Cavalcade (1933)

Cavalcade is not an easy movie to find if you want to see it. After discovering that is the only Best Picture winner currently not available on DVD, I had to begin a search for it on VHS. Luckily, being a librarian, I was able to borrow it from another library in the state of Pennsylvania.

The story is extremely sad. Nothing "good" happens to any of the characters. It feels like a British tragedy that spans 30+ years. In some ways it reminded me of Forrest Gump because it had fictional characters experiencing real events. Events include the Second Boer War, Queen Victoria's death, the sinking of the Titanic, and World War I.

I am a big fan of the fact this movie was not extremely long and drawn out. I also really like that this is a British film. Their films, for the most part, seem to be more tastefully done.

Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)

This Best Picture winner is based on a true story. I recently watched a newer version of the same story and have to admit that the 1935 version is extremely different.

Clark Gable was clearly made out to be a hero against a harsh Captain Bligh. I have never been in the military but I have always expected that the person is charge, is the person in charge. They have to be harsh and set strict rules. That is the only way you are going to maintain order and what is best for everyone.

The women of Tahiti in this version are all very light-skinned. I can only assume this was because 1935 audiences would not want to see people with different colored skin in romantic situations together.

The story took place during one of my favorite periods in history. It is also a very fascinating true story. While I liked this movie in comparison to some Best Picture winners, I prefer the 1984 version with Anthony Hopkins and Mel Gibson. It seemed more balanced and realistic.

The Greatest Show on Earth (1952)

The more I think about this film, the more I really like it. The most impressive thing about the movie are the vibrant colors. In a time when many of the Best Picture winners were in black and white, this one was done in Technicolor. A movie about a circus probably should be done in really striking colors. It made the film for me.

In addition, I have to say that this may be my favorite Jimmy Stewart role thus far. I believed these characters were a family. The entire cast worked so well. I also loved the cameos of Bing Crosby and Bob Hope. I spotted them in the crowd of the circus immediately.

I never attended a circus so viewing the one in the film was really my first experience too. The shots of the kids eating ice cream and it dripping down their hands never got old. Had I been eating ice cream while viewing the movie, I imagine I would have been doing something very similar.

I am not sure where this one falls on my list of "liked" Best Pictures but it is going to be toward the top. It was 2.5 hours long, yet I did not want it to end. I may have to add this film to my collection in the near future.

All the King's Men (1949)

I am shocked to learn that there were corrupt politicians in the 1940s. I thought it was only a recent thing. Okay, please note the sarcasm in that.

All the King's Men is a film about an honest man who wants to clean up corruption that is in the office of the county commissioners. He is bullied and threatened as a result. Due to his honesty, many people begin to follow him to help him in his campaigns. He loses the race but when things he pointed out were wrong begin to happen on a large scale, the public begins to stand behind him. However, once he begins to get power, he becomes as corrupt, if not worse than, the politicians he sought to replace.

*Spoiler Alert* While this story is not based on a true story, but a novel, it is very reminiscent of the story of Huey Long. Long was also killed while at the height of his political career.

I thought Mercedes McCambridge was perfect in her role. She won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her work on this film. While researching her, I discovered that she did the voice of the demon in The Exorcist. That is rather terrifying.

A bit of useless trivia: The title of this film and novel is from the nursery rhyme, Humpty Dumpty.

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

The Bridge on the River Kwai takes place in a Japanese war camp during World War II. Held captive there are British ,and a few American, soldiers. The prisoners of war are given the task of completing a bridge across the Kwai River by a specific date. The Japanese forces will then use the bridge and railway to invade.

When the British officers refuse to work, as it is a part of the Geneva Conventions, the Japanese officer in charge of the camp imprisons the British officers in small cages for weeks. When no progress is being made to the bridge with only the British enlisted men working on it, the Japanese commanding officer has no choice but to free the British officers from their cages. The British officers then use their former knowledge of bridge building in India to construct a magnificent bridge across the Kwai River.

At the same time, an American soldier has escaped the camp and has found his way to a military base on the Allies side. He is asked to return to the area to aid in blowing up the bridge that may or may not be complete.

*Spoiler Alert* The final scenes are extremely tense as you aren't sure if the explosives and the Allies trying to bring down the bridge will be found. The British commanding officer leads the Japanese right to the men, who are on his side of the war, and causes them to be killed. As a result, he faints onto the trigger and brings the bridge he help build, down and into the river. Along with it, the Japanese train crashes in the river.

The work song the British soldier whistle throughout the movie is really famous. I knew it as a child thanks to the movie The Parent Trap (1960). I really like this movie. It was a good war film that was not too long or with boring segments. I also love British movies and Japanese culture so that was an added bonus for me.

