HTF Challenge: Best Picture Winners - Page 4

I think Forrest Gump is the best of the nominated films, though I do think The Lion King should have won. The Shawshank Redemption is a very good, though not quite great movie for me, and while Pulp Fiction has some things to recommend it, it's quite overrated IMO. I haven't seen the others.

Gentleman's Agreement - ½

A very well done social message film from the Darryl Zanuck 40s of Fox. I love watching Gregory Peck, he's an astonishing actor--although he doesn't give the seminal perfection of To Kill A mockingbird here, there is that same sense of the way he becomes a role, only very rarely did I ever think he was acting.

I don't particulary enjoy the way the romantic scenes are done here, the first big kiss scene was vulgar, silly, and far too Hollywood. The one redeeming feature was Kathy's reaction, which felt real after having that semi-forced on her. It didn't help that throughout the film I was mostly rooting against the hollywood star (as I thought of Kathy's role), so I was definitely let down by the final scene.

I was mostly annoyed at the intrusion of the melodrama moments and plot, almost all related to Kathy's role and what I thought of as the hollywood romance. they seemed to be interfering at times with the interesting things in the film. Such as the way Phil relates to Tom, his mother, and the staff at the paper--all those held much more interest to me than Kathy ever did (of course those three all are introduced before we really meet Kathy).

I think the film had a lot of well meaning things to say about the issue it takes on, and I have a great deal of respect for Zanuck for taking it on. This film definitely raises my curiousity for Zanuck's similar film on blacks, also directed by Kazan when Ford proved to reliant on counterproductive stereotypes--Pinky.

Adam

The holocaust was about six million jews who died; Schindler's list is about 1000 who lived.

I've heard that quote attributed to Stanley Kubrick and it sums up one level of criticism leveled at the film. Not that Kubrick was necessarily criticizing the film, but I think there is an audience that feel telling a story of hope, survival, and humanity in the holocaust somehow trivializes the actual event. Read Thane Rosenbaum's flawed, but powerful, novel The Golems of Gotham for some really scathing criticism of Life is Beautiful--apparently telling that story is such an offense against history that every copy needs to be completely erradicated (and he uses supernatural means to effect that end in the book).

The other criticism I'm aware of would be that Spielberg falsifies history by having the big cinematic going away celebration (of sorts) for Schindler (instead of slipping off with as much money and valuables he could manage). This group also sometimes finds the end sequence with the survivors overtly manipulative of the audiences emotions (instead of trusting the material to have the desired effect). I believe Billy Wilder said something like, The ending, with the real survivors, that was very emotional. I'd have never thought of doing that. which to me always sounded like really gentle criticism laced with an undercurrent of his trademark sarcasm.

And there's always the camp that won't like it because Spielberg directed Jaws, ET, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Hook, and Jurassic Park--clearly the talentless hack that pounds out such drivel couldn't possibly make a good movie--these people tend to see flaws because they want to see flaws.

However I think there are some legitimate criticisms of the film, but I'm not completely certain on some of the more sophisticated arguments than the couple I've heard most often, outlined above.

There's a book with the (in my mind) unfortunate title Spielberg's Holocaust that's a collection of critical essays about the film and it's reception published a year or two after the original release. You might want to check that out.

Adam

Schindler’s List was far better than any of the nominees that year, save The Remains of the Day. And that film was (also) pretty flawed.

Certainly In the Name of the Father had its proponents, but I don’t consider it a ‘best’ picture. The Piano made the S&S list—but it is one of those that just garnered a handful of votes and is (in my opinion) an actively bad movie.

Considering the competition that year, the subject matter chosen by Spielberg and the (ultimate) uplifting treatment of the subject, and the skill with which it was made, it is no wonder it was the winner.

FWIW, I think that a film like The Pianist is far more effective in dealing with the holocaust. But in the end it is pretty hard to criticize a choice to make a movie about a man who saved people from those horrors.

No doubt that the ending is one of the more controversial aspects of the film.

Personally, I think what Speilberg did was right. Like Wilder said, he never would of thought of doing that. I don't think too many others would have either. It was unique. But it brought us "back to reality" so to speak, and really brought home the fact that this was much more than just a movie. There were real life survivors.

What I don't understand is why, by showing us the real life survivors, reminding us this is something that truly happened, is considered "overtly manipulative of the audiences emotions" (a common criticism). Even if it is, is this necessarily a bad thing?

There are only about 4 movies I have watched in my life that brought tears to my eyes. Schindler's List is definitely one of them.

