As someone who grew up on a diet of 1980s Brat Pack classics, I always felt that John Hughes blazed the trail as far as classic high school films went. However the coming of age film can be traced back a decade earlier as the 1970s Oscar nominees provide two teen classics. Both feature young men on their way out of high school as they look forward to the next chapter in their life. The two are similar as they look back at prior decades, focus on small town life and have endings that can't exactly be described as happy.
Sunday, 12 January 2014
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Days 238-239: Coming of Age
The first of these two films is Peter Boganovich's The Last Picture Show which turns the clock back twenty years to 1951. Striking itself out visually, the film is shot entirely in black and white and focuses on the small town of Anarene in Texas. Anarene is portrayed as a character in and of itself with the protagonists mainly congregating in the town's pool hall, diner and titular picture show. All of these businesses are owned by the fatherly Sam the Lion, a sort of surrogate parent to the town's youths, who is the guiding light in the lives of our two central characters. These characters are high-school seniors Sonny Crawford and Duane Jackson who over the course of the film, fall in and out of love with both ladies and each other. Duane is going steady with Jacy Farrow, a popular and classy young lady whose parents see Duane as a class below their daughter. Throughout the film, Jacy is portrayed as quite manipulative and does several things simply to get attention. Meanwhile, Sonny is initially dating a fairly unlikeable girl who he later dumps as he dreams of getting with Jacy. Eventually he finds himself attracted to the wife of his basketball coach Ruth Popper, but their affair is tinged with sadness as she realises he'll soon leave her for someone his own age. At times the story gets quite bleak with death affecting Sonny and Duane in different ways and by the end they realise that the Anarene at the end of the film isn't the Anarene they knew growing up.
Though utterly bleak at times, I thoroughly enjoyed The Last Picture Show from start to finish. It does have a fairly episodic tone but at its heart is the friendship between two men on the verge of adulthood. Boganovich's decision to shoot the film in black and white gives it a timeless quality and makes it feel more of its time than it would've done had it been shot in colour. One of the film's major strengths is its sense of place and I really felt I knew the layout of the town by the time the film finished. With four acting nominations in the supporting categories, I knew that The Last Picture Show would be well acted from the get-go. A young Jeff Bridges is incredibly captivating as the brash and hot-headed Duane who is motivated by his love of Jacy. Meanwhile, in her first major role, Cybil Shepherd portrays Jacy as a girl who craves attention and doesn't care who she hurts to get it. For their roles as Sam the Lion and Ruth respectively, Ben Johnson and Cloris Leachman were awarded the Supporting Oscars at the 1972 ceremony. While both delivered scene-stealing performances, I feel that these awards should possibly have gone to Bridges and Shepherd instead. One cast member who didn't receive any attention at the awards was Timothy Bottoms who, as Sonny, really anchors the film. His facial expressions tell the story beautifully and he really made me feel for Sonny throughout the course of the film. While it did drag from time to time, The Last Picture Show did make a positive impression on me and by the film's final scenes I was incredibly taken with this poignant story of the end of adolescence. In addition I was surprised by how influential the film was as its roots are arguably in every high school movie that has come since.
A case in point is a film that came two years later and was directed by an upstart director by the name of George Lucas. American Graffiti similarly focuses on two recent graduates who are spending their last night in their home town before journeying to the same college the morning after. Steve Bolander and Curt Henderson have different opinions about the next stage of their lives. Steve is ready to go to college and wants to embark on an open relationship with his girlfriend, and Curt's sister, Laurie. Laurie isn't so pleased with this suggestion and throughout the film they argue and break-up before making up again. Meanwhile scholarship student Curt is unsure about whether he should spend another year in his home town of Modesto before going off to college. His night involves being inducted into greaser gang 'The Pharoahs' and attempting to track down a mysterious blonde who appeared to mouth 'I Love You' when he was gazing out of a car window. The film sees Curt question the next stage of his life and he receives advice from several mentor figures before plotting his ultimate destiny. American Graffiti's subplots involve Curt and Steve's friends John and Terry 'The Toad' both of whom attempt to pick up women with very different results. Cool and cocky John ends up spending the night with the bratty sister of one of his classmates but by the end of their journey together he appears to have grown fond of her. Meanwhile nerdy Terry finds new confidence after being given Steve's car and shockingly finds a new lady friend with the slightly ditzy Debbie. After their eventful night both Steve and Curt make their way to the airport, but for different reasons, and we the audience learn where they are now.
