Customer Reviews

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

5 star:		(61)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My first inclination was to complain that this DVD is like way overpriced and has not come down in price in some time. Yes, it is a truly great movie, and the DVD has some extra goodies, but there is no reason why it still should be way over $20 in price. That being said, there are few films that might be worth it and this is one of them. It still captures the essence of what being an American is--or what it should be. The lone man voicing his ideas against the machine, reminding us of what sanity is, of what priorities should be. At no time in American history is such a voice needed more than now: we want to send nearly $100 Billion to our enemy while people here will starve today. If that isn't the "Taylor machine" I don't know what is. This film speaks to the real war on terror--the grip that power and greed have on this country at any given time. In movies, especially Frank Capra movies, it all comes out ok in the end, even though many of his films have a suicidal crisis in them at some point. Meet John Doe, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, It's a Wonderful Life, and Mr. Smith all have a suicide that nearly happens. Why would that be,in the films of Frank Capra, considered the "feel good" director of all time? Because at some point life can become not worth living when all of its better values have been perverted, when it seems hopeless and that there is no way out of the madness,when one cannot bear all the tension and contradiction.(Gee, sorry for such a downer review). It might have something to do with the fact that the country was in the "Great Depression", economically and psychologically in the group sense, and that things really were pretty bleak. In Capra films, the response to despair is hope (that the badness will relent) and kindness (the kindness of others towards the unfortunate). And maybe that is the answer for our time as well. Where will we find it? Anyway, all this malarkey aside, Mr. Smith is a great movie, full of laughs, drama, and telling satire, a landmark performance by Jimmy Stewart, and well supported by a great cast all around--Claude Rains, Thomas Mitchell, Jean Arthur, Harry Carey, Edward Arnold. One of the most enjoyable films you will ever see and worth the high price you will pay for the DVD. And now, my filibuster ends.

This movie is perfect for July 4th..in fact, I watched this movie for the first time on this day! If you want to see how a bill is passed, what the Senate consist of in the government, how people in politics are after, great monuments like the Capitol and Lincoln, and a great storyline, this is the movie for you.
Jimmy Stewart played Jeff Smith, a Boy Scout ranger who loves America, was picked as a Senator. His honesty and rookie nature made him a ruse for the experienced Senators who are out to get him and throw him out of office with their lies. Meanwhile, he did find a friend who went with him all the way...his secretary, Clarissa (who falls in love with him). You will have to find out the rest of the movie what happens when people found out that Smith was telling the truth all along, and the bad guys.
This is a great movie!! Go watch it!

Frank Capra captures the heart of american patriotism without ever becoming preachy. Mr. Smith is equal parts civics lesson, romance, tense drama and at its heart: the perfect fish out of water comedy.

Jimmy Stewart is fantastic as Jefferson Smith an honorory senator who accidentally stumbles on corruption. Stellar performances were turned in by Jean Arthur, Claude Raines, Edward Arnold and Thomas Mitchell, but it is Stewart who dominates this film.

The phrase Capraesque gets bandied about with too much regularity these days when describing recent films. I would strongly reccomend Mr. Sith goes to Washington as Capra at his most Capraesque.

I recently decided to view this version on one TV and the earlier release on the other. I really didn't think that there would be much a difference, but the Columbia classics release had a sharper picture than the Sony release. I switched teh DVDs and tried again to see if maybe the TV or the DVD player was a factor. I got the same result! My advice.. if you REALLY love this movie, pay extra and get the Columbia classics release!

I would have to agree with everyone else here, that there is no better performance in film history than Jimmy Stewart and Jeff Smith. He put his heart and soul into the role, and a masterpiece came out. I would like to correct magellen's review, in that Stewart did not win for his performance in Mr. Smith. He won the following year for his role as Mike Connor in "The Philadelphia Story". Many believe Stewart was given this as a payback for the Academy overlooking him for his "Mr. Smith" role. He was nominated for his performance in "Mr. Smith" and was given the New York Film Critics Award for Best Actor (1939). Great film!

Amazingly, I only just rented this movie and saw it for the first time this week, and I was pleased to see how well this legendary Frank Capra and Jimmy Stewart classic had held up. Stewart won the Academy award for best actor in 1939 for his performance as the idealistic young senator from Montana who triumphs against dirty politics and overwhelming odds--including the collusion and corruption of those who he admired and thought to be his friends--such as his fellow Senator Paine, played by the great Claude Rains. I was equally impressed by Rains's part, and his dramatic reversal of his position toward Stewart at the very end and confession in the Senate chamber about his cooperating with the corrupt Taylor political machine has to be one of the most moving, climatic scenes in cinema--except that Stewart had just passed out from exhaustion after his marathon filibuster--so he didn't get a chance to witness it himself.

I was discussing the movie with someone who knows more about film than I do, and they said that the movie showed what tremendous range Stewart had, from joy to despair, from energetic exhuberance to exhaustion, and from his initial naive idealism about Washington to his quickly wising up about the realities of politics. They said Stewart really never had a chance to show as great a range of emotion during much of the rest of his career, since he was often cast in light-hearted and humorous roles after that. I thought this was an interesting comment about one of America's most famous and loved actors, as his part in Rear Window was certainly a very serious role, but again, I'm not an expert on film history so I offer this comment for what it's worth.

Overall, still a great classic that has stood the test of time, and a must see for fans of old movies, especially Jimmy Stewart, Claude Rains, and Frank Capra fans. And I can't forget to mention the rest of the supporting cast--Jean Arthur, Thomas Mitchell, Edward Arnold, and Guy Kibbee--are also superb.

I was shown this movie by my 12th grade government teacher, Mr. Jones. Now that I am a teacher, I find this to be a great resource for students. It puts an entertaining spin on a subject that high school students sometimes find tedious and tough to understand, our government. In addition to the above mentioned qualities, I find that watching this movies allows me to believe that our Representitives, at one time, stood for what they belive in and govern in a responsible and ethical manner. Congress should have to sit and watch this on a monthly basis, just as a reminder :-)

This film is what film making is or should be about. The exitement and drama are not only high but of a very real nature. The story tells us that no matter how great and wonderful we think our country is, we still need to work at keeping it great while holding on to the great ideals set down in our constitution by the nation's founders. the film's "hero," Jefferson Smith tells us that even today we can fight against corruption and special interest groups influencing our government if we just get off our pop cultured couch potatoe and do something about it!
This film offers too an amazingly powerful cast and great acting. This is a great Capra legacy and DVD to have in your collection!!!

What an amazing, heart-felt drama. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is all about an innocent small-town man elected to the Senate by other senators who want to take advantage of his honesty and innocence and lack of knowledge about America. The ideals in this movie really make you appreciate America. I first got it from the library for no reason. Wow. There isn't much more to say. Wow. Some people think it's boring or too slow-paced, but I say, what would you cut out? The beauty of the movie is that every moment is crucial to the movie's success. I haven't seen it on DVD, but I know the VHS is great, and the DVD probably is too.

I first saw this in my People and Politics classroom, and if you teach that subject or a similar one, or are interested in that, you cannot go wrong with this movie. James Stewart is an awesome actor, as usual. He plays a bumbling Boy Ranger leader chosen by corrupt officals to play a sitting stooge while they follow through with a plan to bilk money out of people. What happens is pure gold, and the humor is quite good. It does get tedious at times, if you dont like watching the parts about how Congress works, but if you dont mind that, its a terrific movie! And the ending is superb! Great for kids too!