Guilherme del Toro gave an insightful explanation of why the 1946 classic is his favorite Christmas movie. With the holidays coming into full swing, there's no better company than Christmas movies that capture the essence of this time of year. Christmas movies have become a genre of their own, providing audiences with films set during the holidays, whether it's a romantic comedy, a coming-of-age story, a simple drama, or even a horror film. Over the years, there was no genre touched by Christmasresulting in some truly imaginative and ultimately iconic stories.
THE Alone at home franchise lectured audiences about the importance of family during Christmas, sweetening the lesson with hilarious pranks and traps set by a boy who was accidentally left behind by his family for the holiday. For those wanting a more emotionally complex, intimate affair, Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara deliver powerful performances in the Todd Haynes-directed film. Carol. Horror fans in the mood for folk horror dressed in B-movie fun have won Krampus in 2015, starring Adam Scott and Toni Collette. Jon Favreau and Will Ferrell delivered one of the best of the season with Elfa charming comedy full of Christmas spirit.
Guillermo Del Toro Explains Why It's A Wonderful Life Is One Of His Favorite Christmas Movies
Del Toro watches it every year around Christmas
Del Toro provided an intriguing reason as to why the 1946 classic It's a wonderful life it is your personal choice for vacation. Directed by Frank Capra, the Christmas film initially had mixed reviews and a poor box office, but over the years, the admittedly dark story of regret and daydreaming has become a classicproving to be robust and reminiscent of the kind of magic that the holidays can provide.
Talking to BFI, del Toro credited his affection for It's a wonderful life in the direction of Capra and the dark nature of the story. He was impressed that Capra had given American audiences a captivating yet terrifying view of himself, calling the film “a nightmare adjacent to the American dream and the American psyche.” The film has a dear place in del Toro's heart, as the filmmaker has cried every time he watches it, ever since he watched it as a child. Every year, he watches with his family around Christmasonce in theaters and again on TV. Read his full comment below:
It's a Wonderful Life is one of my favorite films for several reasons. I find it fascinating that Capra, an immigrant [from Italy]gave America back a vision of itself that was more lovable and wholesome than it actually was and, at the same time, darker and more terrifying than movies tended to imagine. Like Walt Disney, Capra is often misunderstood as an eternal optimist, but the nightmarish nature of the dark episodes of It's a Wonderful Life demonstrates that he understands terror, that he understands darkness.
It is a nightmare adjacent to the American dream and the American psyche. There's always this scarier, darker, edgier side to Norman Rockwell's goodness. The hope of the ending only exists in contrast.
For me, it's perfectly timed, in terms of comedic tone, delivery, and melodrama. It's a film that would be impossible to pass without that final release. In a weird way, it's the biggest 'What if?' speculative fiction.
I first saw it when I was a kid on TV and every time I see it it's inevitably one of those films that makes me cry three, four times. We watch it in the cinema every year at Christmas time, and we watch it on TV at least once again, because it's simply impeccable.
Our Take on Guillermo Del Toro's Favorite Holiday Movie and Analysis
Del Toro is right – it's scary!
It's intriguing, and not too surprising, that del Toro looks to It's a wonderful life through the lens of horror, as he is the mastermind behind some of the most disturbing images in the horror genre. But he's right about that It's a wonderful life It's scary. The idea of a man contemplating suicide and his guardian angel watching flashbacks of his life. A boy named George grows up full of regret and dreams that have been abandoned by the shadow of the American dream can be far more terrifying than the thrills provided by horror or slasher films.
...no wonder that It's a Wonderful Life - A Christmas Carol adapted for an American audience - is one of the dEl Toro's favorites, as the inspiration that inspires it is, without a doubt, timeless, although dark.
Considering the film was released just months after the world emerged from war, it's not a huge shock that such a dark story didn't perform well at the time. The roots of It's a wonderful life It should also be considered when studying Capra's classic because its inspiration is inevitable. Based on the 1943 short story “The Greatest Gift” by Philip Van Doren, which was loosely based on the book by Charles Dickens. A Christmas songone of my favorite Christmas stories, no wonder It's a Wonderful Life - A Christmas Carol adapted for an American audience - is one of the dEl Toro's favorites, as the inspiration that inspires it is, without a doubt, timeless, although dark.
Source: BFI