
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{\an8}...all the things he had done,
the years he had lived,
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{\an8}the first words
he put to paper were,
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{\an8}"I hated being poor".
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I saw the rich people in America
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and I saw the poor people
that we were.
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I saw
my father and mother suffering
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and working
and I saw everybody else.
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And I thought they were much
happier where they came from.
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This was my feeling at the time.
I hated this country.
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I hated how my family
was being treated.
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It was a hard time.
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I don't think his memories
of that time ever left him.
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He found America to be
a dog-eat-dog, tough place.
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He lived in a lower-middle-class
neighbourhood,
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but education was his way out.
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Most kids didn't go
to high school in those days.
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The kids from his social class.
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So he went to
Manual Arts High School,
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he cleaned the blackboards,
you know,
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and he was a janitor
at the school,
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and kids looked down on him
for that.
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And I interviewed
Esther Gleason Schlinger,
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who was the class historian,
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and she said she dated
Frank Capra in high school,
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but her parents broke it up
because he was an immigrant.
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And she said she liked him,
but she said he was a nice boy.
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He was just a terrible wop.
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I really felt anger
on his behalf.
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"Terrible whop",
that's how they saw him.
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That was his first shock
of trying to assimilate
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into the mainstream
in American life.
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Frank Capra did not merely
perceive himself as an outsider.
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In many ways, he was.
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Even at the height
of his fame...
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{\an8}...after all of the accolades
and awards
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{\an8}that he had earned,
Collier's magazine
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{\an8}could run a profile of him
and casually describe him
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with ethnic slurs.
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I said, "When did you stop being
ashamed of your parents?"
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He said, "I haven't yet".
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Capra was from an era
where you were supposed to
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melt down your differences
and become an American,
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which meant obliterating
your past.
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And one of the manifestations
of that
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was he kind of looked down
on his own family.
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The young Capra made it happen.
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He certainly hated
being on the outside,
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being on the bottom,
which he was,
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{\an8}and that rage,
for better and for worse...
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{\an8}...is what's going to propel him
the rest of his life.
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After Frank left college,
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like a lot of people
who go to college,
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he didn't know exactly
what he was going to do next
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and he spent a lot of time doing
odd jobs, travelling around,
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trying different things,
doing different things.
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And this gave him experience
of America.
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This is where my love
for Americans started.
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When I was about 22, 23, 24,
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when I didn't have a job,
I couldn't find job of any kind
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and I did a lot of running
around in Utah and Oregon,
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and California.
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And met the farmers,
the barbers, the poker players,
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and just fell in love
with Americans
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because of their wonderful
independence.
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He bungles his way
toward the film industry
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and, you know,
everybody bungled their way.
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You can't plan to be
in an industry
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that doesn't exist.
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There's almost a gold rush
atmosphere to early Hollywood.
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It was still quite possible
to start at the bottom
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and work your way up.
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And I can see why Frank Capra
would come to a place like that
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and say, "This is for me",
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because that's what
he was looking for.
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A place where he could break in
and remake himself.
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I didn't know a piece of film
from a piece of toilet paper.
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Really.
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I was fascinated
by this thing called film.
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And so I tried all these things.
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And I... All by myself,
I'd stay in that cutting room.
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There were newsreel men that
would come in with their stuff,
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and I'd develop it for 'em.
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People from the university
would come over
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and there were films
about their dogs,
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their children, everything else
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that they wanted
to put together.
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This is where I learnt
about film.
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A lot of directors have
a creation myth,
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which is a fabricated story
about their beginnings.
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I spent years researching
his apprenticeship
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in the motion pictures.
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He claims in his book
that he walked off the street
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in San Francisco into a building
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because there was an ad
for a film director
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for a short film and he got
a job as a director by bluffing.
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He knew nothing
about film directing.
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Just bullshit.
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He had worked a whole series
of humble jobs
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leading up to becoming
a director.
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Capra worked as a janitor
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at the Christie Brothers
Film Company.
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I said, "What were you doing?"
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He said,
"Cleaning up the horse shit".
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That's the way he started,
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cleaning up the horse shit,
the humble thing you could do.
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And then he was
an assistant director
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for companies in Hollywood.
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He was an assistant cameraman.
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He directed some of
the Screen Snapshot series,
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which were documentary films
about Hollywood.
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And to me,
it's much more inspirational
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that you start at the bottom.
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In these early days,
he learnt very quickly.
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He learnt by watching
what others were doing,
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and it turned out he had
a real gift for visual gags.
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Not word gags, but visual gags.
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So he could think in images.
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And that was
the beginning, really.
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{\an8}I never had such fun in my life.
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{\an8}The fun of creating something,
it just grabs you.
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Your heart beats fast
when you create something.
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And then later on,
when one of my pictures
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would happen to be playing
and I'd pass by
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and I'd hear them laugh
like hell through the picture.
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Oh, boy, I'll tell you,
that's the payoff of payoffs.
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You're looking down
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on the intersection
of Hollywood and Vine,
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one of the most talked about
four corners on Earth.
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If you were to take your stand
here and wait long enough,
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you'd eventually see
every outstanding star
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in show business.
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The Hollywood that we think of
in our imaginations
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and basically the Hollywood
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that existed up
until a few years ago
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was this world of studios,
of sound stages
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and giant teams of people
to run these movie cities.
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Now, not every studio
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had the financial muscle
to make movies
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on the level of let's say,
an MGM...
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...or a Fox.
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Or a Paramount.
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There were also a couple
of minor studios,
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and informally,
they were known as Poverty Row.
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They weren't poor.
They were poorer by comparison.
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And at the top of this
second tier is Columbia.
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Capra was on his way up
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00:13:38,235 --> 00:13:40,988
when he arrived
at Columbia in 1927.
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So he's a baby director
beginning with a baby studio.
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They're equally matched.
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You put Frank Capra
into an atmosphere like this
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and I think he said, "Okay,
I can do something with this".
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Because Columbia also,
year by year,
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would do at least a couple
of features with a real budget.
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The history of Frank Capra
and Columbia
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is completely intertwined.
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{\an8}It's definitional for both.
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{\an8}There would be
no Columbia today.
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{\an8}I wouldn't be sitting in the job
that I'm in without Frank Capra.
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And I think there would be no
Frank Capra
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00:14:27,534 --> 00:14:29,912
in the way that there was
without Columbia.
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Columbia didn't have
the resources
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00:14:34,082 --> 00:14:35,792
that these other studios had.
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Because of it, there was
more freedom at Columbia.
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And that may be surprising
to a lot of people
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00:14:42,424 --> 00:14:44,384
who know something
about Harry Cohn.
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00:14:47,095 --> 00:14:50,933
Harry Cohn ran the studio.
He basically ran it alone,
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although he had
a few stalwart executives.
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Cohn had his fingers
in everything,
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00:14:55,812 --> 00:14:57,648
and to that degree,
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00:14:57,731 --> 00:15:02,361
didn't have full control
of any one picture.
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He would delegate,
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00:15:03,779 --> 00:15:06,031
and rather than delegating
to a producer,
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00:15:06,114 --> 00:15:07,741
he would delegate to a director.
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00:15:07,824 --> 00:15:11,578
Frank needed Cohn
and Cohn needed Frank.
247
00:15:11,662 --> 00:15:13,705
The unimposing little fella
nearest to the camera
248
00:15:13,789 --> 00:15:15,499
may not look
like a great director,
249
00:15:15,582 --> 00:15:16,875
but don't let that fool you.
250
00:15:16,959 --> 00:15:19,503
The name's Capra. Frank Capra.
251
00:15:19,586 --> 00:15:21,672
Frank takes his fame
very seriously.
252
00:15:22,172 --> 00:15:23,465
Very seriously.
253
00:15:24,174 --> 00:15:26,051
Creativity doesn't want
to be managed,
254
00:15:26,134 --> 00:15:27,594
and it doesn't want
to be restricted.
255
00:15:27,678 --> 00:15:29,429
It wants to be free
and unbridled.
256
00:15:29,513 --> 00:15:33,058
And that's the very delicate art
of managing creativity.
257
00:15:33,141 --> 00:15:35,853
Now, it's ironic to use
the word "delicate"
258
00:15:35,936 --> 00:15:38,522
in connection with a SOB
like Cohn,
259
00:15:38,605 --> 00:15:41,650
who was a notorious,
absolute bastard.
260
00:15:41,733 --> 00:15:43,318
But he had vision
261
00:15:43,402 --> 00:15:46,071
and he actually understood
filmmaking and he knew talent,
262
00:15:46,154 --> 00:15:48,866
and his early faith
and investment in Capra
263
00:15:48,949 --> 00:15:51,493
was because Capra was talented
and he recognised it
264
00:15:51,577 --> 00:15:52,661
and he backed him.
265
00:15:53,328 --> 00:15:57,499
The big studios could afford
to have stars under contract.
266
00:15:57,583 --> 00:16:00,377
At Columbia,
they don't really...
267
00:16:00,460 --> 00:16:02,838
They have a couple
of stars under contract.
268
00:16:03,505 --> 00:16:07,259
And they can't compete with MGM
on that level.
269
00:16:07,342 --> 00:16:12,055
So how are they going to
find a star?
270
00:16:12,639 --> 00:16:16,852
Well, they find a star director
in Frank Capra.
271
00:16:16,935 --> 00:16:20,189
So, with the infrastructure
of Columbia,
272
00:16:20,606 --> 00:16:22,274
Capra ascended.
273
00:16:22,357 --> 00:16:25,444
{\an8}And with the talent
of Capra's stardom,
274
00:16:25,527 --> 00:16:26,820
{\an8}Columbia ascended.
275
00:16:27,821 --> 00:16:30,991
These are the early days
of his career.
276
00:16:31,074 --> 00:16:32,868
He's doing everything.
277
00:16:32,951 --> 00:16:36,663
And it was because of that
versatility that he pulls off
278
00:16:36,747 --> 00:16:39,374
{\an8}a series of movies that
we don't really associate
279
00:16:39,458 --> 00:16:40,792
{\an8}with Capra films.
280
00:16:40,876 --> 00:16:43,295
{\an8}A movie called Dirigible.
281
00:16:44,379 --> 00:16:45,881
A movie called Flight.
282
00:16:46,757 --> 00:16:48,342
A movie called Submarine.
283
00:16:52,304 --> 00:16:54,264
These were action pictures
284
00:16:54,348 --> 00:16:57,059
that probably would seem
more like, you know,
285
00:16:57,142 --> 00:17:00,187
a Raoul Walsh movie
than a Frank Capra movie.
286
00:17:10,781 --> 00:17:13,282
He didn't just make
one kind of film.
287
00:17:13,367 --> 00:17:17,162
He has war films
or military films.
288
00:17:24,294 --> 00:17:26,171
There's the north station,
over there.
289
00:17:28,131 --> 00:17:30,884
{\an8}How about
The Bitter Tea of General Yen
290
00:17:30,968 --> 00:17:33,178
{\an8}or how about The Miracle Woman?
291
00:17:33,262 --> 00:17:36,265
I mean, he tries
different things. Forbidden.
292
00:17:36,348 --> 00:17:40,102
One of the most beautiful
sort of woman's pictures
293
00:17:40,185 --> 00:17:43,605
or as someone might say,
soap operas of its time.
294
00:17:43,689 --> 00:17:47,067
But it's a beautiful film.
It's tender and human,
295
00:17:47,150 --> 00:17:48,861
and really very beautiful.
296
00:17:49,486 --> 00:17:50,737
Hello, Al.
297
00:17:50,821 --> 00:17:52,114
"Sit right down, Mr Holland.
298
00:17:52,197 --> 00:17:54,658
"I can't tell you how glad I am
to see you."
299
00:17:54,741 --> 00:17:56,368
{\an8}Where have you been
all this time?
300
00:17:57,369 --> 00:17:59,329
{\an8}Here and there, mostly there.
301
00:17:59,413 --> 00:18:01,707
{\an8}I've looked for you
in every jail in the state.
302
00:18:01,790 --> 00:18:03,750
I got time off
for good behaviour.
303
00:18:05,335 --> 00:18:08,714
Would it shock you
to know my heart's been broken?
304
00:18:08,797 --> 00:18:12,092
It's been going "potato"
for the last couple of years.
305
00:18:14,178 --> 00:18:16,555
-Who's your lady friend?
-Yeah, honey.
306
00:18:17,306 --> 00:18:19,933
Go on. My head's bloody,
but unbowed.
307
00:18:20,475 --> 00:18:22,686
-You're married?
-No.
308
00:18:24,229 --> 00:18:25,272
Niece?
309
00:18:25,772 --> 00:18:26,857
No.
310
00:18:28,400 --> 00:18:30,110
You're a governess?
311
00:18:31,904 --> 00:18:34,489
Yeah. And I think I better be
getting her home.
312
00:18:39,036 --> 00:18:40,287
Now that evening is here,
313
00:18:40,370 --> 00:18:42,247
suppose we go to
a world premiere
314
00:18:42,331 --> 00:18:44,333
held at
Grauman's Chinese Theatre?
315
00:18:45,042 --> 00:18:46,502
A first showing in Hollywood
316
00:18:46,585 --> 00:18:48,754
is an event
of worldwide interest.
317
00:18:49,213 --> 00:18:52,007
When I say that Cohn and I
had the same job,
318
00:18:52,090 --> 00:18:53,550
I should have been
more specific.
319
00:18:53,634 --> 00:18:55,677
It wasn't just to make
a slate of pictures,
320
00:18:55,761 --> 00:18:57,054
it's to make hits.
321
00:18:57,137 --> 00:18:59,556
Harry Cohn wasn't going to keep
the bankers from his door
322
00:18:59,640 --> 00:19:02,100
if he didn't make hits,
and believe me,
323
00:19:02,184 --> 00:19:04,728
the reason he loved Frank Capra
was because he made hits.
324
00:19:04,811 --> 00:19:07,147
And Frank Capra didn't become
a rich man,
325
00:19:07,231 --> 00:19:09,274
rich and successful man,
326
00:19:09,358 --> 00:19:11,527
without enormous
commercial success.
327
00:19:13,695 --> 00:19:15,113
A film director is lucky
328
00:19:15,197 --> 00:19:19,034
when what occurs to him and her
as being a good film
329
00:19:19,117 --> 00:19:22,704
also happens to occur
to enough of the audience
330
00:19:22,788 --> 00:19:24,122
also as good.
331
00:19:24,206 --> 00:19:27,167
Capra's great talent
was that what occurred to him
332
00:19:27,251 --> 00:19:29,336
{\an8}as a story he himself
wanted to see...
333
00:19:29,837 --> 00:19:31,755
{\an8}...and the way
in which he told it
334
00:19:31,839 --> 00:19:33,924
{\an8}happened to be extremely
appealing to others.
335
00:19:34,007 --> 00:19:35,425
{\an8}He just had the talent.
336
00:19:39,263 --> 00:19:42,641
Discouragement, fear, failure.
337
00:19:42,724 --> 00:19:46,019
Only a few years ago,
these dogged the nation.
338
00:19:46,103 --> 00:19:48,021
Depression, haunted America.
339
00:19:52,734 --> 00:19:55,696
It was a desperate,
desperate time,
340
00:19:55,779 --> 00:19:59,032
the likes of which
we hadn't seen before
341
00:19:59,116 --> 00:20:01,201
or since in this country.
342
00:20:21,138 --> 00:20:26,018
Capra's movies came along,
and they connected very directly
343
00:20:26,101 --> 00:20:29,104
to what people were
thinking and feeling.
344
00:20:29,188 --> 00:20:32,900
And they do not deny
the Depression.
345
00:20:33,692 --> 00:20:39,698
{\an8}But they provide escape by
giving you laughter, victory...
346
00:20:40,282 --> 00:20:44,745
{\an8}...charm, glamour
and a great story to absorb you
347
00:20:44,828 --> 00:20:46,914
so that you forget
your troubles.
348
00:20:47,831 --> 00:20:49,333
My name is Smith.
349
00:20:50,167 --> 00:20:54,087
That you seem to have been able
to stand for the last month.
350
00:20:55,005 --> 00:20:58,050
I'm white, male and over 21.
351
00:20:58,592 --> 00:21:00,093
I've never been in jail.
352
00:21:00,886 --> 00:21:02,679
That is, not often.
353
00:21:04,806 --> 00:21:06,975
And I prefer Scotch to bourbon.
354
00:21:07,059 --> 00:21:09,686
I hate carrots, I hate peas,
I like black coffee
355
00:21:09,770 --> 00:21:11,146
and I hate garters.
