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Post by Mighty Jack on May 11, 2012 23:08:39 GMT -5
1967The Graduate (Director: Mike Nichols)Nominees: Belle de Jour, Two For the Road, In the Heat of the Night, Le Samouraï Oscars pick: In the Heat of the Night Nominees: Bonnie and Clyde, Dr. Doolittle, The Graduate, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner I suppose that The Graduate is a movie made for college/post collegiate students, I’m not sure it speaks to the older, or rather, the old at heart, as resolutely as it does for those who are right where Dustin Hoffman's Benjamin is. Stuck in a place where he doesn't know where he’s going or what he wants. Ben isn’t a hero, or even a poster boy for the anti-hero; Ben's a blank slate – he has no clue, no politics, no allegiance to anything. And even when he gets what he thinks he wants, that final enigmatic look on his face revels (to me) that he’s still completely in the dark as to what he's supposed to do with it. And that's the strength of the character and film for me, because it demands your interpretation, it requires that you to fill in that blank spot and ponder what the future holds for Benjamin. Director Mike Nichols, screenwriters Buck Henry and Calder Willingham (Paths of Glory, One-Eyed Jacks) themselves take a few stances. Critic James Kendrick accurately noted the "film's satirical view of the affluent American upper class as a morass of immaturity and corruption hidden behind beautiful houses and garden parties." The movie has bite. Even today it matters to me, speaks to me (or rather, a memory of me at that crossroads). It makes me howl with laughter, Dustin Hoffman gives one of the all time best (and funniest) performances, I cherish the Simon & Garfunkel music heard throughout (though playing Scarborough Fair 4 times in a row at one point was overkill) and it boasts one of the greatest final scenes in film history. (Of note: I also like the small attention to detail -- Such as Mrs. Robinson wearing animal prints-zebra and the like- as she seduces (hunts) Benjamin. And how Nichols and his cameraman blocked actors within the frame, rather than use the frequent quick edits you see in modern film)Bonnie and Clyde was another movie that rocked the nation in 1967. It too features a couple of disaffected, aimless people. Only they fill their void with violent kicks. It too is an important film for many people, not as much for me. Though I did like it. Shock of a different kind came from Luis Buñuel, with Belle de Jour. Catherine Deneuve stars as Séverine, a sexually frustrated Paris housewife who secretly spends her afternoon hours working in a bordello. The film has its toe in the surreal -- what is real or fantasy is unclear at the end. The Criterion essay called it a "...gently absurdist take on contemporary social mores and class divisions. Fantasy and reality commingle in this burst of cinematic transgression.”Audrey Hepburn delivers her all-time best performance in Two For the Road, a film that chronicles the up and downs of a marriage. Le Samouraï is Jean-Pierre Melville's slow simmering story about a hitman. In the Heat of the Night was Oscars pick, and it's a good one. Thought provoking, suspenseful and human. Sidney Poitier was superb in the role of Virgil Tibbs, a Philadelphia cop who helps investigate a murder in the deep South and has to deal with racism while doing so. Now then, who do I chose among this impressive lot? To answer that question I have one word for you, just one word... "Plastics"
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 13, 2012 15:42:04 GMT -5
1968Once Upon A Time in the West (Director: Sergio Leone)Nominees: Romeo and Juliet, Petulia, The Producers Oscars pick: OliverNominees: Funny Girl, the Lion in Winter, Rachel, Rachel, Romeo and Juliet Just about everybody who second-guesses the Oscars selects, 2001: A Space Odyssey for 1968. And damn it I feel left out! I'd like to undergo the shock and awe that others speak of when they speak of this movie, rather than the apathy I experience. But what can I do, I find the film cold and dull. Yes, 2001 is a visually stunning piece, filled with big, obscure ideas. But what does that matter if I'm slipping into a coma while watching? On the other hand Oscar's choice, the musical Oliver is no great shakes either. Oh, it's a pleasant enough movie, I liked it okay – but it never quite reaches up towards 'best picture' type magnificence. Ye gads, is there nothing that doesn't fill me with Indifference? Several things as a matter of fact: Franco Zefferelli's adaptation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet was magnetic and moving, and had me completely wrapped up in the story and characters. I also howled with laughter during Mel Brooks' irreverent Producers, and was gobsmacked by Richard Lester's unique Petulia - very much a 60s movie, it's notable for it quick edited flashbacks and flash forwards. Tonally unconventional, it goes from kooky romantic to bizarre gaudy grim to melancholic. Petulia stars George C. Scott & Julie Christie, who are both fantastic. And