One of the most iconic Christmas movies of all time It's a Wonderful Life has some aspects that many find has aged poorly by today's standards. The movie is still a wonderous film that can be enjoyed year-round, but the film is very much a product of its time.
Standards have changed drastically since 1946, and this film serves as a time capsule for how much. The movie should still be celebrated and watched every year, but certain things should be pointed out.
The Town Keeps The Money A Secret
George Bailey is shown to be a mostly selfless man toward the town. However when he is in danger of losing the Building and Loan, in his eyes the town does nothing to help. The ending of the film is joyous and shows the town has gathered all the money George is owed and then some. Problem is, it was done behind his back. It is one thing to surprise someone, it is another thing to let them break down and think they are hopeless.
The sharing of wealth is a great life lesson from the Frank Capra movie, but it could have been handled a bit better. An argument could be made that nobody had time to tell him because he was with Clarence at the time, but word travels fast in the small town, surely someone could have found him and let him know before he even met the angel.
George Is Kind Of Mean
James Stewart is a fantastic actor, with many highly rated movies on IMDb, and George Bailey is one of his best roles. George is played to be a selfless man who only wants to live life, but admittedly some of his actions are questionable. The most obvious example is when he blows up at his family. it is fully understandable and even relatable why it happened, but George could have gone about it better.
Another example is when he refuses to give Mary her clothes back. Sure this could be seen as harmless flirting, but Mary was left hiding in a bush without clothes while George just laughed it all away. At the end of the day George is a very kind and selfless man down on his luck, but those around him didn't deserve the way he treated them.
George Is A Victim
In many ways, George is a victim of others' selfishness. From a young age, George wanted to leave the sleepy town of Bedford Falls and travel the world. These wishes were well known, and yet it seemed as if everyone in George's life wanted to keep him there. They knew George would reluctantly stay there, with honestly little care about what he wanted to do.
There were plenty of people who could have taken over the Building and Loan when George's father passed, yet the responsibilities landed on his shoulders. Even when George gave up his honeymoon money to the town, some of them acted selfishly and demanded more from him. George may have lashed out and acted selfishly himself, but only after he was pushed to his breaking point.
Mr. Potter Isn't Evil
Mr. Potter is certainly an unlikable, despicable man. The movie portrays him as a heartless, cold man. While this may be the case, he may not be inherently evil. Mr. Potter cares only for himself and his money, but at the end of the day, he is helping the town regardless of his ulterior motives. Bedford Falls may not want his help, but the fact is he is helping.
Of course, calling the cops on George just to get him out of the picture is an awful thing to do, but he did technically break the law. Mr. Potter is a bad man, and seeing him lose his grip on George was the happy kind of trope fans love to see, but in the end, he was just a businessman, nothing more.
George Willing To Leave His Family With Nothing
Shortly before George met Clarence, he was at his absolute low point. It doesn't take a detective to deduce what he was thinking on that bridge, but the consequences of going through with it would have left his family in financial ruins. George was on the brink of losing his business, and he knew this would hurt his family's stability. However he could have always bounced back, but without him, his family would have been far worse off in more ways than one.
It's debatable if George was serious about it, after all, he saved Clarence without thinking twice, but if he was it would have been selfish on his part. He felt his family would have been better off without him, and realizing he was wrong makes this one of the Christmas movies with the best re-watch values, but for a moment he was willing to leave his family with nothing.
Mary Is Nothing Without A Man In Her Life
When George sees how different Bedford Falls would be without him, one of the biggest changes was with his wife, Mary. Instead of just having married someone else, she is a poor library spinster. This is portrayed as negative because she is single. There is nothing wrong with an adult living their life single, but here it is treated as a tragedy because Mary shouldn't be alone because she is a woman.
This is a distracting plot point that almost comes off as a bit sexist by today's standards. Besides this glaring issue, the movie is still an icon, and mostly stands the test of time as not just one of the greatest Christmas movies, but one of the greatest films of all time.