A great movie, and Spielberg's best IMO.

hi Dome! hopefully you are still around and maybe doing this list =P.

this is a much better list than IMDB:
http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/DisplayMain.jsp?curTime=1254455443827

i've always wanted to do this list (even before your post). but i knew that HTF had a lot of movie-watching challenges, but they aren't as popular these days. dunno why but i luv these =). makes me dive into American history =P.

a slice of these films gives us a great look into the past, how people were and what the American culture was like around those times and what their values are. granted it is fiction, the foundation and context of that fiction is still embedded into the great works of our times =).
Edited by JediFonger - 10/2/09 at 11:51am

instead of doing an in depth review of each single best picture one by one, i'll just sum up what i liked about it so far. my intent is more 'volume' than detailed analysis of each and every single film. in fact, i want to 1day catch as many great classics as possible regardless of award, i can say that i've seen a huge chunk of silent films =P (like complete Chaplain discography, etc.). so, thus far, that's my fav. period of film history, since i'm very well acquainted with it. but then of course i ran out of time to continue on towards 'talkies' as it were. that is why i have jumped on this particular challenge and list. it makes me feel like @least i can reach the goal or accomplish it instead of wading through hundreds of films PER year =P.

now, Wings isn't on DVD when i was going through this list. i had used netflix back in 2004 to watch as many of these as i could back then and there have been new releases since. in fact, some of the titles i had "resort back" to VHS just so i could complete the list (Calvacade for example). but most are.

-Sunrise (1927) (my fav. Silent Film director is definitely F.W. Murnau!) i'm sure everyone has given it great praise already, but i seem to be more aloof when it comes to this. while it is still very good for a silent film, as a typical Murnau, there are definitely better ones. i like Tartuffe even more than this =P. i get the drama, but man oh man are his worx like Last Laugh and Faust extraordinary! he also had a lost film due to fire called the Four Devils about a circus. taht would have been awesome. ok back to the film, it's a drama about adultery and fidelity. the biggest thing i can give it compliment for is the use of composition. there is a very famous scene in this film where the characters are walking through traffic. the montage of things that happen while they are walking through the city is amazing from a visual fx point of view. while they didn't have CG, the principles of compositing a visual fx shot hasn't changed! Murnau's films always have great human drama behind it and while this is a great technical achievement the human drama is also quite interesting, especially w/the horse chariot dream sequence. Murnau is just simply one of the best directors alive in the history of film and he absolutely deserved recognition here. i think the Academy even CREATED a category FOR the film: Unique and Artistic Production. it's the only film i think to win it =P.

-Wings (1927) i don't think this deserved to win at all. yeah there were some aerial dog fights, blah blah blah. remember that i've seen slower films than these, it's just there is a lack of interesting human drama going on. i didn't care for any of the plot, character, technical qualities, even the dog fights were horrible =P compared to the arrival of the train for example in 1902/1903.

-The Broadway Melody (1929) luved the story of the 2 dancers who wanted to make it big =P. it's a cute story about rise and fall of fame itself, but also ( i think) a slight commentary on the "roaring 20s" as it came to a "roaring" close. it's also about how industrial revolution changed how people migrated from agrarian society into city life. as icing on top, talents knew how to dance and sing back then =P. they don't nowadays =P.

-All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) definitely the first great "war" film! i don't remember watching another war film before this 1930 film, were there other ones? it is very definitive upto that point. it's basically that year's "Band of Brothers", in fact if you watch the Band of Brothers miniseries you'll see many parallels of how fear worx in the hearts of men right int he midst of the war. but the fact that the film illicited that much emotion many years before great war films is a testament to its qualities. if anything it is the first GREAT war film that is for sure.

-Cimmaron (1931) ah, the founding of Oklahoma. one the things i appreciated about earlier films is its commitment towards education of American history, and this definitely helped bridge taht gap. i know it was fictional, but the spirit of the pioneer that defined American while this film was made wasn't that long ago. i mean it was merely decades before the 30s that all land settlement took place. the main character's restlessness is allegorical for the spirit of explorers back then.i luved the Jewish tailor's luv and pining for the wife, it has a very Odyssey-esque quality to it when Yancy Cravat returns to town =P. the shootouts were nyce too! =).

