Best Picture – 1981
November 24, 2021 November 24, 2021 carlosnightman1 Comment
Official Nominations: Chariots Of Fire. On Golden Pond. Raiders Of The Lost Ark. Reds. Atlantic City.
With this list, there's only one sure winner for me. That winner is the only film in the list I would choose to return to and while the others have obvious merits they pale significantly in terms of entertainment value and significance. You can almost taste The Academy clutching at straws about how to hold on to the past with respect to the turn towards the Blockbuster, selecting a very traditional set of films with established names and well-worn themes. Every film here is 100% worth watching, well directed, well acted, but Raiders is the MVP. In the forty years since its release, it's still as entertaining as ever and caters to any viewer of any age.
Chariots Of Fire. You know it for the music, and because it has something to do with running? It's certainly inspirational and features a who's who of British stars, but it lacks any real rewatchability – something an Oscar winner surely demands. On Golden Pond excels through its two main stars, and appears on the official list mainly down to their names and performances – Hepburn and Fonda (senior) leading a heartwarming enough tale of love near the end of life. On one hand I don't think there's enough focus on veteran performers and this kind of story these days, but on the other hand those types of films rarely do much for me on an emotional level.
Reds is fine – I like any film which challenges the US mainstream view of Communism – but it's also a very standard, straight-laced Warren Beatty movie which probably wouldn't have gained the same recognition had he not been in the hot seat. It's a serviceable historical drama. Atlantic City shouldn't be here given it was a 1980 film, but it's slice of realism makes it seem more like an early to mid 70s movie. Again it's perfectly fine but I feel it doesn't say much more than any of its counterparts from years earlier did.
My Winner: Raiders Of The Lost Ark
My Nominations: Raiders Of The Lost Ark. An American Werewolf In London. Escape From New York. The Evil Dead. Gallipoli. For Your Eyes Only. The Road Warrior.
Only Raiders makes it over to my personal nominations, joining an admittedly skewed list; you're going to see a lot of that from me in the 80s. There's honestly only one film here I could see maybe being nominated in an alternate version of history – Gallipoli hits plenty of the notes you tend to see The Academy fawning over – an Anti War War movie, beautifully shot, and directed by an established favourite in Peter Weir. It's one of Australia's best films and one of the best War movies of the last forty years. And yet, it's not the best Australian movie of the year. The Road Warrior may be Australia's finest moment, with Mel Gibson and George Miller's follow-up improving upon every aspect of the original. Even with the glitz and modern spectacle of Fury Road, Road Warrior has it beat for me in terms of scope and visceral action. The practical set pieces and stunts are some of the best you'll ever see and the world the story is set in is almost unrecognizable to what we know and retains the unearthly atmosphere and tone of the original. It's Gibson's true breakthrough, barely uttering a word as he traverses a dying world in search of petrol, helping the needy against warring punk overlords.
An American Werewolf In London is probably the finest Horror Comedy ever made – I would make a case for Scream being superior, but the balance is different. Maybe the only thing holding it back is the lack of star power – even as there are recognizable faces making brief appearances. This is John Landis at the height of his powers and he wouldn't make as strong a film as this again. Thankfully the film's importance was recognized, forcing through a new Academy category. The Evil Dead, I feel people forget, is much more of a horror movie than its sequel/remake. There is more innovation, energy, and vitality in single scenes of this movie than there are in many of the Official Nominations entire running time. It's essentially the original cabin in the woods story, following a bunch of friends heading off for a weekend of debauchery and getting more than they bargained for upon stumbling upon the dreaded Necronomicon. Not only did it launch Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell, but it became endlessly influential within the Horror genre and beyond.
Escape From New York continued John Carpenter's ludicrous run of quality and introduced the world to Snake Plissken, one of genre film's most iconic anti-heroes and cemented Kurt Russell's change from teen heart-throb to genuine force. While the effects are well past dated now, they still oddly hold up now in keeping in the film's nihilistic vision of a fallen, corrupt world. The New York remains a unique vision, the soundtrack is as impactful as it was at release, and the cast is fantastic – Donald Pleasance, Lee Van Cleef, Isaac Hayes, Adrian Barbeau, Ernest Borgnine, Harry Dean Stanton to name a few. Finally, one of the most underrated James Bond outings but an undoubted personal favourite due to its cold realism and down to earth approach (given it was a Moore movie), For Your Eyes Only has it all – big stunts, romance, one-liners, emotion, laughs, and a terrific cast of characters and performers. One of the series' best songs too.