356
00:21:12,481 --> 00:21:16,693
I make 75 bucks a week
and I got 847 bucks in the bank.
357
00:21:19,530 --> 00:21:22,824
And I don't know yet whether
your eyes are blue or violet.
358
00:21:22,908 --> 00:21:25,494
That's because
you're too far away, Stew.
359
00:21:29,831 --> 00:21:32,334
I guess the picture, correct me
if I'm wrong, that really
360
00:21:32,960 --> 00:21:35,963
many critics say started
the Frank Capra style
361
00:21:36,046 --> 00:21:37,756
was Platinum Blonde.
Would you agree?
362
00:21:38,549 --> 00:21:42,052
I think Platinum Blonde
363
00:21:42,845 --> 00:21:45,264
and American Madness,
those two, yes.
364
00:21:45,347 --> 00:21:49,184
I begin to go into
the social stuff.
365
00:21:49,268 --> 00:21:51,186
I always said Union National
was a phoney bank.
366
00:21:51,270 --> 00:21:52,396
Union National?
367
00:21:52,980 --> 00:21:54,481
{\an8}You have money
in that bank, too?
368
00:21:54,565 --> 00:21:55,899
{\an8}Yes. Something wrong?
369
00:21:57,150 --> 00:21:59,862
{\an8}-Run!
-You're telling me!
370
00:21:59,945 --> 00:22:01,113
Give all the men in your plant
371
00:22:01,196 --> 00:22:02,656
a couple hours off
to get their money out.
372
00:22:02,739 --> 00:22:05,117
Tell Mrs Hardy to tell everyone
in the apartment house.
373
00:22:05,200 --> 00:22:07,160
All right, I'll get it.
I'll bust a few noses.
374
00:22:07,244 --> 00:22:09,621
Holy smoke. I'll get right
down there if I have to fly.
375
00:22:09,705 --> 00:22:11,790
Run down there
and get your money at once.
376
00:22:13,584 --> 00:22:15,085
Oh, my goodness.
377
00:22:15,169 --> 00:22:17,546
Oh, my goodness.
Oh, my goodness.
378
00:22:17,629 --> 00:22:18,839
Oh, my goodness.
379
00:22:21,592 --> 00:22:24,928
The audiences see his films
as extraordinarily contemporary.
380
00:22:25,345 --> 00:22:29,391
{\an8}They see his films as depicting
a Depression-era America...
381
00:22:29,725 --> 00:22:33,645
{\an8}...that they either recognise
or aspire to.
382
00:22:33,729 --> 00:22:36,273
That's what they want
America to look like,
383
00:22:36,356 --> 00:22:37,357
people who help each other.
384
00:22:37,441 --> 00:22:39,234
Matt, look! There's Mr Jones!
385
00:22:39,318 --> 00:22:41,236
I'm putting my money
in this bank!
386
00:22:41,320 --> 00:22:42,321
I know what I'm doing!
387
00:22:44,364 --> 00:22:45,991
Open up.
I want to put some money here.
388
00:22:46,074 --> 00:22:47,117
I don't want to take any out!
389
00:22:47,201 --> 00:22:48,785
Certainly, Mr Jones. Teller...
390
00:22:48,869 --> 00:22:50,412
They're starting
to come in already.
391
00:22:50,495 --> 00:22:52,289
Yeah, yeah, well, listen.
Don't waste any time.
392
00:22:52,372 --> 00:22:54,166
Get all the money
you can lay your hands on.
393
00:22:54,249 --> 00:22:55,417
Who's this?
394
00:22:56,460 --> 00:22:58,045
Come on out here, pawnbrokers.
Take a look.
395
00:22:58,128 --> 00:22:59,588
We've been waiting 50 minutes.
396
00:22:59,671 --> 00:23:01,131
Come on. Take a look at this.
397
00:23:01,215 --> 00:23:02,883
See a demonstration of faith
that's worth more
398
00:23:02,966 --> 00:23:04,051
than all the collateral.
399
00:23:04,134 --> 00:23:06,261
Come on, boys.
It'll do your heart good.
400
00:23:06,345 --> 00:23:08,305
Look at that. They're shoving
their hard-earned money
401
00:23:08,388 --> 00:23:10,557
across the counter
with a 10-1 chance against them.
402
00:23:15,437 --> 00:23:17,022
One thing we have to keep
in mind is that
403
00:23:17,105 --> 00:23:19,608
the American studios
were always producing films
404
00:23:19,691 --> 00:23:21,485
{\an8}for a global audience.
405
00:23:21,568 --> 00:23:24,321
{\an8}His films that we think of
as so quintessentially American
406
00:23:24,404 --> 00:23:26,323
{\an8}were huge hits
wherever they played.
407
00:23:26,448 --> 00:23:28,992
{\an8}And that's interesting,
and they seem to have
408
00:23:29,076 --> 00:23:32,079
{\an8}the same meaning
for audiences in France,
409
00:23:32,162 --> 00:23:34,957
audiences in the UK
that they had for
410
00:23:35,040 --> 00:23:36,875
audiences here in the US.
411
00:23:39,628 --> 00:23:41,964
And it was now this time
that you began your association
412
00:23:42,047 --> 00:23:43,465
with Robert Riskin.
413
00:23:43,549 --> 00:23:46,176
It was a very happy
and very long association.
414
00:23:46,260 --> 00:23:48,470
We both vibrated
to the same tuning fork.
415
00:23:48,554 --> 00:23:50,514
We collaborated on everything
416
00:23:50,597 --> 00:23:54,309
and we both kind of had
that same idea of comedy.
417
00:23:54,393 --> 00:23:56,395
Human comedy, not gag comedy.
418
00:23:56,478 --> 00:23:59,857
And that's a great thing,
419
00:23:59,940 --> 00:24:01,775
when you can get two people
that agree.
420
00:24:03,318 --> 00:24:06,572
Capra had an exceptional eye
for good writing,
421
00:24:06,655 --> 00:24:09,575
and he knew the importance
of a good script.
422
00:24:09,658 --> 00:24:13,203
So, in the early '30s,
when he starts landing
423
00:24:13,287 --> 00:24:17,207
some really exceptionally
talented screenwriters,
424
00:24:17,291 --> 00:24:18,959
he was ready to go.
425
00:24:26,675 --> 00:24:29,178
Later in his life, Capra would,
sort of, take credit
426
00:24:29,261 --> 00:24:30,971
for pretty much everything
in his films.
427
00:24:31,054 --> 00:24:32,723
But early on,
he was smart enough
428
00:24:32,806 --> 00:24:35,601
to put together the best crew
he possibly could.
429
00:24:36,935 --> 00:24:40,564
The cameraman, Joseph Walker,
who was on so many of his films,
430
00:24:40,647 --> 00:24:42,900
and Barbara Stanwyck
and other actors
431
00:24:42,983 --> 00:24:46,320
who really helped to create
the world that he made.
432
00:24:47,029 --> 00:24:49,114
So I think that the Capra film
433
00:24:49,198 --> 00:24:52,117
stands for a wide crew
of people.
434
00:25:04,796 --> 00:25:08,383
When It Happened One Night
was released into theatres,
435
00:25:08,467 --> 00:25:12,513
{\an8}believe it or not, initially,
it didn't do that well.
436
00:25:12,971 --> 00:25:15,307
{\an8}But then something happened.
437
00:25:16,141 --> 00:25:18,185
People started coming back.
438
00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:21,480
The ones who saw it
liked it enough to go back,
439
00:25:21,563 --> 00:25:23,440
and they told their friends.
440
00:25:23,524 --> 00:25:28,362
Capra liked to say years later
that "people made that movie"
441
00:25:28,445 --> 00:25:31,031
because it was
the ticketholders...
442
00:25:31,114 --> 00:25:34,284
...the punters
who just kept coming back.
443
00:25:38,455 --> 00:25:41,250
Any time you're going back to,
you know, the production
444
00:25:41,333 --> 00:25:44,753
of a Hollywood film
during the classic era...
445
00:25:44,837 --> 00:25:47,631
...there can be a lot of myths
attached to it.
446
00:25:47,714 --> 00:25:52,135
{\an8}In this case,
it's safe to go with the stories
447
00:25:52,219 --> 00:25:53,929
{\an8}because they're
not really myths.
448
00:25:54,012 --> 00:25:56,974
{\an8}Nobody wanted
to make this movie.
449
00:25:57,057 --> 00:26:00,769
Certainly, it's two stars
had to sort of be dragged
450
00:26:00,853 --> 00:26:02,229
kicking and screaming.
451
00:26:02,312 --> 00:26:07,067
Clark Gable was there because
he was being punished by MGM.
452
00:26:07,150 --> 00:26:09,403
He had been asking
for more money
453
00:26:09,486 --> 00:26:11,738
and MGM kind of told him
to go sit in a corner
454
00:26:11,822 --> 00:26:13,365
and think about what he did.
455
00:26:13,448 --> 00:26:17,035
And Claudette Colbert
only agreed to do it
456
00:26:17,119 --> 00:26:20,956
when she was given
an exorbitant salary
457
00:26:21,039 --> 00:26:22,249
for doing so.
458
00:26:22,332 --> 00:26:24,251
Next time you drop in,
bring your folks.
459
00:26:24,877 --> 00:26:28,380
At some point during the filming
of It Happened One Night,
460
00:26:28,463 --> 00:26:30,132
it started to hit people
461
00:26:30,215 --> 00:26:34,011
that their kind of
loosey-goosey attitude
462
00:26:34,094 --> 00:26:35,762
towards making this movie
463
00:26:35,846 --> 00:26:39,433
was actually producing something
rather special.
464
00:26:50,027 --> 00:26:52,821
Claudette Colbert said
in later years
465
00:26:52,905 --> 00:26:56,575
that when she read "The Man
on the Flying Trapeze" scene,
466
00:26:56,658 --> 00:26:58,994
she thought it was
kind of ridiculous.
467
00:26:59,077 --> 00:27:01,413
Couldn't understand
how everybody on the bus
468
00:27:01,496 --> 00:27:04,208
would know the lyrics
to one song.
469
00:27:04,291 --> 00:27:09,338
But then, when she actually
got in there and was filming it,
470
00:27:09,421 --> 00:27:12,299
she happened to catch
the eye of her maid
471
00:27:12,382 --> 00:27:15,385
who was standing somewhere
behind the cameraman,
472
00:27:15,469 --> 00:27:18,138
and her maid was loving it.
473
00:27:21,725 --> 00:27:26,313
And Claudette thought,
"Wow. Okay.
474
00:27:26,396 --> 00:27:28,565
"We really may have
something here."
475
00:27:45,123 --> 00:27:50,712
Movies of any type are often
about an idealised portrayal.
476
00:27:50,796 --> 00:27:52,506
Life as you wish it were,
477
00:27:52,589 --> 00:27:56,009
not necessarily
life as it really is.
478
00:27:56,093 --> 00:28:00,097
So, when they get on the bus
and start singing
479
00:28:00,180 --> 00:28:04,852
"The Man on the Flying Trapeze",
that's when you really know
480
00:28:04,935 --> 00:28:10,566
that this is a movie
about people coming together.
481
00:28:20,534 --> 00:28:24,371
There's not a lot
of the Depression
482
00:28:24,454 --> 00:28:28,166
in It Happened One Night,
oddly enough.
483
00:28:28,667 --> 00:28:34,006
{\an8}A train goes by
as they wait at the crossroads
484
00:28:34,089 --> 00:28:36,967
and on the train are some hobos.
485
00:28:37,050 --> 00:28:40,429
The Depression is now passing
through the film.
486
00:28:40,512 --> 00:28:41,805
"Hello, audience.
487
00:28:41,889 --> 00:28:44,600
"Yes, we remember
there's a Depression",
488
00:28:44,683 --> 00:28:47,769
but, you know, you're talking
about something else
489
00:28:47,853 --> 00:28:49,146
in this movie.
490
00:28:49,229 --> 00:28:50,772
A love story.
491
00:28:51,565 --> 00:28:55,527
A love story where a woman
who has money
492
00:28:55,611 --> 00:28:59,698
and a guy who doesn't
learn about each other,
493
00:28:59,781 --> 00:29:04,203
and you learn
that not having money is okay.
494
00:29:04,286 --> 00:29:06,413
In fact, it's noble.
495
00:29:06,496 --> 00:29:08,540
It's better than being rich.
496
00:29:08,999 --> 00:29:11,293
Where'd you learn to dunk?
In finishing school?
497
00:29:12,336 --> 00:29:14,755
Now, don't you start telling me
I shouldn't dunk.
498
00:29:14,838 --> 00:29:16,423
Of course you shouldn't.
You don't know how to do it.
499
00:29:16,507 --> 00:29:17,674
Dunking's an art.
500
00:29:17,758 --> 00:29:21,553
Don't let it soak so long.
A dip, and into your mouth.
501
00:29:22,012 --> 00:29:24,223
You leave it in too long,
it'll get soft and fall off.
502
00:29:24,306 --> 00:29:27,017
It's all a matter of timing.
I'll write a book about it.
503
00:29:27,851 --> 00:29:30,521
-Thanks, Professor.
-Just goes to show you.
504
00:29:30,979 --> 00:29:33,065
Plenty millions
and you don't know how to dunk.
505
00:29:33,148 --> 00:29:35,150
These rich people
couldn't dunk doughnuts.
506
00:29:35,234 --> 00:29:38,987
I mean, there's no future
in life if you can't dunk.
507
00:29:39,071 --> 00:29:41,823
She doesn't even know
what piggybacking is.
508
00:29:41,907 --> 00:29:43,242
Are the shower's in there?
509
00:29:43,325 --> 00:29:44,576
They ain't out here.
510
00:29:44,660 --> 00:29:48,413
She has to learn to be
an American,
511
00:29:48,914 --> 00:29:50,499
and not a rich person.
512
00:29:50,582 --> 00:29:53,293
That is really
what this is about.
513
00:29:53,377 --> 00:29:56,713
She has to learn
to be like other Americans.
514
00:29:57,130 --> 00:29:58,757
A person without money.
515
00:29:58,841 --> 00:30:02,010
You want to shower around here,
you'll stand in line.
516
00:30:02,094 --> 00:30:06,265
Money is not important.
It's not the thing.
517
00:30:06,348 --> 00:30:10,185
It's a reassuring message
for American audiences.
518
00:30:10,644 --> 00:30:14,064
Well, today, it's easy.
It's a rom-com, right?
519
00:30:14,147 --> 00:30:16,400
There weren't a lot of 'em
back in the day.
520
00:30:16,483 --> 00:30:19,862
It's a star-driven rom-com.
It's very simple.
521
00:30:19,945 --> 00:30:23,073
It's When Harry Met Sally...
or any one of the movies
522
00:30:23,156 --> 00:30:25,617
that Tom Hanks made
with Meg Ryan.
523
00:30:25,701 --> 00:30:27,786
At the time,
it was way more than that.
524
00:30:27,870 --> 00:30:30,831
It was genre-breaking. There
really weren't a lot of 'em.
525
00:30:30,914 --> 00:30:34,168
It was class-based romance.
It was pretty racy.
526
00:30:36,003 --> 00:30:40,507
It's scene after scene
after scene of perfectly staged
527
00:30:40,591 --> 00:30:42,634
drama/comedy.
528
00:30:42,718 --> 00:30:45,220
It's a movie where everything
came together.
529
00:30:45,304 --> 00:30:48,640
The screenplay, the casting.
Not this one but that one.
530
00:30:48,724 --> 00:30:50,976
We tried to get this one,
but he was unavailable.
531
00:30:51,059 --> 00:30:55,439
Mr Meyer forced Gable
on Harry Cohn, whatever it was.
532
00:30:55,522 --> 00:30:57,316
This looks like the best spot.
533
00:30:58,275 --> 00:31:00,694
We're not going to sleep
out here, are we?
534
00:31:00,944 --> 00:31:01,945
I don't know about you,
535
00:31:02,029 --> 00:31:04,615
but I'm going to give
a fairly good imitation of it.
536
00:31:04,698 --> 00:31:07,618
The famous scene where they go
to sleep under the haystacks.
537
00:31:07,701 --> 00:31:08,994
Beautifully shot.
538
00:31:09,077 --> 00:31:12,873
And the desire between them
is so palpable.
539
00:31:15,167 --> 00:31:18,253
The other thing he controlled
masterfully was rhythm.
540
00:31:18,337 --> 00:31:20,255
And so often,
his movies move fast,
541
00:31:20,339 --> 00:31:22,174
but he also knows
when to slow down.