features a lingering score from John Barry (of James Bond fame) and dynamic camerawork by Nicolas Roeg. A scene from "Petulia", one of my 4 favorite films from 1968While college students were having their minds blown away by Kubrick's Space Odyssey, something more down to Earth -but equally as spectacular- was blowing mine. Sergio Leone's grand and epic Spaghetti Western, Once Upon A Time in the West was one of those special film experiences; perhaps you know what I mean. It’s like elevation, or being born or dying or hitting a hole in one... it's something that only happens once, or rarely, in ones life. (a few more times in the realm of cinema) The first time I saw Leone’s masterpiece I was left slacked jawed and speechless, but I’ll try and find my voice for this posting. Sometimes a movie can be something you enjoy as a spectator, other times a movie asks that you participate and engage. And sometimes it does all that and more: Writers Leone, Bernardo Bertolucci and Dario Argento gave us an expansive story, with several plot threads that are adroitly woven into an explosive whole (I wont go into detail as one of the joys in this film is in the discovery). The ensemble cast, which includes Henry Fonda, Charles Bronson, Jason Robards and Claudia Cardinale, breathe life into these interesting people they portray, and their interactions are a huge plus. Photographed in wide screen splendor by cinematographer Tonino Delio Colli and scored with beauty, whimsy and power by the great Ennio Morricone. "Once Upon" expertly and ambitiously blends drama, mystery, suspense, outrage, humor, sex and psychology. My admiration and affection can’t be overstated, and I consider it, with Eastwood's Unforgiven, the greatest western ever made. While likely not understood by audiences today, Henry Fonda's first appearance set the uneasy tone of the film. Fonda often played men of reason; there was gentleness and warmth in him. And the first time he rode up on screen, with those sky blue eyes of his, I thought "Oh good, he’s here to save the day." And then he guns down a boy in cold blood. Holy shnikey -- that was unexpected. People back in the day, my father included, couldn't believe it. Leone stole the breath from our lungs and let it be known that appearances would be deceiving from here on out. Oh, and one critical darling that I despised was John Cassavetti's Faces. Damn thing was a noisy, chaotic drunken irritant. Kiss my ass, Faces!
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Torgo
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Post by Torgo on May 13, 2012 20:26:07 GMT -5
The greatest western ever made is Back to the Future Part III.
But I hate westerns in general. I only mildly liked Unforgiven, but I will admit I enjoyed the hell out of Tombstone. Other than that, I can't get through one without finding something else to do.
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 14, 2012 23:43:54 GMT -5
1969Z (Directed by Costas-Garvas)Nominees: The Sorrow and the Pity, True Grit, Midnight Cowboy, Burn Oscars pick: Midnight CowboyNominees: Anne of a Thousand Days, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Hello, Dolly! Z I liked Oscar's pick Midnight Cowboy, but I love, love, looooove Z! Costas-Garvas' political conspiracy thriller tells the tragic true story of the Greek Governments sanctioned assassination of leftist pacifist Georgio Lembakis. And it tells this story with heart and intelligence, nail biting tension and black humor, all wrapped around stylish direction, cinematography and a kick-ass score. Z has come under fire in some circles as being too slick. Its critics suggest that Politically tinged tales should be dry and documentary-like and whatever. I don't agree ~ movies, even political movies, should be whatever they want to be, and reflect whatever vision the director has for it. Logic like theirs would have robbed us of such artistic sociopolitical triumphs as The Passion of Joan of Arc, and turned Z into a sterilized copy of dryer material, bereft of that which made it distinct. And if it was anything, Costas-Garvas' film was distinct, entertaining political art (and unlike that other political tale –The Battle of Algiers- it doesn't alienate me) Z really caught fire in America and was the first film to be nominated for both Best Picture and Best Foreign Language Film. It won the foreign award. In a way Oscar was having its cake and eating it too. Just behind it I rank the thought provoking documentary about the French during the Nazi occupation, The Sorrow and the Pity. It and Z are the only truly great motion pictures from 1969 to my mind. After that we get some very good pieces. I left out several biggies: While Jean-Pierre Melville's Army of Shadows is considered the director's crowing achievement, I found it too cool and aloof. That icy tone fit perfectly for a movie like Le Samouraï, but received a frosty reception here. Some folks champion the western The Wild Bunch as the years best, and I thought it was good but not great. I was unable to track down copies of Medium Cool and If, for consideration.