Let us know your winner in the comments!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1981, Best Picture, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, The Oscars
May 12, 2021 May 4, 2021 carlosnightman3 Comments
Official Nominations: Ordinary People. The Coal Miner's Daughter. Raging Bull. The Elephant Man. Tess.
This should be easy. Forget all of the nonsense about what The Academy wants to vote for, forget all of the nonsense about campaigning and politics and how simple it is to predict what will win based on the rest of Awards Season – all you should focus on is what deserves to win. Naturally that's about as subjective as things come, which is why I'm a fan of Awards like this either being based on concrete metrics and data, or being made retroactively. I'd be much happier if The Oscars took place at a 2-3 years distance from release date as by that time you would see some of the influence and staying power of a particular film coming through.
Remember The Nightman Scoring System? If you don't, click that link. That is roughly how films should be evaluated and scored. It's a little simplistic but you can play around with the categories and make it fit. The system works. If you put these five films through that System, looking at how much money a movie made, looking at performance, directing, music, everything else – I'm fairly certain one movie would be the clear winner. Raging Bull is your clear winner for this year. An artistic, cinematic, and personal achievement, one which changed how we expect actors to perform, and one which acts as straightforward entertainment while not cheapening itself for mass consumption. It's one of the best movies of the decade, and one of the best movies ever made.
Your second place choice is something you could make most of the same arguments for – The Elephant Man is also a stunning achievement but perhaps less accessible than Raging Bull if only for its subject matter. It's a shame these came out in the same year – put The Elephant Man out in 1981 and that's your winner. It's about as accessible and mainstream as David Lynch gets. We're left with the also rans. Tess is mainly here on the strength of Polanski's other work – good film, just not Best Of The Year good. The Coal Miner's Daughter is Oscar-bait – biography, musical, American Dream stuff. Similar almost to The Elephant Man and Raging Bull except those both upend the fist-pumping American Dream story and format. Again, good film, great lead performance – not year best worthy.
Which leads us to one of the divisive wins in Oscars history – Ordinary People. It's not exactly spoken in the same breath as Raging Bull these days, but when it is it's along the lines of 'how the hell did this beat Raging Bull'. There's one simple reason, and that reason is that The Academy loves Robert Redford. I'm not going to sit here and bad mouth the movie though – it's a very good movie. Take Raging Bull and The Elephant Man out and this is your clear winner. It's another incisive slice-down through, not the American Dream but the American Norm – an affluent family rocked and failing to cope with the death of a family member. It doesn't need to be two hours long and while Redford's first time directing is mature and assured, it doesn't have the immediate or long-lasting impact of Lynch or Scorsese.
My Winner: Raging Bull
My Nominations: Raging Bull. The Elephant Man. The Empire Strikes Back. The Shining. The Blues Brothers. Cannibal Holocaust.
Only two of the true nominations make it over to my list, joining an all time infant terrible, an all time horror masterpiece, an all time cult classic, and one of the all time greats regardless of genre. Cannibal Holocaust – there's no way anyone in their right mind would ever nominate this – it's cheap, nasty, badly dubbed, and features real life animal cruelty and death. I am clearly not in my right mind, so it goes on the list. The film is unforgettable and parts of it will sneak up on you years later, like a trigger. How many films have had the impact this one had? Not only did it essentially create the Found Footage genre (regardless of whether you feel that's a positive or negative, it remains a fact) but it also led to a genuine public outcry and Criminal Proceedings where the director had to prove he didn't murder his cast. No other film on either list, or in 1980 can say the same.
The Blues Brothers is my idea of the perfect musical – the music is actually good, the musical interludes make sense, it doesn't take itself seriously, plus it's actually funny and mostly avoids any romance nonsense. Is it Best Of The Year quality…. probably not, but it has taken on that quality of transcending its release and remains a well loved cult favourite. If any Horror movie of the 1980s deserved Academy recognition it was surely The Shining. Frequently at or near the top of any serious list of the Best Horror Movies ever made, plus it was directed by Academy favourite Kubrick and starred Academy favourite Nicholson. This is maybe the glaring omission of the year – did we really need The Coal Miner's daughter when we already had two better biopics this year? The Shining didn't receive a single nomination, a travesty with hindsight and giving some weight to the argument that you need some time before trying to aware the best for something as subjective as film.
The final nomination from my side is what most people call 'the best Star Wars movie'. I prefer Jedi, but I'm in the minority. It ups the ante from A New Hope, expanding the universe and the interweaving stories of each character, it blurs its own narrative constructs of morality and takes the tale far beyond the typical heroic journey, plus it has bad-ass action, a great soundtrack, and has arguably the most impressive and iconic visuals in the entire franchise. As Raging Bull already has my Official Win, I'm handing this one to Empire.