Though not going as far back in time as The Last Picture Show, American Graffiti's action all takes place in 1962 and is primarily based on George Lucas' own formative years. Despite being only his second feature, I found that Lucas was a confident director here and perfectly balanced all the various stories from the screenplay he co-wrote. Part of the charm of American Graffiti was its nostalgic elements as we got to see our characters hang out at the drive-in and attend a hop at their former high school. But the biggest benefit of setting the film in the past was that the soundtrack could contain classic hits from the 1950s and 1960s. I have to personally say that the music was a particular highlight of mine and that at least half a dozen songs from the soundtrack were stuck in my head the day after I watched it. America Graffiti's other strong element is the central performance from Richard Dreyfuss as the indecisive and thoroughly likeable Curt. Dreyfuss plays the part perfectly throughout and I was always upset when we left Curt to concentrate on the other characters. I feel that I've sort of watched Dreyfuss' career in reverse; starting with his Oscar winning turn in The Goodbye Girl and finishing here with his breakthrough turn in American Graffiti. I have to say I'm surprised that he wasn't nominated for an Oscar and the only acting nod the film received was for Candy Clark as the airhead Debbie. American Graffiti does suffer from an episodic story structure where some plots were stronger than others but all of the characters felt well-drawn which isn't surprising as they were mostly inspired by real people. Just like The Last Picture Show, American Graffiti has been incredibly influential throughout the years and I found particular parallels between it and Richard Linklater's Dazed and Confused. Though it was a little lighter than The Last Picture Show, American Graffiti had a lot going for it primarily thanks to a great performance from Dreyfuss and a brilliantly catchy soundtrack
Next time we get bleak with the sort of trip to the Mediterranean that nobody would ever want to experience.
Though utterly bleak at times, I thoroughly enjoyed The Last Picture Show from start to finish. It does have a fairly episodic tone but at its heart is the friendship between two men on the verge of adulthood. Boganovich's decision to shoot the film in black and white gives it a timeless quality and makes it feel more of its time than it would've done had it been shot in colour. One of the film's major strengths is its sense of place and I really felt I knew the layout of the town by the time the film finished. With four acting nominations in the supporting categories, I knew that The Last Picture Show would be well acted from the get-go. A young Jeff Bridges is incredibly captivating as the brash and hot-headed Duane who is motivated by his love of Jacy. Meanwhile, in her first major role, Cybil Shepherd portrays Jacy as a girl who craves attention and doesn't care who she hurts to get it. For their roles as Sam the Lion and Ruth respectively, Ben Johnson and Cloris Leachman were awarded the Supporting Oscars at the 1972 ceremony. While both delivered scene-stealing performances, I feel that these awards should possibly have gone to Bridges and Shepherd instead. One cast member who didn't receive any attention at the awards was Timothy Bottoms who, as Sonny, really anchors the film. His facial expressions tell the story beautifully and he really made me feel for Sonny throughout the course of the film. While it did drag from time to time, The Last Picture Show did make a positive impression on me and by the film's final scenes I was incredibly taken with this poignant story of the end of adolescence. In addition I was surprised by how influential the film was as its roots are arguably in every high school movie that has come since.