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 15, 2012 23:25:23 GMT -5
1970Five Easy Pieces (Director: Bob Rafelson) Nominees: The Conformist, Little Big Man, Kes, Patton Oscars pick: PattonNominees: Airport, Five Easy Pieces, Love Story, M*A*S*H* My top contenders include the perplexing and fascinating The Conformist, which is about a fascist assassin. The film's unique structure owes much to the editor - who injected pieces of footage as flashbacks into the narrative, much to delight of director Bernardo Bertolucci. And I thought Jack Nicholson was electrifying as the restless and short-tempered Bobby Dupea, in the existential road picture, Five Easy Pieces. In which a blue-collar worker –who is more than he seems- heads home to visit his dying father. Behind them: I enjoyed Kes (played at a festival in 1969, but didn’t get a wide release until 70), Ken Losey's slight, naturalistic tale of a British schoolboy who raises a falcon. The Oscar winning Patton, whose thin story is lifted by an explosive performance by George C. Scott. And Arthur Penn's western comedy/drama Little Big Man, with Dustin Hoffman playing the last living survivor of Custars last stand. Of the remaining Oscars nominees: Love Story was horrid goo. Airport was decent and best known for popularizing the disaster movie fad of the 70s - and Robert Altman’s M*A*S*H* is a film that consisted of a chaotic string of skits. It features the director's normal, rambling, freeform style. For me It was a toss-up between the Bertolucci and Rafelson flicks, and I elected to go with Five Easy Pieces. It was one of the “American New Wave” films that briefly ruled in the late 60’s to mid 70s, which were helmed by directors like Hal Ashby, Peter Bogdanovich and Bob Rafelson. The film is psychological reality -- an unpredictable look at a smart, talented man, who is dissatisfied, self-destructive and at a loss as to who he is or where he’s going. He has no tolerance for BS or the traps life puts in his way. As he says... "I move around a lot, not because I’m looking for anything really, but ’cause I'm getting away from things that get bad if I stay." With those words in mind it should be no surprise what he does at the end, even though it's upsetting. The movie's hallmarks include the bit during a traffic jam where Bobby leaves his car, hops in the back of a truck and plays the off-key piano that's packed there (and takes Bobby ‘God know where’ as the truck drives pulls off on to an exit). The sequence at the restaurant where special orders do upset 'em, and the talk Bobby has with his sick father, who might not even comprehend what's being told him.