My Winner: The Empire Strikes Back
Let us know in the comments which movies you would nominate and what your winner would be!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1980, Best Picture, Raging Bull, The Empire Strikes Back, The Oscars
June 17, 2020 carlosnightman2 Comments
Official Nominations: The Deer Hunter. Coming Home. Heaven Can Wait. Midnight Express. An Unmarried Woman.
The late 70s saw an uptake in realistic war movies – thanks to the grit and realism which filmmakers had sought to provide since the start of the decade, and when merged with the injustices of the Vietnam war, Hollywood and audiences were ready for such films. The Deer Hunter is one of the greatest War movies ever made – impeccably directed and acted, and with any number of iconic scenes. It's incredibly tense, tragic, and draining, but also beautifully shot. For anyone not in the know, it follows a group of friends from a small industrial town who are all heading to Vietnam – we meet them before heading off and see their relationships and personalities. One gets married, they have a final bonding Deer Hunt, and then the film abruptly jumps to 'Nam. The rest of the film deals with their part in the war, coming home to find out how the world has moved on, and each dealing with their personal changes.
Coming Home has been overshadowed by The Deer Hunter, but it's great too and shares a lot of similarities with Cimino's movie. There is Vietnam, there is a paralyzed guy, there's a girl waiting at home, there's a guy with PTSD – it's a very strong movie but lacks the overall power of The Deer Hunter. Heaven Can Wait is another one of those 'guy dies before his time and argues with the powers that be to send him back to Earth' movies. We've all seen one of them, and this is the best version, charming, sweet, funny. On the other end of the scale is Midnight Express – as stark and chilling a prison movie as you'll ever see. It's not an easy watch, the direction as cold as the unfolding events – it's about a college student buying some cheap dope in Turkey while on holiday and trying to get home. He gets caught and goes through a lot of bullshit before being imprisoned. Prison life is tough, but he meets other friendly inmates. When he gets decades added on to his sentence he decides to escape, but more terrible things happen and he eventually loses his mind. It's one of those movies everyone should see once, but once will be enough for most.
Finally, An Unmarried Woman lightens the tone. It's an important film for the evolution of the roles women get on screen and touches on subjects such as the sexual liberation of the time. Basically it shows a wife who has a more or less perfect American life losing it all after her husband decides to leave her. She is thrown into the world of singles again, confused and angry, but as the film progresses she learns to stand on her own. It's good, but it has no chance of winning.
My Winner: The Deer Hunter
My Nominations: The Deer Hunter. Midnight Express. Superman. Halloween. The Driver. Invasion Of The Bodysnatchers. Dawn Of The Dead. Big Wednesday. Animal House.
So, when I created my lovely top 250 films on IMDB many many years ago, no fewer than five of my nominations this year made an appearance. I don't think I'd seen Big Wednesday at that point, or at seen it too recently to rank it. You wouldn't think it is a John Milius film, it's certainly his most personal, and it's understandable that it didn't do as well as it should have going up against the similarish Deer Hunter and Coming Home. At least Milius would get his surfing love into Apocalypse Now. Big Wednesday is a great coming of age drama about friendship – even though it is from a place and era I have no affiliation with, it still reminds you of your own youth and experience in a bittersweet way, its universal themes compatible with anyone.
Animal House wasn't on my list either but as far as comedies go they don't get much better or anarchic or influential. Frat Houses are not something we have any experience of in my country, and while I actually lived at home during my University years, I stayed with friends long enough to get a glimpse, a tiny glimpse of the sorts of antics the film presents – like the previous film there is a universal sense of camaraderie here which ensures the film keeps hitting the right notes with each generation. You're unlikely to find many more comedies with as much energy and great performers as this. Superman was long seen as the greatest comic book movie ever – compare it was Marvel and DC's efforts today and, well, there isn't really much comparison. As much as I love it, I've always been more of a Burton's Batman kind of guy – it appeared on my list, Superman didn't. Reeve creates or restores an icon, the world had a new hero, everyone loved Lois, hated Luthor, and laughed at Jimmy, and Brando even pops up.