A case in point is a film that came two years later and was directed by an upstart director by the name of George Lucas. American Graffiti similarly focuses on two recent graduates who are spending their last night in their home town before journeying to the same college the morning after. Steve Bolander and Curt Henderson have different opinions about the next stage of their lives. Steve is ready to go to college and wants to embark on an open relationship with his girlfriend, and Curt's sister, Laurie. Laurie isn't so pleased with this suggestion and throughout the film they argue and break-up before making up again. Meanwhile scholarship student Curt is unsure about whether he should spend another year in his home town of Modesto before going off to college. His night involves being inducted into greaser gang 'The Pharoahs' and attempting to track down a mysterious blonde who appeared to mouth 'I Love You' when he was gazing out of a car window. The film sees Curt question the next stage of his life and he receives advice from several mentor figures before plotting his ultimate destiny. American Graffiti's subplots involve Curt and Steve's friends John and Terry 'The Toad' both of whom attempt to pick up women with very different results. Cool and cocky John ends up spending the night with the bratty sister of one of his classmates but by the end of their journey together he appears to have grown fond of her. Meanwhile nerdy Terry finds new confidence after being given Steve's car and shockingly finds a new lady friend with the slightly ditzy Debbie. After their eventful night both Steve and Curt make their way to the airport, but for different reasons, and we the audience learn where they are now.
Though not going as far back in time as The Last Picture Show, American Graffiti's action all takes place in 1962 and is primarily based on George Lucas' own formative years. Despite being only his second feature, I found that Lucas was a confident director here and perfectly balanced all the various stories from the screenplay he co-wrote. Part of the charm of American Graffiti was its nostalgic elements as we got to see our characters hang out at the drive-in and attend a hop at their former high school. But the biggest benefit of setting the film in the past was that the soundtrack could contain classic hits from the 1950s and 1960s. I have to personally say that the music was a particular highlight of mine and that at least half a dozen songs from the soundtrack were stuck in my head the day after I watched it. America Graffiti's other strong element is the central performance from Richard Dreyfuss as the indecisive and thoroughly likeable Curt. Dreyfuss plays the part perfectly throughout and I was always upset when we left Curt to concentrate on the other characters. I feel that I've sort of watched Dreyfuss' career in reverse; starting with his Oscar winning turn in The Goodbye Girl and finishing here with his breakthrough turn in American Graffiti. I have to say I'm surprised that he wasn't nominated for an Oscar and the only acting nod the film received was for Candy Clark as the airhead Debbie. American Graffiti does suffer from an episodic story structure where some plots were stronger than others but all of the characters felt well-drawn which isn't surprising as they were mostly inspired by real people. Just like The Last Picture Show, American Graffiti has been incredibly influential throughout the years and I found particular parallels between it and Richard Linklater's Dazed and Confused. Though it was a little lighter than The Last Picture Show, American Graffiti had a lot going for it primarily thanks to a great performance from Dreyfuss and a brilliantly catchy soundtrack
Next time we get bleak with the sort of trip to the Mediterranean that nobody would ever want to experience.
Tuesday, 7 January 2014
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Day 237: The Last Laughs
In the last couple of posts I've discussed the dying days of comedies being nominated for Oscars and in this year's nominations I'll be surprised to see at least one broad comedy. Comedies now have to either have an indie vibe to them or be some sort of riotous romp in the fashion of this year's American Hustle. It's sad that in an era where we know exactly what an 'Oscar Film' is there's very little room for the comedy. In fact the last time a comedy film won the Best Picture was over thirty-five years ago.
That film was Woody Allen's Annie Hall, a film that I've previously watched on a number of occasions, which also won a Best Actress Award for Diane Keaton's portrayal of the titular protagonist. The majority of the film centres round the relationship between Annie and Allen's stand-up comedian Alvy Singer. The narrative structure of the film is such that it starts midway through the relationship before taking us back to the time when Alvy and Annie first met. As Annie Hall is a proper romantic comedy it explores the differences between the uptight Alvy and the more free and easy Annie. He overthinks everything while she'd rather go with the flow and this obviously puts a strain on their relationship. Alvy's comic asides also looks back at the character's past whether it be stealing a kiss as a child or his previous marriage everything is put under the microscope. Inevitably, the relationship begins to crumble as Annie begins to look elsewhere for love and finds it briefly with Paul Simon's record producer Tony Lacey. Though this comedy doesn't have a traditional happy ending, it does give you hope for the two characters, that you are more than invested in thanks to Allen's brilliant script.
