UNSEALED

It is surprising to think that one of the most beloved movies of all time was a box-office disappointment during its original engagement. But, over the years, It’s a Wonderful Life found its audience — a huge and enduring audience — and became one of the most beloved works in all of cinema. It’s a Wonderful Life is now seen as the classic it always was, revered by people all over the world, a staple at Christmas, and a movie people watch over and over again without ever tiring of its simple and beautiful message: how our lives touch others’ lives in profound and wonderful ways. It is one of director Frank Capra’s crowning achievements in a career filled with them.

Despite its somewhat less-than-stellar performance at the box-office, the film garnered some excellent reviews and was nominated for five Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Film Editing, and Best Sound Recording. It won none of those but earned a Technical Achievement Award for Russell Shearman and the RKO Special Effects department (for its use of simulated falling snow). But in the end awards didn’t matter, for while it took a bit of time to happen, Wonderful Life entered the public consciousness and has never left it.

Dimitri Tiomkin wrote a wonderful score for Wonderful Life, interweaving original themes and quotes of popular music to great effect. But, as sometimes happens, Capra made lots of changes in the editing room. He cut several cues (letting those scenes play without music) and rearranged where certain cues appeared; he removed sections of cues, and even tracked in music written for other films. But the score as written is exquisite—as heartfelt and moving as the film. And even though the way in which it’s used in the movie works beautifully, hearing it complete (including unused cues) is a special treat. It is filled with Tiomkin’s wonderful sense of film and character and drama.

01. Main Title / Heaven (3:45)
02. Ski Run (1:31)
03. Death Telegram (1:59)
04. Gower’s Deliverance (2:03)
05. George And Dad (1:45)
06. Father’s Death (0:30)
07. Love Sequence (2:12)
08. Wedding Cigars (0:41)
09. George Lassoes Stork (2:03)
10. Dilemma (0:36)
11. Bank Crisis (0:54)
12. Search For Money (2:01)
13. Potter’s Threat (0:50)
14. Dankgebet / This Is The Army, Mr. Jones (2:20)
15. Uncle Billy’s Blunder (1:15)
16. Clarence’s Arrival (2:20)
17. George Is Unborn (2:24)
18. Haunted House (2:40)
19. Pottersville Cemetery (1:14)
20. Wrong Mary Hatch / The Prayer (2:06)
21. A Wonderful Life (Original Finale) (3:24)
22. Auld Lang Syne / End Title (0:55)

Bonus Tracks
23. It’s A Wonderful Life (Vocal) Lyrics By – Frederick Herbert, Music By – Dimitri Tiomkin (3:53)
24. Wedding March / Big Band (1:10)
25. Father’s Death (Alternate) (0:21)
26. Haunted House (Alternate Take) (2:41)
27. Pottersville Cemetery (Without Chorus) (1:19)
28. Auld Lang Syne (Extended Take) (0:32)