Patton (1970)

I realize my grandfather may be spinning in his grave as I type this but I thought Patton was one of the most boring films I have ever seen. My grandfather was a tank commander in WWII and apparently met Patton at one point, very informally. My dad also said that he took his father to see this film in the theater when it came out in 1970. I feel like I am betraying their taste in movies but I just did not like this movie.

I did find it funny when George C. Scott had that annoyed look on his face when the Russian dancers were doing their celebratory dance. That was really the only part that I liked.

Gentleman's Agreement (1947)

I am not sure how I feel about this Best Picture winner. I can only imagine that for the late 1940s, this would have been a controversial subject for someone to pose as a minority to see what it was really like. However, looking at this film through my 2012 eyes, it seems really tame.

Gregory Peck plays a man that wants to expose if Jewish people are treated differently than their gentile associates. He discovers that the best way to find this out is to pretend to be Jewish himself. It's not like he could pose as an African American man (see C. Thomas Howell in Soul Man in the 1980s for an awful example of why Gregory Peck did not do it). That and the 1940s probably was not ready for a movie that portrayed African Americans as real people.

The woman Peck is dating is so unlikeable. What did he see in her exactly? Celeste Holm was on a show I used to watch with my mom and grandmother so it was amazing to me to see her as a young, vibrant blonde.

It was an okay movie but nothing special. I imagine now we could push the envelope a little more about the ill treatment of any given minority. It was good to see that someone in the 1940s was trying to show there was injustice in the country. Maybe it was not explosive but at least someone made an effort.

Hurt Locker (2009)

The Hurt Locker  is quite possibly the most nerve-wracking Best Picture winner. The entire film centers around an Iraq-based bomb defusing unit of the US military. Perhaps it is also added stress to know that this was/is a war that I am old enough to remember when it began. I also have friends who served in Iraq.

The lead character is clearly addicted to war and is slightly unstable. I imagine to spend your work hours defusing road side bombs in a hostile area would not make a person very zen-like.

Clocking in at just around 2 hours, this is a relatively short Best Picture winner. It also is not really like any other war films that won the coveted prize. One could not say this was a dull movie. It was extremely suspenseful yet very entertaining.

Going My Way (1944)

Going My Way focuses on a Catholic Church in NYC in the 1940s. Bing Crosby plays the young priest that has been sent to the failing parish to replace the older priest. Crosby is a songwriter with friends in the music business. His hope is to sell his song "Going My Way" to be able to pay off the mortgage so the church is not lost to the bank. Add a few street hoods turned boys' choir, Fred Mertz from I Love Lucy, and an Irish Lullaby.

I really did not like the way the movie decided to portray the lone Atheist in the film. I know a lot of them and they are the least likely to be intentionally rude. And to be honest, the only song I liked in the movie, other than the Irish Lullaby music box, was the song from Carmen.

The French Connection (1971)

So this is how the 1970s did cop dramas? While The French Connection is not one of my favorite movies, it was better than most Best Picture winners that were boring and dry. I have always found Gene Hackman to be attractive and young, angry Gene Hackman is even better.

The whole cat and mouse subway scene had me on the edge of my seat. Then there was that train chase! Why can't more action movies have a little substance so they stand a better chance at the award ceremonies? Probably what is best about this film is that the bad guy got away. And all of the lower-on-the-totem pole thugs got very minimal sentences. Then you have the narcotics cops that almost had a huge bust but because they screwed up, they were reassigned. That is the way things seem to go in life. There was no happy ending.

We also got to see Brody from the Jaws movies help keep drugs off the streets of NYC. This is one of those films that makes NYC look awful. There is nothing pretty about the NYC portrayed in this film. Perhaps the best part of the movie is when Gene Hackman does that little, "I got you, you SOB" wave to the Frenchman.

All Quiet on the Western Front (1929/1930)

From what I can find, All Quiet on the Western Front was the first movie based on a book to win Best Picture. It was the only the third film to win the coveted award so that speaks pretty highly for films that come from books. Not all of them are great but sometimes they really hit the nail on the head.

The movie was the second war film to win Best Picture. War films usually do well with awards. It probably is because war is something that everyone has dealt with in some way.

This particular film follows young, German soldiers during World War I. The beginning of the film shows their teacher being "patriotic" by getting high school aged boys to enlist in the military. This patriotic teacher of course would not himself join to fight but it was perfectly acceptable to brainwash young minds.

*Spoiler Alert* I had seen clips of the scene where the man reaches out his hand then draws it back quickly, at least that is what I thought when the clip was out of context. After viewing the film, I realized he was reaching for a butterfly and was not jumping back as a reflex. In fact, he had been killed trying to get the butterfly that reminded him of days gone by with his sister. What a terrible, tragic ending. Overall, this was a great movie. War movies usually are good and this one may be one of the best. For being made in the early days of cinema, I was really impressed.

