Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. 1939 Columbia Pictures.
Starring: James Steward, Jean Arthur, Claude Rains, Edward Arnold, Guy Kibbee, Thomas Mitchell, Eugene Pallette, Harry Carey
Director: Frank Capra
Available at Amazon.

Another true American classic film.

Hubert "Happy" Hopper (Kibbee) is the governor of an unnamed state (as of 1939, you had 48 to choose from, so pick your favorite), who finds himself having to pick a replacement for the recently deceased Senator Sam Foley. Hopper's corrupt political boss Jim Taylor (Arnold) makes it no secret that he wants Hopper to choose his handpicked candidate, and the popular committees want a reformer. The governor's children want him to select the head of the Boy Rangers, Jefferson Smith (Stewart). An indecisive Hopper flips a coin, and it lands on its side, right next to a newspaper story about Smith, he decides on him, thinking he would be easy to manipulate while pleasing the public at the same time. Smith is taken under the wing by the popular, but secretly crooked Senator Joseph Paine (Rains), a friend of Jeff's father.

When the unforgiving Washington press labels Smith a bumpkin and suggests he has no business being a senator, Paine suggests that Smith propose a bill, which he does, and that's legislation authorizing a government loan to buy land in his home state for a national boys' camp, which would be paid back by kids across America. As the donations immediately flood in, we learn the proposed camp site is already part of a dam-building graft scheme that's part of a Public Works bill endorsed by Taylor's camp and supported by Paine. Paine finds himself unwilling to betray Smith, and tells Taylor he wants out. He is reminded that Paine is only in power largely due to Taylor's influence, so he reluctantly suggests that Smith is trying to profit from his bill by producing fake evidence that Smith owns the land in question. Smith tries to leave, but his secretary Clarissa Saunders (Arthur), who has come to believe in him, suggests that he launch his now famous filibuster to postpone the Works bill and prove his innocence before the Senate votes to expel him.

Smith talks himself into exhaustion, and ultimately faints, even as Taylor manipulates the home town media into turning against him. Finally, a remorseful Paine tells the Senate that he is to blame, and Smith is totally innocent.

Highly, highly recommended.