542
00:31:22,758 --> 00:31:25,552
And in that film,
when they almost kiss
543
00:31:25,636 --> 00:31:29,139
and then Gable stands up
and lights a cigarette instead
544
00:31:29,556 --> 00:31:31,517
and goes to sleep
in the other haystack.
545
00:31:32,392 --> 00:31:34,269
And you cut back to her
and she's looking at him,
546
00:31:34,353 --> 00:31:36,271
"Oh, you dope,
why didn't you kiss me?
547
00:31:36,355 --> 00:31:37,856
"Why didn't you kiss me?"
548
00:31:37,940 --> 00:31:41,276
And it just quietly fades out
on a close-up of her.
549
00:31:41,360 --> 00:31:42,694
It's so beautiful.
550
00:31:43,278 --> 00:31:44,863
Just so beautiful.
551
00:31:46,907 --> 00:31:50,577
It wasn't really anything
anybody thought
552
00:31:50,661 --> 00:31:51,870
was going to be successful,
553
00:31:51,954 --> 00:31:54,540
and there were a lot of problems
going along with it.
554
00:31:54,623 --> 00:31:57,960
And Frank said, "You know,
maybe we should abandon this.
555
00:31:58,043 --> 00:31:59,920
"I mean,
nobody seems to want this.
556
00:32:00,003 --> 00:32:02,548
"Everybody says a bus story
is never going to work."
557
00:32:04,424 --> 00:32:06,718
At that time, Columbia was still
558
00:32:06,802 --> 00:32:08,887
making its way off
of Poverty Row,
559
00:32:09,638 --> 00:32:13,308
and it became a giant hit
for Clark Gable.
560
00:32:13,392 --> 00:32:16,186
It was transcendent
in the history
561
00:32:16,270 --> 00:32:18,105
and the life of the studio,
562
00:32:18,188 --> 00:32:21,149
and it's the first
of only three movies ever
563
00:32:21,233 --> 00:32:22,568
in the history of Hollywood
564
00:32:22,651 --> 00:32:26,113
to have won all five
of the major Academy Awards.
565
00:32:26,196 --> 00:32:29,449
Picture, director,
writer, actor, and actress.
566
00:32:30,075 --> 00:32:33,871
So it pulled Columbia up
into the big leagues.
567
00:32:38,917 --> 00:32:42,588
Frank Capra rang the gong
of Hollywood
568
00:32:42,671 --> 00:32:44,715
in a way it had never been
rung before.
569
00:32:44,798 --> 00:32:49,344
It Happened One Night
won all five top prizes.
570
00:32:50,095 --> 00:32:52,264
This was a singular thing
571
00:32:52,347 --> 00:32:54,266
that this young man
572
00:32:54,349 --> 00:32:57,811
at a low-budget,
Poverty Row studio
573
00:32:57,895 --> 00:33:00,439
hit the top, hit the top.
574
00:33:05,235 --> 00:33:07,237
Those five awards
nearly killed me.
575
00:33:07,321 --> 00:33:09,823
I mean, you know,
you shake the Oscar tree
576
00:33:09,907 --> 00:33:11,325
when you get
the five major awards.
577
00:33:11,408 --> 00:33:12,993
What are you gonna do
for an encore?
578
00:33:13,076 --> 00:33:14,077
This was my problem,
579
00:33:14,161 --> 00:33:17,206
and I got it so early
in my life, you see?
580
00:33:17,289 --> 00:33:19,875
Capra went to pieces kind of
after he became successful
581
00:33:19,958 --> 00:33:21,627
with It Happened One Night.
582
00:33:21,710 --> 00:33:24,630
He said suddenly people know
who you are in Asia,
583
00:33:24,713 --> 00:33:27,633
you know, I mean,
it's a whole different feeling.
584
00:33:27,716 --> 00:33:30,260
I read all kinds of things,
but everything seemed trivial
585
00:33:30,344 --> 00:33:33,972
and puerile after that,
and I feigned sickness.
586
00:33:34,515 --> 00:33:37,768
Not to make any more pictures.
I wanted to quit for a while.
587
00:33:37,851 --> 00:33:40,562
I was afraid, actually afraid
to make another film.
588
00:33:40,646 --> 00:33:43,690
He's a director who,
like many others at that time,
589
00:33:43,774 --> 00:33:44,983
was working nonstop.
590
00:33:45,067 --> 00:33:48,987
So It Happened One Night,
of course, sets him up to fail
591
00:33:49,071 --> 00:33:51,865
as much as it sets him up
to succeed.
592
00:33:51,949 --> 00:33:54,743
He almost died of peritonitis
593
00:33:54,826 --> 00:33:57,162
and he was really ill,
seriously ill.
594
00:33:57,246 --> 00:33:59,873
So I feigned sickness,
but in feigning sickness,
595
00:33:59,957 --> 00:34:04,169
I became sick,
and I was really about to die
596
00:34:04,253 --> 00:34:06,380
when a friend of mine
597
00:34:06,463 --> 00:34:09,675
brought in a very faceless
old man who came in
598
00:34:09,757 --> 00:34:12,219
and said to me,
"Mr Capra, you're a coward".
599
00:34:13,428 --> 00:34:14,929
And I said, "Coward? I'm sick".
600
00:34:15,013 --> 00:34:16,974
And he said,
"No, you're a coward.
601
00:34:17,056 --> 00:34:18,766
"You were given certain gifts
602
00:34:18,851 --> 00:34:20,726
"and you're not using them.
603
00:34:20,811 --> 00:34:23,313
"You have been given a gift
to reach hundreds of millions
604
00:34:23,397 --> 00:34:25,357
"and for two hours,
and in the dark.
605
00:34:25,440 --> 00:34:27,067
"You're a coward.
You're an offence to God.
606
00:34:27,150 --> 00:34:28,485
"You're an offence to humanity."
607
00:34:28,569 --> 00:34:30,237
And he just got up and left.
608
00:34:30,654 --> 00:34:32,155
Things do seem to change.
609
00:34:32,239 --> 00:34:35,701
Capra himself told a clearly
apocryphal story
610
00:34:35,784 --> 00:34:38,120
about while he was convalescing,
611
00:34:38,203 --> 00:34:41,581
being visited by a little man
whose name we don't know.
612
00:34:41,665 --> 00:34:43,292
We know nothing about him.
613
00:34:43,375 --> 00:34:45,418
Who told him to get up
and get to work
614
00:34:45,502 --> 00:34:47,462
and stop feeling sorry
for himself
615
00:34:47,545 --> 00:34:49,882
and to start to make films
that meant things.
616
00:34:49,965 --> 00:34:52,551
He had to renew himself.
617
00:34:52,634 --> 00:34:55,971
He had to recharge himself,
618
00:34:56,054 --> 00:34:59,558
and no one really knows
the why of this,
619
00:34:59,641 --> 00:35:02,519
and although he alludes
to these things
620
00:35:02,603 --> 00:35:05,314
and discusses them
in his autobiography,
621
00:35:05,397 --> 00:35:07,774
talked about them in interviews,
622
00:35:07,858 --> 00:35:09,568
you don't really understand
623
00:35:09,651 --> 00:35:13,322
exactly what is
going on here with him.
624
00:35:13,405 --> 00:35:18,452
He is a man who feels things
and fears things.
625
00:35:19,745 --> 00:35:22,664
As I got to know Frank
over the years
626
00:35:22,748 --> 00:35:24,625
and we spent a lot of time
627
00:35:24,708 --> 00:35:26,960
talking on
the telephone together,
628
00:35:27,044 --> 00:35:31,381
we talked about his illnesses
and his crises.
629
00:35:31,465 --> 00:35:35,677
And I would just say
that he knew he was vulnerable.
630
00:35:36,094 --> 00:35:39,598
There's always something in you
or in your life
631
00:35:39,681 --> 00:35:41,350
that can bring you pain.
632
00:35:42,059 --> 00:35:44,061
Some of it is simple health.
633
00:35:44,520 --> 00:35:47,272
Other things are deeper
than that.
634
00:35:47,356 --> 00:35:51,401
And I think that's probably all
I would want to say about that.
635
00:35:51,485 --> 00:35:55,656
Capra realised how many people
he was speaking to,
636
00:35:56,240 --> 00:35:58,909
and how successfully
he was coming across.
637
00:35:58,992 --> 00:36:01,995
So he wanted to make sure
he was saying something
638
00:36:02,412 --> 00:36:05,541
important about the way
that we lived.
639
00:36:05,624 --> 00:36:10,379
And it's that spiritual rebirth
that fuels
640
00:36:10,462 --> 00:36:14,258
the next run
of Capra's great movies.
641
00:36:20,389 --> 00:36:21,974
{\an8}I was doing it unconsciously.
642
00:36:22,766 --> 00:36:24,935
{\an8}But consciously,
643
00:36:25,018 --> 00:36:27,646
{\an8}the first film that I was going
to make
644
00:36:27,729 --> 00:36:29,356
where I attempted
to say something
645
00:36:29,439 --> 00:36:30,983
was Mr Deeds Goes to Town.
646
00:36:31,650 --> 00:36:34,945
An individual that reached deep
within his resources
647
00:36:35,028 --> 00:36:38,323
and come up with the wits
and the strength
648
00:36:38,407 --> 00:36:42,703
and the knowledge
to defeat his environment.
649
00:36:43,620 --> 00:36:45,747
Well, that's hope.
650
00:36:46,623 --> 00:36:49,418
-Say something.
-Tell your story. Go ahead.
651
00:36:49,543 --> 00:36:50,711
-Go ahead.
-Tell him.
652
00:36:51,211 --> 00:36:52,296
Mr Deeds,
653
00:36:52,421 --> 00:36:54,923
the boys here wanted me
to say a little something.
654
00:36:55,674 --> 00:36:57,467
Just wanted me to say that...
655
00:36:58,677 --> 00:37:01,847
Well, they want me to say
that we think you're swell.
656
00:37:01,930 --> 00:37:03,098
And that's no baloney.
657
00:37:04,141 --> 00:37:06,935
-Say something more.
-Give me a chance, fellas.
658
00:37:07,019 --> 00:37:10,063
We're all down and out.
A fella like you comes along,
659
00:37:10,147 --> 00:37:11,899
it kinda gives us a little hope.
660
00:37:12,232 --> 00:37:15,110
From Mr Deeds on,
my films are pretty much alike.
661
00:37:15,194 --> 00:37:18,280
I mean, the same things
kept cropping up in them.
662
00:37:18,780 --> 00:37:21,033
-That's him.
-Are you Longfellow Deeds?
663
00:37:21,116 --> 00:37:22,492
-Yes.
-Sheriff's Office.
664
00:37:22,576 --> 00:37:24,453
We got a warrant
to take you into custody.
665
00:37:24,912 --> 00:37:25,913
A what?
666
00:37:25,996 --> 00:37:27,831
A warrant for your arrest.
You have to come along with us.
667
00:37:27,915 --> 00:37:30,250
These were films like
Mr Deeds Goes to Town,
668
00:37:30,334 --> 00:37:33,086
Mr Smith Goes to Washington,
Meet John Doe,
669
00:37:33,170 --> 00:37:35,214
and other films that are clearly
670
00:37:35,297 --> 00:37:39,176
making statements about life
as it's lived in America
671
00:37:39,259 --> 00:37:40,302
at that time.
672
00:37:40,385 --> 00:37:45,432
About politics, about industry,
about the law, about media.
673
00:37:46,850 --> 00:37:49,269
Because I wanna give
money to people who need it,
674
00:37:49,353 --> 00:37:50,646
they think I'm crazy.
675
00:37:51,647 --> 00:37:54,483
That's marvellous.
That makes everything complete.
676
00:37:54,566 --> 00:37:56,985
I guess what we learnt here
677
00:37:57,069 --> 00:37:59,488
is a kind of Frank Capra movie,
isn't it?
678
00:37:59,571 --> 00:38:05,327
What we learn is that wealth
is not the American Dream.
679
00:38:05,410 --> 00:38:08,664
It's about contributing
to your community,
680
00:38:08,747 --> 00:38:09,748
to your country.
681
00:38:09,831 --> 00:38:14,586
It's an honourable sense
of being a good man.
682
00:38:15,170 --> 00:38:16,296
Mr Deeds.
683
00:38:17,047 --> 00:38:19,883
You haven't yet touched upon
the most important point.
684
00:38:20,843 --> 00:38:22,594
It's all a fantastic idea
of yours
685
00:38:22,678 --> 00:38:24,596
to want to give away
your entire fortune.
686
00:38:25,264 --> 00:38:27,724
It is, to say the least,
most uncommon.
687
00:38:28,183 --> 00:38:29,768
It's like the road
out in front of my house,
688
00:38:29,852 --> 00:38:30,894
it's on a steep hill.
689
00:38:30,978 --> 00:38:32,896
Every day
I watch the cars climbing up.
690
00:38:33,397 --> 00:38:35,440
Some go lickety split up
that hill on high,
691
00:38:35,524 --> 00:38:38,902
some have to shift into second
and some sputter and shake
692
00:38:38,986 --> 00:38:40,779
and slip back
to the bottom again.
693
00:38:40,863 --> 00:38:44,449
Same car, same gasoline,
yet some make it and some don't.
694
00:38:44,533 --> 00:38:46,368
And I say the fellas
who can make the hill on high
695
00:38:46,451 --> 00:38:48,871
should stop once in a while
and help those who can't.
696
00:38:48,954 --> 00:38:50,372
That's all I'm trying to do
with this money.
697
00:38:50,455 --> 00:38:52,666
Help the fellas who can't make
the hill on high.
698
00:38:53,625 --> 00:38:56,378
And after careful deliberation,
the committee have voted
699
00:38:57,212 --> 00:38:59,381
that the best direction
for a motion picture
700
00:38:59,464 --> 00:39:01,466
during the year of 1936
701
00:39:02,092 --> 00:39:04,803
is awarded to you, Frank Capra,
702
00:39:04,887 --> 00:39:06,430
for your direction
of the picture
703
00:39:06,513 --> 00:39:08,765
Mr Deeds Comes to Town.
704
00:39:10,309 --> 00:39:13,312
Retake, boys. It's
"Goes to Town". Can't have that.
705
00:39:18,025 --> 00:39:20,319
Capra had to wait about a year
706
00:39:20,402 --> 00:39:22,613
to even get to make
Lost Horizon.
707
00:39:22,696 --> 00:39:24,948
I really think he thought
this was going
708
00:39:25,032 --> 00:39:30,871
{\an8}to be a grand statement,
a real artistic achievement.
709
00:39:38,420 --> 00:39:40,964
{\an8}After Mr Deeds,
Capra was feeling
710
00:39:41,048 --> 00:39:42,925
{\an8}a greater sense
of responsibility.
711
00:39:43,008 --> 00:39:45,010
He was dealing with big issues,
big subjects.
712
00:39:45,093 --> 00:39:47,012
He was being seen
as a political force
713
00:39:47,095 --> 00:39:49,723
in the United States,
a cultural force.
714
00:39:59,107 --> 00:40:00,901
Welcome to Shangri-La.
715
00:40:02,277 --> 00:40:04,863
You see, we are sheltered
by mountains on every side.
716
00:40:05,447 --> 00:40:08,325
It's a strange phenomena
for which we are very grateful.
717
00:40:14,665 --> 00:40:18,460
I simply like the fact
that Lost Horizon
718
00:40:18,544 --> 00:40:21,672
is a utopian movie at all.
719
00:40:22,381 --> 00:40:23,757
It's magic.
720
00:40:24,341 --> 00:40:27,219
Those have kind of fallen
by the wayside.
721
00:40:27,302 --> 00:40:29,680
Dystopia is what we get now.
722
00:40:30,556 --> 00:40:33,141
The problem with that film
is it's a theme picture.
723
00:40:33,225 --> 00:40:34,935
It's not as much
about the characters
724
00:40:35,018 --> 00:40:36,311
as the characters are dwarfed
725
00:40:36,395 --> 00:40:38,605
by the big themes
and the big sets.
726
00:40:39,481 --> 00:40:42,442
It is our hope
that the brotherly love
727
00:40:42,526 --> 00:40:43,861
of Shangri-La
728
00:40:44,820 --> 00:40:49,157
will spread
throughout the world.
729
00:40:52,494 --> 00:40:56,915
Capra went way over budget
and almost bankrupted Columbia.
730
00:40:56,999 --> 00:40:59,293
Harry Cohn had to call
all the employees together
731
00:40:59,376 --> 00:41:01,378
on a soundstage at one point
and say,
732
00:41:01,461 --> 00:41:03,130
"We can't pay your cheques
for this week",
733
00:41:03,213 --> 00:41:04,965
because they were
so short on cash.