-Grand Hotel (1932) great formula for success, although it's one of those bloated successes. the movie wasn't bad per se, but getting stars together just for the sake of doing so and then giving them all very little screen time is a bit >P. while it was interesting, there are better films. i did like the cinema verite aspect though, it allowed you to peer into the life span of a few people's lives. i also liked the themes of industrial revolution just happening and the conflicts now being duked out on the big screen. it's motif of the product of that time, Chaplin's Modern Times, even How Green Was My Valley later on. i'm referencing the German biz dude who lied just so he can keep a deal together and a certain vagabond who paid the ultimate price for it. i also watched the parody short on the bonus features, wasn't that funny, but it was interesting to see how parodies worked back then =P.

-Cavalcade (1933) what a complete waste of an award. gave us an insight into what happened in a brief stint of a family's life during war times, but most a forgetful film. it's a good thing the DVD isn't in print consistently ;).

-It Happened One Night (1934) here is where it gets interesting =P. Frank Capra at his screwball comedy best. i've seen this a # of times now, and for some strange reason completely ignored the plot point where the female character in this movie had been married from the start. i had assumed she was only engaged... so if you watch this film from that perspective, the 2 characters were committing adultery ;). lol. Haye's code wasn't completely active by this film =P. i still like it as one of the prime examples of screwball comedies, the Jericho Walls coming down, etc. it's almost a self-imposed code not to become too vulgar like modern films (Quentin Taratino films for example). the writing is excellent, the plot moves at a brisk pace. the acting all around superb, and Frank Capra's humanity shows through again in this movie.

-Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) didn't know the story at all til i watched this version and later read the wikipedia on how it's still fairly truthful =P. the actors are all great of course. it makes you want to goto tahiti just because of what the sailors onboard the Bounty suffered lol. i always wondered if the 4 muntineers actually were brought back to England, if they'd be tried and hung or let free? i know there are references saying this historic event changed things, but the wiki didn't say WHAT exactly did it change. anyone know what it changed in the military? anyways, the leader/king on the Tahiti island had a great screen presence =). this is Gable before Gone w/the Wind =P

-The Great Ziegfeld (1936) as i noted before, films of the 30s/40s had imbued in of themselves educational value. it brought obscure figures into light and into life =). didn't know who Ziegfeld was until this. but having said that movies about entertainment figures in of themselves are always tough to make because artists who are creating these films are artists in of themselves. i've always found it kind of bland when they try to focus on artists in real life =P. i dunno what it is it's like polar opposites of a magnet. i haven't seen a great film on an artist yet =P. but in many ways, this film parallels citizen kane. life of one man vs. media, etc. it even had the trophy wife whom he forced to be on stage. actually if u look through the list of best picture wins, a great chunk of it is about a biography of a great person like Ghandi.

-The Life of Emile Zola (1937) and of course, to continue that thought, this writer who roomed w/Cezanne of all artists =P. this is another great portrait that didn't really quite work. it's interesting to note that people still haven't changed. even in today's age, politicians are still afraid to show their true colors and will still cover things up =P. i guess that part will never change nor be completely transparent =P. but it's interesting that there aren't a lot of Emile Zolas in real life revealing injustices right now =P. only on the internet i guess.

-You Can't Take It With You (1938) luv the title =P. the house of crazy artistic peoples vs. industrial revolution. here it's the same themes of class, industrialization of corporations and employees. as with the previous best picture movies, Capra here demonstrates why he is one of film history's greatest film directors, it's his compassion for the old ways of life, the neighborhoods and small businesses vs. huge nameless conglomerates who threatens to swallow 'the small guys'. the romance between the 2 worlds is just allegorical of his beliefs of what his thoughts on humanity is: compassion. it is another incredible film of capra, i haven't had a chance to go through Capra's complete works like i did w/Chaplin, but it's much easier to achieve since a handful of his films have won best pic =P.

-Gone With The Wind (1939) seems like the behind the scenes making of makes a greater story than the film itself, which can be divisive i suppose, depending on whom you talk to. it tackles a great # of issues of class, slavery, southern ideals vs. northern 'aggression' ideals and so on. but it has sold more tix still even now =P. hard to imagine what it'd take to sell more than star wars and LOTR and Harry Potter! =P. i'm glad the blu-ray is coming out. it'll be interesting to see if they pressed yet another remaster since they had released a new version not so long ago. this is a 'classic selznick picture'. from the behind the scenes, the producer is at the height of his success w/GWTW.
Edited by JediFonger - 9/16/09 at 12:58pm

-Rebecca (1940) Selznick wins again for this Hitchcock take. not the best Hitchcock, but i suppose that's like say what's the worst chocolate (or somn like that =P). i luv that the name of the film is a presence in the movie, but doesn't show up even in picture or figure, it's the threat of the persona and story of that person that remains behind affecting the people's lives. i also loved how hitchcock's character are so atypical of hollywood films in that they may not be all necessarily "moral" even after the movie ends ;). either way, it's a GREAT one and Hitchcock deserved to win more for his other films, but it's not a surprise that he wont his one =P. the criterion DVD had a bonus disc full of radio adaptations of this work. interesting stuff, orson welles had a mercury theater presentation of it too.