Annie Hall is often held up as Woody Allen's masterpiece, but in my opinion he's made better films. Obviously part of the reason for the film's success lies with Allen's semi-autobiographical script which oozes with honesty throughout. Despite him creating a fictional character for himself, smarter audience members obviously can draw parallels between Alvy and Allen. Similarly, Diane Keaton has claimed that Annie Hall is incredibly similar to her own personality that Woody got to know on previous films that they worked together on. Due to this fact both Allen and Keaton are superb throughout and add an awkward chemistry to their relationship which makes it utterly realistic. In addition there are some fantastic supporting roles most notably from Tony Roberts as Alvy's friend Rob and then unknown Christopher Walken as Annie's brother Duane. Annie Hall is the perfect length for a comedy film as it's only just over ninety minutes long and the story fits perfectly into this time frame. With most of the character being instantly identifiable, the script being full of pithy one-liners and the cast being unanimously brilliant there's no denying that Annie Hall is a great film. Even though I do think some comedy films since 1977 have possibly deserved the Best Picture award, I'd be happy if Annie Hall got to held up the legacy for what a great comedy film should be.
Next time we look at two nostalgic films that deal with the dying days of adolescence
That film was Woody Allen's Annie Hall, a film that I've previously watched on a number of occasions, which also won a Best Actress Award for Diane Keaton's portrayal of the titular protagonist. The majority of the film centres round the relationship between Annie and Allen's stand-up comedian Alvy Singer. The narrative structure of the film is such that it starts midway through the relationship before taking us back to the time when Alvy and Annie first met. As Annie Hall is a proper romantic comedy it explores the differences between the uptight Alvy and the more free and easy Annie. He overthinks everything while she'd rather go with the flow and this obviously puts a strain on their relationship. Alvy's comic asides also looks back at the character's past whether it be stealing a kiss as a child or his previous marriage everything is put under the microscope. Inevitably, the relationship begins to crumble as Annie begins to look elsewhere for love and finds it briefly with Paul Simon's record producer Tony Lacey. Though this comedy doesn't have a traditional happy ending, it does give you hope for the two characters, that you are more than invested in thanks to Allen's brilliant script.
Annie Hall is often held up as Woody Allen's masterpiece, but in my opinion he's made better films. Obviously part of the reason for the film's success lies with Allen's semi-autobiographical script which oozes with honesty throughout. Despite him creating a fictional character for himself, smarter audience members obviously can draw parallels between Alvy and Allen. Similarly, Diane Keaton has claimed that Annie Hall is incredibly similar to her own personality that Woody got to know on previous films that they worked together on. Due to this fact both Allen and Keaton are superb throughout and add an awkward chemistry to their relationship which makes it utterly realistic. In addition there are some fantastic supporting roles most notably from Tony Roberts as Alvy's friend Rob and then unknown Christopher Walken as Annie's brother Duane. Annie Hall is the perfect length for a comedy film as it's only just over ninety minutes long and the story fits perfectly into this time frame. With most of the character being instantly identifiable, the script being full of pithy one-liners and the cast being unanimously brilliant there's no denying that Annie Hall is a great film. Even though I do think some comedy films since 1977 have possibly deserved the Best Picture award, I'd be happy if Annie Hall got to held up the legacy for what a great comedy film should be.
Next time we look at two nostalgic films that deal with the dying days of adolescence
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Days 235-236: Altman's All-Stars
As regular readers of the Oscar Challenge blog will now, I often put together films from the same director that have been nominated in the same decade. This time it's the turn of Robert Altman whose movies M*A*S*H and Nashville were give nods in the 1970s. Both very different in tone, they are similar in the way that Altman employs his ensemble casts and the sprawling nature of the plot.