734
00:41:06,341 --> 00:41:09,595
-What's happened? Where's Bob?
-He's going, my child.
735
00:41:10,179 --> 00:41:11,180
In those days,
736
00:41:11,263 --> 00:41:13,140
there were bank lendings
involved
737
00:41:13,223 --> 00:41:16,185
and it wouldn't have been hard
for a runaway picture
738
00:41:16,268 --> 00:41:17,394
to sink a studio.
739
00:41:17,477 --> 00:41:19,855
So I think
the production problems
740
00:41:19,938 --> 00:41:21,273
on Lost Horizon
741
00:41:21,356 --> 00:41:23,525
took a great toll on both sides.
742
00:41:23,609 --> 00:41:25,569
And it fractured the trust.
743
00:41:25,652 --> 00:41:30,073
And trust is hard won
and easily lost.
744
00:41:31,158 --> 00:41:33,785
Harry Cohn took the picture
away from Capra
745
00:41:33,869 --> 00:41:36,038
after a while because Capra
couldn't bring it down
746
00:41:36,121 --> 00:41:38,081
to the length that Cohn wanted.
747
00:41:38,165 --> 00:41:41,585
It was not the success
and winner of Oscars
748
00:41:41,668 --> 00:41:43,295
that they thought it would be.
749
00:41:43,378 --> 00:41:45,297
It was sort of the beginning
of the end
750
00:41:45,380 --> 00:41:47,299
between them, probably.
751
00:41:51,220 --> 00:41:54,223
{\an8}Well, I don't start a film
unless I have something to say
752
00:41:54,306 --> 00:41:55,807
{\an8}and know what I'm gonna say.
753
00:41:55,891 --> 00:41:57,768
He went down among the people.
754
00:41:58,685 --> 00:42:00,437
And there he found
755
00:42:02,314 --> 00:42:03,649
a nugget.
756
00:42:07,319 --> 00:42:10,697
Capra movies
are about good people
757
00:42:10,781 --> 00:42:13,659
up against overwhelming
opposition.
758
00:42:13,742 --> 00:42:16,662
...to Senator Jefferson Smith.
759
00:42:19,373 --> 00:42:22,960
It's generally one person
against the media,
760
00:42:23,043 --> 00:42:25,712
the government,
popular awareness.
761
00:42:26,630 --> 00:42:29,800
These insurmountable projects
762
00:42:29,883 --> 00:42:31,927
that make them, in a way,
763
00:42:32,010 --> 00:42:34,680
almost like fairy tales,
you know.
764
00:42:34,763 --> 00:42:37,474
How is Saint George
going to slay the dragon?
765
00:42:37,558 --> 00:42:41,937
There's no way, you know.
This is a hopeless situation.
766
00:42:42,020 --> 00:42:45,566
I can't help feeling
that there's
767
00:42:45,649 --> 00:42:47,568
been a big mistake somehow.
768
00:42:50,487 --> 00:42:52,656
I don't think I'm gonna be
much help to you
769
00:42:52,739 --> 00:42:54,241
down there
in Washington, Senator.
770
00:42:55,951 --> 00:43:02,082
I used comedy and laughter
as a way of becoming
771
00:43:02,165 --> 00:43:03,375
very friendly with the audience,
772
00:43:03,458 --> 00:43:06,128
or making the audience
very friendly with the film,
773
00:43:06,211 --> 00:43:07,796
and with the characters
in the film.
774
00:43:07,880 --> 00:43:11,466
It's comedy directors
who typically are most adept
775
00:43:11,550 --> 00:43:14,011
at drama and pathos.
776
00:43:14,678 --> 00:43:16,763
That's his brilliance
with casting,
777
00:43:16,847 --> 00:43:18,849
is that he's a comedy director.
778
00:43:18,932 --> 00:43:22,603
That's his brilliance
with pacing, with rhythm,
779
00:43:22,686 --> 00:43:24,521
is that he's a comedy director.
780
00:43:25,564 --> 00:43:30,569
It's in comedy that you learn
the control of those things.
781
00:43:30,652 --> 00:43:33,989
It's really hard
to calibrate things
782
00:43:34,072 --> 00:43:36,116
to get those laughs
from the audience
783
00:43:36,200 --> 00:43:39,494
and it takes time
and it takes talent,
784
00:43:39,578 --> 00:43:41,830
experience and screening.
785
00:43:41,914 --> 00:43:43,790
You've got to screen
your pictures a lot.
786
00:43:44,291 --> 00:43:45,959
If you entertain them
with laughter,
787
00:43:46,043 --> 00:43:48,086
then you have them at a point
788
00:43:48,170 --> 00:43:50,088
where they might sit still
for a message.
789
00:43:50,172 --> 00:43:52,216
Hello, Senator.
I was just passing through.
790
00:43:52,299 --> 00:43:53,842
I thought I'd like to meet you.
791
00:43:54,718 --> 00:43:56,053
Sit down.
You met all the boys here,
792
00:43:56,136 --> 00:43:57,137
-I suppose.
-Yes, sir.
793
00:43:57,221 --> 00:43:58,847
They tell me you've been
right on your toes
794
00:43:58,931 --> 00:44:00,265
ever since you got here.
795
00:44:00,349 --> 00:44:01,517
That's fine.
796
00:44:02,643 --> 00:44:05,646
You know, some people told me
that you were dumb.
797
00:44:05,729 --> 00:44:07,397
I think you're smart.
798
00:44:07,481 --> 00:44:10,400
What fascinated you most
about the story of Mr Smith?
799
00:44:11,527 --> 00:44:14,446
Well, the story of Mr Smith
is the story
800
00:44:14,530 --> 00:44:18,492
of a young nobody that gets
put into a position of trust
801
00:44:18,575 --> 00:44:20,494
and is an idealist.
802
00:44:20,994 --> 00:44:22,704
And he doesn't like
what he finds.
803
00:44:23,080 --> 00:44:24,706
And he doesn't like
804
00:44:25,207 --> 00:44:29,169
this compromise and making do
and this rubbing one's back.
805
00:44:29,253 --> 00:44:31,755
And particularly
doesn't like graft.
806
00:44:32,422 --> 00:44:35,259
And he doesn't like power.
So he began to fight it,
807
00:44:35,342 --> 00:44:37,427
and the machine just
steamrolled right over him
808
00:44:37,511 --> 00:44:38,846
and flattened him right out.
809
00:44:40,138 --> 00:44:41,515
And with the aid of a girl
810
00:44:41,598 --> 00:44:44,601
who took an interest in him,
he got up on his feet
811
00:44:44,685 --> 00:44:46,687
and fought back and won.
812
00:44:47,020 --> 00:44:49,523
He found it deep within, inside,
813
00:44:49,940 --> 00:44:52,985
he had the moral, the mental
814
00:44:53,861 --> 00:44:56,238
and enough wit
and everything else
815
00:44:57,072 --> 00:44:59,700
to win out over his
environmental difficulties.
816
00:45:00,409 --> 00:45:02,911
You mean you tell these men
and Senator Paine what to do?
817
00:45:02,995 --> 00:45:04,413
Why, yes.
818
00:45:04,496 --> 00:45:07,624
Joe Paine has been taking
my advice for the past 20 years.
819
00:45:09,918 --> 00:45:11,503
You're a liar.
820
00:45:16,842 --> 00:45:19,303
Mr Smith Goes to Washington
was released
821
00:45:19,386 --> 00:45:21,805
at the same time
that Hitler attacked Poland.
822
00:45:26,018 --> 00:45:28,395
It was a time of great crisis,
823
00:45:28,478 --> 00:45:31,690
and Americans really needed
to come together
824
00:45:31,773 --> 00:45:33,859
to not only save the country
in the Depression,
825
00:45:33,942 --> 00:45:35,944
but later join the Allies
826
00:45:36,028 --> 00:45:38,447
to save the world
in World War II.
827
00:45:38,530 --> 00:45:40,741
And those crises came
back to back.
828
00:45:41,533 --> 00:45:45,245
How to join together
to be part of a worthy cause
829
00:45:45,329 --> 00:45:46,496
that's bigger than yourself,
830
00:45:46,580 --> 00:45:48,415
and at the same time,
how to do that
831
00:45:48,498 --> 00:45:50,501
without losing hold of
832
00:45:50,584 --> 00:45:53,337
what's important to you
personally?
833
00:45:53,420 --> 00:45:56,590
Americans had to answer
these questions
834
00:45:56,673 --> 00:45:58,717
at the moment
Capra was making a movie.
835
00:45:58,800 --> 00:46:00,802
They were urgent questions.
836
00:46:00,886 --> 00:46:03,013
They were not
theoretical questions.
837
00:46:03,096 --> 00:46:05,599
I mean, even whether
they were consciously addressed
838
00:46:05,682 --> 00:46:08,143
or unconsciously addressed
by Americans,
839
00:46:08,227 --> 00:46:10,812
they were living with them
day to day.
840
00:46:11,563 --> 00:46:13,357
How big is this thing?
Where's it going to be?
841
00:46:13,440 --> 00:46:14,983
How many boys
will it accommodate?
842
00:46:15,067 --> 00:46:16,818
You've got to have
all that in it, you know.
843
00:46:16,902 --> 00:46:19,196
Yeah, and something else,
Ms Saunders.
844
00:46:19,279 --> 00:46:22,824
The spirit of it, the idea...
845
00:46:23,909 --> 00:46:24,993
How do you say it?
846
00:46:28,163 --> 00:46:30,415
-That's what's got to be in it.
-What?
847
00:46:30,791 --> 00:46:32,292
The Capitol Dome.
848
00:46:32,793 --> 00:46:33,836
On paper?
849
00:46:33,919 --> 00:46:36,797
I want to make that come to life
for every boy in this land.
850
00:46:36,880 --> 00:46:39,049
Yes, and I'll light it up
like that, too.
851
00:46:40,425 --> 00:46:43,929
You see, boys forget
what their country means
852
00:46:44,012 --> 00:46:46,723
by reading "the land
of the free" in history books.
853
00:46:46,807 --> 00:46:49,268
When they get to be men,
they forget even more.
854
00:46:50,602 --> 00:46:53,981
Liberty is too precious a thing
to be buried in books.
855
00:46:54,064 --> 00:46:56,066
Unlike other filmmakers
at the time,
856
00:46:56,149 --> 00:46:58,318
people saw in his films
857
00:46:58,402 --> 00:47:00,654
a model of what they hoped
their lives would be.
858
00:47:00,737 --> 00:47:03,824
They saw his films
as aspirational in some ways.
859
00:47:03,907 --> 00:47:05,868
They saw his films as comments
860
00:47:05,951 --> 00:47:08,161
on what it's like to live
in modern America.
861
00:47:08,829 --> 00:47:10,205
Men should hold it up
in front of them
862
00:47:10,289 --> 00:47:14,001
every single day of their lives
and say, "I'm free".
863
00:47:14,751 --> 00:47:17,212
They see the problems
that they're experiencing.
864
00:47:17,296 --> 00:47:19,548
The government wasn't responding
to their needs.
865
00:47:19,631 --> 00:47:21,633
The law certainly
didn't do that.
866
00:47:21,717 --> 00:47:23,886
Capitalism seemed
to have run amok.
867
00:47:23,969 --> 00:47:25,512
It wasn't helping anyone.
868
00:47:25,929 --> 00:47:30,559
Capra was always, always
in touch with the audience,
869
00:47:30,934 --> 00:47:34,354
not just in terms of what
they wanted in entertainment
870
00:47:34,438 --> 00:47:38,525
but who they were emotionally
as Americans.
871
00:47:39,818 --> 00:47:41,486
Were you
some kind of a populist,
872
00:47:41,570 --> 00:47:42,988
or was there something
in the fact
873
00:47:43,071 --> 00:47:45,199
that you had been
a poor kid yourself
874
00:47:45,282 --> 00:47:47,284
and somewhere in the American,
875
00:47:47,910 --> 00:47:49,953
you'd found your way upward?
876
00:47:50,329 --> 00:47:53,081
The kind of pictures I made
from It Happened One Night on
877
00:47:53,665 --> 00:47:55,751
were my way of saying,
"Thanks, America,
878
00:47:55,834 --> 00:47:59,588
"for giving me the opportunity",
because only in America,
879
00:47:59,671 --> 00:48:03,800
it can happen that a son
of illiterate parent peasants
880
00:48:04,301 --> 00:48:06,303
could get this kind
of an education that I'd had.
881
00:48:06,386 --> 00:48:09,890
And then be allowed to use
whatever talents he had.
882
00:48:10,682 --> 00:48:12,309
You can't quit now.
883
00:48:12,392 --> 00:48:16,480
Not you. They aren't all Taylors
and Paines in Washington.
884
00:48:16,563 --> 00:48:19,066
That kind just throw
big shadows, that's all.
885
00:48:20,108 --> 00:48:22,444
You didn't just
have faith in Paine
886
00:48:22,528 --> 00:48:23,904
or any other living man.
887
00:48:23,987 --> 00:48:26,156
You had faith in something
bigger than that.
888
00:48:26,240 --> 00:48:30,202
You had plain, decent,
everyday common rightness,
889
00:48:30,285 --> 00:48:32,621
and this country could use
some of that.
890
00:48:37,292 --> 00:48:39,253
He had a love for people.
891
00:48:39,336 --> 00:48:42,714
You see it in the faces
of Capra's people.
892
00:48:42,798 --> 00:48:44,258
If you look at a Capra movie,
893
00:48:44,341 --> 00:48:48,679
it is cast down
to the smallest part.
894
00:48:48,762 --> 00:48:53,058
The faces speak so clearly
of character.
895
00:48:53,141 --> 00:48:55,310
It was very important to me
who played the smaller parts.
896
00:48:55,394 --> 00:48:57,604
I treated all the small parts
as star parts.
897
00:48:58,230 --> 00:48:59,857
I use people. I love people.
898
00:49:00,774 --> 00:49:04,403
Capra's films have
an expansiveness to them.
899
00:49:04,486 --> 00:49:07,072
They seem to speak
to the desires of many people
900
00:49:07,155 --> 00:49:11,451
in the audience, but they also
have incredible limits, too.
901
00:49:11,535 --> 00:49:12,619
And we can see that
902
00:49:12,703 --> 00:49:15,747
in the overarching
whiteness of his films
903
00:49:15,831 --> 00:49:18,417
and his unwillingness to talk
904
00:49:18,500 --> 00:49:21,170
about anything
other than whiteness
905
00:49:21,253 --> 00:49:22,504
for the most part.
906
00:49:23,172 --> 00:49:25,924
The expansiveness,
the broadness of Capra's films,
907
00:49:26,008 --> 00:49:27,301
we always have to keep in mind
908
00:49:27,384 --> 00:49:29,178
that there are
those limits, too,
909
00:49:29,261 --> 00:49:32,389
that certainly
weren't unique to him,
910
00:49:32,472 --> 00:49:35,350
but that perhaps he could have
done a much better job at.
911
00:49:35,893 --> 00:49:37,394
This John Doe meeting's gonna be
912
00:49:37,477 --> 00:49:39,021
{\an8}one of the biggest things
that ever happened.
913
00:49:39,104 --> 00:49:40,397
{\an8}And why they're coming
from all over.
914
00:49:40,480 --> 00:49:42,441
{\an8}Trains, boxcars, wagons.
915
00:50:10,135 --> 00:50:13,263
Frank Capra movies
will frequently show
916
00:50:13,347 --> 00:50:16,308
people being kind and wonderful
917
00:50:16,391 --> 00:50:19,520
and even noble
on an individual basis.
918
00:50:19,603 --> 00:50:24,274
But large groups of people
are frequently sinister
919
00:50:24,358 --> 00:50:25,567
by contrast.
920
00:50:34,743 --> 00:50:37,037
One of your critics has argued
921
00:50:37,120 --> 00:50:39,206
that implicit
in all of your films
922
00:50:39,289 --> 00:50:42,251
is a distrust of the majority.
923
00:50:42,334 --> 00:50:44,253
I'm not against a crowd
of individuals.
924
00:50:44,336 --> 00:50:45,671
I'm against the mass.
925
00:50:45,796 --> 00:50:49,591
{\an8}I'm against the mass conforming.
926
00:50:49,675 --> 00:50:51,927
{\an8}I'm not against a crowd
of individuals.
927
00:50:54,972 --> 00:50:57,891
And I think that the majority
does tend to be the herd.
928
00:50:57,975 --> 00:51:01,061
{\an8}They can be conformed
and channelised
929
00:51:01,144 --> 00:51:03,063
{\an8}and allow themselves
to be channelised.