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 16, 2012 23:03:40 GMT -5
1971McCabe and Mrs. Miller (Director: Robert Altman)Nominees: Harold and Maude, Dirty Harry, Walkabout, The Last Picture Show, Straw Dogs Oscars pick: The French ConnectionNominees: A Clockwork Orange, Fiddler on the Roof, The Last Picture Show, Nicholas and Alexandra A superb slate of film is offered in a year that engaged filmgoers with productions that were smart, challenging and unconventional. Movies like Nicholas Roeg's Walkabout were intriguing puzzles, while Robert Altman put a different spin on western mythology with his brilliant McCabe and Mrs. Miller. Dirty Harry was exploitive and explosive, and gave Clint Eastwood another iconic role. Peter Bogdanovich's The Last Picture Show was a look at restless folks in a sleepy small town. Hal Ashby’s cult favorite Harold and Maude was an odd love story that explored the nature of living and dying. And Straw Dogs was Sam Peckinpah's violent reflection on the nature of manhood, Each one of these I number among my all-time favorites and each are worthy of the title "Best Picture of the Year". But needing one, I pared my five down to two, McCabe and Mrs. Miller and Harold and Maude. Robert Altman is kind of a hit and miss director for me – the overlapping mumbling voices, and improvisational feel of his work can sometimes annoy and distract (ala the ultra irritating The Long Goodbye), but McCabe and Mrs. Miller –which stars Warren Beatty as a gambler who is building a town, and Julie Christie as tough as nails hooker- is an absorbing anti-western. Slow brewing and atmospheric, it subverts many of the genre's conventions: Such as staging the iconic final gunfight, not under the blazing sun, in a dusty tumbleweed filled setting, but in a blinding white snowstorm. And it doesn't tie everything up under a neat bow - no one is redeemed, no one saves the day. Overall though it is less about storytelling than creating tone. I believe it's Altman's best film, though it wasn't warmly received on its release. Something it has in common with my other top candidate... Harold and Maude. This is such a special picture to me, It tells of a quirky romance and friendship between a young man obsessed with death and an eccentric old woman who lives life to the fullest, It’s a funny movie, often wickedly so -- as when Harold's mother fills out a computer dating form for her son, but gives answers as she see them. And after he sabotages that first meet-up, with a fake suicide attempt, Harold gives a knowing look into the camera – he’s made us co-conspirators in this game. Despite its idiosyncratic nature, it's an affecting love story. H&M is one of my treasures -- which features superb Cat Stevens music and Harold's cool modified Jaguar Hearse (Oh how I covet that car). But for all my love of H&M, it has a few off-key moments and I believe the Altman film is the overall tighter production, which is why I’m giving it the Felix. (Of Note: McCabe and Mrs. Miller was produced by Bert Schneider, who along with last years best director Bob Rafelson, helped create TVs the Monkees) As for the cop flick, The French Connection, which won the Oscar. It was decent enough but it wasn’t award material in my eyes.
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 18, 2012 1:27:00 GMT -5
1972Last Tango in Paris (Director: Bernardo Bertolucci)Nominees: The Godfather, Cabaret, Deliverance, The Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie, Frenzy Oscars pick: The GodfatherNominees: Cabaret, Deliverance, The Emigrants, Sounder I know, I know, The Godfather is considered a work of genius. Some even consider it the greatest movie of all time. Not selecting it is like bypassing Citizen Kane or Casablanca in many folk’s eyes. While I enjoy the feature, most of my love for it stems from my admiration for Marlon Brando's performance. His voice may be a raspy whisper, but his presence echoes like a sonic boom. And even though he doesn't have a lot of screen time, he’s the heart and soul of the entire production. The movie as a whole… Yeah it’s great but I believe there are better, Aside from The Godfather, the musical Cabaret made a big splash in 72. It actually won several international awards for Best Picture over the Godfather, and it earned the Best Director Oscar. I also nominated John Boorman's Deliverance, Buñuel's The Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie (which is a reversal of his Exterminating Angel, in that these people can’t get to their dinner party), and Hitchcock's last great feature, Frenzy. But the topper most... By Oscar's rules, Last Tango wasn’t eligible for a Best Picture award until 1973 – but since Felix plays by global rules, and Tango played worldwide in 72. Tango is eligible in 72. The year belonged to Brando. It was his return to greatness -- a comeback after the tumultuous 60s that nearly saw him blacklisted at its close. It was a short-lived return - we will never again see him reach these highs as an actor, but in 1972 he was in two of cinemas finest. Though in regards to the highly regarded, though controversial Last Tango, I'm one of the few who feel that it isn't simply one of the better films of the year, but the very best (Maybe Pauline Kael, who wrote a famous glowing review- joins me on that, I don't know). The Italian made movie is about a recently widowed American who takes up an anonymous sexual relationship with a young, soon-to-be-married Parisian woman. While I think Tango is brilliant, I always struggle to articulate why. I resist over analysis, as expressed in this write up I posted here, because I don't want to lose the powerful emotional response I have to the picture and to Brando's searing performance. This is a movie that deserves to be discussed and explored, but not at the risk of putting out its fire. I understand I'm committing a kind of film blasphemy, and of all the alt-Oscar reads I've looked over, I'm the only one who bypasses the Godfather as the years best. I'm not trying to be a rebel without a cause - contrary and defiant for defiance sake. It’s simply that I genuinely and most empathically feel that Last Tango in Paris is the best movie of the year. And my opinion is based primarily on the emotional reverberation that tears into me whenever I watch it. As brilliant as the Godfather is, it doesn't pack that kind of visceral wallop.