-How Green Was My Valley (1941) in a word: magnificent. although, i still liked Citizen Kane and would have liked that to have won as well. people say this was more emotional, not to me! to me CK was the more emotional film >P. but then again i suppose i'm weird =P. this film really brought out the changing world of the industrial revolution and 'evils' of capitalism as well as 'socialism'. we never got to see any of the happenings of the sons in America. surprisingly all the accents were pretty spot on, though i'm not welsh. so i dunno. it kind of reminded me of 400 blows in certain ways of a young kid's life or journey towards maturation (or coming of age story). Ford supposedly liked it so much he'd hold an annual dinner once a year =P. that is pretty nifty! Ford is another one of the greats on these lists of great directors, Capra, Ford, Wyler, Flemming, etc. it just goes on.

-Mrs. Miniver (1942) ok, just finished this a few nites ago. dunno if it was the best film of that year, but it was frank look at the upper middle class and how they dealt with the war. the story led you to believe that the son was going to get it, but it was another one that did! very surprised =P. it was a great look at how a nation deals with BEING attacked on a personal level and national level and how life is affected. i luved how hte older men came out of retirement to and the new ones volunteered. i suppose it was part of the war-propaganda effort that many films during that era had strive for, but overall it was still interesting as a story unto itself. luved the ending, very spectacular ending at the church when those who have passed away still means life continues to move on.

-Casablanca (1943) is it really that good in context of the films of that era? meh, it was alright. i still dunno why it's idolized and worshiped. i mean it's a huge overblown chic flick. was back then, still is today =P. dialogue is OK, but witty dialogue was 'the norm' back then. everyone has already said everything about this already. so i'm not going to reiterate. it's good to see it on Blu-Ray! =P. i bought it back in HD DVD days and i have it now on BD.

-Casablanca (1943) ok, this challenge gave me reason to revisit the film itself and also gave me a rare chance to finally watch an entire Blu-Ray out of my collection (for once). i must say that i have to revise and change my opinion of this film a bit, it is quite good upon a few more viewings. i honestly can't say EVERY single film back then was very witty, but this one definitely had it in spades and across the entire length of the film itself, the acting, chemistry, set piece music all came together beautifully. i also watched all of the bonus features, i NEVER KNEW that Bacall was married to Bogie, shows you how much I KNOW of film history ;).anyways, it was interesting to see many of the same character actors appearing together throughout a studio's output of features, obviously they are all under contract. it's interesting because films under the studio umbrella back then were more akin to "players in a theater" than it is today as individuals.

anyways, it was a very good revisit, and i definitely think it is right up there now =). ok, onto the next! =).

BTW not many of the DVD releases of the 'best pic' had great bonus material, so far Casablanca had the most extensive. how green my valley was the other DVD that included a nice bonus.

For a movie where the script was still unfinished filming, it's absolutely amazing how well it turned out. Normally that's a train wreck waiting to happen. But, Casablanca came together beautifully. The acting is superb. The dialog is top-notch.
 
There may be a lot of witty films in that era, but certainly not all. There are also plenty of clunkers too, just like any era. Casablanca, however, stands out above the rest - way above the rest. In my opinion this is the best movie of all time - far better than Citizen Kane.

r u joining me for the challenge bill? lol ;). seems like i'm the only one doing it, not a lot of HTF'ers doing challenges these days... i wonder if it's due to the forum change? i seem to recall a ton of people doing AFI/IMDB lists, etc.

It's definitely not the forum change at least for this thread. The last post before yours was 5 years ago. It does seem like the overall traffic (nothing to do with the forum change) has been down over the last 2-3 years from what it used to be. I don't know if that's true or not. I just remember in the past there were many threads running rampant.

