Matt's Big Oscar Challenge: Reviewing the Ceremonies 52-61 (1980-1989)

The history of the Oscars featuring a certain type of film really began in the 1980s. Although there was the odd interesting selection, Fatal Attraction I'm looking in your direction, ultimately the winners were a mixture of relationship drama and worthy period pieces. Whereas the 1970s Best Picture nominees showcased exactly what was happening in film during that decade, I don't think the 1980s did. Films such as Back to the Future, Full Metal Jacket and Scarface were all cruelly discarded by the academy in favour of much less adventurous fare. As we always do at this time we'll look back at whether the right film won at the 1980s ceremonies and, if not, which other nominee deserved the prize.


Ceremony 52 (1980)
Winner: Kramer Vs Kramer
Nominees: All that Jazz, Apocalypse Now, Breaking Away, Norma Rae
Did the Right Film Win? No
I really enjoyed Kramer Vs Kramer but at the same time I do feel that Apocalypse Now should have won as it's a modern classic and is definitely a better made film. From a purely personal standpoint I believe that Breaking Away was ultimately a more entertaining movie and out of the five is the one that I'd like to rewatch the most.

Ceremony 53 (1981)
Winner: Ordinary People
Nominees: Coal Miner's Daughter, The Elephant Man, Raging Bull, Tess
Did the Right Film Win? No
As a film, Ordinary People is incredibly disjointed and the best thing in it, Donald Sutherland's performance, wasn't even Oscar-nominated. From it's fantastic opening sequence onwards, Raging Bull is a terrific film and I believe deserved to win Best Picture this year.

Ceremony 54 (1982)
Winner: Chariots of Fire
Nominees: Atlantic City, On Golden Pond, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Reds
Did the Right Film Win? Maybe
Chariots of Fire was a pleasant enough film but, to me at least, it didn't have the feel of a Best Picture Winner. That being said there isn't one film that stands out as a potential alternative however the epic Reds does feel more like an ideal candidate. I personally would've gone with the rather sedate but incredibly well-acted On Golden Pond which may be cheesy but does include some fine final performances from both Henry Fonda and Katharine Hepburn.

Ceremony 55 (1983)
Winner: Gandhi
Nominees: E.T, Missing, Tootsie, The Verdict
Did the Right Film Win? No
Gandhi was definitely one of the better epics to win the Oscar but at the same time it was incredibly baggy and included a lot of superfluous scenes. Whilst Gandhi has aged over the past thirty years one film that still feels as exciting as it did in 1983 is E.T. a delightful tale of friendship and family that should have triumphed at that year's awards.

Ceremony 56 (1984)
Winner: Terms of Endearment
Nominees: The Big Chill, The Dresser, The Right Stuff, Tender Mercies
Did the Right Film Win? No
Granted Terms of Endearment did have its moment but I personally didn't sympathise with the characters and found the whole thing quite saccharine. If a relationship drama was going to win I would've selected The Big Chill which was a lot more enjoyable and had characters I actually believed in. But I personally would've given the award to The Right Stuff, a modern epic with a great story and some incredible technical achievements.

Ceremony 57 (1985)
Winner: Amadeus
Nominees: The Killing Fields, A Passage to India, Places in the Heart, A Soldier's Story
Did the Right Film Win? Yes
I really did enjoy the anarchic decadence of Amadeus which contained plenty of visual splendour and a couple of fine performances. The only other film strong enough to challenge Amadeus was A Passage to India but I've got no problem with Foreman's Austrian adventure winning Best Picture this year.

Ceremony 58 (1986)
Winner: Out of Africa
Nominees: The Colour Purple, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Prizzi's Honour, Witness
Did the Right Film Win? No
I do find it ridiculous that The Colour Purple holds the record for the most nominations without a single win. It does feel like a film that should win the Best Picture prize and is a lot more deserving than the dreary Out of Africa. In fact all of the nominees are more interesting than the eventual winner which I found to be an incredibly long-winded epic.

Ceremony 59 (1987)
Winner: Platoon
Nominees: Children of a Lesser God, Hannah and Her Sisters, The Mission, A Room with A View
Did the Right Film Win? Yes
Although I did enjoy aspects of the majority of its fellow nominees, Platoon is an excellent film about the horrors of war and deserved to be recognised by the Academy.

Ceremony 60 (1988)
Winner: The Last Emperor
Nominees: Broadcast News, Fatal Attraction, Hope and Glory, Moonstruck
Did the Right Film Win? No
Whilst I can understand why The Last Emperor won the Best Picture Award I don't agree with this tiresome epic scoring the big prize this year. I feel the best film of the five was Broadcast News and this look at the media and what makes a good news anchor was an incredibly relevant picture. In fact The Last Emperor was the least entertaining of the five nominees with the other four having more to say about relationships and life in general.

Ceremony 61 (1989)
Winner: Rain Man
Nominees: The Accidental Tourist, Dangerous Liaisons, Mississippi Burning, Working Girl
Did the Right Film Win? Maybe
With the possible exception of The Accidental Tourist, I did feel all of the nominees did have some sort of merit. There definitely can be an argument made for Dangerous Liaisons winning as it redefined what the costume drama could be and was a thoroughly enjoyable watch. That being said I don't really have a problem with Rain Man winning as it dealt with a major issue in a relatable way and had two fine performances from both Hoffman and Cruise.

I am now going to take a brief hiatus but I shall return soon with my look at the winners and nominees from the 1990s