Everyone is remarking about how great this movie is, but I just can't see it. I couldn't root for Jimmie Stewart because I found him incredibly annoying, and I just kept begging for the movie to end.
What is it I'm missing?
You're missing a great movie. At least, that's my opinion.
A tip for all forum posters (not just on IMDb): definitely =/= definately.
Eyeballs.
shareIt's from another time, another era, yet it presents issues still relevant today... Many minds today are not conditioned to absorb classic films, when those many grew up with nothing but garbage for cinema. ,. .
After being conditioned to accept garbage and filth as art, as cinema, it's tough to look at something like this film and not be bored by it.
.;*We Live Inside A Dream*;.
Precisely. That's a great way to put it.
shareI suppose so. It isn't even 3D. If this movie ever gets remade, in order to capture the attention span of today's audience, the statue in the Lincoln Memorial would have to break out into some sort of giant transformer and wreak havoc on the entire beltway, all the while reciting the Gettysburg Address.
shareNot true, dave. No matter how good the special effects, if the storyline itself is crap, the movie can't hold my interest. One of my favorite movies is the original "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir," which has very little special effects to speak of yet holds my interest all the way through.
Perhaps I find Mr. Smith so boring because of the subject matter.
I agree with the OP -- this is one of the most overrated movies ever made. I've seen everything from A to Z, too. It's endlessly preachy and sanctimonious, and Smith's fillibuster scene is endless, and ends stupidly. Annoying to the max, and boring
shareJust bought this yesterday and watched it. Great movie indeed. I'd always heard things about it and have always wanted to see it. We need more men like Smith in D.C and in the world itself.
YoungAdult Novels. Sci-Fi/Horror/Suspense/Poetry:
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Of course the filibuster scene is "endless". That's the point of the movie. The only way he can stop the dam from being built is to grind the senate to a halt. When he collapses, Claude Rains' character sees the error of his ways, and tries to kill himself. How is that a stupid ending to the filibuster scene?
As for being annoying, you sound easily annoyed.
one of the best movie i have ever seen and thorough entertainment.
along with classic ending...couldn't have been better.
Internet - A place for useless bantering & silly hate crime.
overhyped garbage - I just see it as a pointless facade designed to drum up American patriotism.
share<<Overhyped garbage - I just see it as a pointless facade designed to drum up American patriotism>>
LOL! You might be enlightened to know that when the film premiered, it *outraged* the United States Congress. There were calls for Capra's head from politicians, and he was nearly arrested for daring to imply that there is corruption in American politics, as depicted in the film.
But audiences across the country loved it, because we know there is such corruption; and because we love the idea of the lone individual battling overwhelming odds and winning in the end.
And thank God, that does happen sometimes.
One of my favorite movies, and remains actual even being made 70 years ago.
But i guess it doesn't have action scenes so you don't like it, right?
I love action movies, (it's my favorite genre) but I still love this movie. I guess the adage "Different Strokes for different folks" applies to the OP
Attempted murder? It's not like he killed someone.
I don't like the film because I find it to be so unrealistic. Action scenes aren't the be all and end all for me, in fact I go so far as to say a film like "Control" about Ian Curtis is the best film I've ever seen. Frankly I couldn't find anything to warm to in Jefferson Smith, this sort of all American boy, the image is suffocating, this ideal character who has the only character flaw of being naive, I'm sorry it's just far too difficult to digest.
shareWell - granted it is Capra-corn ... but moreover it's about the idealism of the individual triumphing over the cynicism of the political machine ... an idealism that was needed at a time when Europe was being held in the balance ... mawkish? Sure. Unashamed morality play? Sure. But it does what it set out to do quite well. It's a harder sell today certainly, considering the cynicism that permeates the fabric of society today. The world we inhabit was built on idealism - an idealism that has largely fallen to the cynicism engendered by a political machine that has nothing but contempt for the very ideals that spawned it.
"You want to save humanity but it's people that you just can't stand". - John Lennon
Stick to The Dark Knight, Twillight and Armageddon.
Seems like huge car explosions, dialogue written by michael bay and 1 hour long movie suits you the best.
Good god, what is wrong with you people? This is proof that people will hate any classic film no matter how good it is. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is an absolute masterpiece, the kind of film that every American should see.
Back in 1939, Congress felt so threatened by this film that they offered 2 million dollars to purchase it from the studio.
I am in my 20's and there's no way that I was bored watching this film. In fact, it took me by surprise since I couldn't turn away from it, I personally find a film like this to be far more immersive and entertaining than the CGI and gimmicky special effects filled crap you have today.
What your missing is a brain.
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Best way to deal with trolls is to add them to your ignore list.
Before you tell someone they are missing a brain, be sure you are using the correct form of the word "your." It's "you're" missing a brain, not "your."
shareThanks for the English lesson.
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Best way to deal with trolls is to add them to your ignore list.
When you're telling people they are stupid, it helps your argument if you don't look stupid yourself.
Not perfectly knowing English language (which is not primary to me) does not equal being stupid.
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If you want horror - tune in the news channel.
No, it does not equal being stupid; however, when trying to make intellectual statements, it helps if you appear to have full command of the language in which you are typing.
shareI'm tired of the backlashes at 'haters' of classic films by claiming that they are too used to modern-day cinema and don't know how to appreaciate the oldies. I've seen over 500 pre-1950 films and, I as well, find this film extremely dull and uncompelling. If not interested in (American) politics, or if not too enthusiastic about Capra's sense of humor or style, this film does not have really much to offer, other than reasonable acting performances of Arthur and Stewart. The whole picture was too over-sentimental and moralistic, even for 1939 standards, and for this movie, that did not work for me (other than in It's a Wonderful Life). Arthur was really at place, though I prefer her more when she is less uptight, such as her hilarious role in The Whole Town's Talking. Stewart was great, but not better than most of his other roles played in those days (You Can't Take it With You, The Shop Around the Corner, even The Mortal Storm). I live for classic films, but Mr. Smith Goes to Washington was very tiresome and I was thankful when the movie was over. Can't we just accept that not everyone appreciates the film, or some other classics, without it having anything to do with the year it was produced in?
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And you didn't spell Jimmy right in your opening post. Even though he was always billed as James, most people called him Jimmy Stewart, not Jimmie. I've never seen it spelled the way you spelled it.
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