The Driver was on my Top 250 IMDB list, Walter Hill's film as minimalist as it is cool – Ryan O'Neal has never been better while Bruce Dern is comically manic. I still say it's the best car movie ever made, not that I know or care much about cars. Invasion Of The Bodysnatchers is the most acclaimed version of the story, though Abel Ferrara's retelling remains my personal favourite. This one has the best cast and the best twist, with Donald Sutherland, Leonard Nimoy, Veronica Cartright all excelling, along with Brooke Adams and Jeff Goldblum. There's just something about this idea of soulless copies, of being hunted down and not knowing who to trust or who is an alien which resonates with me and I love this version.
That leaves us with two of the greatest horror movies of all time. How do you choose between two seminal classics – Halloween essentially created the slasher genre and the teen horror genre, while Dawn Of The Dead perfected every zombie cliché. I could watch both of these movies every day for the rest of my life and never get sick of them. Both are scary – in the immediate and lingering sense, both are technically brilliant, both have great performances, great music, and are defining moments for both directors. Halloween is a must watch every Halloween – no other film has nailed that sense, or essence of the season, and I'd go so far as saying no film about any season, Christmas included, has got it right. Dawn Of The Dead though… I'm not sure any other horror film has ever grabbed me so instantly and filled me with so many thoughts and ideas and questions to the extent that I'll be thinking about it at least once a week. I love everything about this movie, even the stuff that doesn't work, and for me it is never less than perfect.
My Winner: Dawn Of The Dead
What is your pick for the Best Film of 1978? Anything not mentioned above? Let us know in the comments!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1978, Best Picture, The Oscars
December 11, 2019 carlosnightman3 Comments
Official Nominations: Star Wars. Annie Hall. The Goodbye Girl. Julia. The Turning Point.
This year was all about Star Wars and Annie Hall – one movie about a bunch of weird-talking, hair-covered, funny-looking characters, and the other about Luke Skywalker and chums. Annie Hall picked up the win and is generally considered Woody Allen's finest work, honing his dialogue, quirks, and romantic plot into something palatable for the masses. Star Wars meanwhile, is possibly the single most significant film ever, single-handedly changing the movie landscape, the movie business, for ever more. I think you already know what my winner is.
Your average movie goer won't know the other three even though each is worth seeing, depending on your preferences. The Turning Point was incredibly, and inexplicably, nominated for 11 Oscars, but didn't win any setting a record. It's about ballet – all these former dancers and lovers and new dancers and lovers and all of the drama between them, and based on a true life story. The Goodbye Girl is about the relationship between dancer and actor and is held together by an Oscar winnig Richard Dreyfuss performance – it's another unusual choice for Best Picture nomination, but it's still good. Finally, Julia sees Jane Fonda Vanessa Redgrave's friendship divide into separate lives and journeys, with Nazi drama and Jason Robards and Meryl Streep all popping up – again a good film but an odd choice in the category.
My Winner: Star Wars
My Nominations: Star Wars. Eraserhead. Close Encounters Of The Third Kind. The Duellists. High Anxiety. Sorceror. Suspiria.
You know, for such an important year in Cinema – namely due to the release of Star Wars – there aren't many genuine contenders for the top prize. Therefore Star Wars is the only one which makes it to my list and joins a handful of personal favourites and some which you feel could have been nominated. Eraserhead was, and still is, too bizarre to have ever received a nomination in this category, but it is a singular film, a unique vision, and is just as powerful today as it was then – people are still talking about it and being influenced by it. Close Encounters feels like the one that could have been nominated, and the more conservative voter may have gone for it over Star Wars. The Duellists also feels like a film which could have been nominated, though maybe Ridley Scott needed another film under his belt before its release; it has all the hallmarks of the sort of film the Academy loves to nominate, with the caveat being that this one is actually good. My final trio had no chance of being nominated – Friedkin's Sorceror mostly ignored upon release and only receiving its due credit in recent years as a pure exercise in tension, Argento's Susperia is gory horror so wasn't going to be mentioned at all, even if it is one of the most visually stunning movies ever made, and High Anxiety wasn't topical enough while being one of the most clever and funny Brooks efforts.
Let us know your picks and thoughts in the comments!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1977, Best Picture, Star Wars, The Oscars
August 16, 2019 carlosnightman4 Comments
Official Nominations: Rocky. Taxi Driver. All The President's Men. Bound For Glory. Network.
The mid-seventies were incredibly impressive from a quality perspective, with The Academy largely nominating the correct films. 1976 is mostly no different – there are four films here which you would be happy to pic as winner, and another which is all but forgotten. Bound For Glory is the outcast – a biography of Woody Guthrie. It's the sort of thing The Academy always nominates, but this one while fine is oddly stale and uneventful. Sidney Lumet gets another nod after missing out the previous year, this time for the brilliant and satirical Network – a film which seems to grow in value with every passing scandal and generation. Speaking of scandals, All The President's Men is probably still the most famous 'media' movie focusing on real life events, inspirational and pertinent.
