Do we really believe that wisdom, joy, peace, and courage are the fruit of old age? We may know it from saints or from special people in our own lives, but we probably don’t know it from the movies. Here, then, is our antidote to the frequently downward spiral of onscreen aging. Director Frank Capra finds this antidote in the patriarch of a family whose home and memories are colliding with a corporation that would take away his house at all costs. The way the elder man responds to this pressure is no less lovely for being simple. This is a film in which the fruit of old age flowers in season, and in which those around (friend and foe alike) not only taste it but also find themselves celebrating it together with joyful song. Lo and behold, a film that teaches us how to grow older with a harmonica in our pocket, ready to be played until the crisis passes. — Brian Duignan
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