tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post4461346441415483423..comments2024-03-27T21:42:56.131-05:00Comments on 1001plus: Oscar Got It Wrong!: Best Picture 1962SJHoneywellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-53622302595898100462017-11-07T10:34:58.153-06:002017-11-07T10:34:58.153-06:00It's a pretty good year, really. Perhaps not o...It's a pretty good year, really. Perhaps not one of the truly great years, but I think both <i>Lawrence of Arabia</i> and <i>To Kill a Mockingbird</i> could both win in a lot of other years.SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-25967134484840811612017-11-06T14:03:45.796-06:002017-11-06T14:03:45.796-06:00I cannot disagree with your first and second. Lawr...I cannot disagree with your first and second. Lawrence of Arabia is so far ahead of anything else from the first haif of the sixties that it is unbelivable it is from 62. I hve never bee more happy for the Blu-ray format on a wide screen.<br />I agree on your comments on The Longest Day. It simply lacks focus. The Manchurian candidate and Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? are both worthy contenders, but the one I miss here is An Autumn Afternoon. I know a Japanese movie would not stand a chance here, but this one has so many qualities it deserves a nod.<br />TSorensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12208153011927807857noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-63565358424608598382015-11-12T13:19:03.036-06:002015-11-12T13:19:03.036-06:00Three of those would make mine. I'm not prepar...Three of those would make mine. I'm not prepared to launch either <i>Lawrence</i> or <i>Mockingbird</i>.SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-48888820585814545782015-11-12T13:07:09.380-06:002015-11-12T13:07:09.380-06:00Yep, of the nominees, I'd give it to Lawrence ...Yep, of the nominees, I'd give it to Lawrence as well. But your What's Missing section is spot on. The Manchurian Candidate, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, Cleo from 5 to 7, The Exterminating Angel would all make my list.Alex Withrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15887018476048271594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-88019882529304010092015-11-10T12:50:36.606-06:002015-11-10T12:50:36.606-06:00I don't mind watching Lawrence of Arabia on a ...I don't mind watching <i>Lawrence of Arabia</i> on a television. I have a large screen, and I can arrange to sit in a position where the screen is pretty much all I can see.<br /><br />One of the best jokes from John Stewart's time hosting the Oscars was him watching <i>Lawrence of Arabia</i> on his phone. SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-29732988510220974392015-11-10T09:36:06.323-06:002015-11-10T09:36:06.323-06:00I love The Exterminating Angel! I only saw it once...I love The Exterminating Angel! I only saw it once 20 years ago (at a revival house on a double feature with Viridiana) and I think about it all the time.<br /><br />I would definitely put it on my list of nominations. I might even pick it before Lawrence. I've seen Lawrence three or four times, but only on the big screen. I absolutely refuse to watch Lawrence on TV, so my viewing chances are limited, especially since I don't live in LA anymore.Tonyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17921029597363212734noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-14574441743746476462015-11-10T09:24:42.899-06:002015-11-10T09:24:42.899-06:00might make my list of nominations, but it wouldn&#... might make my list of nominations, but it wouldn't before <i>The Exterminating Angel</i> or <i>The Manchurian Candidate</i>. Even in that situation, I'd probably still hand the statue to <i>Lawrence of Arabia</i>. While it may not be my favorite movie from 1962, I think it's the best movie of 1962.SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-34597651391692401742015-11-09T18:50:49.600-06:002015-11-09T18:50:49.600-06:00You know why I love 1962? Because it's the onl...You know why I love 1962? Because it's the only year for which I saw all the films before I even knew they were all Best Picture nominees!<br /><br />I almost count 1998 because I love all those movies so much, but I saw them all before the Oscars because of the Oscars.<br /><br />And I almost count 1967 because I was planning on watching Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? when I noticed that I had seen all the others.<br /><br />But 1962 is the only one where I saw all the films completely independently of whether they were on a list or not. <br /><br />About two years ago, I was looking at the Best Picture nominees and looking at the years where I've seen most of the films and marking a few years to keep track of in order to see them all. And the only one prior to 1987 (the year I moved to LA and started watching all the nominated films before the ceremony) in which I had seen them all was 1962.<br /><br />Lawrence of Arabia, To Kill a Mockingbird and The Music Man are all films I've known and loved since the mid-1980s or earlier. I watched The Longest Day about 2000. And Mutiny on the Bounty I first saw five or six years ago.<br /><br />So that's why I love 1962 so much. They're all great movies. I think Bounty and Longest Day are not really in the same league as the others, but they're still great movies.