I recently got to watch the classic movie, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, though this was not my first choice of movie I still sat down to watch it. This film directed by Frank Capra, set in the late 1930s and stars James Stewart as the male lead, Jefferson Smith. In the beginning of this motion picture, one of the senators in Jeff’s state passes away, the governor chooses Jeff Smith to represent that state in Washington. One of the first things he does there is write up a bill for an all boys camp. The bill automatically gets stopped by Taylor, the man behind the political machine in Washington. The film takes us on a journey of Jeff Smith’s fight to take down this machine on his own. Judging based on appearance, this is a nice black and white movie, a classic look for a classic film. I like the fact that this was not reshot in color because, since it was black and white there was not any distraction that the audience could focus on. …show more content…
Narrative helped tell the story of Jeff and how he tries to beat Washington. If there was no narrative then there wouldn’t have been an a actual story to tell. Narrative is what bring the theme to life. Through storytelling the themes of political machines and how one person can make a huge difference. Smith was the only one that wanted to fight this machine, that everyone kept quiet about. Smith, alone, could possibly make a big change in Washington. Another element used in this film is mise en scene, specifically the lighting. The lighting helped the audience indicate which character was good and which one were bad. The darker the character was hidden in a shadow, the more evil they were. This also helped to establish the theme of good versus evil. Smith was the good guy, and taylor and the machine were the evil guys. This movie showed that one person can make absolute difference in society for standing up for what they believe
The main plot of the movie, Mr. Smith goes to Washington is a conflict between Jeff Smith, Senator Paine, and Jim Taylor. A senator of a state passed away causing a new senator needing to be appointed. Jim Taylor a local publicist who had pull around the Senate, pressured the governor to select Jefferson Smith. He was appointed as the new Senator of the State, because everyone thought that he was incompetent, naive, and would not get in their way. However when Smith passed a clever bill that got in the way of Jim Taylor’s scandal, Jim and Senator Paine tried to do whatever they could to get Jeffrey expelled from the Senate.
1. This film is saying the American democracy can be easily corrupted. The film portrays that it takes strong, determined men with much integrity to stand up for what they know is right.
Smith Goes to Washington and its message were especially relevant at the time of its release, which enhances the plot. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington was released in October of 1939, ten years after the beginning of the Great Depression and one month after the start of World War II in Europe. Overall, the movie inspires hope in viewers. The viewers see Smith struggle his way through Washington D.C., being beaten down by the press and other senators, but in the end they see Smith prevail. The plot of the movie is meant to reassure viewers that democracy is all well and living and that through persistence and pure intent, anyone can succeed. I felt the movie was meant to inspire efficacy in viewers and show that someone in government will always have the common man’s best interest at heart. During the Great Depression there was a huge expansion of the Federal government’s powers, and I think Mr. Smith Goes to Washington was intended to remind people that their interests were still well represented and that the principles of liberty and justice for all were intact. There is a lot of patriotic themes throughout the movie, which I thought served as reminders that America is unique, and the patriotism and spirit of democracy contrasted with what viewers knew was happening in Europe. The romance between Smith and Saunders was a reminder that, hardened as they might seem, the government is no different than the people whose liberties it guarantees. It also shows that there is
The film, “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” presents the Senate in a little different fashion than that of the Senate today in real life. The first obvious difference is that the Senate in the movie is still elected by the state legislature, basically the Governor, meaning that the setting of the film would have to be sometime before 1911 and the passage of the 17th amendment Senate] The difference is that today Senators are directly elected by the popular vote of the people.
“Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” Mr. Smith was too naive to survive as a senator during the time the movie “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” took place. Mr. Smith’s naiveté was most evident in his ambitious proposal to start a national boys camp. However, when false allegations regarding Mr. Smith’s motives for starting the camp surfaced, Smith was too idealistic to defend himself from the political machine that accused him of acting in self-interest. Making matters worse, Senator Smith was a genuinely honest and simple-minded man, making it difficult for him to survive among his scheming colleagues.
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington follows Jefferson Smith (James Stewart) and his adventure with American politics. The film begins when a governor needs to replace a senator. The governor decides to appoint Smith because he appears to be a wholesome family man, while also being naïve—which makes him easy to manipulate. When Smith arrives in Washington, Senator Joseph Paine (Claude Rains) becomes a mentor to Smith. Smith falls in love with Paine’s daughter, Susan (Astrid Allwyn). Smith sticks out in Washington,
Corruption in the United States government takes the power away from the people and puts it into the hands of elite groups and politicians. This corruption is prevalent in the film “Mr. Smith goes to Washington”. The film has a strong message about corruption in the government, and places an innocent and naïve character, Mr. Smith in the middle of the corruption. In Washington, Mr. Smith discovers the corruption that has overtaken the capitol, but does not let it falter his integrity. Although Mr. Smith is surrounded by corruption, he is able to fight the system and bring some integrity back to Washington.
When protagonist Jefferson Smith very suddenly becomes a US Senator, he is portrayed as the perfect example of nominal patriotism. He has several speeches by Washington and Lincoln memorized, is the leader of a group of what are basically Boy Scouts, and spends his first day in Washington DC in awe of the monuments.
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is an American political drama/ comedy film directed by Frank Capra in 1939. The movie is about a young U.S. senator who fights for his innocence in America’s corrupt political system. The main character is Jefferson Smith, the newly appointed senator. Smith is the head of the boy rangers in town and is appointed by Jim Taylor, the political boss of the state governor Hubert Hopper. Senator Smith is looked after by Senior senator Joseph Paine, an old friend of Smith’s father. Senator Paine tells Smith to propose a bill, and lends his secretary Clarissa Saunders to aid him. The bill Smith proposes is to ask the Federal Government for a loan to buy acres of land in his home state for a national boy’s camp. The loan
“Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” is about Jefferson Smith who is a boy ranger and new senate member due to the old senator dieing, when Mr.Smith gets to dc he meets his assistant Clerissa Sanders and his father's friend senior Macpherson, a respected senator among the senate. When Smith first gets in into office he is interviewed by a bunch of news reporters, and when they interview him they make him look stupid and like a joke for everybody to see, when Smith sees what they did he punches everybody who's reading a newspaper and goes to the press headquarters where he tells the press that they should tell everybody the truth and, they tell him that his fit to be a senator because he's too unexpected in government and should not be fit tp senator, Mr.Smith actually takes their word for and starts to put a bill together.
The film shows how Taylor, Paine and other guys are treating Mr. Smith and how corrupted they are. In the end, Mr. Smith proves that he haven’t done anything wrong and proves it. The result made Paine and Taylor mad and were found guilty. Throughout the film, we can learn lesson that nothing can be kept hidden, like corruption and making false case about others. In the end, the film shows that once Mr. Smith proves that he is clear and isn’t
Frank Capra's movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington did an excellent job of describing the politician's secrets and underlying motives that truly relate to real life politics. It serves the troubling honesty that our civilization has been developed to operate in diplomacies. It honestly describes an amicable concept about the Senate while also shining light on the less pleasant aspects of politics. The film at the time of its release and to current day has an effect on its audience, and would've been thought to go against the grain at the time of its release; however, it is not rebellious, the film is motivated by an influential disgust towards an ill-treatment of authority in government. The movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington modestly has a truly
In the movie the leader of the political machine is Jim Taylor and
To explain the movie plot, we must remember that the film takes place in the south during the Civil Rights era. In the
Stories are told through various forms of literature, and the overall point of telling a story is to convey a message, a meaning that the author wants the reader to interpret and understand. The author does