Cimarron (1930/1931)

Cimarron  was the first western to win the Best Picture Award back at the awards for the films from 1930/1931.

I am not a fan of westerns and unfortunately, this movie is no exception for me. Even though I love American history, I have never been excited by the western expansion. The pioneer women were tough because they had to be. The Native Americans were horribly mistreated. My love of American history is in the eastern states, mainly those along the Atlantic coast or very near there.

I preferred the movie when it showed the last part and the city had become a thriving area. The husband was annoying and unreliable. Men like this find their wives divorcing them now. Thankfully, I have crossed this movie off or the list "to see" and will never watch it again.

The Grand Hotel (1931/1932)

It is amazing the difference between the 1929 Best Picture winner and the jump in quality for the 1932 Best Picture winner. The Grand Hotel was really quite enjoyable. The transitions between scenes were much better than the film that won just 3 years before.

My favorite part of the entire film was the Baron's dog. My dog is part dachshund and I have an affinity for the breed. At the end, when they basically shove the dog out the door, I was so upset. Mistreating a German dog in the 1930s was not a smart move.

I was confused that Joan Crawford was in this movie and she was not Faye Dunaway. It would have been great if she started beating that pervert for whom she was working with a wire hanger. And the movie has two Barrymores!

Million Dollar Baby (2004)

Boxing seems to be a sport that movies about it do very well at the Oscars. Rocky won the Best Picture award, as did Million Dollar Baby. Robert DeNiro won Best Actor for Raging Bull. Christian Bale won for his participation in The Fighter. Hilary Swank also took home her second acting award for her lead role in this film. Morgan Freeman also got a supporting acting award for the film too.

I knew the ending of the movie before I saw it. I am not sure if that tainted my opinion of it or not. It was an okay film but I was not blown away by it. Eastwood had a better Best Picture winner with Unforgiven in 1992.

Marty (1955)

A simple, enjoyable, 90-minute film that won Best Picture - that is the best way to describe Marty. In an hour and a half, I managed to really like the characters. That is not something I can say for some 3+ hour films.

The title character comes from an Italian-American family. His Italian mother wants nothing more than for her last unmarried child to get married. That is until her sister warns her that if her remaining single child marries, she will have no one to obsess over anymore. It really reminded me of my Italian-American mother. No offense, mom.

I also noticed that this film won Best Picture in 1955. That is the same year Marty McFly went Back to the Future. I would like to think that is part of the reason his parents named him Marty.

On the Waterfront (1954)

I am curious as to how many Best Picture winners feature dealings with organized crime. How many of those films feature Marlon Brando? Okay, I can only think of two off the top of my head. At least in On the Waterfront , Brando is attempting to be on the good side of things.

Karl Malden is an actor I have liked in everything I have seen him appear. Eva Marie Saint was also very non-1950s actress but I mean that as a compliment. She was acting and not being some drama queen diva.

Brando and Saint won Oscars for their work in this film. While accepting her award, Saint was very far along in her pregnancy. She actually gave birth to her son 2 days after receiving her award.

I liked the movie but I would not say it was one of the best films I have seen. It has received high ratings and is ranked high on IMDb.com as one of the Top 250 movies, as voted by viewers. Brando also delivers a very popular line in the film. Mr. Brando, I would venture to say that in the world of movies, you were most definitely a contender.

You Can't Take it With You (1938)

You Can't Take it with You has a very early scene that shows Wall Street in the late 1930s. Nearly 75 years later, I walked that very street in New York City. It looks exactly the same. Sure the cars, clothes, and other things have changed but it was mesmerizing to see where I walked recently be there in black and white film.

The movie was cute and had a very simple story. I would venture to guess that the reason this movie took home the Best Picture award was the cast involved in making it. They seemed to genuinely love making the film and working together.

So far, this is the earliest Jimmy Stewart movie I have seen. He was 6'3 and towered over his costars. Jean Arthur would have been in her late 30s when she made this film. She looked wonderful! Maybe the women who resort to Botox in their late 30s need to find out what her secret was. Drew Barrymore's great uncle, Lionel, was also in the film. He just looks like a man you would know in your own life.

Around the World in 80 Days (1956)

I am completely jealous of Phileas Fogg. Why do I not have the means to drop everything else in my life and go for a jaunt around the world? My dreams are far bigger than my wallet.

Around the World in 80 Days is a cute movie but I would have thought it was more of a children's movie than an adult's type of film. Perhaps I am associating it with the fact that Disney remade this movie recently. My dislike of Disney could be tainting it somehow as well.