930
00:51:03,480 --> 00:51:06,483
And it's only those guys
that stick their heads up, say,
931
00:51:06,567 --> 00:51:09,236
"I don't want to go this way.
I want to go this way".
932
00:51:10,737 --> 00:51:12,865
And that I'm interested in,
933
00:51:12,948 --> 00:51:14,783
and I think the world
is interested in
934
00:51:14,867 --> 00:51:18,287
and I think that the humanity
is interested in.
935
00:51:19,454 --> 00:51:23,125
I think this reflects
Frank Capra's
936
00:51:23,208 --> 00:51:26,670
peculiar, if not
political outlook,
937
00:51:26,753 --> 00:51:29,882
than his kind of
intellectual outlook.
938
00:51:29,965 --> 00:51:35,220
He, you know, loved humanity
on a one-by-one basis.
939
00:51:35,304 --> 00:51:38,724
Not so much in vast numbers.
940
00:51:39,433 --> 00:51:42,144
Heroes in the film
are very individualistic
941
00:51:42,227 --> 00:51:43,562
and very self-sufficient,
942
00:51:43,645 --> 00:51:46,690
and that was his experience
in life.
943
00:51:46,899 --> 00:51:49,651
He was an immigrant,
he was an outsider
944
00:51:49,735 --> 00:51:53,572
and I think he's therefore
very inherently sympathetic
945
00:51:53,655 --> 00:51:56,033
with the individual
versus the system.
946
00:51:59,411 --> 00:52:00,913
The political dimensions
of the films
947
00:52:00,996 --> 00:52:02,331
are kind of all over the place.
948
00:52:03,040 --> 00:52:06,126
Robert Riskin, who wrote so many
of those first great films
949
00:52:06,210 --> 00:52:09,463
was very much an FDR Democrat
at this time.
950
00:52:09,546 --> 00:52:11,048
Capra was a Republican.
951
00:52:11,131 --> 00:52:12,257
But he was a Republican
952
00:52:12,341 --> 00:52:14,927
at a time when there was a
progressive wing of that party
953
00:52:15,010 --> 00:52:16,845
that was marked by
a sort of critique
954
00:52:16,929 --> 00:52:19,097
of the excess of capitalism.
955
00:52:19,181 --> 00:52:21,433
So that made it possible
for him to make films
956
00:52:21,517 --> 00:52:24,311
with New Deal Democrats.
957
00:52:24,394 --> 00:52:27,731
And together they could
kind of produce an America
958
00:52:27,814 --> 00:52:31,568
that seemed both apolitical
and political at the same time.
959
00:52:31,652 --> 00:52:34,571
Both left and right, I suppose,
960
00:52:34,655 --> 00:52:38,116
can all see some value in
standing up for the individual,
961
00:52:38,200 --> 00:52:42,871
being oppressed by society
and fighting corruption.
962
00:52:42,996 --> 00:52:44,540
-Order, gentlemen.
-Mr President!
963
00:52:44,623 --> 00:52:46,583
I stand guilty as framed,
964
00:52:46,667 --> 00:52:48,627
because Section 40 is graft.
965
00:52:48,710 --> 00:52:51,296
And I was ready to say so.
I was ready to tell you
966
00:52:51,380 --> 00:52:53,924
that a certain man
in my state, a Mr James Taylor,
967
00:52:54,007 --> 00:52:56,343
wanted to put through this dam
for his own profit.
968
00:52:56,426 --> 00:52:59,346
A man who controls
a political machine
969
00:52:59,429 --> 00:53:02,224
and controls everything else
worth controlling in my state.
970
00:53:02,307 --> 00:53:05,018
Yes, a man even powerful enough
to control Congressmen.
971
00:53:05,102 --> 00:53:06,603
And I saw three of them
in his room
972
00:53:06,687 --> 00:53:08,021
the day I went up to see him.
973
00:53:08,105 --> 00:53:10,274
-Will the Senator yield?
-No, sir, I will not yield!
974
00:53:11,817 --> 00:53:15,112
My films were more to uplift
975
00:53:15,195 --> 00:53:17,739
the people
from their everyday miseries,
976
00:53:17,823 --> 00:53:20,242
than to sort of change things.
977
00:53:20,325 --> 00:53:22,494
I was aiming at
978
00:53:25,539 --> 00:53:27,624
the general folds of humanity,
979
00:53:27,708 --> 00:53:32,796
and sort of trying to glorify
the compassionate,
980
00:53:32,880 --> 00:53:36,425
the forgiving,
the merciful, and so forth.
981
00:53:42,097 --> 00:53:44,183
The interesting thing about
982
00:53:44,266 --> 00:53:47,603
a man like Frank Capra,
with his success...
983
00:53:47,686 --> 00:53:51,440
Everybody's always
going to define him.
984
00:53:51,523 --> 00:53:53,066
He hated that.
985
00:53:54,318 --> 00:53:56,570
I was a Capra fan,
986
00:53:56,653 --> 00:53:58,488
a great admirer of his films.
987
00:53:58,572 --> 00:53:59,823
So, I called up Capra
988
00:53:59,907 --> 00:54:01,617
and I said,
"I'd like to interview you".
989
00:54:01,700 --> 00:54:04,870
Went down to Palm Springs.
He lived in La Quinta nearby.
990
00:54:05,746 --> 00:54:08,332
And I went to his home.
991
00:54:08,415 --> 00:54:11,210
He had
a sprawling white ranch house
992
00:54:11,293 --> 00:54:13,003
with a gigantic American flag.
993
00:54:13,086 --> 00:54:15,506
And we were talking
and he was giving me
994
00:54:15,589 --> 00:54:17,716
his whole Frank Capra rap about
995
00:54:17,799 --> 00:54:19,635
the little guy
against the system.
996
00:54:19,718 --> 00:54:22,554
He was telling me how he
hated bankers and rich people.
997
00:54:22,638 --> 00:54:24,389
And then,
a man came to the table.
998
00:54:24,473 --> 00:54:27,392
He had this envelope
full of pictures of Capra
999
00:54:27,476 --> 00:54:29,978
playing golf with
President Gerald Ford.
1000
00:54:30,062 --> 00:54:31,688
And he spread them on the table,
1001
00:54:31,772 --> 00:54:34,274
and Capra said, "Oh, God.
Look at Gerry Ford.
1002
00:54:34,358 --> 00:54:36,109
"He's such a great guy."
1003
00:54:37,027 --> 00:54:39,279
There was a picture
in particular that struck me,
1004
00:54:39,363 --> 00:54:40,697
that Capra was putting,
1005
00:54:40,781 --> 00:54:42,866
and Gerald Ford
was holding the pin for him,
1006
00:54:42,950 --> 00:54:45,619
and I thought this was amazing.
What a symbolic picture,
1007
00:54:45,702 --> 00:54:48,705
the immigrant with the president
holding the pen for you.
1008
00:54:48,789 --> 00:54:51,959
That's kind of
the ultimate American dream.
1009
00:54:52,042 --> 00:54:54,795
The guy said, "I'll make
copies of the pictures for you",
1010
00:54:54,878 --> 00:54:56,255
and Capra said,
"Thank you very much",
1011
00:54:56,338 --> 00:54:58,882
And then, he turned to me
and he said, "Where was I?
1012
00:54:58,966 --> 00:55:02,511
"Oh, yeah, I was telling you how
I hate bankers and rich people."
1013
00:55:02,594 --> 00:55:06,390
And he launched back
into his rap without a pause,
1014
00:55:06,473 --> 00:55:09,268
and I thought, "This guy
is not what he seems to be".
1015
00:55:14,690 --> 00:55:17,150
People, for a long time,
1016
00:55:17,234 --> 00:55:20,779
assumed that the movies
that they had seen,
1017
00:55:20,863 --> 00:55:24,908
which were ultimately
loving about America,
1018
00:55:24,992 --> 00:55:29,955
embraced a certain type
of liberal politics.
1019
00:55:30,038 --> 00:55:34,251
And then, people started
to look more closely at him,
1020
00:55:34,334 --> 00:55:39,548
and they discovered that there
was another side to Frank Capra.
1021
00:55:39,631 --> 00:55:43,385
There was a side that thought
people should be out there,
1022
00:55:43,468 --> 00:55:47,598
pulling themselves up
by their bootstraps like he did.
1023
00:55:47,681 --> 00:55:51,268
So, he was a complex person,
1024
00:55:51,351 --> 00:55:53,687
and I think, at some point,
1025
00:55:53,770 --> 00:55:58,066
people started
seeing that as a flaw,
1026
00:55:58,150 --> 00:56:01,028
that this the kind of
rock-ribbed conservative
1027
00:56:01,111 --> 00:56:06,116
was existing alongside
the movies that they had loved.
1028
00:56:08,702 --> 00:56:10,329
Penny,
1029
00:56:10,412 --> 00:56:13,790
why don't you write
a play about ism-mania.
1030
00:56:13,874 --> 00:56:16,585
-Ism-mania.
-Yeah, sure.
1031
00:56:16,668 --> 00:56:21,340
{\an8}You know, communism,
fascism, voodooism.
1032
00:56:21,924 --> 00:56:24,468
Everybody's got
an ism these says.
1033
00:56:25,427 --> 00:56:28,388
I thought it was
an itch or something.
1034
00:56:28,472 --> 00:56:30,182
Well, it's just as catching.
1035
00:56:30,265 --> 00:56:32,392
When things go
a little bad nowadays,
1036
00:56:32,476 --> 00:56:34,686
you go out
and get yourself an ism,
1037
00:56:34,770 --> 00:56:36,688
and you're in business.
1038
00:56:36,772 --> 00:56:38,357
I've got it.
It might help Cynthia
1039
00:56:38,440 --> 00:56:40,484
to have an ism in the monastery.
1040
00:56:42,152 --> 00:56:43,737
And why is that?
1041
00:56:44,488 --> 00:56:48,492
For the best-directed picture
of the year,
1042
00:56:48,575 --> 00:56:50,327
You Can't Take It with You,
1043
00:56:50,410 --> 00:56:55,123
on behalf of the Academy of
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
1044
00:56:55,207 --> 00:56:59,294
we present to you,
Frank Capra, this award.
1045
00:56:59,378 --> 00:57:03,674
As you know, this is
the third time you have won
1046
00:57:03,757 --> 00:57:06,009
this highest of our awards,
1047
00:57:06,093 --> 00:57:08,262
and in all sincerity
from my heart,
1048
00:57:08,345 --> 00:57:09,805
I thank you.
1049
00:57:09,888 --> 00:57:11,890
Thank you very much, Mr Niblo.
1050
00:57:11,974 --> 00:57:14,059
I'm very happy
to have this again.
1051
00:57:14,142 --> 00:57:15,310
Thank you.
1052
00:57:16,562 --> 00:57:19,523
He, quite conceivably,
by 1935 or so,
1053
00:57:19,606 --> 00:57:21,650
was the most famous filmmaker
in the world,
1054
00:57:21,733 --> 00:57:23,652
or certainly,
one of two or three.
1055
00:57:23,735 --> 00:57:28,198
Frank Capra really turned
this aspect of self-promotion
1056
00:57:28,282 --> 00:57:29,533
into something of an art,
1057
00:57:29,616 --> 00:57:34,580
and he used that as a tool
1058
00:57:34,663 --> 00:57:40,544
to create, horrid word,
a "brand", if you will.
1059
00:57:40,627 --> 00:57:44,339
In the late 1930s, he's on
the cover of Time magazine,
1060
00:57:44,423 --> 00:57:46,466
and I think
he's the first director
1061
00:57:46,550 --> 00:57:48,010
on the cover of Time.
1062
00:57:48,093 --> 00:57:50,220
And the tagline
for that cover is,
1063
00:57:50,304 --> 00:57:53,098
"His stories can't top
his story".
1064
00:57:53,182 --> 00:57:55,017
And inside, they told the story
1065
00:57:55,100 --> 00:57:57,060
of a little boy
who comes from Palermo,
1066
00:57:57,144 --> 00:57:59,605
who has a terrible life,
makes it big.
1067
00:57:59,688 --> 00:58:03,025
So, I think his life, as it was
understood in the press,
1068
00:58:03,108 --> 00:58:05,152
by the people
who went to see his films,
1069
00:58:05,235 --> 00:58:07,738
was really an important part
of why his films
1070
00:58:07,821 --> 00:58:10,365
were so appealing
to so many at that time.
1071
00:58:10,449 --> 00:58:14,119
They saw in him a person
who they could relate to,
1072
00:58:14,203 --> 00:58:17,706
understand, and who
they felt understood things
1073
00:58:17,789 --> 00:58:19,041
the way that they did.
1074
00:58:21,960 --> 00:58:25,047
Hollywood reaches far,
carrying its cargo of dreams
1075
00:58:25,130 --> 00:58:27,508
to almost every city
and village in America.
1076
00:58:27,591 --> 00:58:29,468
It seemed to me,
there was some kind...
1077
00:58:29,551 --> 00:58:30,886
Film offered some kind
1078
00:58:30,969 --> 00:58:33,472
of a social cement,
if you will, for people.
1079
00:58:33,555 --> 00:58:35,682
Yes, I think films offered hope.
1080
00:58:37,684 --> 00:58:38,977
And they go out of theatres
1081
00:58:39,061 --> 00:58:40,562
feeling much better
than they went in.
1082
00:58:41,438 --> 00:58:42,731
They were lifted.
1083
00:58:44,274 --> 00:58:48,904
Movie-going in the Depression
and through World War II
1084
00:58:48,987 --> 00:58:51,615
was different
than the way it is now.
1085
00:58:51,698 --> 00:58:57,204
Then, everyone saw virtually
the same movies,
1086
00:58:57,287 --> 00:59:01,124
and that creates the sense
of movies being a myth,
1087
00:59:01,208 --> 00:59:03,377
that we can all
1088
00:59:03,460 --> 00:59:07,214
have the same
frame of reference in our minds,
1089
00:59:07,297 --> 00:59:10,717
we've all been through
the same thing together,
1090
00:59:10,801 --> 00:59:15,138
not just as citizens
of a country, but as filmgoers.
1091
00:59:15,222 --> 00:59:18,892
That alone gives filmmakers
in Capra's generation
1092
00:59:18,976 --> 00:59:22,688
more power than you can imagine
a filmmaker having today.
1093
00:59:22,771 --> 00:59:24,648
I mean,
you have to think of Capra,
1094
00:59:24,731 --> 00:59:28,151
in a way, as another FDR
in that sense.
1095
00:59:28,819 --> 00:59:32,155
That is going to create
a lot of suspicion
1096
00:59:32,239 --> 00:59:35,659
as soon as people begin
to interrogate
1097
00:59:35,742 --> 00:59:37,995
what it's like
for someone in the media
1098
00:59:38,078 --> 00:59:39,788
to have that much power.
1099
00:59:39,872 --> 00:59:41,957
And Capra knew
he had that power,
1100
00:59:42,040 --> 00:59:44,042
and so, too,
did the American government
1101
00:59:44,126 --> 00:59:45,169
when they brought Capra in
1102
00:59:45,252 --> 00:59:47,629
to make what would become
the Why We Fight series.
1103
00:59:58,098 --> 01:00:02,060
{\an8}Causes and events leading up
to our entry into the war.
1104
01:00:02,978 --> 01:00:04,938
Well, what are the causes?
1105
01:00:05,731 --> 01:00:08,442
Why are we, Americans
on the march?
1106
01:00:09,776 --> 01:00:10,944
Is it because of...
1107
01:00:16,200 --> 01:00:17,618
Pearl Harbor?
1108
01:00:20,579 --> 01:00:22,289
Is that why we are fighting?
1109
01:00:22,998 --> 01:00:24,791
Or is it because of...
1110
01:00:25,751 --> 01:00:27,085
Britain?
1111
01:00:34,259 --> 01:00:36,553
Who was the genius
behind all this?
1112
01:00:36,637 --> 01:00:39,890
Who made the films that moved
presidents, prime ministers
1113
01:00:39,973 --> 01:00:43,393
and millions of citizens
and soldiers around the world?
1114
01:00:43,477 --> 01:00:45,103
To answer the Nazis,
1115
01:00:45,187 --> 01:00:48,857
the American government
turned to Hollywood, California,
1116
01:00:48,941 --> 01:00:51,443
and to a cocky
little immigrant from Sicily
1117
01:00:51,527 --> 01:00:52,736
named Frank Capra.
1118
01:00:52,819 --> 01:00:54,821
The United States of America,
1119
01:00:54,905 --> 01:00:57,991
when the war broke out,
found itself the only country
1120
01:00:58,075 --> 01:01:00,494
that didn't have
a big propaganda machine.