Sure, I should jump on this challenge. Anyone else? There are lot of good movies over the years that I haven't seen yet and some I'd like to revisit. Don't know how quick I might be about it, though.

lol Bill, i know. i hate starting brand new threads when i know old ones exist, and i really wanted to do it 5 yrs ago... but just never got around to it, but my mind had always "bookmarked" this thread, i finally found it recently.

to be fair, i did watch a lot of these films "out of order" i didn't start with Sunrise for example, i just saw that recently. it's actually not2bad, everyone is always busy but knocking these out once or twice a week isn't that out of the question =). just depends on how much time you want to give up (opportunity cost ;).

-Going My Way (1944) not a lot of names other than Bing Crosby that i know of, but the Irish priest thing is spectacular cause i went to a Catholic HS, lol. very interesting take on aging old man vs. 'new progressive blood'. there is also a LOT of singing and i was very surprised at sound quality of such an old film, it's still very present, but then again it is somewhat of a musical. this was packaged w/another film Holiday Inn (yes, i didn't watch the SE Universal release). i had to laugh at the scolding of the old priest sexist remarks to the 18 year old girl who ran away from home to get married, have kidz, etc. the 18 year old kid wanted to be a singer, have a career for herself... i thought the story would pick up there and go somewhere with Crosby's friend who is already singing at the Met somehow... but instead... she STILL GOT MARRIED, lol. that character kind of went nowhere fast. what did work was the friendship that evolved between O'Malley and Fitzgibbons. i also loved that O'Malley engaged the community instead of creating a insular world of church and its gardens. i saw the ending coming a mile away =P, but hey, it still moved me =). i think this is what films are made of. WHY CAN'T MOVIES MOVE YOU? i don't get this anti-manipulationism that is present in post modern films towards cynical films.

-The Lost Weekend (1945) What an incredible cinema verite for its time! The acting in this drama is fearless. i'd also like to point out that it is quite an interesting contrast to see the types of films that were nominated and won in the 30s vs. the 40s and specifically in 1945 here. pre-WWII had 1 'realistic' look at life and that was All Quiet On the Western Front... but outside of that, the films were fairly optimistic, but here in 1945, we start seeing US becoming more cynical? it's interesting to view films in light of its context! it feels as if the War made USA lose its "innocence" as it were. this film was far more gritty and depressing and really focused on the inner turmoil. it is powerful and fused. i really have liked the first few decades of the Oscars, nominated and winners because they were always about some social issues! and the next few films are no different!! loved the performances by everyone all around. i just have a question, some reviews of this say they were married, i wasn't very clear upon my 1st viewing, are they married or not? the drunk and the lady in question. if they were, wouldn't they be living together instead of w/the brother? anyways. another fine look =). i also luv the realistic shot of the cityscape! new york is QUITE the character in film!

-The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) and here is a big change from the films in the past. this is dealing w/post-traumatic stress syndrome. of course, back then, that mumbo jumbo doesn't exist, lol. as an interesting note, i live in Boston and it was interesting to hear the Boston accent alive and well on teh BIG SCREEN from Harold Russell, who played Homer Parrish. it is also an interesting name Homer, coming home and also Odysseus! aaanyways, i luv the 3 intertwining stories. it gave you the down and out poor of Fred Derry, the middle class whose son lost their hands of Homer, and the upper class of Al Stephenson. it really gave you all the struggles from how veterans are to re-integrate back into society and before Saving Private Ryan and all those post-Vietnam war films. but more than that, it is a great film onto itself, that it should come so soon after the war is a major surprise. i've known a few "Greatest Generation" people in my lifetime and they are usually a quiet and mum about those wartime days. it really surprised me to see a motion picture that deals with it head on so soon after the war! no wonder this won! =).

-Gentleman's Agreement (1947) just like the upheaval that has happened w/the subjects that came before since 1945, there seems to be a lot of films that have stirred the social consciousness of the AMerican public and this film is no different. i luv that Gregory Peck is so uncompromising!!! luv the character and integrity fo a man like that, even for his marriage! i only saw Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird, which came much later, but the power of gravitas can't be DENIED! definitely a lot of screen presence! this film has a timeless quality to it because it is STILL relevant today, it's basically about racism, not just anti-semitism. and i really schocked to see Dean Stockwell! that's the same one as Quantum Leap!!!! wow, didn't know there were that many kid actors back then! How Green My Valley was the other =).

aaanyways, i'm luving all these classics, they REALLY don't make them like they used to!!! i watched all 3 of these late into the night, like 11PM and often wouldn't finish until much later into the AM, but i really couldn't stop watching it! each of these films are so compelling in of itself! just marvelous filmmaking! love the caliber of direction, art work, DP, acting and so on. just incredible all around. it's interesting to note that the word divorce is already used here Best Years and Gentleman. while it had been referred to in past films as 'annulment' i think it's very clear what is happening here socially. i guess it's more accepted?

great stuff. i look forward to the coming best pictures, they are not just great films, these are landmark American history because these films reflect the society at the times in which these films are released in =).
Edited by JediFonger - 10/5/09 at 9:18am

Dammit!  This is a challenge I have always wanted to do!  But when to find the time and to be able convince the missus that it would be "fun!?" 