As important and great as those movies are, the final two are by far the more adored and have enjoyed that status since release. Taxi Driver firmly positioned De Niro and Scorsese as greats and is one of the seminal movies of the decade, a grim and darkly comedic look at New York, and by extension, North America's underbelly. It's another film whose power hasn't diminished. Finally, it's Rocky. Say what you will about the sequels (I personally love them all), but the original remains one of the most inspiring movies ever, filled with love, hope, determination, and remains the best American Dream movie since the time it was released. Stallone, Shire, Avildson, Meredith, Young, Weathers – the music, the training, the fight, the dialogue – from a commercial, cultural, and critical standpoint one of the most important movies ever made.
My Winner: Rocky
My Nominations: Rocky. Taxi Driver. The Omen. All The President's Men. Network. Marathon Man.
As proof again of how strong the mid-seventies were, four of the five official nominees make my list. There are plenty of others to choose from though. In terms of critically acclaimed horror movies, The Omen seems to be one which gets forgotten alongside The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby – but it's no less vital. Certainly more visceral in its approach thanks to the use of some spectacular, gory setpieces, Richard Donner's classic still holds up. Finally, Marathon Man brings equally insidious thrills as Dustin Hoffman gets embroiled in the hunt for Nazi diamonds, with Schlesinger barely shying away from some of the most notoriously uncomfortable, squirming scenes of torture ever. Lovely.
Let us know in the comments which film of 1976 you pick as winner!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1976, Best Picture, Rocky, The Oscars
April 10, 2019 carlosnightman4 Comments
Official Nominations: One Flew Over The Cukoo's Nest. Jaws. Dog Day Afternoon. Barry Lyndon. Nashville
Jeepers, what do you do with this category? Five undisputed classics including three which have been personal favourites for most of my life. Anything you pick here is a worthy winner, but lets go through them anyway. One Flew Over The Cukoo's Nest was the official winner and only the second movie ever to win the five major categories. If you're here then you already know the story, but just in case – Jack Nicholson's character RP McMurphy (who people forget is actually a scumbag criminal) is moved from prison to a mental institution because he thinks he'll have an easier time. He meets the other inmates, has a lot of fun bending the rules, and clashes with the vicious lead Nurse. It's iconic, filled with great scenes and performances, and runs the gamut from side-splitting laughs, to shocks, and tragedy. It's a must see.
Next up is Jaws. Don't even try to tell me you haven't seen Jaws. Brody, Quint, Hooper, Orca, 'we're gonna need a bigger boat' etc. Even if you don't watch movies, you watch Jaws. Dog Day Afternoon also features iconic moments and is led by a blistering Al Pacino performance – when people begin watching Pacino movies, this film is one you'll want to see as soon as possible, but it's great for other reasons too – funny moments, an air of inevitability, and the general anti-establishment tone controlled by Sidney Lumet mean it's a cult classic.
Barry Lyndon is Stanley Kubrick's return, this time a period piece about the adventures of the titular character. Perhaps overlong and not as controversial or immediately engaging as some of his more popular work, it is nevertheless one of the most beautifully shot films ever. Finally, it's Nashville. Possibly my least favourite film here, but when you look at the other four that isn't a negative statement – it's another masterstroke by Altman. In any other year any of these films would be in contention for a win, the fact that I enjoy it even though it's a musical is a testament to its quality. It's hilarious with a touch of the surreal, and bolstered by a bunch of good performances. For my win, I go with the one I know and love best.
My Winner: Jaws
My Nominations: One Flew Over The Cukoo's Nest. Jaws. Dog Day Afternoon. Barry Lyndon. Nashville. The Holy Grail. Picnic At Hanging Rock
As great as the nominations are this year, there aren't too many obvious choices to add or replace. Having said that, I add two personal favourites which never stood a chance of ever getting nominated. Monty Python And The Holy Grail is sheer British anarchy at its finest, turning comedy, and film, on its head in a parade of songs, violence, silliness, fourth wall breaking, and general inspired nonsense while Picnic At Hanging Rock is another symbol of the creativity emerging from Oz in the 70s. It's an ambiguous mystery with definite beauty, a haunting score and the sort of tension only experienced inside the heart of darkness.
Changing The Past- Best Picture1975, Best Picture, Jaws, The Oscars
October 17, 2018 carlosnightman4 Comments
Official Nominations: The Godfather Part 2. Chinatown. The Conversation. Lenny. The Towering Inferno.