1121
01:01:00,577 --> 01:01:03,497
So, we had to get organised
and get propaganda.
1122
01:01:03,580 --> 01:01:07,000
As soon as the war starts,
Capra wants to join up.
1123
01:01:07,084 --> 01:01:08,794
He wants to get involved.
1124
01:01:08,877 --> 01:01:10,295
He wants to make films.
1125
01:01:10,963 --> 01:01:14,007
American soldiers
mobilised for war,
1126
01:01:14,091 --> 01:01:16,635
and with them,
Major Frank Capra.
1127
01:01:16,718 --> 01:01:18,053
Forty-five years old,
1128
01:01:18,136 --> 01:01:21,098
salary, $250 a month.
1129
01:01:21,807 --> 01:01:24,268
Capra reports directly
to Chief of Staff,
1130
01:01:24,351 --> 01:01:26,019
General George C. Marshall.
1131
01:01:26,103 --> 01:01:28,981
When you first called on General
Marshall at the Pentagon,
1132
01:01:29,064 --> 01:01:31,400
what did he tell you
he wanted you to do?
1133
01:01:31,483 --> 01:01:33,694
He called me in, and then,
1134
01:01:33,777 --> 01:01:38,532
he said, "We have
an enormous problem".
1135
01:01:38,615 --> 01:01:42,077
He said, "We know that
if you shoot an American,
1136
01:01:42,160 --> 01:01:43,328
"he'll shoot back".
1137
01:01:43,412 --> 01:01:46,498
But can he take this
being away from home?
1138
01:01:46,582 --> 01:01:48,458
Can he take this discipline?
1139
01:01:48,542 --> 01:01:49,668
And his answer?
1140
01:01:49,751 --> 01:01:51,920
"In my opinion,
1141
01:01:52,004 --> 01:01:56,049
"he can if we tell him
what he's fighting about."
1142
01:01:56,133 --> 01:01:58,385
So, General Marshall
was asking you in effect
1143
01:01:58,468 --> 01:02:00,679
to give the boys
a reason to fight.
1144
01:02:00,762 --> 01:02:04,766
Give the boys
a reason to fight and don't lie.
1145
01:02:04,850 --> 01:02:07,436
But your films
were comedies in Hollywood.
1146
01:02:07,519 --> 01:02:10,564
He wanted somebody
to reach the people.
1147
01:02:10,647 --> 01:02:12,482
Was able to reach the people,
1148
01:02:12,566 --> 01:02:15,277
and I had been able
to reach the people in my films,
1149
01:02:15,360 --> 01:02:17,988
and make them laugh and cry,
make them like things.
1150
01:02:18,071 --> 01:02:21,033
Here, I got the greatest heroes,
the greatest villains
1151
01:02:21,116 --> 01:02:23,118
on the world stage.
1152
01:02:24,453 --> 01:02:26,872
Real. Not actors. Real.
1153
01:02:37,591 --> 01:02:41,136
In Italy, they had
a shorter word. "Fascism."
1154
01:02:43,055 --> 01:02:45,974
In Japan,
they had lots of names for it.
1155
01:02:46,058 --> 01:02:48,227
A new era of enlightenment.
1156
01:02:48,310 --> 01:02:51,146
Capra says he's
starting the war in Hollywood.
1157
01:02:51,230 --> 01:02:53,398
The Why We Fight films
are just extraordinary.
1158
01:02:53,482 --> 01:02:56,944
They're films that involve
collage, animation,
1159
01:02:57,027 --> 01:03:01,615
multiple voices telling
the stories, found footage.
1160
01:03:01,698 --> 01:03:05,118
They almost seem like
avant-garde films to us now.
1161
01:03:05,911 --> 01:03:08,664
They say trouble
always comes in threes.
1162
01:03:09,623 --> 01:03:12,376
Take a good close look
at this trio.
1163
01:03:12,459 --> 01:03:14,628
Remember these faces.
1164
01:03:16,213 --> 01:03:17,589
Remember them well.
1165
01:03:18,257 --> 01:03:20,634
If you ever meet them,
don't hesitate.
1166
01:03:21,552 --> 01:03:24,221
The films
are simplistic in some ways.
1167
01:03:24,304 --> 01:03:26,598
The way they develop
ideas of good and bad.
1168
01:03:26,682 --> 01:03:30,894
But they're also sophisticated,
not just aesthetically,
1169
01:03:30,978 --> 01:03:33,021
but in how
they have to talk about
1170
01:03:33,105 --> 01:03:34,982
the realities of the world.
1171
01:03:35,065 --> 01:03:38,360
Here was the Italy that
Mussolini took over in 1922.
1172
01:03:38,443 --> 01:03:41,154
And almost his first act
was to tell the Italians
1173
01:03:41,238 --> 01:03:43,615
they were
the rightful owners of Corsica,
1174
01:03:44,241 --> 01:03:46,827
Nice, Savoie,
1175
01:03:46,910 --> 01:03:49,955
Albania, Tunisia,
1176
01:03:50,038 --> 01:03:54,042
Ethiopia, and a land corridor
linking it with Libya.
1177
01:03:54,126 --> 01:03:56,670
He's making myths about the war
in these war films.
1178
01:03:56,753 --> 01:03:58,297
There's no question about that.
1179
01:03:58,380 --> 01:04:02,092
And he creates a history
that goes back to Buddha,
1180
01:04:02,176 --> 01:04:04,595
Muhammad, which is
extraordinary to think about,
1181
01:04:04,678 --> 01:04:06,555
Christ, Jefferson.
1182
01:04:06,638 --> 01:04:07,639
Moses.
1183
01:04:10,726 --> 01:04:12,227
Muhammad.
1184
01:04:14,146 --> 01:04:15,147
Confucius.
1185
01:04:19,943 --> 01:04:20,986
Christ.
1186
01:04:24,406 --> 01:04:26,617
All believe that
in the sight of God,
1187
01:04:26,700 --> 01:04:28,785
all men were created equal.
1188
01:04:28,869 --> 01:04:32,456
And from that, there developed
a spirit among men and nations
1189
01:04:32,539 --> 01:04:35,584
which is best expressed in our
own Declaration of Freedom.
1190
01:04:35,667 --> 01:04:38,837
{\an8}So, he creates
a kind of global myth
1191
01:04:38,921 --> 01:04:42,716
{\an8}that is, we ourselves
come from a world history
1192
01:04:42,799 --> 01:04:46,512
{\an8}that leads to
a particular form of democracy
1193
01:04:46,595 --> 01:04:47,971
{\an8}that now is at risk.
1194
01:04:48,055 --> 01:04:50,933
{\an8}It's certainly true
that his films before that
1195
01:04:51,016 --> 01:04:54,520
{\an8}had engaged
in a kind of mythic practice.
1196
01:04:54,603 --> 01:04:57,439
{\an8}That government of the people,
1197
01:04:57,523 --> 01:05:01,360
{\an8}by the people, for the people
1198
01:05:01,443 --> 01:05:03,820
{\an8}shall not perish from the Earth.
1199
01:05:17,709 --> 01:05:19,711
Not until we showed him
some of the stuff
1200
01:05:19,795 --> 01:05:22,714
that we got at Dachau, that
George Stevens photographed,
1201
01:05:22,798 --> 01:05:27,302
did it actually impinge itself
on the mind,
1202
01:05:27,386 --> 01:05:30,222
the horror of this whole thing.
1203
01:05:31,807 --> 01:05:35,394
It left me just speechless,
1204
01:05:36,562 --> 01:05:38,981
colourless, bloodless.
1205
01:05:40,858 --> 01:05:44,403
I couldn't possibly believe
that there was
1206
01:05:44,486 --> 01:05:48,156
that kind of a savagery
in the world, you see?
1207
01:05:49,241 --> 01:05:50,325
Between men.
1208
01:05:51,577 --> 01:05:55,122
Men, the highest
of all the animals.
1209
01:05:55,205 --> 01:05:59,168
Man... It's man who created God
1210
01:05:59,251 --> 01:06:01,587
and man who created
all kinds of things.
1211
01:06:02,337 --> 01:06:07,009
{\an8}To end up here
in a pile of bones, burned.
1212
01:06:07,092 --> 01:06:10,095
{\an8}So, that was a terrible shock.
1213
01:06:14,391 --> 01:06:16,810
The question
of the goodness of people,
1214
01:06:16,894 --> 01:06:19,897
the question of,
"What is humanity?
1215
01:06:19,980 --> 01:06:24,610
"What can we hold on to
and believe in?" was a challenge
1216
01:06:24,693 --> 01:06:28,614
after he did the job he did
in World War II.
1217
01:06:28,697 --> 01:06:32,534
He handled a great many
atrocity photos.
1218
01:06:32,618 --> 01:06:36,121
The atrocity photos were
part of what he was doing,
1219
01:06:36,205 --> 01:06:38,415
and he saw them,
he had to look at them,
1220
01:06:38,498 --> 01:06:42,044
handle them every day,
and it upset him,
1221
01:06:42,127 --> 01:06:46,757
it changed him, and it damaged
his faith in human beings.
1222
01:06:46,840 --> 01:06:50,052
I think, in fact,
he was one of those veterans,
1223
01:06:50,135 --> 01:06:52,429
even though
he didn't see battle,
1224
01:06:52,513 --> 01:06:54,556
who came back and perhaps
1225
01:06:54,640 --> 01:06:58,060
had a great deal
of trouble adjusting.
1226
01:06:58,143 --> 01:07:02,189
I was away
almost six years from camera.
1227
01:07:02,272 --> 01:07:06,360
We came back to Hollywood
and we didn't know anybody.
1228
01:07:08,570 --> 01:07:11,281
People introduced me
to somebody and they'd say,
1229
01:07:11,365 --> 01:07:12,741
"Frank who?"
1230
01:07:12,824 --> 01:07:16,036
Capra comes back after the war,
ready to make films.
1231
01:07:16,119 --> 01:07:17,955
He certainly wants to work.
1232
01:07:18,038 --> 01:07:20,541
He understands that
the future of film production
1233
01:07:20,624 --> 01:07:23,710
might not be at the studios
but might be more independent.
1234
01:07:24,503 --> 01:07:27,798
These were
the three absolute titans,
1235
01:07:27,881 --> 01:07:31,093
titans of mid-century cinema,
1236
01:07:31,176 --> 01:07:35,013
George Stevens,
William Wyler and Frank Capra,
1237
01:07:35,097 --> 01:07:37,683
to form "Liberty Films".
1238
01:07:37,766 --> 01:07:41,436
That name
is not chosen by accident.
1239
01:07:41,520 --> 01:07:43,105
That's what
they thought they had
1240
01:07:43,188 --> 01:07:46,275
was their liberty, and they had
chafed under the studio system.
1241
01:07:46,358 --> 01:07:49,361
It's a very big deal, and there
are tonnes of articles about it
1242
01:07:49,444 --> 01:07:52,489
in Time magazine, and Newsweek,
and all the newspapers.
1243
01:07:52,573 --> 01:07:55,117
But, of course, Capra was
the only one who was able
1244
01:07:55,200 --> 01:07:57,578
to make films for Liberty,
the production company.
1245
01:07:57,661 --> 01:08:00,289
Wyler and Stevens were both
committed to other studios,
1246
01:08:00,372 --> 01:08:03,542
and couldn't make any films
for the company they had formed.
1247
01:08:03,625 --> 01:08:05,961
This is a brilliant move.
1248
01:08:06,044 --> 01:08:09,047
This is a really smart
business move.
1249
01:08:09,131 --> 01:08:10,716
Three of the biggest
1250
01:08:10,799 --> 01:08:14,761
and best directors
of America get together.
1251
01:08:14,845 --> 01:08:17,890
They're going to make
some movies they want to make
1252
01:08:17,973 --> 01:08:20,100
the way they want to make them,
1253
01:08:20,184 --> 01:08:22,310
and distribute them
through Paramount.
1254
01:08:23,103 --> 01:08:24,604
What could go wrong?
1255
01:08:25,439 --> 01:08:28,317
What could go wrong?
Everything, obviously.
1256
01:08:35,323 --> 01:08:38,785
Why is It's a Wonderful Life
your favourite film?
1257
01:08:38,868 --> 01:08:40,953
I keep reading that.
1258
01:08:41,037 --> 01:08:43,122
Why do you like that the best?
1259
01:08:43,207 --> 01:08:45,292
Because I think it expresses
1260
01:08:45,375 --> 01:08:47,586
what I've been trying to say
in the other films
1261
01:08:47,669 --> 01:08:49,671
better than the other films.
1262
01:08:50,255 --> 01:08:51,965
I don't know
how many of you here
1263
01:08:52,049 --> 01:08:54,593
have seen It's a Wonderful Life.
1264
01:08:54,676 --> 01:08:56,511
How many of you have seen it?
1265
01:09:01,475 --> 01:09:02,850
Thank you very much.
1266
01:09:02,935 --> 01:09:05,895
But it is one
of those films that...
1267
01:09:07,523 --> 01:09:09,774
I break down
every time I see it,
1268
01:09:09,858 --> 01:09:11,484
and I made the goddamn thing.
1269
01:09:12,528 --> 01:09:15,363
It's just
one of those things that
1270
01:09:15,447 --> 01:09:19,868
that gets you inside,
and shows you what you can be,
1271
01:09:19,952 --> 01:09:22,203
what we can do,
1272
01:09:23,037 --> 01:09:24,915
and how precious life is,
1273
01:09:26,166 --> 01:09:28,292
and how wonderful life is.
1274
01:09:30,837 --> 01:09:32,840
{\an8}Hello, Bedford Falls!
1275
01:09:35,716 --> 01:09:37,469
Merry Christmas!
1276
01:09:37,553 --> 01:09:39,345
-Merry Christmas!
-Merry Christmas!
1277
01:09:39,429 --> 01:09:41,055
Merry Christmas, George!
1278
01:09:41,139 --> 01:09:44,100
Merry Christmas, movie house!
1279
01:09:44,184 --> 01:09:46,687
{\an8}Merry Christmas, Emporium!
1280
01:09:47,770 --> 01:09:51,441
{\an8}Merry Christmas, you
wonderful old Building and Loan!
1281
01:09:57,072 --> 01:09:59,408
Merry Christmas, Mr Potter!
1282
01:09:59,491 --> 01:10:02,035
Happy New Year to you, in jail!
1283
01:10:02,119 --> 01:10:04,329
Go on home.
They're waiting for you.
1284
01:10:04,413 --> 01:10:06,081
When people
talk about Capra's films,
1285
01:10:06,164 --> 01:10:08,584
they always remember
the optimistic side,
1286
01:10:08,667 --> 01:10:12,296
the happy endings,
the guy getting the girl,
1287
01:10:12,379 --> 01:10:13,463
that kind of thing.
1288
01:10:13,547 --> 01:10:17,551
But they forget, or tend not
to think about, the darker side.
1289
01:10:17,634 --> 01:10:21,471
The comedy is born
from pain and anguish.
1290
01:10:21,555 --> 01:10:22,931
That's where it comes from.
1291
01:10:23,015 --> 01:10:25,475
And I think that's one of
the strongest qualities
1292
01:10:25,559 --> 01:10:27,019
of It's a Wonderful Life.
1293
01:10:27,102 --> 01:10:30,731
A lot of his films, below
the surface of the films,
1294
01:10:30,814 --> 01:10:33,317
have anger, resentment
and violence,
1295
01:10:33,400 --> 01:10:36,361
and we see this, too, in
Mr Smith goes to Washington,
1296
01:10:36,445 --> 01:10:37,905
when he beats up the reporters
1297
01:10:37,988 --> 01:10:40,324
who have written these
terrible things about him.
1298
01:10:40,407 --> 01:10:43,035
There's always
an undertone of violence.
1299
01:10:43,118 --> 01:10:46,205
There's always an undertone that
things might get out of control.
1300
01:10:46,288 --> 01:10:49,666
There's an undertone that
things can be scary really fast.
1301
01:10:51,084 --> 01:10:52,127
Get over there.
1302
01:10:53,545 --> 01:10:55,464
See how you're gonna
like it this time.
1303
01:10:55,547 --> 01:10:57,049
See what good your money will do
1304
01:10:57,132 --> 01:10:59,635
when you're six feet under.
Never thought of that, did you?
1305
01:10:59,718 --> 01:11:02,513
No. All you ever thought of
was pinching pennies,
1306
01:11:02,596 --> 01:11:03,847
you money-grabbing hick!
1307
01:11:03,931 --> 01:11:06,975
Virtually every character
is driven to madness
1308
01:11:07,059 --> 01:11:09,478
or every main character
is driven to madness,
1309
01:11:09,561 --> 01:11:11,313
or to the brink of suicide.