I am enjoying your mini-reviews, Jedi!    I find it especially intriguing that you have decided to approach the list in chronological order.  

oh i did that w/silent films pre 1927 in 2004. i used netflix and back then in 2004, i could safely say that i had watched nearly every single silent film ever released on DVD upto that point in 2004. ofc, there have been many silent films released since, & i haven't kept up =P. i'm OCD about chronological because it shows how an artist evolves. my other lists/challenges (onto myself) has been by director basis. like chaplin i've seen his complete filmography. long story short, i got really tired of not making progress, lol. after so many years, i barely got out of silent film era, that is why i jumped to TV series afterwards, but i finished that too (every single episode for multiple TV series). now i'm back to film and i wanted to do a challenge that will make me feel that i have made progress. what better way than to tackle best pic winners!

aaanyways, chronological also gives great context.

re: the Mrs., i find that they often discriminate against black & white until they discovered the character/story is so much well composed than modern films. that and the romantic aspect amped up that they will 'fall in love' so to speak with classics too =P. i bet she'll luv the musicals, but then... it might turn u off a little if you aren't into musicals much lol. it has a very theatrical bent to it. the studios back then knew about woman film watchers and they really go out of their way to market towards them whereas modern films are more about teen boys market.

PS the very first film Wings was soooo boring even from the POV of a silent film enthusiast! lol. i'd either skip it or view it @2x so as to not waste 2much time on that melodrama. people often get discouraged from a list like this if they think all these older B&W films are going to be like that.

-Hamlet (1948) we last saw laurence olivier as the hapless (some say helpless) star of 1940s' Rebecca! this time laurence is also directing himself =). i'm sure he definitely learned a lot from all the films that he starred in by great directors =). it is quite an interesting take on hamlet (abridged of course). while i understand the film had service timing and keeping the plot moving (as all films do), i feel as though Hamlet still has to be experienced in person. while i understand in the context of 1947-1948, this was a marvelous adaptation since it is one of the first great adaptations. the very first was 1899:
http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/444972/index.html
the first full length sound film (since Shakespeare was about words, words, words ;) is 1935's A Midsummer Night's Dream. ok, history aside. this film was interesting, but i really can't help but wonder what it could have been... i know it was creative, but there's an extra oomph missing that is almost always lost when translating Shakespeare to film. an example of that is when Oephelia is narrating what Lord Hamlet was doing when he came into her room, in the stage play, it is the word that allows our own imaginations to thrive and draw the mind picture (the "mind's eye" if u will) but in this film she is basically narrating what is happening on screen! that's absolutely horrendous! i mean, even shakespeare himself has always been about showing via the words themselves to draw mind pictures or showing via the actual production itself, but for the movie/film to commit these atrocities to the bard. it's hard to put it into words. but then again, i feel as though i'm projecting a lot of histories SINCE that film because there have been many great versions made since such as Branagh's 1996 full length uncut edition that just feel more superior. but that's judging this film unfairly. i always try to watch classics in the CONTEXT of when the film was made, not what has been made since. so even with those lenses, it's hard to say this deserved the oscar that year. i think it was due more to the British film nature (toward winning an award) and Oliver himself than the actual quality. i like Shakespeare, i was even the Gravedigger for my HS version of the Hamlet ;). but even i felt sleepy and took a long while to churn through this film. i understand it's more introspective.. but the changes that Olivier made and what he allowed to be fullfilled was inconsistent. for example, he mentioned fortinbras in the beginning of the film but the character doesn't appear again. why not cut that character out completely then since he has cut out so many things.

aaanyways, i just felt a more deserving film could've won that year =). this is the first best picture winner that i actually looked at who was competing with them that year in running and i felt:  Treasure of Sierra Madre should have won!!!! lol. ok enough about this film. i've started on the next one already just to get the bad taste out of my mouth.

here is more about Olivier and his contributions to Shakespeare on Film:
http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/445050/index.html