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Post by Mr. Atari on May 20, 2012 21:39:18 GMT -5
Loving this thread, MJ. I'm really looking forward to '89 and '94, two of my favorite years for movies and both years when the Academy really got it wrong.
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 21, 2012 23:10:42 GMT -5
Thanks Mr. A. 1989 is interesting because not only do I feel the Academy got it wrong, but the critical darling is equally as wrong. And everything else at the top is all pretty much the same quality. There's a lot of good movies in 89 - I'm watching them all again to try and refresh my memory. 1973Day For Night (Director: François Truffaut)Nominees Enter the Dragon, Jesus Christ Superstar, Amarcord, The Last Detail, The Badlands, American Graffiti Oscars pick: The StingNominees: American Graffiti, Cries and Whispers, The Exorcist, A Touch of Class One fun thing about this undertaking is watching the industry grow and change, different movements, directors and actors. And the actor of the early 70s was Jack Nicholson. In Hal Ashby's Last Detail he plays petty officer "Bad-ass" Buddusky, who has the unpleasant task of escorting a young sailor to a Naval prison. It's a movie that's funny and shows some heart. Detail joins Enter the Dragon and Jesus Christ Superstar, Malick's Badlands and George Lucas' American Graffiti as my nominations. I also loved Fellini's Amacord. After stumbling with garish, chaotic messes like Satyricon, Fellini rediscovered his brilliance and won another Oscar. At the top of the heap is a movie that I thought was pure unfiltered joy- Truffaut's Day For Night. Like Fellini’s 8 ½ it’s a movie about making a movie... though it lacks 8 ½'s surreal qualities. In fact it was so straightforward at the start, I feared that it might turn out to be a bore. But as each scene unfolded I was slowly and inexorably beguiled by the films charms. What makes Day for Night extra special was that it was made by a cineaste for cineastes. For example – there's a scene where an actress can't get her lines right, and she wants to recite numbers as dialog as she did for Fellini. That’s a wonderful nod to those who know that for years, the Italians didn't have the equipment to film visuals and audio at the same time. They had to dub in everything –sound, dialog, and music- in post. So one could get away with speaking gibberish. Later in that same sequence, the camera pulls back you see pieces of paper tacked up and taped all over the set. These are the actress's lines, posted on cue cards, which is a trick Brando was famous for. Actor tantrums, director's manipulations, dull moments between takes.... the studio cat! Above all though, this wasn't a cynical, bitter Godard-style take on the subject. This was a warm and funny tribute to the medium Truffaut loved with all his heart. The Sting was a red-hot movie, in a year with several red-hot conversation starters, like the scary and sick Exorcist. There were a lot of productions that had people saying, "You gotta see this..." Sadly, on one occasion that buzz occurred after a death (Bruce Lee finally getting the attention he deserved). While I thought the Sting was okay, I didn't care for Bergman's highly touted Cries and Whispers. I thought it went overboard on the arty pretenses, rather self-conscious in its affectations - gaudy, as it devolved into something a kin to art house parody. And I say this as an admirer of the director’s work. Though it was later edited down and shown in theaters a year later, Bergman’s Scenes From A Marriage was first shown as a mini series on TV and not eligible by my rules. Movies up for consideration will have had to have been intended for and first shown theatrically.