One the most renowned and brilliant years for the Best Picture, you would think that any year any of those nominated could be winner. The Godfather Part 2 got the official win, and how can you possibly argue against it? Coppola, Pacino, De Niro, the survivors from the first film, 'you broke my heart', 'just enough to wet my beak' etc. It's glorious.
Chinatown is glorious too, just slightly less so. Polanski, Nicholson, Dunaway, Robert Towne – all doing career best work. It doesn't even sound remotely interesting on the surface – a private investigator is hired to look into a man who is an engineer for some LA water company. As the plot unravels more and more mysteries emerge, leading to threat, violence, sex… it's Chinatown. The Conversation is interesting primarily because Coppola made and released it in the same year as he did The Godfather II – how is that even possible? To be honest I'm not a huge fan of The Conversation – Hackman is good, his character is interesting, but the plot and repetition leave me mostly cold. I'm in the minority.
Lenny is Bob Fosse's least regarded major work, but my favourite of his, probably to do with the lack of singing and dancing. It still deals with a lot of dark subject matter like his other movies do – the price of fame, addiction, relationships – and it features a terrific Dustin Hoffman performance as the great comedian. We finish with one of the finest disaster movies ever, and arguably the most tense and action packed. As was the case with these, the cast is packed with stars – Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Fred Astaire, Robert Vaughn etc are among those trapped or involved with the world's tallest building going up in flames. As difficulty as the category is, there's still a clear winner.
My Winner: The Godfather Part 2
My Nominations: The Godfather Part 2. Chinatown. Blazing Saddles. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Young Frankenstein.
The Mid-Seventies choices are difficult to argue with, but nevertheless there are a few films I feel deserved a nomination too. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is primary among those, but it's a films which stood zero chance of garnering a single nomination – the film was simply too brutal, too shocking for its time, going beyond even what The Exorcist achieved. It is a film which retains that quality even today, in a world where more extreme, more bloody, more disgusting films are released yearly, yet few if any of those match the sheer force which surrounds The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. From the all too real performances, the grainy , gritty look, the crawling, uncomfortable soundtrack, it's a film which doesn't beg to be recognised – it kicks down your door, lashes you to a hook, and forces you to watch. Blazing Saddles is an altogether lighter affair, yet it's equally groundbreaking, a satirical affair which is both whip smart and blazingly funny, while Mel Brooks somehow achieves a double nomination with Young Frankenstein – a film which drops the satire and heightens the farce.
Let us know in the comments what you pick as the Best Film of 1974!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1974, Best Picture, The Godfather Part 2, The Oscars
Official Nominations: The Exorcist. American Graffiti. The Sting. Cries And Whispers. A Touch Of Class
This was another year where we have clear front-runners and a couple of films which stood no chance of winning. A Touch Of Class is a strange one – a British film which is part sex romp, part drama, part comedy. There's another, superior British film this year which deserved a nomination over this – this is a well acted, if unsubstantial film which doesn't come close to the overall quality of the big boys in this category. The other no hoper is Cries And Whispers – Bergman's most successful film in the US since the early sixties. It's great, disconcerting, and visually gripping, but like most Bergman films it is slow, subtle, and quite 'talky' and yet filled with deafening silence – things which tend to not sit well with most audiences.
Out of the big boys, The Exorcist is the least likely to be picked by The Academy – it's a horror movie, but it was also incredibly controversial, arguably the most controversial movie ever made at the time, but massively successful too. Lets get this out of the way now – it's the film I'll be picking as winner. Not only because I am a massive horror fan and because it is one of the best, most famous horror movies ever, but because it has retained unique power over the decades, has many genuinely shocking scenes, and at least a trio of terrific performances, not to mention the writing and direction. The contest was always between the two remaining films – an up and coming American film maker who finely crafts a piece of nostalgia which reminded the world of a simpler time, with gentle rock and roll, big cars, milkshakes, guys and gals, and all the rest of it – the Academy loves that shit. Audiences loved it too, and I'm fairly fond of it if not as enamored as most – maybe it's a generational thing but I still prefer Dazed And Confused and Everybody Wants Some!!! A cast of relatives newbs and kids maybe swung the choice towards the more established crew of The Sting. The Sting is of course a classic and we can hardly argue with it being the winner – Robert Redford, Paul Newman, Robert Shaw, under the guidance of George Roy Hill? Academy Gold. The music, the costumes, the story all come together perfectly to establish yet another must see 70s movie.