<br /><br />For the record, from the nominees I'd pick Lawrence of Arabia. But my favorite movie from 1962 is Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? It's not even close. Tonyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17921029597363212734noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-43754339004148193602015-11-08T21:23:14.198-06:002015-11-08T21:23:14.198-06:00There are a few you mention here that I haven'...There are a few you mention here that I haven't seen. With <i>Peeping Tom</i>, I always think of that as a 1960 release, even if it was 1962 in the U.S. Whatever year, it's one I'd mention because I love that movie a lot, but I expect it's one I'll bring up for the 1960 post when I get there. <i>Divorce Italian Style, Sweet Bird of Youth</i>, and <i>The Miracle Worker</i> are still to come for me. <br /><br />I'm not a huge fan of <i>Jules and Jim</i>. I get that it's important, but I also think it's completely overrated. I thought about adding <i>Birdman of Alcatraz</i> and <i>Lolita</i> here, but I don't like either of them enough. <br /><br /><i>Last Year at Marienbad</i> is a film that I hate with extreme passion. I reviewed it here a few years ago, and it marks the first time I dropped an f-bomb in a review. I kind of see why people like it, but I really, really hate it about as much as I possibly can. In fact, the only thing I can say about it in the positive is that I didn't hate it as much as I hated <i>Vinyl</i>. <br /><br />I know that there are people who don't love <i>Lawrence of Arabia</i>. I do, though. I think it's a magnificent piece of cinema all the way through and that the desert could have been nominated as a supporting actor. That's a part of the strength of the film, but I also see that it's not something everyone will gravitate to. SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-75514424189750624492015-11-08T19:33:04.349-06:002015-11-08T19:33:04.349-06:00This is a tough year because it’s so deep with cho...This is a tough year because it’s so deep with choices. It’s one of those years where the now expanded field of contenders would have been most welcome. Aside from Whatever Happened to Baby Jane Billy Budd, Divorce Italian Style, Last Year at Marienbad, Gypsy, Sweet Bird of Youth, Jules and Jim, Lolita, Peeping Tom, Birdman of Alcatraz and The Miracle Worker could all have cases made for their inclusion. <br /><br />I just saw Cleo from 5 to 7 this past week for the first time and while I thought it was a good film I didn’t think it was nomination worthy. Wasn’t The Birds a ’63 release? <br /> <br />However my ballot of five would include none of them nor any of the nominees.<br /><br />My list would be:<br />How the West Was Won<br />Lonely Are the Brave<br />Long Day's Journey into Night<br />The Manchurian Candidate-This would be my winner<br />The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance<br /><br />As to the actual contenders: <br />I’m sure this is going to get me a rap but I detest Lawrence of Arabia. I do agree that letterbox is essential for the film and I’ve never seen it in a theatre which I’m sure enhances it, though the thought of sitting through it again to do so gives me the heebie jeebies. It took me several tries just to get through it once. Love the cast, love David Lean as a director usually but for me the film was an unending struggle of endurance. I know the majority of people adore the film but I also know several people who feel about it as I do. <br /><br />Speaking of endurance tests The Longest Day was another that I had to fight my way through. I love epics and all-star casts but you’re right that its ambitions are too vast for the format it’s presented in and in this instance the flock of familiar faces is both hindrance and help. Help in placing characters in so large a cast and a distraction in that with so many it pulls you out of the story by constant star spotting. <br /><br />Mutiny on the Bounty suffers from roadshow bloat and the pageantry that it’s stuffed with to fill the then current fad shows why it was such a short lived event. Brando’s fussy performance doesn’t help but the problem with the film is the draggy pace.<br /><br />I really like The Music Man, I won’t list it among my favorite musicals but it’s highly entertaining, the music is great and Preston, Shirley Jones and the whole supporting cast work to make it as good as it can possibly be. Still I don’t see it as an Oscar winner.<br /><br />That leaves To Kill a Mockingbird. I won’t say it wins by default because it is a fine film just not one I have much affection for, but of the choices at hand it would be my pick.<br />joel65913https://www.blogger.com/profile/14526657073681774683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-90435392994866236292015-11-06T20:43:46.465-06:002015-11-06T20:43:46.465-06:00I think for English-language films, The Manchurian...I think for English-language films, <i>The Manchurian Candidate</i> is probably the biggest miss. I know <i>Cleo from 5 to 7</i> didn't work for you, but I liked it. If I could add only one movie, though, it would probably be <i>The Exterminating Angel</i> with <i>The Manchurian Candidate</i> second.SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-90375774873269822992015-11-06T20:28:44.615-06:002015-11-06T20:28:44.615-06:00I agree with the top 2 and their order. I also ag...I agree with the top 2 and their order. I also agree that it was a hell of a year with both of those nominated. To Kill a Mockingbird could have won any number of other years, but it just happened to run into Lawrence of Arabia. I agree The Manchurian Candidate was a miss by the Academy. I'd drop any of the other three nominees for that one.Chip Laryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00787403805554027107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-91132119952808933672015-11-06T14:43:55.776-06:002015-11-06T14:43:55.776-06:00This is another one of those surprisingly deep yea...This is another one of those surprisingly deep years that crop up now and again. There are a lot of movies here that could've easily gotten nominated in other years.SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-75126445965735190242015-11-06T13:05:24.147-06:002015-11-06T13:05:24.147-06:00The Academy absolutely got it right even consideri...The Academy absolutely got it right even considering the good films that weren't nominated. Among those, The Manchurian Candidate is for me the most glaring omission.marie_dresslerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06334550550983418668noreply@blogger.com