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 22, 2012 22:59:47 GMT -5
1974Chinatown (Director: Roman Polanski)Nominees: The Phantom of Liberty, Woman Under the Influence, Young Frankenstein, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, the Yakuza Oscars pick: Godfather Part IINominees: Chinatown, The Conversation, Lenny, The Towering Inferno I finally sat down and watched the Godfather Part II, and it was all right, not as good as the first and certainly not the best of the year, but all right. My problem with it is that it's too calculated and melodramatic (the overblown abortion argument, the soapy sibling interaction). The bits with the trial didn't work at all -- and Pacino -perhaps trying to mimic Brando's quiet brooding power- instead comes off as if he's doped up on Thorazine. While sequels were not a new concept, they were unusual for high-end pictures like the Godfather, and the success of Part II set the era of the sequel into motion. I personally like the under appreciated Yakuza, which Scorsese wanted to direct but didn't yet have the high rep producers wanted for the project. The much appreciated comedy, Young Frankenstein, which is arguably Mel Brooks' best. And John Cassavetti's Woman Under the Influence. Which is a shrill, chaotic film about a mentally ill woman (Gena Rowlands), and her husband (Peter Faulk) who is living in denial of her condition. There's a lot of yelling and over the top sequences, but damned if I didn't get drawn into the story. Lastly, while he didn't get the Yakuza job, Martin Scorsese was tabbed to helm Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, which proved he could make a movie centered on women. All of these are top-notch flicks, but... Bottom line: 1974 was all about Roman Polanski and his iconic neo-noir detective/psychological drama, Chinatown. One of the all-time greats, Chinatown reveals its sordid mysteries without Godfather 2s contrivances and forced melodrama. The picture is about as tight and flawless a production as has ever been made, a textbook example of how to create a masterpiece. Not a frame of it rings false, even when it shows off its lurid side at the end. The script by Robert Towne might be the best ever written for the screen, evoking the ghosts of Phillip Marlow and the like, while coming of fresh and even exceeding those noir masterpieces that came before it. It was director Polanski who brought those words to life and who rewrote the finish to make it a darker, tragic piece. Pitch perfect acting is had from Faye Dunaway, who looks like she stepped out of the 1930s. And Jack Nicholson as Jake Gittes, a sarcastic, hard-nosed, but honest detective who takes a routine ‘unfaithful husband’ gig, and winds up smack dab in the middle of a land-water scheme, and a dirty secret one powerful city leader would like left buried. Watching it with Godfather II -- I can't fathom how Chinatown failed to win the Oscar, and win it in a landslide. I know many will vehemently disagree, but this is a huge Oscar blunder. Godfather II was decent enough, but Chinatown was a work of unparalleled genius Note: I was unable to track down a copy of the acclaimed Celine and Julie Go Boating for viewing and considerationEdit: Just watched and added Bunuel's brilliant The Phantom of Liberty to the nominations. I liked it every bit as much as Chinatown. Roger Ebert wrote a good piece on the film here... suntimes.com
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Torgo
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Post by Torgo on May 23, 2012 15:21:07 GMT -5
Wait until you get to Part III, MJ. You'll wonder how they even fathomed nominating it for best picture.
The only excuse I can think of is brand recognition. But what the hell kind of excuse is that?
