Here are the five nominees: (Winner in Bold)
Biggest Snub:
Joseph Cotten – The Third Man
My Overall Thoughts:
This was a year with 5 powerful performances but there was really no question about the fact that Crawford gives the best of the nominees.
My Rankings:
Acting Performances
5. John Wayne
4. Kirk Douglas
3. Gregory Peck
2. Richard Todd
1. Broderick Crawford
Movies
5. Champion – Nice look at the kind of world that boxers need to live in as they try to make ends meet. Douglas does a great job playing a role which is not flattering at all since his characters is very egocentric and does all he can just to help himself and doesn’t care about anyone else. The boxing scenes are done really well and that is the main reason that this film won an Oscar for Best Editing. The story itself moves along too slowly and there isn’t much to like about the characters or the path that they choose to take.
4. Twelve O’Clock High – Ok movie, nice aerial shots of real WWII fighting. Deals with some really complex psychological issues quite well especially for its time period
3. Sands of Iwo Jima – Great depiction of war especially for the time it was made. The use of real footage from the battles depicted helps give us more of a documentary feel to the whole thing. The cast is great with Wayne obviously being the standout among them all. The characters are slightly stereotypical which takes away somewhat from the impact of certain scenes. The battle scenes are done really well and we get a clear picture of the horrors of war and how difficult it must have been during these battles to both keep your wits and trying to stay alive.
2. The Hasty Heart – Great film that gets better and better as things move along. The story is filled with messages about trust and friendship and works really well. Reagan and Neal are great here, but Todd really shines in the lead role and was deserving of his Oscar nomination for Best Actor for this role. Love the way that they depict the allied forces as very universal by giving us characters from various nationalities because it helps with the idea of forming such a tight-knit group even with diverse backgrounds
1. All the King’s Men – Not as good as I had hoped for a Best Picture winner, but was pretty good. Crawford is amazing in the lead because we can really see a great character arc that is timeless.
Do I agree with the Oscar winner? – Most Definitely! Crawford gives such an amazing performance here and is still relevant today even after 70 years. None of the others comes even close.
Let me know what you think about these films and my rankings!