In the early 1970s, Altman had his first breakthrough with M*A*S*H, a film loosely based on Richard Hooker's original novel about medical personnel stationed at an army hospital during the Korean War. The main plot of the film sees three new surgeons arrive at camp and instantly stir things up. The first two of these troublemakers are 'Hawkeye' Pierce and 'Duke' Forest who regularly steal, drink and cause chaos. They instantly rub their new cam pmates up the wrong way especially Robert Duvall's religious Frank Burns who they're able to get rid of due to his inferior surgical abilities. Senior nurse Margaret Houlihan is similarly outraged by their sexist behaviour and their insistence on referring to her as 'Hotlips'. Joining their number soon after is 'Trapper' McIntyre another surgeon who is as insubordinate as Hawkeye and Duke. The film then becomes quite episodic in nature but does see Trapper and Hawkeye become medical heroes after saving the lives of a congressman's son. Despite seemingly uninterested in their work, our central duo are always concerned with doing the right thing, even if they have to resort to blackmail to do it. This theme about the working man sticking up for the people who can't defend themselves, spoke to the audiences of the 1970s who were experiencing political unrest at the time.
Altman quickly marked himself out as a maverick director by using very little of the original source novel for his book while in addition encouraging the actors to improvise in certain scenes. However, when the film was made in 1970, Altman hadn't earned the reputation yet to work in such a reckless way. This led to the film's leads Elliot Gould and Donald Sutherland to try and get Altman sacked on numerous occasions. Obviously, the film today is hailed as a classic and went to win the Palme d'Or at Cannes as well as the Oscar for Best Screenplay. Altman's gambles all paid off here as I thoroughly enjoyed M*A*S*H and thought it was one of the best Oscar-nominated comedies of all time. As Hawkeye and Trapper; Sutherland and Gould were fantastic and they shared great on-screen chemistry throughout. Altman's script was packed full of great lines but there was plenty of social commentary hidden behind the laughs. Despite having quite a sporadic structure, M*A*S*H was held together thanks to the strength of its characters and the solid narrative that Altman provided throughout. This film fully put Altman on the map and, after watching it, it's not hard to see exactly why.
Five years later, Altman returned to the Best Picture list with another film that has a sprawling narrative - Nashville. Set in the musical city of Tennessee; Nashville follows twenty-four characters during five days which lead up to a political rally for vice-presidential candidate Hal Philip Walker. The film basically focuses on the country music scene and the measures some will go to to enhance their careers. There's the legendary Haven Hamilton, who has political aspirations of his home and whose fame is fading fast. Barbara Jean is one of the most popular country singers around but suffers from exhaustion and spends most of the film in hospital. As the country music business is a fickle one, Barbara Jean's manager eventually replaces her at several events with the inferior but beautiful Connie White. We also meet Tom Frank, a womanising member of a country music trio who attempts to break out on his own throughout the course of the film. Then there's Sueleen Gay, another aspiring country singer who has no talent what to speak of and gets exploited in one of the film's most memorable scenes. The film's climax brings the majority of the characters together at the aforementioned rally and sees one of the characters attempt to shoot two of Nashville's biggest stars. Despite this tragedy occurring Winifred, another aspiring country singer, takes to the stage and finally gets her big break.
Having enjoyed the sprawling, episodic narrative throughout M*A*S*H, I was dismayed that I didn't enjoy the same structure so much with Nashville. I believe part of the reason for that is due to the fact that it's a drama rather than a comedy so can't get away with being as fragmented as Altman's previous film. One of the other issues the film had is that there's far too many characters and interconnected plots for the film to work. At over two and a half hours, I felt the film dragged too much despite the fact that almost half of it was musical performances by various members of the cast. That being said some of these musical performances were incredibly entertaining and really gave Nashville a sense of place. In fact one of its more positive features is how it immerses the viewer in the culture and style of Nashville; including the religious nature of all of its inhabitants seen in the scenes set at various church services. There were some brilliant performances amongst the ensemble most notably from Lily Tomlin, Ronee Blakely and Henry Gibson. Throughout this voyage I have questioned why a few of these films are held up as classics and I'm afraid I'll have to add Nashville to this ever-growing list. Don't get me wrong I did enjoy parts of it, but as a whole it was overlong and incredibly dull in places.