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 23, 2012 22:59:48 GMT -5
1975Jaws (Director: Steven Spielberg)Nominees: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Every Man For Himself and God Against All, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Dersu Uzala, Love and Death Oscars pick: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's NestNominees: Barry Lyndon, Dog Day Afternoon, Jaws, Nashville Of Oscar's top 5: Nashville I was a bit cool to. Barry Lyndon I didn't like. Dog Day Afternoon was decent. Jaws and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest were the elite (I have no issue with the Academy’s choice, and at least they finally gave Nicholson an Oscar) My nominees include Werner Herzog's Every Man For Himself and God Against All (aka: The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser). Peter Weir's enigmatic poem, Picnic at Hanging Rock. Python's uproarious and irreverent Holy Grail and Kurosawa's Dersu Uzala. But as good as these are, and as great and emotionally stirring as Cuckoo's Nest is -- it always comes back to Jaws. For me, in 1975 there was Spielberg's frightening classic, and then there are the rest. Hollywood was changing. Godfather II was the start of the viable big budget sequel and Jaws established the summer blockbuster -- both aspects of Hollywood production which would bloom into full with the release of Star Wars two years later. Art was giving way to business but in the 70s business could still produce great art. And Jaws was beautifully crafted entertaining art. Even if I went along with Oscars pick for Best Picture, I'd still have given Spielberg and his team every other technical award... Including best direction. Jaws rightfully won awards for editing and sound, but the camerawork is equally as strong. The way Spielberg stages scenes, the brilliant composition, the way he frames his actors. Note the dinner sequence ~ how he lingers on a long shot with the Brody's and Hooper. The camera is held still as the trio converse and eats. It takes its time, allows the viewer to soak it all in before it cuts to the coverage shots (close-ups and differing angles). Another good example is the “bigger boat” scene. The shark pops up behind Brody as he chums; the camera angle flips and the Sheriff's head shoots up into frame, we cut to a side shot as Brody backs up into the room where Quint is and he delivers his famous line. The entire film is exquisitely orchestrated like this. Spielberg is a master manipulator; he likes to push buttons. Sometimes that comes off too manufactured, forced – which can rub me the wrong way. But I gladly went along with the director on this one, and bought into it hook, line and sinker. I remember the first time I saw this, what a funny, suspenseful and above all terrifying experience it was. I remember the distinct John Williams score - akin to Herrmann’s work on Psycho in the way it stood out. And how I loved the lead characters. A colorful lot they were, each with their own personality quirks that endeared them to me. Many alt-Oscar bloggers and the like spend time praising the film, but they never pick it. They take Nashville or Dog Day Afternoon or The Man Who Would Be King... And the vibe I get is that a killer shark movie isn’t prestigious enough for them. My sentiment is that -popcorn adventure or no- great is great. I’ll take Jaws over any of their prestige pictures and not feel an ounce of guilt for doing so.
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 24, 2012 23:10:21 GMT -5
1976Cría cuervos (Director: Carlos Saura)Nominees: Rocky, Taxi Driver, Outlaw Josey Wales Oscars pick: Rocky Nominees: All the President’s Men, Bound For Glory, Network, Taxi Driver I don't believe the Academy’s Best Picture Oscar winner necessarily has to be the "best" picture; it can be the picture that best represents the year. Gone With the Wind and Titanic are like that, and so to was Rocky. Nothing captured the hearts and imaginations of moviegoers in 1976 more than Rocky. I remember seeing it in theaters, it was the first movie I went to by myself, and I fell in love with it. I couldn't get it out of my head. I bought the novelization and the theme song –which I played when I did my own boxing training. It boasts a colorful cast: Burgess Meredith as the irascible trainer Micky. Carl Weathers, Burt Young and Talia Shire. At the lead was Sylvester Stallone, who also wrote the picture and was a Hollywood underdog himself. He came from the school of Brando, and his Balboa is a close cousin to Terry Malloy in On The Waterfront - a broke down fighter who gets a chance of realizing his dream at fighting for the title. It's a sweet story, a romance more than anything - empowering as we relate to and root for the little guy. While it has inspired scores of 'underdog beats the odds' sport films, what was different here was that Rocky loses the bout. The point wasn't to see him crowned champion, but to examine what it means to give it your all and prove to yourself that your no bum. While