1310
01:11:11,396 --> 01:11:14,983
And there's real rage there
in those moments.
1311
01:11:16,860 --> 01:11:19,279
I love
the roller-coaster feeling
1312
01:11:19,363 --> 01:11:20,656
of his films, emotionally.
1313
01:11:20,739 --> 01:11:22,741
The highs and the lows.
One critic said
1314
01:11:22,824 --> 01:11:24,701
it's like the feeling of life
being lived.
1315
01:11:24,785 --> 01:11:26,745
Every day, there's a mixture
of comedy and drama,
1316
01:11:26,828 --> 01:11:28,497
and highs and lows.
1317
01:11:31,416 --> 01:11:32,918
-Let go!
-What's the matter with you?
1318
01:11:33,001 --> 01:11:35,420
I'm not fit to be a Senator!
I'm not fit to live!
1319
01:11:35,879 --> 01:11:37,297
Expel me!
1320
01:11:37,381 --> 01:11:39,216
With a film like
It's a Wonderful Life,
1321
01:11:39,299 --> 01:11:41,969
you wonder how much
of Capra's own experience
1322
01:11:42,052 --> 01:11:45,138
is in the bitterness
we see in George,
1323
01:11:45,222 --> 01:11:47,182
the depression we see in George,
1324
01:11:47,266 --> 01:11:50,227
the general tiredness
that we see in George.
1325
01:11:55,983 --> 01:12:00,153
There's the pharmacist
who beats up the young boy.
1326
01:12:00,237 --> 01:12:02,781
There are the people
who try to destroy the bank.
1327
01:12:02,865 --> 01:12:06,076
There are all kinds of scary
things going on in that film
1328
01:12:06,159 --> 01:12:07,703
that kind of strike us as...
1329
01:12:07,786 --> 01:12:10,539
That's not what we think of
as going on in a Capra film.
1330
01:12:15,252 --> 01:12:18,881
There is a lot
of suicide in Capra,
1331
01:12:18,964 --> 01:12:23,135
or near-suicide, attempted
suicide, planned suicide,
1332
01:12:23,218 --> 01:12:26,138
more than
you might think at first.
1333
01:12:26,221 --> 01:12:29,725
So, that particular theme in
It's a Wonderful Life
1334
01:12:29,808 --> 01:12:32,728
is perhaps not surprising.
1335
01:12:32,811 --> 01:12:37,858
But Capra said later that what
appealed to him about this theme
1336
01:12:37,941 --> 01:12:41,278
was that
it was saying to people,
1337
01:12:41,361 --> 01:12:44,239
"No, you are not a failure".
1338
01:12:53,540 --> 01:12:54,708
Help!
1339
01:12:55,918 --> 01:12:58,754
Help! Help!
1340
01:12:58,837 --> 01:13:03,592
So, here is Capra,
the grand success,
1341
01:13:03,675 --> 01:13:07,471
kind of reaching back
toward Americans
1342
01:13:07,554 --> 01:13:12,768
who maybe hadn't done so hot
in the past 15 or 20 years,
1343
01:13:12,851 --> 01:13:17,272
and telling them,
"You're still in this country.
1344
01:13:17,356 --> 01:13:18,607
"I'm going to show you
1345
01:13:18,690 --> 01:13:21,401
"the things that are still
wonderful about this country
1346
01:13:21,485 --> 01:13:23,862
"and about your life here."
1347
01:13:23,946 --> 01:13:29,284
I sincerely believe that is what
Capra was after with this film.
1348
01:13:30,369 --> 01:13:34,289
We tend to mythologise the film
as something of a bomb.
1349
01:13:34,373 --> 01:13:35,666
It certainly wasn't.
1350
01:13:35,749 --> 01:13:37,251
It's a Wonderful Life does well.
1351
01:13:37,334 --> 01:13:39,878
The problem is it cost
so much to make.
1352
01:13:39,962 --> 01:13:42,756
It's something of a disaster
for the company.
1353
01:13:42,840 --> 01:13:46,260
Now, clearly, what's
really worse for the company
1354
01:13:46,343 --> 01:13:48,679
is that two-thirds
of the people who formed it
1355
01:13:48,762 --> 01:13:49,930
can't make films for it
1356
01:13:50,013 --> 01:13:53,141
because they're contractually
committed to other studios.
1357
01:13:53,225 --> 01:13:55,561
So, Liberty Films
crashes and burns.
1358
01:13:55,644 --> 01:13:57,980
And the men who formed it,
1359
01:13:58,063 --> 01:14:01,275
Capra, Wyler and Stevens,
sell it
1360
01:14:01,358 --> 01:14:03,610
and all the men go
their separate ways,
1361
01:14:03,694 --> 01:14:05,445
and Capra signs on
with Paramount,
1362
01:14:05,529 --> 01:14:08,490
which really is a death knell.
1363
01:14:08,574 --> 01:14:10,117
Be careful what you wish for.
1364
01:14:10,200 --> 01:14:11,743
It's been tried many times.
1365
01:14:11,827 --> 01:14:13,912
United Artists,
Directors Company,
1366
01:14:13,996 --> 01:14:15,497
Liberty Films.
1367
01:14:15,581 --> 01:14:18,125
It almost never works.
That's telling you something.
1368
01:14:18,208 --> 01:14:21,003
Great directors have
a tremendous amount of freedom,
1369
01:14:21,086 --> 01:14:24,006
all the freedom they want
in the world, right?
1370
01:14:24,089 --> 01:14:27,050
What they want is to have
financial support,
1371
01:14:27,134 --> 01:14:30,637
and marketing support,
and structural support.
1372
01:14:31,471 --> 01:14:35,017
Nobody in my job
who's any good at my job
1373
01:14:35,100 --> 01:14:37,853
is gonna tell a great director
where to place the camera.
1374
01:14:38,979 --> 01:14:42,232
So, they may have
to lift budgets
1375
01:14:42,316 --> 01:14:45,235
and deal
with economic realities.
1376
01:14:45,319 --> 01:14:47,696
But that's the reality
that keeps things going.
1377
01:14:47,779 --> 01:14:50,657
I think, in terms of
the emotional investment
1378
01:14:50,741 --> 01:14:52,826
that Frank Capra
had made in this film,
1379
01:14:52,910 --> 01:14:57,331
really nothing but a big hit
would have satisfied him anyway.
1380
01:14:57,414 --> 01:14:59,208
It was his comeback.
1381
01:14:59,291 --> 01:15:01,376
So, this movie, I think,
1382
01:15:01,460 --> 01:15:04,838
was in no small measure
about saying to Hollywood,
1383
01:15:04,922 --> 01:15:09,176
"Hey, I've still got it.
I've still got that touch
1384
01:15:09,259 --> 01:15:14,348
"that brings in audiences
and moves people."
1385
01:15:14,431 --> 01:15:19,311
And when
It's a Wonderful Life did that,
1386
01:15:19,394 --> 01:15:25,025
but not to
a great world-shaking extent,
1387
01:15:25,108 --> 01:15:28,570
I think that was
very hard on Frank Capra.
1388
01:15:32,699 --> 01:15:34,910
I have to confess that
1389
01:15:34,993 --> 01:15:37,538
the pattern
of Frank Capra's career
1390
01:15:37,621 --> 01:15:42,501
after It's a Wonderful Life
is a little mysterious to me.
1391
01:15:42,584 --> 01:15:45,295
This was an older Frank Capra.
1392
01:15:45,379 --> 01:15:47,589
And somehow,
1393
01:15:47,673 --> 01:15:52,761
he couldn't really
get back up off the mat.
1394
01:16:06,400 --> 01:16:07,651
Isn't that nice?
1395
01:16:07,734 --> 01:16:09,528
{\an8}I must say, it's right
neighbourly of you people
1396
01:16:09,611 --> 01:16:11,572
{\an8}who have seen the preview
of Here Comes the Groom
1397
01:16:11,655 --> 01:16:13,031
{\an8}to write a wireless
and apprise us
1398
01:16:13,115 --> 01:16:14,741
of your reactions to this film.
1399
01:16:15,534 --> 01:16:16,577
If I may be immodest
for a moment,
1400
01:16:16,660 --> 01:16:19,746
I must tell you in all candour
the reactions have been good,
1401
01:16:19,830 --> 01:16:22,040
which is easy to understand
because Paramount went out
1402
01:16:22,124 --> 01:16:24,042
and got the down-to-earth,
homey type of story
1403
01:16:24,126 --> 01:16:26,044
that they've been searching
so long for me.
1404
01:16:26,128 --> 01:16:28,881
They got a bang-up cast and
a great director, Frank Capra,
1405
01:16:28,964 --> 01:16:30,257
at the helm,
to direct the picture.
1406
01:16:30,340 --> 01:16:32,426
When Capra makes films
for Paramount,
1407
01:16:32,509 --> 01:16:34,011
he makes them with big stars.
1408
01:16:34,094 --> 01:16:36,555
He makes a couple of films
with Bing Crosby.
1409
01:16:36,638 --> 01:16:38,724
And there is a campaign
to push those films.
1410
01:16:38,807 --> 01:16:41,602
They're a big deal and there's
a lot of PR about the films.
1411
01:16:44,771 --> 01:16:48,442
But no one thinks of them
once they come out
1412
01:16:48,525 --> 01:16:50,819
as anything but minor films.
1413
01:16:50,903 --> 01:16:54,281
These films, Riding High,
Here Comes the Groom,
1414
01:16:54,364 --> 01:16:58,911
are Bing Crosby films
that Capra happened to make.
1415
01:16:58,994 --> 01:17:01,413
As America recovered
from the war,
1416
01:17:01,496 --> 01:17:04,833
the Capra-esque story
of the individual
1417
01:17:04,917 --> 01:17:08,128
lost its urgency
1418
01:17:08,212 --> 01:17:12,633
in the sort of
postwar complacency.
1419
01:17:12,716 --> 01:17:16,845
The feeling that America
could take a breath
1420
01:17:16,929 --> 01:17:20,098
didn't really serve Capra
as an artist.
1421
01:17:20,182 --> 01:17:24,311
He needed a fight. There
were still fights to be fought.
1422
01:17:24,394 --> 01:17:26,688
He just didn't find one
in the '50s.
1423
01:17:42,496 --> 01:17:44,248
During the McCarthy years,
1424
01:17:44,331 --> 01:17:46,124
the years of
the Hollywood blacklist,
1425
01:17:46,208 --> 01:17:50,003
{\an8}paranoia was rampant,
and the whole question arose
1426
01:17:50,087 --> 01:17:52,130
{\an8}of what it meant
to be a patriot.
1427
01:17:53,048 --> 01:17:55,425
It's a 10-year period or more
1428
01:17:56,093 --> 01:18:00,722
when your politics can
prevent you from having a job.
1429
01:18:00,806 --> 01:18:02,891
The films that were
hailed in the '30s
1430
01:18:02,975 --> 01:18:05,519
were seen in
a different light after the war.
1431
01:18:05,602 --> 01:18:08,188
And so, films like
Mr Deeds and Mr Smith
1432
01:18:08,272 --> 01:18:11,149
were potentially risky things
to look back on.
1433
01:18:15,863 --> 01:18:18,490
{\an8}Frank Capra
was never blacklisted.
1434
01:18:18,574 --> 01:18:20,951
{\an8}What happened
to Frank Capra was,
1435
01:18:21,034 --> 01:18:23,871
{\an8}during the Korean War,
he wanted to serve,
1436
01:18:23,954 --> 01:18:27,541
but he was too old
to serve in any capacity.
1437
01:18:27,624 --> 01:18:29,585
But there was
a committee made,
1438
01:18:29,668 --> 01:18:31,962
Vista, I believe it was called.
1439
01:18:32,045 --> 01:18:34,256
It was
a military service committee,
1440
01:18:34,339 --> 01:18:39,052
and he was denied clearance
by that committee.
1441
01:18:40,429 --> 01:18:42,097
It was
the biggest shock of his life
1442
01:18:42,181 --> 01:18:44,975
that he was basically accused of
being disloyal to his country.
1443
01:18:45,058 --> 01:18:46,727
Some of the charges
were ridiculous.
1444
01:18:46,810 --> 01:18:49,855
But the one charge that really
was a problem for him was,
1445
01:18:49,938 --> 01:18:52,691
they said, "You worked with
a lot of left-wing writers",
1446
01:18:52,774 --> 01:18:54,234
and that was true.
1447
01:18:54,318 --> 01:18:59,990
He did, of course, immediately
mount his response to them,
1448
01:19:00,073 --> 01:19:02,201
and sent it to them.
1449
01:19:03,493 --> 01:19:05,537
He goes through each
of the men accused
1450
01:19:05,621 --> 01:19:08,332
of being a leftist,
of being a communist,
1451
01:19:08,415 --> 01:19:10,083
and he says,
"I didn't know this",
1452
01:19:10,167 --> 01:19:12,753
or, "If I had known, I wouldn't
have worked with them".
1453
01:19:13,629 --> 01:19:16,048
He wants to distance himself
from them
1454
01:19:16,131 --> 01:19:17,799
as a means
of protecting himself.
1455
01:19:18,675 --> 01:19:20,844
Different people reacted
in different ways,
1456
01:19:20,928 --> 01:19:22,804
and he named names of people
1457
01:19:22,888 --> 01:19:24,932
and recklessly
threw them around,
1458
01:19:25,015 --> 01:19:27,392
and this all added to the stigma
1459
01:19:27,476 --> 01:19:29,686
that was attached
to those people.
1460
01:19:31,980 --> 01:19:33,774
I think this is
a very difficult issue,
1461
01:19:33,857 --> 01:19:35,901
and this is a time
when it's hard to know
1462
01:19:35,984 --> 01:19:37,819
who the good guys are at all
1463
01:19:37,903 --> 01:19:40,531
because there are
these inflections.
1464
01:19:40,614 --> 01:19:42,074
We can name the bad guys.
1465
01:19:42,157 --> 01:19:44,409
We know the bad guys,
the guys who name names,
1466
01:19:44,493 --> 01:19:48,038
the Elia Kazans and others
who were happy to name names.
1467
01:19:48,121 --> 01:19:50,499
Clifford Odets
and others like him.
1468
01:19:50,582 --> 01:19:53,293
What Capra did is probably
certainly on that spectrum.
1469
01:19:57,047 --> 01:20:01,385
He was very hurt by this,
and very upset.
1470
01:20:01,468 --> 01:20:03,846
He didn't
talk about it, generally.
1471
01:20:03,929 --> 01:20:06,014
The country he had
devoted so much to,
1472
01:20:06,098 --> 01:20:08,684
he'd served loyally
in World War II
1473
01:20:08,767 --> 01:20:10,602
and sacrificed a lot for,
1474
01:20:10,686 --> 01:20:12,729
and here he was,
accused of being disloyal.
1475
01:20:12,813 --> 01:20:14,606
It was
the worst shock of his life,
1476
01:20:14,690 --> 01:20:16,859
and it's like being
kicked in the teeth
1477
01:20:16,942 --> 01:20:18,026
by somebody you love.
1478
01:20:19,361 --> 01:20:20,404
So, he wound up being
1479
01:20:20,487 --> 01:20:22,364
very disappointed
by the United States,
1480
01:20:22,447 --> 01:20:24,116
I guess, to put it mildly.
1481
01:20:26,243 --> 01:20:29,913
His career dwindled and died.
1482
01:20:29,997 --> 01:20:33,417
He becomes something of
a gentleman farmer at this time,
1483
01:20:33,500 --> 01:20:36,128
raising his avocados
in California.
1484
01:20:36,211 --> 01:20:38,630
He becomes
a collector of rare books.
1485
01:20:38,714 --> 01:20:42,050
He owns the rights
to films that he then sells.
1486
01:20:42,134 --> 01:20:43,719
He owned Roman Holiday,
1487
01:20:43,802 --> 01:20:46,805
which becomes
a huge hit for William Wyler.
1488
01:20:46,889 --> 01:20:48,682
He does that kind of thing.
1489
01:20:52,936 --> 01:20:54,897
You know,
if we want to understand
1490
01:20:54,980 --> 01:20:57,274
why Capra hoarded
1491
01:20:57,357 --> 01:21:01,403
so much praise
and attention late in his life,
1492
01:21:01,486 --> 01:21:06,909
it's because there really
was a long limbo period
1493
01:21:06,992 --> 01:21:09,703
of maybe even two decades
1494
01:21:09,786 --> 01:21:12,873
where this person barely existed
1495
01:21:12,956 --> 01:21:15,626
at the level that he had before.
