best years or wonderful life?

..and why not?

which film is better?

best years of our lives
1
13%
it's a wonderful life
7
88%
 
Total votes: 8

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kath
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best years or wonderful life?

Postby kath » 14 Mar 2007, 22:52

so...? which one do you prefer?

Sneelock

Postby Sneelock » 14 Mar 2007, 23:04

I can't make a convincing case against either one.
I can't really pit them against each other. One makes it's point by being fanciful. the other makes it's point by casting a man in the very same boat as the man he is playing. Personally, I think they're both pretty special.

which isnt' to say I can't nitpick them both to shreds!

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kath
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Postby kath » 14 Mar 2007, 23:19

i don't deny both flicks are classic.

but two things:

1. i am a sap.

and

2. i love fantasy.


it's just... the idea behind it is so cool and.. well, uplifting. no matter how much you may *think* yer life sucks, no matter how bad things get (and they can get pretty damn bad), taking yerself out is not an alternative. you will never know the ways you touch people, large and microscopic ways for the good, over the course of yer life.

i still find it motivational.

kath
(and i'm still a sap.)

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James R
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Postby James R » 15 Mar 2007, 09:09

I should be embarrassed to admit I've never seen It's A Wonderful Life. It's just something I've never been able to convince myself to do.
pcqgod wrote:I like how Liebling progresses from a rotting, animated corpse living in his parents' basement to a slightly more life-affirming walking corpse by the end of the movie.

Goat Boy wrote:I recall a midget with large tits dancing.

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Postby Poppypoobah » 15 Mar 2007, 11:10

James R wrote:I should be embarrassed to admit I've never seen It's A Wonderful Life. It's just something I've never been able to convince myself to do.
I can´t beleive you´ve never seen it, at Xmas they have it on TV practically around the clock?

It´s a great film, especially up until Clarence appears, after that it gets a little cheesy but still it´s great.

I´ve never seen the other one though?

The one that gets me from that time period is Penny Serenade. I sob like a baby every time I see it.

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Postby Davey the Fat Boy » 15 Mar 2007, 11:49

Poppypoobah wrote:
James R wrote:I should be embarrassed to admit I've never seen It's A Wonderful Life. It's just something I've never been able to convince myself to do.
I can´t beleive you´ve never seen it, at Xmas they have it on TV practically around the clock?


They used to play it around the clock on holidays. That was because the studio neglected to renew its copyright in the mid-70's and tv stations were able to play it without paying royalties until the early 90's, when a court reinstated their claim to the copyright. Strangely the film was not a big hit when it came out and was never regarded as a classic until the 80's when all of those thousands of plays on tv got people to reconsider it.

The point is - not everyone grew up seeing it on an endless loop during the holidays.

It always comes down to money, eh?

P.S. I'll take "It's a Wonderful Life" of the two films. It's just more universal.
“Remember I have said good things about benevolent despots before.” - Jimbo

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Sea Of Tunes

Postby Sea Of Tunes » 15 Mar 2007, 12:01

IAWL. For so many reasons that I'd have to use all available server space. So suffice it to say just: 'Zu Zu's Petals'.

Sneelock

Postby Sneelock » 15 Mar 2007, 17:36

okay, nobody's voted for 'best years' so I'm going to be a contrary character and vote for it.

I love 'it's a wonderful life'. I don't think the fantasy of one man being all that keeps Bedford Falls from becoming Potterville is more compelling than the reality of a man who is ashamed that he can't button his own shirt.

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kath
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Postby kath » 15 Mar 2007, 17:46

Sneelock wrote:okay, nobody's voted for 'best years' so I'm going to be a contrary character and vote for it.

I love 'it's a wonderful life'. I don't think the fantasy of one man being all that keeps Bedford Falls from becoming Potterville is more compelling than the reality of a man who is ashamed that he can't button his own shirt.


you rebel, you. sighh.

(i understand yer reasoning, too, although the fantasy of it's a wonderful life is very much a reality to me. as the chief says in cuckoo's nest, "it's the truth, even if it didn't happen.")

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Postby James R » 16 Mar 2007, 04:21

davey the fat boy wrote:The point is - not everyone grew up seeing it on an endless loop during the holidays.


Especially not here in Australia, where I can only remember the film being shown once at Christmas in the last 20 years or so. Come to think of it, that's also about the only time I can remember it being on TV here at all.
pcqgod wrote:I like how Liebling progresses from a rotting, animated corpse living in his parents' basement to a slightly more life-affirming walking corpse by the end of the movie.

Goat Boy wrote:I recall a midget with large tits dancing.

Sea Of Tunes

Postby Sea Of Tunes » 16 Mar 2007, 12:13

kath wrote:
Sneelock wrote:okay, nobody's voted for 'best years' so I'm going to be a contrary character and vote for it.

I love 'it's a wonderful life'. I don't think the fantasy of one man being all that keeps Bedford Falls from becoming Potterville is more compelling than the reality of a man who is ashamed that he can't button his own shirt.


you rebel, you. sighh.

(i understand yer reasoning, too, although the fantasy of it's a wonderful life is very much a reality to me. as the chief says in cuckoo's nest, "it's the truth, even if it didn't happen.")


...which reminds me of Capra's reply when someone remarked about IAWL: 'Nice, but life just is not that way!'.
Capra: 'No, but it should be.'

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Postby kath » 16 Mar 2007, 13:04

Sea Of Tunes wrote:...which reminds me of Capra's reply when someone remarked about IAWL: 'Nice, but life just is not that way!'.
Capra: 'No, but it should be.'


yep.

and although life doesn't always have happy endings and problems solved and everyone together and joyous (it probably rarely does, actually), the basic lesson still remains... the ripple effect of giving love and doing good deeds is very real.

sounds cheesy. but it aint.

Sea Of Tunes

Postby Sea Of Tunes » 16 Mar 2007, 13:23

kath wrote:
Sea Of Tunes wrote:...which reminds me of Capra's reply when someone remarked about IAWL: 'Nice, but life just is not that way!'.
Capra: 'No, but it should be.'


yep.

and although life doesn't always have happy endings and problems solved and everyone together and joyous (it probably rarely does, actually), the basic lesson still remains... the ripple effect of giving love and doing good deeds is very real.

sounds cheesy. but it aint.


Let's have some cheese together then.


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