there was a series of sequels, each more polished than the next; none matched the heart and honesty of the first. It's a special film and I wouldn't call it an Oscar mistake as some do. Stallone punches Pauly’s meat in the Oscar winning "Rocky"Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver is a gripping tale of urban and mental decay. Robert DeNiro is brilliant as the sociopath Travis Bickle. Although he narrates the piece, it's the actor’s psychical attributes -his expressions and body language- that lends the performance its strength. Author Danny Peary felt that... "Unlike Marlon Brando or Jack Nicholson, DeNiro’s characters are too inarticulate to be effective if they explode verbally, so they must become physically destructive." With that in mind, what happens at the end is inevitable. Taxi Driver is an unpleasant though engrossing look at desperation, loneliness and a cities seedy underbelly. While Rocky and Taxi Driver were very much 70s films, the art house production, Cria cuervos (its title comes from the Spanish proverb "Raise ravens and they’ll peck your eyes out") feels contemporary- even though it has allusions to Franco's fascist regime. Directed by Carlos Saura, it's a contemplative movie that centers on a young girl and her sisters who have lost their mother to cancer. Cuervos doesn't romanticize childhood and instead looks at how dark these so called 'days of innocence' can be. Ana (played by Anna Torrent) believes she has killed her father (who she blames for her mothers death), imagines her own suicide and plans the poisoning of her Aunt. Somehow she doesn't come off an evil figure. I don't know if Torrent was as great an actress as some believe. She's got this open, expressionless face that doesn’t reveal a lot - and we as viewers could be projecting our own feelings on to her. Never the less, she does have these haunted, soulful eyes that draw one in and allows us to feel empathy for her. Ana is visited by strong memories, visions of her dead mother, played by Geraldine Chaplin (who also pulls double duty as the adult Ana) and through it all we experience both the vast loneliness in life, as well as the intimacy of Ana's interiority. Cria isn't a slam bam, easy watch for the masses. It's somewhat enigmatic and moves like a slow dream. But its multifaceted collision of grief and isolation, detachment and nothingness, stayed with me long after the final credits rolled.
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Post by Mighty Jack on May 25, 2012 23:08:53 GMT -5
1977Annie Hall (Director: Woody Allen)Nominees: That Obscure Object of Desire, The Ascent, Eraserhead, The Last Wave Oscars pick: Annie HallNominees: The Goodbye Girl, Julia, Star Wars, The Turning Point There wasn't much in 1977 that blew me away -- the highly praised Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Three Women and the Goodbye Girl... all were all decent, but I wasn't cuckoo for coco puffs for them. Saturday Night Fever = Barfarino! Killer of Sheep = amateurish direction. American Friend = snoresville! Providence... er, well that’s not been released anywhere so I'm just pissed about not being able to see it. There were things I liked, such as the Bond flick The Spy Who Loved Me. And The Last Wave - Peter Weir's dreamy end of the world story set to Aboriginal mythology, Even David Lynch's nightmarish Eraserhead was considered (and nominated). But only two movies dipped their toes into the waters of greatness, and both explored relationships in unique ways. Luis Buñuel's final feature, That Obscure Object of Desire is about the frustrated efforts of an older man to woo a younger woman named Conchita (played by 2 different actresses). It's a sexual game of cat and mouse (but who is the mouse?) – Desire is beautifully absurd, and of course, being a Buñuel film it includes a mix of politics and religion. The old master capped off his career on a high note and it will be strange not seeing his name popping on these write-ups. I gave him his first Felix in 1930-31 for L’Age d’Or, and again in 1961 for Viridiana. Annie Hall was Woody Allen's critical breakout, and I've read how this is his second best film behind Manhattan. I disagree; Manhattan dances around many of the same relationship landmines, but doesn’t have a 5th of the warmth and humor, nor is it as keen in its observations. Manhattan annoyed me, Annie Hall charms. It's an exuberant look at love told in flashbacks... and what a clever way of integrating those flashbacks. Hall boasts of an intelligent script, and it was also hilariously funny. All these years later, and the scene with the spider still gets me howling with laughter. It has been a while since I went along with Oscar's choice (1960 and The Apartment to be exact) but when they’re right, they are right.
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Post by reaperg on May 26, 2012 11:01:31 GMT -5
I'm really enjoying this Oscar thread, MJ. Will you go back and do the acting categories?
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