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I posted something the other day about how much I like “It’s a Wonderful Life,” and over the past 18 months, I’ve posted several things about “Star Wars,” and last night I realized something:
“It’s a Wonderful Life” and “Star Wars” are basically the same movie:
It’s a Wonderful Life: George Bailey is a small-town boy who can’t wait to leave home and travel around the world.
Star Wars: Luke Skywalker is a small-town boy who can’t wait to leave home and travel throughout the galaxy.
It’s a Wonderful Life: George postpones college to help his father with the family’s building and loan.
Star Wars: Luke postpones going to the academy to help his uncle with the family farm.
It’s a Wonderful Life: When it’s time for George to finally leave, George’s father asks him to stay a while longer.
Star Wars: When it’s time for Luke to finally leave, Luke’s uncle asks him to stay a while longer.
It’s a Wonderful Life: Soon after talking with George about leaving home, George’s father dies of a heart attack.
Star Wars: Soon after talking with Luke about leaving home, Luke’s aunt and uncle are killed in a stormtrooper attack.
It’s a Wonderful Life: With his father gone, George has no choice but to run a building and loan, like his father.
Star Wars: With his aunt and uncle gone, Luke has no choice but to learn the ways of the Force and become a Jedi Knight, like his father.
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It’s a Wonderful Life: George’s family business is threatened Potter, whose haranguing helped drive George’s father to the grave.
Star Wars: Luke’s friends in the rebellion are threatened by Vader, who betrayed and murdered Luke’s father (kind of).
It’s a Wonderful Life: George is jealous of his friend, Sam Wainwright, who used to date George’s wife, Mary.
Star Wars: Luke his jealous of his friend, Han Solo, who’d like to, um, “date” Princess Leia.
It’s a Wonderful Life: Potter tries to destroy the Bailey Building and Loan Association by hiring George away.
Star Wars: Vader tries to destroy the Jedi Knights by turning Luke to the Dark Side of the Force.
It’s a Wonderful Life: Uncle Bill accidentally gives Potter $8,000 in cash. Potter hopes the mistake will finally crush the building and loan.
Star Wars: Vader tracks the Millennium Falcon to the Rebels’ secret base, where he hopes to finally crush the rebellion.
It’s a Wonderful Life: As the bank examiner and sheriff prepare to arrest George, George receives a telegram: “Mr. Gower cables you need cash. Stop. My office instructed to advance you up to $25,000. Stop. Hee-haw and merry Christmas, Sam Wainwright.”
Star Wars: “Yee-haw, now let’s blow this thing so we can go home!”
In the earlier post about “It’s a Wonderful Life,” I mentioned Roger Ebert’s review where he calls the movie “ageless,” and I think what makes it work as well now as it did when it was release 65 years ago is that George Bailey’s story is the essentially same as every hero’s story:
George Bailey might not save the galaxy, but he gives up a life of travel and adventure to raise a family and make his hometown a better place to live, and if that’s not heroic, I don’t know what is.
Awesome comparison.
It’s A Wonderful Life – best Christmas Movie.. ever!
It’s pretty close to perfect.
Haha I enjoyed this comparison! I’ve never truly seen Star Wars, but have watched A Wonderful Life over the holidays since I was a kid. You make a lot of good points with their similarities
Watch the original movie and The Empire Strikes Back, skip the others.
Hmmm. I agree with all of it except that Luke was jealous of Han. I never got that.
Remember the scene after they escape the Death Star? Luke goes, “So, what do you think of her, Han?” And Han goes, “I try not to kid.” And Luke goes, “Good.” And Han senses that the kid has a crush on her and goes, “Still, she’s got a lot of spirit. I don’t know. What do you think? Do you think a princess and a guy like me could….” And Luke cuts him off with a sharp, “No!” And then there’s the scene in Empire, when Luke’s in the infirmary, and Leia, who show Han that she doesn’t feel anything for him, gives Luke a big kiss, and Luke gets this big grin and leans back and puts his hands behind his head, and, oh, my God, I’ve seen these movies WAY too many times.
I always took that first scene as Luke feeling protective of Leia and thinking Han was just too wild for her or something. And the second one, I thought Luke was just kind of enjoying the fact that HAN was jealous, but not so much that Luke actually was interested in Leia. But maybe I just hope for that because of the whole incest thing …
I always thought he was jealous too – he’s very into her. But it’s not incest because he doesn’t know. When he does know, he finally understands why they have such a strong connection.
Yeah, you gotta keep in mind he didn’t know — or George Lucas didn’t decide — Luke and Leia were siblings until the 3rd movie, and remember, too, at the end of the third movie, Han tells Leia basically, Hey, you love Luke, that’s fine, I won’t stand in your way, so there was definitely a little romantic triangle there until we found out that Luke and Leia were brother and sister, then it just got weird.
Clever stuff! Cool post Todd.
Thanks, Clay. Glad I found your blog this year!
Brilliant!
Thank you, thank you. I’ll be here all week. Don’t forget to tip your waitress.
Truthfully, I’ve never seen a whole Star Wars movie…neat comparison though!
Love your last line!
Wendy
Watch the first two, skip the rest.
Great comparison, Todd. That telegram is where I always start to cry. Like a baby. Every. Single. Time. It’s just all that selfless giving he did, all his life, and now all those people, “the worthless rabble” are standing behind him, no questions asked.
And you know the best part? POTTER KEEPS THE $8,000. I love that. He’s a jerk, and he gets away with stealing the Baileys’ money. Very true to life.
I always think about the phrase “bloom where you are planted” when I think about George Bailey.
Good point.
I always knew Star Wars was a rip off–I just didn’t know from where.
And I also do not know what is!
Agree – why didn’t I notice this before. The only thing I would add is that Uncle Billy’s misplacing the $8,000 is parallel to the Millenium Falcon group inadvertently leading Vadar to the rebel base, while they mistakently thought they had gotten away clean.