# What's with the new debate over if "It's A Wonderful Life" is a Christmas Movie or not? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [December 21, 2025, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904 "2025-12-21T00:14:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2025, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/21 "2025-12-21T12:08:52Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > I dont consider The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe to be a true Christmas film either. Of course not; that’s an Easter movie. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2025, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/22 "2025-12-21T13:03:47Z")
Okay c’mon now. For decades it was free for stations to air because of a copyright quirk so stations aired it constantly around Christmas. It literally ends with the main character running through the streets screaming “Merry Christmas!” It’s a Christmas movie. For me it’s my Christmas movie. I watched it every year with my Mom around the holidays. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2025, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/23 "2025-12-21T13:43:02Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Could be New years just as well. I don’t want to hijack this thread with an extension of the _Die Hard_ debate, so I’ll just say that I agree to disagree. 🙂 (I should have put “in my opinion” above!) > [@RealityChuck](#): > > Nope. George being a bank manager is taken directly from _American Madness_. In the story he’s just a clerk. Thanks! It might be time for me to finally read the story. 😁 ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2025, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/24 "2025-12-21T16:24:32Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Maybe _It’s a Wonderful Life_ should be considered an action movie. Especially when you watch it with the lost ending. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/vw89o0afb2A/maxresdefault.jpg "It's a Wonderful Life: The Lost Ending - SNL") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vw89o0afb2A) ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2025, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/25 "2025-12-21T16:51:13Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > Yes I know it also wasn’t released in Winter but I also don’t think that counts for anything what month it was released on. Actually, it was released to general audiences on Jan. 7, 1947, but its official release date was Dec. 20, 2046, when it premiered in NYC, and it was playing in several cities, like Minneapolis, by Christmas. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2025, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/26 "2025-12-21T19:57:42Z")
> [@Quimby](#): > > It literally ends with the main character running through the streets screaming “Merry Christmas!” Not quite. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/27 "2025-12-22T00:15:26Z")
Sure it’s not the end but it’s the climax of the film. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/28 "2025-12-22T03:50:09Z")
One of the feeliest of feel-good Christmas movies. This is what the Hallmark Christmas movies wanna be. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/29 "2025-12-22T11:10:45Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > One of the feeliest of feel-good Christmas movies. > > This is what the Hallmark Christmas movies wanna be. Is it a legitimate argument that the sentiment in the film is the sort of thing people will suspend their disbelief for around Christmas time, and actually seek out and enjoy around this time, when sentiment is the zeitgeist, but other times of the year, the film wouldn’t “work” (people would not suspend their disbelief, or react cynically), and for that reason, it is a film that belongs to the Christmas season? ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/30 "2025-12-22T12:48:48Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > I’m thinking someone clever could cut a trailer using selected scenes - George and Mary falling into the pool, the car crashing into the tree, George running down the street, Bert firing his gun, etc. - and make it seem like a thriller. Merry Christmas… [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/G3orW3PF-F8/hqdefault.jpg "It's A Wonderful Life-TRAILER-Thriller Edit") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3orW3PF-F8) ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/31 "2025-12-22T15:25:14Z")
That’s really good! ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/32 "2025-12-22T15:38:42Z")
Just to be clear, I didn’t actually make that and post it on YouTube, I just did a search for “It’s a Wonderful Life trailer thriller”. There’s all kinds of those ‘misleading’ trailers out there: a [‘Mary Poppins’ horror trailer](https://youtu.be/2T5_0AGdFic), a [‘The Shining’ feel-good family comedy trailer](https://youtu.be/k6QgNuZcxTw). I figured there was probably already a thriller cut for IaWL. ---
**Author:** ![abcdefghij](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/43a26b/32.png) [@abcdefghij](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abcdefghij)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/33 "2025-12-22T18:34:55Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > This is the new debate I’m seeing online (well new in quotes it’s been around for the past couple of years I’ve heard on podcasts/YouTube) is whether or not It’s A Wonderful Life is a Christmas movie or not New? I had a girlfriend 35 years ago whose whole family was adamant that it was a Thanksgiving movie because George learns to give thanks for what he has and the town gives him thanks for what he’s done for them… or something… Not my theory. I never felt the need to pigeon hole it in the first place. But that sure looks an awful lot like a Christmas tree at the end. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/34 "2025-12-22T19:53:39Z")
> [@abcdefghij](#): > > But that sure looks an awful lot like a Christmas tree at the end. George’s suicide attempt, if you want to call it that, and Clarence’s washing George out of Bedford Falls/:Pottersville happens on Christmas Eve, ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/35 "2025-12-22T20:31:47Z")
The plot crumbles without the Christmas tree and Suzu and the ringing bell when Clarence got wings. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2025, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/36 "2025-12-23T23:08:38Z")
Definitely a Christmas movie. Unlike, of course, _Die Hard._ ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2025, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/37 "2025-12-23T23:26:03Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Merry Christmas… I don’t think it works. The movie is just too upbeat, too good. It’s maybe parody-proof? George does have a reason for suicide. The bank is going to show $8000 (like $129K now) loss and it certainly has the smell of embezzlement. Especially with Potter’s sure to be gelpful testimony (“He’s running around giving money to that hussy Violet Bick.”) Drunkard Uncle Billy should go to jail, but George is too nice, to much a doormat to let him take the fall. George has been a doormat all his life, probably from birth. It’s his lot in life. So he would have taken the fall. Until he got the damn fool idea to kill himself. In our normal world, he’d just be dead. It sure would be a shock when he “wakes up” as a tree in the sand desert plains of hell. “Well, I guess that didn’t help!” Especially when he finds Uncle Billy rooted next to him. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2025, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/38 "2025-12-23T23:49:46Z")
> [@solost](#): > > ‘The Shining’ feel-good family comedy trailer thank you for all those clips; I enjoyed them! ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/39 "2025-12-24T01:09:16Z")
Is there one where _The Passion of the Christ_ is just about a family getting together for Passover? ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904/40 "2025-12-24T13:22:19Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > I don’t think it works. The movie is just too upbeat, too good. It’s maybe parody-proof? I think much of the movie is plenty dark, and I thought the fake trailer worked pretty well to portray the movie as a Hitchcockian thriller / mystery. I don’t know if you’d call those misleading movie trailers ‘parody’ exactly, even; to me parody is when you directly satirize the point of a subject’s source material. These fake trailers are more of a humorous way to demonstrate how creative editing can really shape a narrative. But I will agree that some of those fake trailers have an uphill battle with their source material, like this one… > [@RivkahChaya](#): > > Is there one where _The Passion of the Christ_ is just about a family getting together for Passover? I did find [this one where the story is reframed as an 80s-style action comedy](https://youtu.be/HqVU1OFcdtY), but I don’t think it works all that well, considering the visuals they had to work with… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-the-new-debate-over-if-its-a-wonderful-life-is-a-christmas-movie-or-not/1025904.md?page=3)