Next time we have yet another comedy, the last of the genre to win the Best Picture Award.
In the early 1970s, Altman had his first breakthrough with M*A*S*H, a film loosely based on Richard Hooker's original novel about medical personnel stationed at an army hospital during the Korean War. The main plot of the film sees three new surgeons arrive at camp and instantly stir things up. The first two of these troublemakers are 'Hawkeye' Pierce and 'Duke' Forest who regularly steal, drink and cause chaos. They instantly rub their new cam pmates up the wrong way especially Robert Duvall's religious Frank Burns who they're able to get rid of due to his inferior surgical abilities. Senior nurse Margaret Houlihan is similarly outraged by their sexist behaviour and their insistence on referring to her as 'Hotlips'. Joining their number soon after is 'Trapper' McIntyre another surgeon who is as insubordinate as Hawkeye and Duke. The film then becomes quite episodic in nature but does see Trapper and Hawkeye become medical heroes after saving the lives of a congressman's son. Despite seemingly uninterested in their work, our central duo are always concerned with doing the right thing, even if they have to resort to blackmail to do it. This theme about the working man sticking up for the people who can't defend themselves, spoke to the audiences of the 1970s who were experiencing political unrest at the time.
Altman quickly marked himself out as a maverick director by using very little of the original source novel for his book while in addition encouraging the actors to improvise in certain scenes. However, when the film was made in 1970, Altman hadn't earned the reputation yet to work in such a reckless way. This led to the film's leads Elliot Gould and Donald Sutherland to try and get Altman sacked on numerous occasions. Obviously, the film today is hailed as a classic and went to win the Palme d'Or at Cannes as well as the Oscar for Best Screenplay. Altman's gambles all paid off here as I thoroughly enjoyed M*A*S*H and thought it was one of the best Oscar-nominated comedies of all time. As Hawkeye and Trapper; Sutherland and Gould were fantastic and they shared great on-screen chemistry throughout. Altman's script was packed full of great lines but there was plenty of social commentary hidden behind the laughs. Despite having quite a sporadic structure, M*A*S*H was held together thanks to the strength of its characters and the solid narrative that Altman provided throughout. This film fully put Altman on the map and, after watching it, it's not hard to see exactly why.
Five years later, Altman returned to the Best Picture list with another film that has a sprawling narrative - Nashville. Set in the musical city of Tennessee; Nashville follows twenty-four characters during five days which lead up to a political rally for vice-presidential candidate Hal Philip Walker. The film basically focuses on the country music scene and the measures some will go to to enhance their careers. There's the legendary Haven Hamilton, who has political aspirations of his home and whose fame is fading fast. Barbara Jean is one of the most popular country singers around but suffers from exhaustion and spends most of the film in hospital. As the country music business is a fickle one, Barbara Jean's manager eventually replaces her at several events with the inferior but beautiful Connie White. We also meet Tom Frank, a womanising member of a country music trio who attempts to break out on his own throughout the course of the film. Then there's Sueleen Gay, another aspiring country singer who has no talent what to speak of and gets exploited in one of the film's most memorable scenes. The film's climax brings the majority of the characters together at the aforementioned rally and sees one of the characters attempt to shoot two of Nashville's biggest stars. Despite this tragedy occurring Winifred, another aspiring country singer, takes to the stage and finally gets her big break.
Having enjoyed the sprawling, episodic narrative throughout M*A*S*H, I was dismayed that I didn't enjoy the same structure so much with Nashville. I believe part of the reason for that is due to the fact that it's a drama rather than a comedy so can't get away with being as fragmented as Altman's previous film. One of the other issues the film had is that there's far too many characters and interconnected plots for the film to work. At over two and a half hours, I felt the film dragged too much despite the fact that almost half of it was musical performances by various members of the cast. That being said some of these musical performances were incredibly entertaining and really gave Nashville a sense of place. In fact one of its more positive features is how it immerses the viewer in the culture and style of Nashville; including the religious nature of all of its inhabitants seen in the scenes set at various church services. There were some brilliant performances amongst the ensemble most notably from Lily Tomlin, Ronee Blakely and Henry Gibson. Throughout this voyage I have questioned why a few of these films are held up as classics and I'm afraid I'll have to add Nashville to this ever-growing list. Don't get me wrong I did enjoy parts of it, but as a whole it was overlong and incredibly dull in places.
