Indiana, Pennsylvania, 1908. James Maitland Stewart is born into an American middle-class family. His father runs a hardware store, his mother passes on to him a love for music. A serene childhood that would forever shape his image as America’s “good guy.”

“A Wonderful Life”—the title could not be more fitting. Perhaps more than any other actor in American cinema, on screen James Stewart represented “Mr. Nice Guy”: not too handsome, easygoing without being dull, polite and unpretentious, yet capable and resourceful.

A graduate in architecture from Princeton, Stewart arrives in Hollywood almost by chance. His friendship with Henry Fonda, whom he met on Broadway, introduces him to the world of cinema. And Frank Capra makes him his favorite actor: “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” (1939), “It’s a Wonderful Life” (1946)—the film that gives this documentary its title, today considered an immortal classic of American cinema.

In this biographical portrait directed by Donatella Baglivo, we see clips from his masterpieces: “It’s a Wonderful Life,” Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rope” (1948), “The Naked Spur” (1953), “Rear Window” (1954), “Vertigo” (1958), up to “Airport ’77.” Films that demonstrate how Stewart always managed to give audiences what they expected from him.

An extraordinary career crowned by two Oscars: Best Actor for “The Philadelphia Story” (1940) and an honorary career Oscar in 1985. During World War II he interrupted his career to enlist in the Air Force, becoming a colonel and flying real bombing missions over Germany.

Speaking about him are Janet Leigh, his partner in numerous films, Rupert Allan, Shirley Jones, Charlton Heston, and above all Frank Capra, the director who more than any other knew how to bring out his simple and profound humanity. A gallery of testimonies that reconstructs the image of the man behind the successful actor.

Stewart embodied the ideal American: honest, courageous, faithful to his principles. A model that has crossed the decades without ever losing its power. His drawling voice, his awkward gestures, his sincere gaze have become part of the heritage of world popular culture.

James Stewart left us in 1997, at 89 years old, after a truly wonderful life.