My Winner: The Exorcist
My Nominations: The Exorcist. American Graffiti. The Sting. Don't Look Now. Enter The Dragon. Mean Streets. Serpico. The Wicker Man
Those three big shots of course make it to my list. It was a fantastic year for cinema with another batch of undisputed classics ready to pick up the win too. Enter The Dragon – no chance of being nominated, but arguably the most famous martial arts movie ever. The scope of the fight scenes was unprecedented, Lee is at his best, the supporting cast are memorable, and it's badass all around. Mean Streets is Scorsese at his most loose and visceral, a movie with a documentary feel and with dialogue and action which feels unscripted, it has several great performances and moments but each of the main players involved were yet to fully hone their skills. Serpico on the other hand finds a team at the top of their craft – Pacino and Lumet in particular making a tough cop drama as influential today as it was then.
Over to Britain for my final two picks, and another two horror movies. Don't Look Now is another Nicholas Roeg masterpiece of paranoia and grief – one which I think I appreciate more than I love. There is a coldness and a distance to it which holds me back from being overly enthusiastic, but it's so well acted, gripping, chilling, and haunting to behold that there are few films like it. It's another essential horror movie but one with meticulous art-house sensibilities which continue to frustrate new fans who believe it is some by the numbers slasher or psychological drama. Finally, The Wicker Man. Possibly Christopher Lee's best performance, same for Edward Woodward, same for (naked) Britt Ekland.
My Winner: The Exorcist.
Let us know which film you choose as the Best Picture of 1973!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1973, Best Picture, The Exorcist, The Oscars
December 6, 2017 carlosnightman3 Comments
Official Nominations: The Godfather. Deliverance. Cabaret. The Emigrants. Sounder.
1972 largely continued the successful changes which 71 started with the new breed of actors and directors coming to power. This is highlighted by The Godfather which introduced the world to some of the most powerful figures in Hollywood for the rest of the century. Many still cite this as the greatest film of all time, it is easily my pick for this year's best film, and its influence can be seen today in a wide range of media. It is epic in every sense of the word, groundbreaking, genre-defining, and timeless. There isn't much else I can say about it here so I'll move onto the competition.
Boorman's Deliverance at another time could have won the award, a deeply unsettling and frankly accurate look at one of America's darker underbellies and at how modern civilized man can be hopeless when confronting nature or something outside of their experience. There are several monumental scenes, an effective, evocative soundtrack, tight direction, and a cast who give possibly the best performances of their careers.
On the opposite end of the scale, the dreaded Musical is still hanging in there. It even attempts to be more modern and seedy to cash in on the shifts in society and Hollywood – to its credit Cabaret at least looks the part – Bob Fosse and Liza Minelli run the show. However, looks are one thing, music is another and here the songs are hideous. Add that to the fact that the story doesn't do anything for me personally and it's not a film which is going to do well in my rundown of awards.
The other two options this year stood no chance against the top three – The Emigrants and Sounder are both films no-one remembers and in addition they seem like odd nominations; the former being a Swedish film which appeared in the previous year's Best Foreign Film category, while the latter is a very good, but small drama.
My Winner: The Godfather
My Nominations: The Godfather. Deliverance. Fist Of Fury. The Getaway. The Last House On The Left. Way Of The Dragon. Last Tango In Paris.
The two big shots transfer to my list, joining a quintet of classics. The Getaway is a perfect match for McQueen and Peckinpah but was a film which the critics did not love at the time. The only one of my picks I could see getting an official nomination is of course Last Tango In Paris. Perhaps it was too controversial, but either way it wasn't going to win against The Godfather – the film would go on to receive two nominations for Best Actor and Best Director the following year. My last three choices are personal and stand not even the remotest chance of being nominated for such things, but regardless, each is a defining moment for their respective genres and a prime example of their art.
The Last House On The Left is mean, repulsive, cheap, and brilliant – gotta love those Keystone cops. It's as shocking as The Exorcist would prove to be and while most of the performances are forgettable the violence and action will stay in your soul and stomach forever. It's essential viewing for horror fans. Essential viewing for action movie fans are Fist Of Fury and The Way Of The Dragon – both Bruce Lee classics. In Fist Of Fury, Lee deals with racism, rival schools, and local authorities, taking them out with honour and rage in a variety of fantastic fight scenes but haunted by fatalism and futility. In Way Of The Dragon the action is moved to Rome where racism and mobsters rule and again Lee must defend those he loves and his own identity. The fights in The Colosseum are superb, Lee (who also writes and directs) commands every scene he is in, whether fighting or not. It may be the best Martial Arts movie of all time.