-All The King's Men (1949) absolutely amazing acting all around in this. we now return, once again, to art reflecting real life, this time politics. it's a great take on absolute power corrupts absolutely. it is the story of willie stark and how he wanted to change the world of politics by being "honest". but every turn he takes at being the "honest" politician makes him lose the race. after so many failures, he finally got it into his head that politics can't be done honestly, there are always sacrifices. ultimately, the man sells his soul and loses everything along the way. broderick crawford is believable as the hick that could take on the world of politics and "clean it up". john ireland is excellent as the intrepid reporter and everything is just down down down. it was quite interesting to see a very cynical product in the 1940s, after my comment previously about how the world of optimism and entertainment had really changed by the mid 40s, this is definitely the very depth of that. it's no wonder the next film is an escapism =). it's interesting to watch these winners in chronological order because it gives me a sense of what America was feeling (a little bit) at that moment in time. and post war, everyone was all about reality... so much so that they really wanted films like these to be made. to be fair, we all know the "politics" taht goes on for voting oscar films, but ultimately if it wasn't "popular" with the audiences, it wouldn't be popular w/the oscars. taht only happened later on.

so back to the film, all of females were fairly 1 dimensioned, as were a lot of the ancillary characters. the only interesting and fully realized character was jack burden and willie stark and the judge stanton. i won't spoil the ending but let me just say that it was a surprise =P. so how do i rate this in the context of all of that i've seen before? is it the same caliber? i'd have to say no. something changed as history coral towards 1950s. film techniques that worked in the past just weren't really utilized as much. i felt this film was more sloppy than films like Gentlemen's Agreement and the ones prior to those. it's hard to put a word on it, but i guess there is some sort of "tiredness" which i think is gave way/release towards French New Wave later on. all in all, this was an entertaining film w/a strong message about how power can corrupt anyone. the irony in all this (don't know if the filmmakers wanted to make this point) is that this is near the height of the McCarthy communism trials.

wow, a blast from the past, and showing back up the week I'm likely to finish watching the remaining 7 BP nominees I haven't seen. :)

"Nominees?"  Adam:  You've seen all but seven of the Best Picture nominees from throughout the years?!? 

technically all but ten of the nominees, there's only 465 nominees, Ernst Lubitsch's the Patriot is the only lost nominee and all the other films are fairly readily available with the exception of East Lynne and The White Parade, so excluding those three, yeah I've got seven left.  I watched all of the movies on all the AFI lists and that took care of probably 70% of the nominees. :-p

Prizzi's Honor (watching tonight)
Missing (maybe tonight)
The Elephant Man (watched 90% of it before but never got around to finishing it)
The Accidental Tourist (have read the script though)
A Solider's Story
Tender Mercies
Dangerous Liasons


and I really need to rewatch The Thin Red Line, Babe, Secrets and Lies (fell asleep, or at least thought I did for all I remember it) and Quiz Show because those are the only ones I haven't seen in this decade.

That's awesome.  Congratulations. 

Very cool. 

"there's only 465 nominations" 

Any idea off the top of your head how many of the 465 are NOT available on DVD?  I'm guessing there's more than just the three you mention.  Or am I wrong?

---

iirc, Linwood Dunn had not yet invented the optical printer, so the principles of compositing visual effects shots have radically changed since Sunrise. That particular shot in Sunrise was accomplished with multiple exposures, that is, exposing the same piece of negative film more than once but putting a mask in front of the gate to prevent part of the image from being exposed on the first pass, and then putting an inverse mask in front of the gate to protect the exposed image and expose the second part of the image. Part of what makes that shot so impressive is that it's a traveling shot, I recall, so its sort of incredible they were able to get it to work at all. it's also worth noting that fades, dissolves, wipes and other such effects had to also be accomplished in camera before post production opticals were invented, that's partially why there was such an explosion in optical edit transitions in the thirties, it was high tech! I also think that's why many silent directors--such as Ford--were able to essentially edit in the camera, they started out having to edit in camera if they wanted any sort of editing other than direct cuts.


Gonna diagree here, I think the dogfights are pretty excellent in Wings, and while the human drama is very cliche, I thought it was pretty strong. I did have the advantage of seeing it on the big screen with live musical accompaniment, though, I imagine this particular film loses a great deal in the transition to the small screen.




