Mr. Smith Goes to Washington – We the People
Abraham Lincoln had once prescribed a government for this nation as one, of the people, by the people and for the people. Frank Capra seems to center this idea as the focal point of his 1939 political film ‘Mr. Smith Goes to Washington’. Apart from using the Lincoln Memorial twice in the narrative – the first time as a set-up in the guise of a structure of wonder to the new-in-town wide-eyed Jimmy Stewart, playing the small-town youth leader Senator Jeff Smith, and later as a payoff during a dark moment when Smith is need of some inspiration, he also fills up his mise-en-scene with tons of extras in vital scenes like in the chamber of commerce and with children in Smith’s hometown to convey this sentiment.
In the first scene where the Lincoln Memorial is shown, Smith is first photographed framed by two large pillars in the Lincoln Memorial, as if foreshadowing later events, showing Smith, an extension of us on the screen trapped by the very system we, the people have put in place. The narrative promptly shows us that these rules hold everyone in equal standing as a young boy is shown reading the inscriptions on the walls, accompanied by his aged grandfather. A black man also looks on.
In the beginning of the second scene at the Lincoln Memorial, a very disillusioned Smith walks in and there is visual irony as a security guard looks on in the background. Smith proceeds to sit down on the steps, thus silhouetting his body, and considers throwing it all away when his secretary, and love interest in the film, Clarissa shows up and sits down beside him. She turns to face him, thus appearing in a profile to us, and proceeds to buoy his spirits, and Smith gradually turns to face her, as his spirits are lifted, creating this beautiful blocking of intimacy. Apart from the Lincoln Memorial, the White House is also used for a couple of seconds in a scene when Clarissa reveals the true nature of things to Smith in his office. As Clarissa pauses and Smith looks outside in silence, his pensive reflection is seen on the right side of the window pane, juxtaposed next to the White House, seen through the window.
The use of the last name ‘Smith’ for the protagonist, which happens to be the most common last name in the country, is also done to represent us – the common men. The common man is shown donning lighter colored suits as compared to the black suited men in power, matching the color of their office telephones – those instruments of corruption. Smith, with a clear conscience, is usually photographed without shadows while Paine, the corrupt senior senator from his state, has dark shadows behind him. Jimmy Stewart, playing Smith, also stands at least an inch taller than everyone else in the film, signifying he is above all the murkiness and corruption.
The humble Smith is shown in a very high angled shot as he walks in to the Chamber of Commerce for the first time, as if it is a POV shot of someone sitting high up and looking down at the proceedings below, and yet the visitors – the common men and women, who put these individuals in their seats of power, are the ones occupying these seats high up. The press is also seated in this section, but their irresponsible reporting earlier in the film seems to suggest that their position as the watchdogs of society has somehow been mucked. Capra’s sentiments on the press also come through in other scenes like the one in which a reporter falls down and the camera tracks to a portrait of George Washington on the wall, or the scene in which the pressmen are shown like a gang of Mafiosos, emitting copious smoke from their cigars, manhandling Smith in front of a wall of alcohol bottles. Smith’s stance against the press is also hinted initially through a love triangle involving his secretary Clarissa and a pressman, even though the pressman realizes his folly eventually almost in parallel, as he ends up losing the girl.
The scene showing the swearing in of Smith is shot in interesting fashion. Instead of choosing the usual over the shoulder shots of Smith and the President of the Chamber, Capra uses only the President’s frontal shot, keeping Smith with his back facing us throughout, and his raised hand, juxtaposed exactly in front of the American flag, thus undermining the oath taken by him in this corrupt house of power. The subtle love triangle between Smith, Susan Paine and Clarissa refers to Smith’s dichotomy in choosing a life of spectacle and glamor in Washington, as embodied by the trendy Susan and his respect for small-town values, as represented by the simple Clarissa. Irony props up its head again as Clarissa, an urban woman, fantasizes about the quiet of the countryside. Capra shows Smith’s nervousness using his hat whenever he interacts with Susan in two comic scenes marked by some theatrics by Jimmy Stewart in an otherwise nuanced performance. Both these scenes are similar to the scene where Smith presents his bill in front of the entire Chamber and the papers in his hands keep wilting, while he fidgets nervously. There is a child usher next to him. This, and the use of children, especially in the climax of the film, raises an important question in 1939 – what kind of future of a government are we leaving our future generations?
The production design of the film is fabulous. One of the scenes that come to mind is towards the end of the film when Paine and Smith are having an argument. They are in a room full of portraits of past leaders, looking down at the sad state of affairs their nation has fallen under. The large signature cards signify the questioning of Smith’s and thus by extension, our identities. Smith’s desk in the Chamber of Commerce is photographed initially as any regular desk, but in the long climax of the film, it is photographed almost as a witness box, such that Smith is on trial. Towards the end of the long filibuster, Smith’s tie is loosened and his hair is disheveled, signifying that he is tired of the devious workings of those in power, and eventually collapses under the large number of lying telegrams that have been manufactured by those in power.
Capra ensures that no names of actually political parties are mentioned, choosing only phrases like “party in power” and “opposition”, thus telling us that it is not the system that is corrupt, but the people that run it. When this film was released, it created a huge hue and cry in the political circles, but thankfully was not censored by the government.
Tags: Frank Capra, mr. smith goes to washington
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
wow arsenik. looking this minutely and analysing them too. would love to get my hands on the film.
wonderful dissection of scenes arsenik.
marvellous film.. till now never saw any movie in Indian cinema on this matter or theme.
Arsenik
Great analysis. I watched this movie a year ago but its difficult to remember and visualize the scenes with respect to this posting. I wish I remember so that I could learn from your findings.
It would be helpful to embed youtube links to the scenes being analysed or consider using any sreen capture tools from DVDs — such as AoA DVD Ripper.
Thanks
Satya
Thanks Satya. I should have put in screen captures. My apologies. Will keep that in mind for the future.