What do you do if you are a Hollywood producer and no new ideas come across your desk? You just remake someone else’s movie and change the ending in some perverse, shocking way, of course! The latest film to fall “victim” to the world of remakes is none other than Frank Capra’s classic film from 1946, “It’s a Wonderful Life.” But this time Hollywood might be “moving the boundary stones” too far.
You probably remember that the point of the original is that the town would have been much worse off if Jimmy Stewart’s character, George Bailey, had never been born. But the challenge for the remake is, “how do you improve Capra’s classic?”
The new film’s writers and producers are betting against Capra’s positive message that one man can make a real difference in people’s lives. Instead, in this postmodern, cynical twist, George Bailey’s grandson gets a visit from an angel to tell him that the town would have been better off if he had never been born! In other words, the plan is to bring something good out of saying, “the world would be better off without you.” Good luck.
Thankfully, by 80% to 20%, the online community has responded with a collective, “Terrible idea. Leave well enough alone.” I pray that this response means that people still have hope that one person can make a difference. And I especially pray that the world knows (or will know) that one person already has.
The fictional George Bailey helps teach that one person can make a difference. We probably shouldn’t tamper with that story. But scripture tells us that one person truly has made a difference. And we definitely shouldn’t tamper with the true record of the Bible!
Sin and death reigned in this world until Jesus came and made a difference. “God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many” because of the difference He made (Romans 5:15)! Praise God for the One who truly made a difference!