Let us know in the comments which film you picked as the Best Picture 1972!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1972, Best Picture, The Godfather, The Oscars
July 27, 2017 carlosnightman2 Comments
Official Nominations: A Clockwork Orange. The French Connection. The Last Picture Show. Fiddler On The Roof. Nicholas And Alexandra.
1971 was a great year for films and for the Oscars as they mostly got everything right. With so many strong films though, only a panel of comatose cyborgs would get it wrong. William Friedkin would come to popularity (after releasing a few art-house and small films) this year with the action-packed thriller The French Connection, highly regarded as one of the best cop films ever. As well as the perfect partnership between Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider the film is famous for its breathless car chase and for being the first R rated film to win Best Film. Unlike films of just a few years before this feels modern timeless, and the script, characterizations, and story don't feel like they have aged at all. It would be difficult to argue against this film winning the main award, but the year had a couple of other masterpieces.
Stanley Kubrick returned after a three year hiatus bringing one of the most famously controversial films ever made to screen. He turned Anthony Burgess's novel into a funny, scary, futuristic vision of the world and filling it with violence, bizarre imagery, sex, and some of the most famous scenes ever committed film. Not shying away from the argot which Burgess used in the novel, Kubrick creates a flawless social commentary on youth, on fear, on paranoia, on authority and any number of other subjects. The lack of redemption which appears in the movie serves Kubrick's typically bleak style and sets up McDowell's character Alex as an anti-hero for the ages. The film was banned in many countries including Britain for content, for its messages, yet today it stands as a powerful look at an extreme, yet not impossible future. The cast is uniformly brilliant, McDowell is never better, the classical score is used as a plot device rather than simply background noise, and everything moves at a sickening pace.
Just as famous and proof that the musical was still dragging its tippedy tappedy heels around is The Fiddler On The Roof. Unusual for a musical is that the story is mildly interesting, Williams' score is decent, while the songs are bouncy enough but hardly memorable. Topol gives a good performance as the poor Jewish lead but the film is largely forgettable. Also forgettable is Schaffner's Nicholas and Alexandra. It is epic, tragic, inspiring, but lacks the strength in its cast to make it as powerful as it could have been.
That leaves Bogdanovich's smart coming of age drama The Last Picture Show to complete the roster. Featuring all round wonderful performances, particularly from Bridges, Johnson, and Bottoms and filmed in beautiful black and white it is probably the director's best. It is a much more simple film than the two big ones here but equally as affecting. My winner is A Clockwork Orange for its daring, for its shocks, for the visual flare, and for an engaging story which forces your brain to tick rather than tide over, though either of the other two big boys would be a worthy winner.
My Winner: A Clockwork Orange
My Nominations: A Clockwork Orange. The French Connection. The Last Picture Show. The Big Boss. Wake In Fright. Get Carter. THX 1138. Walkabout. McCabe & Mrs Miller. The Devils.
As is generally the case I expand my search to the wider movie world, bringing in Britain, Hong Kong, and Hong Kong into the mix. The Big Boss is the first true Bruce Lee film and remains a startling introduction to his performing skills, and not just as a fighter. It's a fairly straight film with Lee helping out his neverending group of cousins and investigating corruption and murder in a small town but it has an energy and inspired rebellious spirit like few other films. McCabe & Mrs Miller is another Robert Altman classic – he had a string of these all the way through this period – this seems just as worthy of a nomination as those which got one. With no chance of getting such honours, The Devils remains one of the most highly sought after and rarely seen controversial movies – certainly not an easy watch it nevertheless is one of a kind.
Get Carter is one of the finest British movies of the decade, and for my money one of the last truly great British films. Wake In Fright is equally one of Australia's best – a biting satire with gripping action, machismo, violence, and a stark style while Walkabout is a joint venture between the two countries and offering a different but equally deadly glimpse of the outback. It features some gorgeous cinematography and haunting images. Finally, THX 1138 is an early George Lucas effort before he set his sights on a galaxy far, far away. His dystopian film is a world away from what we think of when we think of George Lucas movies – this is stark, cold, but bold and inventive in crafting an imaginary world. The film was dismissed upon release but has been re-evaluated over time as a near-classic, a sign of a young writer, director finding his feet, and a chilling vision of a future which seems increasingly plausible.
Let us know in the comments which film of 1971 you would pick as winner of the Best Picture Oscar!
Changing The Past- Best Picture1971, A Clockwork Orange, Best Picture, The Oscars