Classic Cinema: Mr Deeds Goes to Town

Frank Capra directs this comedy starring Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur that was remade into a predictably terrible Adam Sandler vehicle.

Cooper is stunningly good as the amiable Deeds, who hides a sharp intellect behind his "aw-shucks" personality. The naturally kind-hearted character is brought up against the systems of upperclass life as he is awarded twenty million dollars from a deceased, unknown uncle.

As he did in "It's A Wonderful Life", Capra creates deeply moving moments from the main characters' identity and ways of behaviour at first being questioned, then validated, and finally applauded. The final message of both of these films is the importance of maintaining our individual moral outlook and integrity, despite the inevitable pressure that arises from living without regard to conformity.

This doesn't mean Capra's goal in the film is to tell us "Do what you will and consequences be damned" but, following the pragmatic philosophy of Emerson and Thoreau (who Deeds quotes in one scene) to show us that when we act according to our inner nature, our moral nature independent of economic or social concerns, we will inevitably act in a way that is truly noble.

Deeds represents an ideal in both his imaginative and practical behaviour. His imaginative capabilities are displayed in a scene we're he visits the tomb of Ulysses S. Grant, a tomb we are told most Americans feel let down by, due to it's small size and modest construction. Deeds judges the building by the person it represents, rather than the superficial beauty of the tomb itself.

Such a position is commendable, but Capra shows the difficulty of converting this outlook into practical power. When Deeds strives to do what he see's as the right thing, he is exploited and finally seen as insane. Capra was here perhaps mirroring his own experience, having to create work that would need the approval of studio heads who held profit in higher regard than morality.

Despite it's old age and uplifting message, the film is never hokey and deserves to be seen.