Here are the five nominees: (Winner in Bold)
Biggest Snub:
Inherit the Wind and Spartacus
My Overall Thoughts:
I can’t claim to think that this year had the best year of nominees.
For me, the only film listed among them deserving of being in contention for the top award was the ultimate winner.
None of the other four are powerful enough to have been on this list IMHO.
If I could have chosen the list of nominees, it would probably look like this:
The Apartment
Inherit the Wind
The League of Gentlemen
PsychoSpartacus
I still would pick The Apartment as the winner, but it would have been a much closer and tougher race.
My Rankings:
Movies
- 5. – Sons and Lovers -Extremely boring psychological film that is probably much better as a novel because you get to understand better what the characters are thinking and why they do what they do.
- 4. – The Sundowners -Somewhat bland story about a family of nomadic workers in Australia. Not much really happens in the film, but Mitchum, Ustinov and Kerr all give fine performances here.
- 3. – Elmer Gantry -Lancaster is amazing in this film and carries the whole story all by his performance. The story isn’t as powerful, but still compelling to watch unfold.
- 2. – The Alamo – Wayne’s version of the events of the last stand at the Alamo is done in epic style, but the dialogue and character development is a bit lacking. Amazing message about heroism and patriotism regardless.
- 1. – The Apartment – Maclaine and Lemmon are superb here in this heartwarming rom-com that still remains relevant 56 years after it was made. Its message and themes are so poignant and is refereshing every time you watch it.
Do I agree with the Oscar winner? – Most Definitely! The Apartment is such a great film because it works on so many different levels. None of the other films come anywhere close to being as poignant.
Let me know what you think about these films and my rankings!
MovieRob 