1496
01:21:15,709 --> 01:21:18,712
He certainly did not exist
at the level that he had before.
1497
01:21:19,421 --> 01:21:22,049
He was almost himself forgotten,
1498
01:21:22,549 --> 01:21:25,135
and he's part
to blame for that, too,
1499
01:21:25,219 --> 01:21:29,348
because he didn't find out
why he was relevant any more.
1500
01:21:29,431 --> 01:21:31,141
He didn't discover that.
1501
01:21:34,353 --> 01:21:37,189
One of your last movies,
Pocketful of Miracles,
1502
01:21:37,272 --> 01:21:39,983
had tremendous trade reviews,
1503
01:21:40,067 --> 01:21:41,860
and yet, was
a box office failure.
1504
01:21:41,944 --> 01:21:43,695
How hard did this hit you?
1505
01:21:45,906 --> 01:21:47,491
{\an8}Surprisingly badly.
1506
01:21:47,574 --> 01:21:49,493
{\an8}It was almost like
another Lost Horizon,
1507
01:21:49,576 --> 01:21:51,537
{\an8}only I found no way to cure it.
1508
01:21:53,288 --> 01:21:54,581
I can't...
1509
01:21:54,665 --> 01:21:57,125
That one eludes me completely.
1510
01:21:57,209 --> 01:22:00,337
His career has
an extraordinary decline.
1511
01:22:01,046 --> 01:22:05,467
Later in his life, certainly,
he has reason to be bitter.
1512
01:22:05,551 --> 01:22:07,427
And his career didn't go the way
1513
01:22:07,511 --> 01:22:10,013
he had hoped it would
after the war.
1514
01:22:10,097 --> 01:22:13,350
But I think what really
struck me and took me aback was,
1515
01:22:13,433 --> 01:22:15,435
at the beginning
of McBride's book,
1516
01:22:15,519 --> 01:22:18,397
he quotes Capra
as railing against the Jews
1517
01:22:18,480 --> 01:22:20,440
who had ruined his career.
1518
01:22:20,524 --> 01:22:22,860
You'd ask him about
any ethnic group,
1519
01:22:22,943 --> 01:22:25,112
he would malign
in stereotypical terms,
1520
01:22:25,195 --> 01:22:27,573
even his own people,
the Italian-Americans.
1521
01:22:27,656 --> 01:22:31,743
And he unfortunately
made antisemitic remarks
1522
01:22:31,827 --> 01:22:36,498
and anti-Black remarks, and
anti-Mexican-American remarks,
1523
01:22:36,582 --> 01:22:39,168
anti-Native-American remarks,
you name it.
1524
01:22:39,251 --> 01:22:41,378
And to see Capra, an immigrant,
1525
01:22:41,461 --> 01:22:44,381
talk about that is just
really kind of heartbreaking.
1526
01:22:44,464 --> 01:22:48,093
I'm Jewish.
I've heard this before.
1527
01:22:48,177 --> 01:22:49,511
You hear it all the time,
1528
01:22:49,595 --> 01:22:52,848
and it's very hard to see
Capra doing the same thing.
1529
01:22:57,603 --> 01:22:59,146
In the late '60s,
1530
01:22:59,229 --> 01:23:01,231
not only is Capra
looked on as quaint,
1531
01:23:01,315 --> 01:23:03,609
but he's also looked on
as a status quo.
1532
01:23:03,692 --> 01:23:06,695
He represents
the sort of Hollywood...
1533
01:23:07,154 --> 01:23:11,283
...classical, glamorous
studio filmmaking,
1534
01:23:11,366 --> 01:23:14,828
that this new generation
of filmmakers,
1535
01:23:14,912 --> 01:23:17,789
Dennis Hopper, Friedkin, Altman,
1536
01:23:17,873 --> 01:23:20,584
the '70s era of filmmakers,
1537
01:23:20,667 --> 01:23:24,213
regarded with
a little bit of cynicism.
1538
01:23:24,296 --> 01:23:26,757
It's funny.
It becomes a Capra movie again.
1539
01:23:26,840 --> 01:23:31,762
He's at this low point,
"I'm forgotten".
1540
01:23:31,845 --> 01:23:33,972
"No one remembers my movies."
1541
01:23:34,056 --> 01:23:35,974
"They're looked on as corny."
1542
01:23:36,058 --> 01:23:38,852
So, what does Capra do?
1543
01:23:38,936 --> 01:23:40,437
He writes a book.
1544
01:23:40,521 --> 01:23:44,983
And the autobiography
is a phenomenal success.
1545
01:23:45,067 --> 01:23:46,527
And he was back.
1546
01:23:49,530 --> 01:23:53,075
Frank Capra hasn't made
a feature film since 1961.
1547
01:23:53,158 --> 01:23:55,744
But when he appears before
a group of students,
1548
01:23:55,827 --> 01:23:56,995
many of whom weren't born
1549
01:23:57,079 --> 01:23:58,664
when his greatest films
were being made,
1550
01:23:58,747 --> 01:24:01,083
he is greeted with applause.
1551
01:24:01,166 --> 01:24:04,044
He went on 125 college campuses,
1552
01:24:04,127 --> 01:24:06,046
and he went around the world
1553
01:24:06,129 --> 01:24:07,548
for the US government again.
1554
01:24:07,631 --> 01:24:08,924
Ironically, they asked him
1555
01:24:09,007 --> 01:24:11,468
to promote Americanism
around the world,
1556
01:24:11,552 --> 01:24:14,471
and for the State Department.
He was very happy to do that.
1557
01:24:14,555 --> 01:24:18,350
As I found out, the book
is like a novel about Hollywood.
1558
01:24:18,433 --> 01:24:20,936
It's a rather beguiling novel,
somewhat disturbing,
1559
01:24:21,019 --> 01:24:23,438
but often very charming.
1560
01:24:23,522 --> 01:24:26,483
But it's almost
completely fictitious.
1561
01:24:27,192 --> 01:24:30,279
The memoir Capra writes
is wonderful.
1562
01:24:30,362 --> 01:24:31,864
But when you read the book now,
1563
01:24:31,947 --> 01:24:34,783
it's upsetting in some ways
because the way he takes credit
1564
01:24:34,867 --> 01:24:37,452
for everything he ever did,
every script he ever wrote,
1565
01:24:37,536 --> 01:24:39,663
every film he ever made,
it all comes from him.
1566
01:24:39,746 --> 01:24:41,290
It all springs from his brow.
1567
01:24:41,373 --> 01:24:43,667
Now, I think we'd take this
with a grain of salt.
1568
01:24:43,750 --> 01:24:45,419
We know it's not
how films are made.
1569
01:24:45,502 --> 01:24:48,338
He was a storyteller
and a mythmaker.
1570
01:24:48,422 --> 01:24:52,009
And if you're a mythmaker,
1571
01:24:52,092 --> 01:24:55,762
what better subject to make
a myth about than yourself?
1572
01:24:55,846 --> 01:24:57,764
It's kind of
an American story, that is,
1573
01:24:57,848 --> 01:24:59,683
the immigrant
who starts with nothing,
1574
01:24:59,766 --> 01:25:02,060
comes from nowhere,
and makes it big.
1575
01:25:02,144 --> 01:25:05,272
But for him, it really does
resurrect his career.
1576
01:25:05,355 --> 01:25:06,857
It gives him a second act.
1577
01:25:06,940 --> 01:25:10,027
He had been, not forgotten,
but dismissed,
1578
01:25:10,110 --> 01:25:12,112
and the book,
which is a bestseller,
1579
01:25:12,196 --> 01:25:15,782
really does make him
a figure in public life.
1580
01:25:21,288 --> 01:25:23,498
America's a melting pot.
1581
01:25:23,582 --> 01:25:25,751
Well, he's part of the melt,
1582
01:25:25,834 --> 01:25:31,173
and he comes in and he learns
what it is to be an American,
1583
01:25:31,256 --> 01:25:33,008
or at least what we think it is.
1584
01:25:33,091 --> 01:25:36,595
And then, he contributes
to that definition.
1585
01:25:36,678 --> 01:25:40,432
He narratises it,
makes it a great story
1586
01:25:40,516 --> 01:25:42,518
for us to go and enjoy,
1587
01:25:42,601 --> 01:25:44,686
convinces us it's true.
1588
01:25:44,770 --> 01:25:47,606
Also, that's propaganda,
I guess.
1589
01:25:47,689 --> 01:25:50,776
But he has a huge legacy
1590
01:25:50,859 --> 01:25:53,403
about what it is
to be an American,
1591
01:25:53,487 --> 01:25:56,198
which is to come
from another place
1592
01:25:56,281 --> 01:25:58,992
and contribute
to the definition of it.
1593
01:25:59,076 --> 01:26:01,537
Based on what you
thought it was going to be,
1594
01:26:01,620 --> 01:26:04,248
or everybody
believed it was going to be,
1595
01:26:04,331 --> 01:26:07,042
mixed in with what it really is,
1596
01:26:07,125 --> 01:26:09,920
all put in there
with a little bit of ugly,
1597
01:26:10,003 --> 01:26:12,840
a little bit of sad,
a little bit of tragic,
1598
01:26:12,923 --> 01:26:15,300
a little bit of corrupt,
a little bit of whatever,
1599
01:26:15,384 --> 01:26:18,136
but ultimately
coming out and saying,
1600
01:26:18,220 --> 01:26:21,723
"It's a victory,
we're going to keep going".
1601
01:26:21,807 --> 01:26:25,143
The American value is,
"You can do it".
1602
01:26:25,227 --> 01:26:26,812
That's the American value.
1603
01:26:26,895 --> 01:26:30,107
If you want something,
you can go for it,
1604
01:26:30,190 --> 01:26:32,025
and it's not going to be easy.
1605
01:26:32,109 --> 01:26:34,361
That is what America should be.
1606
01:26:36,613 --> 01:26:39,533
I guess he is an embodiment
of the American Dream,
1607
01:26:39,616 --> 01:26:42,119
if we believe that exists
in the first place.
1608
01:26:42,202 --> 01:26:44,580
Certainly, he would have it
that was the case,
1609
01:26:44,663 --> 01:26:47,416
that anyone could come here
and make it big.
1610
01:26:47,499 --> 01:26:50,169
I think that's the mark of
his conservatism in some ways.
1611
01:26:50,252 --> 01:26:52,754
He does believe
you should do it on your own.
1612
01:26:52,838 --> 01:26:55,424
So, in that sense,
the American Dream
1613
01:26:55,507 --> 01:26:57,593
is perverse, reactionary,
1614
01:26:57,676 --> 01:27:01,346
and impossible for most people
to ever attain,
1615
01:27:01,430 --> 01:27:03,682
and probably was
not even true in Capra's case.
1616
01:27:03,765 --> 01:27:05,559
Even though
his drive was unusual,
1617
01:27:05,642 --> 01:27:08,312
he had to have
an awful lot of help,
1618
01:27:08,395 --> 01:27:12,316
a lot of luck, and worked
with all the right people.
1619
01:27:12,399 --> 01:27:14,693
So, it embodies
the American Dream.
1620
01:27:14,776 --> 01:27:17,779
The person who made
Frank Capra who he was...
1621
01:27:17,863 --> 01:27:20,157
We wouldn't be sitting here
talking about Frank Capra
1622
01:27:20,240 --> 01:27:22,534
if it weren't for
a woman named Jean McDaniel,
1623
01:27:22,618 --> 01:27:25,037
who was
an Irish-American schoolteacher.
1624
01:27:25,120 --> 01:27:27,372
She was Frank Capra's champion.
1625
01:27:27,456 --> 01:27:30,751
The parents wanted to take Frank
out of school in fifth grade
1626
01:27:30,834 --> 01:27:32,711
and make him
go to work in a brickyard
1627
01:27:32,794 --> 01:27:34,046
like his brother, Tony.
1628
01:27:34,129 --> 01:27:36,673
And she said she raised
the money from the PTA
1629
01:27:36,757 --> 01:27:39,593
to pay his parents what Frank
would've earned in the brickyard
1630
01:27:39,676 --> 01:27:40,969
if he would stay in school.
1631
01:27:41,053 --> 01:27:43,597
So, if it hadn't been
for Jean McDaniel,
1632
01:27:43,680 --> 01:27:46,183
we never would have
heard of Frank Capra.
1633
01:27:48,352 --> 01:27:52,773
There's so much complexity
here in a man's life.
1634
01:27:52,856 --> 01:27:56,568
There's so much complexity
in the films he makes.
1635
01:27:56,652 --> 01:27:58,820
So, it is very hard
1636
01:27:58,904 --> 01:28:03,033
to make a simple idea
about Frank.
1637
01:28:04,076 --> 01:28:09,164
Some people only want
to think of them as politics.
1638
01:28:09,248 --> 01:28:11,834
Some only want to think of them
1639
01:28:11,917 --> 01:28:16,213
as optimistic, sentimental pap.
1640
01:28:16,296 --> 01:28:19,800
Or they want to think of it
as an American immigrant story,
1641
01:28:19,883 --> 01:28:22,886
or definition
of American history.
1642
01:28:22,970 --> 01:28:25,597
And all of these
things are in there.
1643
01:28:27,099 --> 01:28:29,351
I think Frank Capra was always
1644
01:28:29,434 --> 01:28:34,314
much more than his reputation,
say, in the 1930s.
1645
01:28:34,398 --> 01:28:39,611
He's more than the maker
of It's a Wonderful Life.
1646
01:28:39,695 --> 01:28:45,117
And he's also more
than some of the beatings
1647
01:28:45,200 --> 01:28:47,578
that his reputation has taken.
1648
01:28:47,661 --> 01:28:52,082
What's going to remain essential
forever is the movies.
1649
01:28:52,165 --> 01:28:53,792
{\an8}It does not surprise me
1650
01:28:53,876 --> 01:28:56,962
{\an8}that there is a resurgence
of interest in Capra right now
1651
01:28:57,045 --> 01:28:59,423
because this country
is going through
1652
01:28:59,506 --> 01:29:01,675
terrible, terrible turmoil.
1653
01:29:01,758 --> 01:29:04,386
And like any great myth,
1654
01:29:04,469 --> 01:29:08,640
Capra's movies,
on the spiritual-communal level,
1655
01:29:08,724 --> 01:29:13,562
give us a framework
to maintain that kind of faith
1656
01:29:13,645 --> 01:29:16,481
{\an8}in a way that isn't ludicrous,
1657
01:29:16,565 --> 01:29:19,401
{\an8}and, in fact, is life-saving.
1658
01:29:19,484 --> 01:29:23,113
They're reminders
that humanity can be good.
1659
01:29:23,197 --> 01:29:24,865
We all have to hope.
1660
01:29:27,993 --> 01:29:31,955
These movies are so delightful,
you just have to watch them.
1661
01:29:32,039 --> 01:29:34,458
Why do we watch movies?
Because they're delightful.
1662
01:29:34,541 --> 01:29:36,043
And his movies are delightful.
1663
01:29:36,126 --> 01:29:38,212
Forget the messages
and all that kind of stuff.
1664
01:29:38,295 --> 01:29:39,296
They're so fun to watch,
1665
01:29:39,379 --> 01:29:41,131
you just have to
watch these movies.
1666
01:29:41,215 --> 01:29:44,426
I don't want to live in a world
where there's no hope,
1667
01:29:44,510 --> 01:29:48,013
where there's no sense
that there could be a victory,
1668
01:29:48,096 --> 01:29:51,016
and if that's a silly idea
and I'm crazy,
1669
01:29:51,099 --> 01:29:53,268
that's okay with me. I'm not...
1670
01:29:53,352 --> 01:29:55,854
The main thing is laughing.
1671
01:29:55,938 --> 01:29:58,440
If you want
to ask me that question
1672
01:29:58,524 --> 01:30:00,901
all over again
about Frank's legacy,
1673
01:30:00,984 --> 01:30:03,570
I'll just say,
"Give me a laugh".
1674
01:30:03,654 --> 01:30:05,239
And he gave me a laugh.
1675
01:30:05,322 --> 01:30:08,617
If we don't do
anything else but laugh, good.
1676
01:30:09,701 --> 01:30:11,370
That's all I'm here for, really,
1677
01:30:11,453 --> 01:30:14,998
to try and just tell you that
1678
01:30:16,667 --> 01:30:20,254
there's good in the world,
and that it's wonderful.
1679
01:31:20,564 --> 01:31:23,275
Hey, I know
the second verse there.
1680
01:31:23,358 --> 01:31:24,735
Yeah.
1681
01:32:13,867 --> 01:32:16,703
Do you mind
if I take the third one?