Published via Ecency

(source: tmdb.org)

History can be incredibly kind to certain films. They can earn a reputation as masterpieces not on their merit, but because they were made at the best possible time. One of those great, but ultimately overrated, films is Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, the 1939 political comedy directed by Frank Capra, known as one of the most successful works of the Classic Hollywood era.

The film is based on “The Gentleman from Montana”, an unpublished story by Lewis R. Foster which was apparently inspired by US Senator Burton K. Wheeler and his role in exposing the 1920s Teapot Dome scandal. The plot begins in an unnamed US state in the West after Senator Sam Foley dies. State governor Hubert “Happy” Hooker (played by Guy Kibbee) must appoint his replacement, being urged by powerful political boss Jim Taylor (played by Edward Arnold) who needed Foley’s vote for a Senate bill that would finance the building of a useless but very expensive dam at Willet Creek on land Taylor and his cronies had bought. Taylor wants his hand-picked candidate, while Hooker’s advisors want a reformer; as a compromise, Hooker picks Jefferson Smith (played by James Stewart), leader of the state’s chapter of the Boy Rangers who is incredibly popular among the state’s youth, including Hooker’s own children. Smith is young, inexperienced, naive and unprepared for the job. As such, he is expected to sit quietly in the Senate and not make any trouble, like his fellow senator Joseph Harrison “Joe” Paine (played by Claude Rains), who used to be an idealist in his youth, but is now a “pragmatist” in Taylor’s pocket.

Smith is given his predecessor’s Senate office and staff, which includes the cynical secretary Clarissa Saunders (played by Jean Arthur). She is, however, soon won over by Smith’s youthful innocence and enthusiasm and decides to help him draft legislation that would create a national boys' camp situated exactly at Willet Creek. This detail reveals Taylor’s scheme, who reacts first by trying to bribe the young senator, and, when this doesn’t work, has him accused of corruption on false charges. Smith is threatened with expulsion from the Senate and, in a last desperate attempt to prevent it, stages a long filibuster trying to bring his colleagues and the general public to his side.

Frank Capra built his reputation in the 1930s with populist comedies that pitted ordinary people against corrupt adversaries from the upper classes and business establishment. One such comedy was Mr. Deeds Goes to Town and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington was originally envisioned as its sequel; Capra had to abandon that idea because Gary Cooper, star of Mr. Deeds, was unavailable. In this film, however, Capra decided to use the same approach with the US political establishment. That establishment wasn’t too thrilled and the gala premiere, attended by US senators, resulted in a number of angry walkouts and later accusations of Capra’s film being “Communist”, “anti-American” and “subverting democracy”. There were even some concerns the US Senate would retaliate against Hollywood, and Columbia Pictures was even offered a large sum of money by six other major studios to preventively destroy the film. In an ironic twist, the governments of Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy and Falangist Spain took quite the opposite view and banned the film over its promotion of democracy.

While the Washington establishment was furious, those sentiments weren’t shared by critics and, most notably, by the general public. This could be explained by Capra again showing great skill as a film-maker and an ability to use the 1.5 million US$ budget to good use. The Senate building interior was meticulously reconstructed in Columbia studios and Capra handled scenes involving hundreds of extras with great ease. But his greatest asset was James Stewart, a young actor who took the role of the idealistic senator as an opportunity to finally establish himself as a true star. He displayed great energy and enthusiasm on the set and this was reflected in his iconic portrayal of Smith as a man whose youthful looks, innocence, charm and use of the common man’s vernacular with phrases like “Gee whiz” made him into the embodiment of every positive thing most Americans liked to imagine about their country. His performance, especially during the gruelling finale, is so strong that he easily overshadowed Jean Arthur, who, despite having good chemistry with him, remained second fiddle for much of the film. The supporting cast was also very good, with Claude Rains and Harry Carey (in the role of President of the Senate, the only dignitary who is sympathetic to the protagonist’s cause) becoming the first two actors to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for roles played in the same film.

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is a very good film, but it is hardly perfect. There is humour in the film, but it is of varied quality and at times the film becomes not only very serious, but actually quite dark. There are scenes of adults committing acts of violence against children and there is even a subplot that hints at Senator Paine using the charms of his daughter (played by Astrid Allwyn) as a tool to make other Washington “players” do what he wants. That subplot is unexplored. The ending is somewhat abrupt and the protagonist is saved by a not-exactly-believable deus ex machina change of heart in one of his opponents.

But those flaws didn’t mean much in the end. The film contains a rather extensive scene in which Smith visits all the Washington landmarks and looks in awe at monuments dedicated to the great statesmen of America’s past, being reminded of the noble ideals upon which the United States was founded. Americans who watched this film easily identified with the protagonist and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington gave them an image of America As It Should Be. The message was particularly relevant because shortly before the premiere Hitler’s tanks rolled into Poland, formally starting the Second World War, with the escalating international crisis fuelling feelings of patriotism. Such sentiments quickly reflected on the box office, making Mr. Smith Goes to Washington a major hit and the third most commercially successful film of 1930s Hollywood (below Gone with the Wind and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs).

Capra’s apparent faith in common decency and democracy triumphing over evil was, later in the war, in line with the needs of US propaganda and the outcome of the war confirmed what Capra ultimately believed. In today’s, more cynical times, some might see this film as propaganda or laugh at Capra’s naivety, but few could doubt his skill as a film-maker.

RATING: 7/10 (+++)