When the Hollywood Code was forced upon American filmmakers, films were sanitized down to complete sterility. Some directors and producers tried to tiptoe around these guidelines. Others embraced the workspaces they now had. Frank Capra is one of the greater success stories during Hollywood’s goody-two-shoes years, because he managed to create wholesome films without damaging his integrity. Yet, his creative processes definitely were affected. Having made numerous dramatic works during the silent era (from what we know, considering some of his earliest works are deemed “lost”), his change over to talkies was quite drastic; he began making the comedy-dramas that we know him for now. Considering you’ll likely get what you expect with Capra, it’s still never too late to celebrate him on his birthday. Here are five films for newcomers to the works of Frank Capra.

Note: Frank Capra’s Why We Fight documentary series is especially noteworthy, but won’t be featured here given its length and ambition. Still, consider these works incredibly important in Capra’s career.

5. The Power of the Press
I always try to include at least one silent film if a filmmaker and/or performer has had a considerable amount of work to be found in this era. For Capra, it was his last silent film The Power of the Press. Plus, it’s interesting to see Capra operating darkly, considering he is mostly known for his uplifting works. What The Power of the Press does contain is Capra’s winking-eye to the American public that he had for his entire filmography; his acknowledgement that the working class deserves a voice as well. In this film, the wink is all in the title, as a newspaper employee (played by Douglas Fairbanks Jr.) has to backpedal a murder story he is supposed to be investigating.

4. Lost Horizon
Unfortunately deemed a production nightmare upon release — thanks to the two million dollar budget, roughly thirty seven million dollar budget in today’s money — which put Capra in Hollywood’s bad books, Lost Horizon is easily Capra’s most exquisite film. Trading homely wisdom for curiosity, this film relishes in the expansive sets, creating James Hilton’s Shangri-La (this writer likes to think it was Capra’s version that turned this literary setting into a common expression). It’s not just a great contrast from some of Capra’s other works. Lost Horizon simply is a triumph.

3. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Now, the list is going to become extremely familiar. It’s impossible not to be, considering the amount of Golden Age classics Capra pumped out. After establishing a promising partnership with the then-fresh faced James “Jimmy” Stewart with the previous year’s Best Picture winner You Can’t Take it With You, the next film simply had to star this upcoming icon. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington features Capra’s cautions to the citizens of the United States, whilst boasting one of Jimmy Stewart’s finest early performances.

2. It Happened One Night
Capra’s first Best Picture winner was a considerable game changer to the comedy genre. It Happened One Night continues to reign as a cinematic achievement in on-screen humour, ranging from silly gestures to punchy one-liners. The toxic pairing between a fleeing socialite (Claudette Colbert) and a reporter needing to secure his job (Clark Gable) is part of the fun here, because of the mutual hatred that gestates into fascination. Whatever bothers someone about the other ends up becoming an enduring quality. An unexpected romance caught up in a web of narrative threads? It Happened One Night was an innovator with this style of comedy that continues to lead the way nearly ninety years later.

1. It’s a Wonderful Life
It seems obvious, and I personally find It Happened One Night to be a better film (only slightly). However, if you have never seen a Frank Capra film, it only makes sense that you must start with It’s a Wonderful Life. Now a Christmastime staple, the film was actually somewhat of a box office failure upon release, which is shocking to think about. Featuring Jimmy Stewart once more in a spiritual take about a father at the end of his rope being shown his worth by a guardian angel, It’s a Wonderful Life is slightly darker than it is often depicted, likely because the joys within this film outweigh the sadness. Easily a contender for most uplifting film ever, It’s a Wonderful Life is a celebration of what keeps us going, even when the end seems near. Fortunately beloved now, it remains Frank Capra’s opus to many.

Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.

Frank Capra: Five Films for Newcomers