I am not exactly sure why but Frank Sinatra made a cameo in this movie as a piano player in a bar in San Francisco. He did not eve have any lines. He just turned around and was there for a few, fleeting seconds. Shirley MacLaine played the Indian princess in this film. I had no idea it was her until I read a post online about her being there. Sure enough, I took a closer look and there she was in the earlier phase of her current life.

Wings (1927/1928)

It took Netflix quite some time to get the very first Best Picture winner as a part of their DVD collection. Alas, they have it now and I have been able to see the film that started it all.

2011 has a silent film nominated for Best Picture. Wings is also a silent picture with full organ music through the entire thing.

The film follows the plot that Pearl Harbor stole many years later. There are two pilots in love with the same woman. While Ben Affleck's "masterpiece" took place during the Second World War, Wings took place during WWI. The fighting sequences are spectacular. I cannot even imagine how they filmed such scenes in the 1920s.

Perhaps one of the saddest stories in Oscar associated history is that of Clara Bow. Her secretary was stealing from her so she took her to court. The secretary made up lies about Clara's sex life and the lies ultimately ruined the actress. She suffered a mental breakdown and died at the age of 60. Knowing rumors could ruin a career during those early years of film is ironic when you acknowledge that now it would make a career bigger.

Oliver! (1968)

"Oom Pah Pah, Oom Pah Pah, that's how it goes." I have not been able to stop humming that song since I viewed the film. Oliver! was the last musical to win the Best Picture award until Chicago came along in 2002. The story of little, orphan Oliver is based on Dickens' book Oliver Twist. After being kicked out of a workhouse for wanting "MORE?!" food, Oliver finds himself entangled with pick pockets and their leader/teacher. There is also the mean, brute of a man, played by Oliver Reed, who I feel sure may be Javier Bardem's biological father. This awful man has a girlfriend, Nancy, that is not all bad.

Oliver is accused of a crime he did not commit and he ends up being cared for by the wrongful accuser. The gang of ruffians realize they must return Oliver to their hideout or he could give away their location and the illegal activities in which they are partaking. As complete coincidence would have it, the man who brought Oliver into his mansion, is the uncle of Oliver's mother. A mother who died during childbirth.

The actor who played the artful dodger was extremely talented. I found that Jack Wild was 15-16 when the movie was being made but he does look much younger. His acting, dancing, and singing were all superb. I really think he was the best part of the movie. Other than one of the catchiest songs ever!

Mrs. Miniver (1942)

I really enjoy movies that are set during a war but show what life at home was like for those not fighting the battles. Mrs. Miniver follows a middle class British family through the early months of World War II. It is also interesting to see what life was like in the 1940s because it gives me a better understanding of what my grandparents may have experienced. Or at the very least, I can watch movies they may have watched when they were my age.

I preferred The Best Years of Our Lives but I really liked this movie as well. Greer Garson is just gorgeous! She resembles Maureen O'Hara so much that I was convinced for years it was her in this movie.

The two main actresses won Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress Oscars for their work in this film. There is interesting trivia to tack on with this film: Ms. Garson's Oscar was destroyed in a house fire and the Academy sent her a replacement. She also holds the record for the longest acceptance speech in Oscar history at 5 1/2 minutes. Garson also married her co-star, Richard Ney, who played her son in the film.

Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

After viewing Lawrence of Arabia, I have now seen 60 Best Picture winners. Again, this is a film that is considered a treasure. Why must all these epic films take hours to tell a story? Is it really necessary?

The film follows the story of a real British soldier during World War I. For hours we watch him ride around the desert in Arabia with Anthony Quinn and Omar Sharif. They also blow up some train tracks and after Lawrence is tortured, he snaps ever so slightly.

This movie feels like it is one that would be loved by men. I do not mean that as disrespectful to the film but it's military, it's long, and rather dry (much like the desert). If they would cut the time riding through the desert in half, the movie would have been 45 minutes long.

In all fairness, the movie had a lovely score. It was my favorite part of the entire experience. That and watching the camels run around. Seeing thousands of camels running at the same time is not something a person sees that often, not even in film.

The Broadway Melody (1928/1929)

The Broadway Melody was the second movie to win "Best Picture" at the Academy Awards. It was interesting to see how movies looked and felt compared to ones made a few years later. The story was not exactly something different and the entire movie felt very simplistic. However, as one of the very first musicals ever made, it was cute.

As an older sister of a younger sister, I really hated how this movie ended. The older sister has been a man's top choice for years. Then when he sees her younger sister all grown up, he prefers her. In the end, the older sister basically forfeits the guy so her sister will not end up with a sugar daddy. There is a point to being a good older sibling but ruining your own chance at happiness is crossing a line.