In the original theatrical trailer for Frank Capra’s holiday classic It’s a Wonderful Life, there’s a rousing score and titles that read, “Wonderful news…About wonderful people…In a wonderful picture!” The new trailer above, created by editor Zena Grey of Cinefamily, a nonprofit for movie lovers, is far more emotionally honest, and it’s a gut punch.
After all, on his way to the film’s happy ending, Jimmy Stewart’s George Bailey has to traverse some pretty dark terrain. It’s a Wonderful Life was never the lighthearted romp its theatrical trailer implied—old Hollywood glitz aside, it’s a powerful, haunting movie about the nightmarish reality of people who are near suicide.
Cinefamily’s trailer, first produced last year, may be harder to take, but it’s much more moving than the original. And for anyone who hasn’t seen the flick, it says clearly why they should.