I think you may be the only person I've ever heard of with anything positive to Say About the Broadway Melody. The story has been done better, the dancing has been done much better and even the numbers are almost all mediocre to abysmal. and today you can see better dancing on any episode of So You Think you Can Dance or even Dancing with the Stars (though the latter only has mediocre dancing, really)




All Quiet is indeed a great war film, one I need to rewatch, and there were definitely Wa filmis before it, you reviewed one above, Wings, which is also set in WWI--or the Great War as it was then known--and there were many others. One highlight is the Big Parade, which is a superb war film, better than Wings and although its not as cynical or political as All Quiet it is still quite powerful.



Yes, the film wasn't made with any sort of design on the education of American history. The primary education going on in these days would be by Selznick, who wanted to make the literary classics he grew up reading more broadly recognized (thus his efforts in making films like David Copperfield, Anna Karina, or Tale of Two Cities. This film, I think is fairly uneven, more interesting for its production design and for traversing so many eras. Irene Dunne's performance is also a standout. On the whole I liked it, but not a top tier thirties film, but definitely far better than it is often given credit for. Cravat is a marvelous thundering character.



Grand Hotel is notable for being the only BP winner to not even be nominated for a single other award. While I don’t think it can really be called cinema verite for presenting a slice of so many lives, it is a pretty decent film, though not one I found to be very memorable other than the German businessman and John Barrymore/Greta Garbo.



Cavalcade is probably the worst or second worst of the BP winners, imo. Like Cimarron it covers a swath of time that was very important to the aging population that had lived through the 1890s and the Great War, like Forrest Gump, the film is somewhat absurd for being connected to every significant event of the era, but unlike Gump, the film is largely unsuccessful at connecting the narrative together into a compelling story. I imagine this film was a lot more effective if you grew up in the 1890s than it is today.




While I think The Thin Man is a better film that year, It Happened One Night remains one of my favorite winners. It’s a film that’s improved upon repeat viewings for me, as I only ranked it a 7 or 8 the first time I saw it. Brilliant performances and wonderful writing, the Walls of Jericho, in particular, is a fantastic running gag.




Gable before Gone with the Wind was an enormous movie star, he’s also excellent in Red Dust, an even earlier film, and he was in quite a lot of films in the 1930s. Charles Laughton is a terrific Bligh and Gable makes a strong Fletcher. The Brando version has gorgeous cinematography and REALLY makes one want to go to Tahiti. I’ve never seen the 1930s version. I quite liked this film when I first saw it for ye olde 1930s challenge from a long ago era of HTF (;)) and really should rewatch it at some point.




While no one in the 30s needed to be old that Ziegfeld was famous, but his life story may not have been terribly well known. I recall this as being overly long but with good performances, not terribly impressive overall.


If I recall correctly, I thought the title of this film was quite deceptive. What I remember most about the film is not Zola's life, but the infamous Dreyfuss Affair. I certainly agree that people have not fundamentally changed that corruption is an everyday, casual occurence for the majority of humankind. I remember loving Paul Muni's performance in this film, particularly because at the time it was so radically different than his work in Scarface, the only film I'd seen him in at that point. He was one of the great actors of the thirties, a chameleon, the rare character actor who is also a star. His performances are also delightful to watch, imo.  I note that I had just watched this in the second post of the thread, and there I called it Paths of Glory lite.  I'd forgotten drawing that conclusion, but I think it is still an apt way of describing how the film addresses the Dreyfuss Affair.



This, of all the BP winners, is highest on my rewatch list. I loved it when I watched it in college, I wonder what I would make of it now—probably like it even more. I remember it was somewhat preachy in its philosophy but that it was entertaining as all get out, which can’t be said of Capra’s later Meet John Doe (probably my least favorite Capra, though still a solid film).

I had to look a few up, but having a spread sheet that lists all the nominees helps. in the last few months a number of nominees have become available on Warner Archives so a few below might also be on that program.

Not on DVD:
The Racket
Wings
The Hollywood Revue
Disraeli
Skippy
Cavalcade
Trader HOrn
Five Star Final
Shanghai Express
Smilin' Through
State Fair (a Will Rogers film, not a musical)
Barretts of Wimpole Street
House of Rothschild
One Night of Love
Viva Villa!
Naughty Marietta
Ruggles of Red Gap (though you can download it on itunes!)
Anthony Adverse
Story of Louis Pasteur
One Hundred Men and a Girl
Test Pilot
Hold Back the Dawn
One Foot in Heaven
Magnificent Ambersons
The Pied Piper
The Human Comedy
Wilson
Sons and Lovers
America, America
A Thousand Clowns
The Emigrants

Thanks again, Adam...that's awesome information.

I hope to take this journey with you and JediFonger one of these days/years...