“Did you ever have so much to say,
you don’t know how to say it?” uttered Jefferson Smith to his secretary as he
paced about his office, trying to formulate his very first bill to present to
the Senate. That very sentence popped into my head the moment I sat down to write
this review. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
holds so many powerful aspects that choosing which to write about was an
extremely daunting task. Eventually, I was able to dig into what I believe to
be the heart of the film, and that is what I present you with today.
Frank Capra’s Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), starring Jimmy Stewart, Jean
Arthur, Claude Rains, and Edward Arnold, is a timeless example of American
patriotism. When the senator of an unnamed state dies suddenly, a replacement
must be found. Jim Taylor (Edward Arnold), the leader of a political machine,
and Senator Joseph Paine (Claude Rains) want to choose someone whose vote they
can easily manipulate. Taylor and Paine, along with several other corrupt
politicians have cooked up a plan to make money off of the upcoming construction
of a dam. When the most unlikely of candidates, the leader of The Boy Rangers
named Jefferson Smith (Jimmy Stewart), is chosen, Taylor and Paine believe they
have found the easily manipulated man they are looking for. However, Smith
proves to be no simpleton when he presents a bill suggesting that a boys’ camp
be built in the very area that Taylor and his cohorts have chosen for their
dam. When Smith refuses to back down, Taylor and Paine frame him, accusing him
of the very crime they themselves were about to commit. The Senate calls for
the removal of Smith, but, before he can be removed, Smith creates a filibuster
in order to get the truth out to his state and raise the public’s opinion of
him. After nearly 24 hours of standing and speaking non-stop Smith passes out.
In what can only be described as a miracle, Senator Paine, driven mad,
confesses everything and Smith’s name is cleared. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is a movie that emphasizes its message
above all else. As such, it draws careful attention to its dialogue and uses
music only to invoke emotion and a sense of patriotism.
The
area where Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
truly shines is in the message it presents. To take full advantage of this strength,
music is very rarely used. Naturally, music is present for both the opening and
closing credits. In the opening credits, songs such as Yankee Doodle and My country
Tis of Thee are used to set the patriotic feel of the film. In the ending
credits, it uses the same types of songs to emphasize Smith’s triumph. Other
than a few other patriotic or emotional scenes, music is mainly used in scenes
where little to no dialogue is present. For instance, when Mr. Smith visits
several monuments in Washington loud, upbeat patriotic music plays throughout
the montage until Smith finally arrives at the Lincoln Memorial. Upon his arrival,
the music lowers and becomes more reverent. Because the music is down-played in
this scene we can turn our attention to reading the recorded words of Abraham
Lincoln as well as listening to those same words being read by a child, looking
up in awe at the words laid out before him.
Without
the constant distraction of music and other non-diegetic sounds we are able to
focus not only on the words being spoken, but also on the meaning behind those
words. Shortly after Smith is appointed Senator we witness a conversation
between Mr. Smith and Senator Paine about Smith’s father. Upon seeing Smith wearing
his hat, Paine makes the remark that Smith is just like his late father. He
goes on to say that Smith’s father always kept his hat on so that he could jump
into action whenever a lost cause came his way. Even after being murdered for
not backing down on a case he believed in, Smith’s father still wore his hat.
Despite the fact that Smith’s father and Senator Paine had been called the “Champions
of Lost Causes” back in their day, the Senator expresses his current lack of
faith in fighting for those causes. It is here that Smith makes the statement
that will carry the entire film, “Dad always said the only causes worth
fighting for were the lost causes.”
Throughout the film we see the influence that Smith’s father
had on his son’s life. Not only does Mr. Smith display an impressive amount of
knowledge and passion for American history, but he does his best to extend that
passion to the next generation. While trying to write a bill to present to the
Senate about his boys’ camp, Smith describes to his secretary, Saunders (played
by Jean Arthur) the purpose behind his camp:
You see, boys forget what it
really means, just reading about the land of the free in history books. Then
they get to be men and forget even more. Liberty’s too precious a thing to get
to be buried in books, Miss Saunders. Men should hold it up in front of them
every single day of their lives and say, “I’m free to think and to speak. My
ancestors couldn’t, I can, and my children will.” Boys oughta grow up
remembering that.
Mr. Smith believes so strongly in these principles and those
like them that he risks absolutely everything to fight for what’s right. In a
rousing speech, which he gives right before fainting at the end of the film,
Mr. Smith croaks out these last words, which are the final message of the film:
I guess this is just another lost
cause, Mr. Paine. All you people don’t know about lost causes. Mr. Pain does.
He said once they were the only causes worth fighting for, and he fought for
them once; for the only reason any man fights for them, because of one plain,
simple rule: love thy neighbor. And in this world today full of hatred, a man
who knows that one rule has a great trust. You know that rule, Mr. Paine, and I
love you for it just as my father did. And you know that you fight for the lost
causes harder than any others. Yes, you even die for them, like a man we both
knew, Mr. Paine. You think I’m licked! You all think I’m licked! Well I’m not
licked, and I’m gonna stay right here and fight for this lost cause! Even if
this room gets filled with lies like these, and the Taylors and all their
armies come marching into this place! Somebody’ll listen to me.
Mr. Smith fought until the end for
what he believed was right, for American ideals and for justice. No matter the
time and no matter the problems we as a country face, we need more people like
Jefferson Smith. We need people who will teach and prepare the next generation.
We need people who will ensure that our government continues to run by the
standards set by our forefathers. We need good, honest folk, who will fight
against corruption. I wholeheartedly believe that the purpose of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is to
inspire people to love and fight for their country again in a way that will
remain applicable throughout the generations. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington has both inspired me and become one of
my favorite movies of all time. I highly recommend this film not only to
Americans, but to everyone, because everyone could learn a thing or two from
the ideals presented in this film.
No comments:
Post a Comment