Next time we have yet another comedy, the last of the genre to win the Best Picture Award.
Sunday, 5 January 2014
Matts' Big Oscar Challenge Day 234: There's No Beating Beatty
It's been a while but I'm back on the Oscar trail and determined to at least get to the end of the 1980s by the end of the year. The next four reviews are going to be hazy recollections as I watched them last autumn and stupidly didn't write anything down about them at the time.
The first of the four is Heaven Can Wait a remake, not of the 1940s film Heaven Can Wait, but rather then 1940s film Here Comes Mr Jordan both of which have previously been reviewed on this site. This remake sees Robert Montgomery's baseball player being replaced by Warren Beatty's quaterback Joe Pendleton whose motorcycle ends up colliding with a truck with the result being him taken up to heaven by an over-zealous Guardian Angel. As with the original 1940s film Mr Jordan, here played by James Mason, finds a new body for Joe in the form of billionaire Leo Farnsworth. Joe, as Farnsworth, surprises the current Mrs Farnsworth and the old man's business manager as the pair had recently finished killing him off. But Farnsworth's revival results in them ultimately being rumbled for the crime. Elsewhere Joe falls for environmentalist Betty Logan who has come to Farnsworth industries to complain about their unscrupulous activities. Despite the age difference, Betty soon falls for Farsnworth also buys Joe's old team and tries to make himself quarterback. Obviously, anybody who's seen one of the three versions of the film knows exactly how it will end, but I'm not going to spoil it for you here.
It's very rare in this day and age that a comedy makes its way into the Best Picture line-up and it was in the 1970s that the genre began to disappear altogether from the Academy Awards nominations. I personally feel that Heaven Can Wait got into the Best Picture list due to its star power rather than its comic ability. Alongside Beatty, who was actually pretty good throughout, the all-star cast included Julie Christie, James Mason and Charles Grodin. I do feel that Christie in particular was given little to do aside from standing around and playing the love interest. Though there were some changes made to the characters from the original film version, the pivotal parts of the plot remained the same. The question then has to be why remake it in the first place? The only reason I can possibly offer is that cinematic effects had moved on quite significantly since the early 1940s and, to be fair, the supernatural elements of the plot were more visually spectacular than they had been thirty years ago. The film received a shocking ten nominations at the awards as a whole but only picked up one, a slightly deserving nod for the grandiose art direction. Overall Heaven Can Wait is a decent enough comedy, but to me really didn't feel like one of the best five films from any year.
Next up we have two offerings from a director who is known for his sharp wit and ensemble casts.
Friday, 20 September 2013
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Days 232-233: An I-Lumet-nating Double Bill
If you put a gun to my head and asked me what my favourite film of all time was then the answer would probably be 12 Angry Men. It's one of those films that I could just watch over and over again while it's also incredibly well-made. Shockingly, I've watched very few of director Sidney Lumet's other films and that's one mistake I've been able to correct with the help of this project. This post will look over the two Oscar-nominated films that he directed in the 1970s.
One of the things that makes 12 Angry Men so effective is that it's almost entirely set in the jury room and I felt the same way about Dog Day Afternoon. Though it's not restricted to one setting, Dog Day Afternoon is almost wholly set in and around a bank that is being robbed. The film begins with Sal and Sonny robbing a bank and attempting to commit the crime without being caught. Things soon go awry when they discover that there's hardly any money left in the bank and instead decides to steal a bunch of traveller's cheques. However, as Sonny tries to burn off the bank's register on the cheques, smoke starts to billow from the bank which in turn alerts locals that something's not right at the bank. Soon the pair are discovered and the police descend on the bank and, as they attempt to diffuse the situation, we learn more about our central pair. As Sonny is the man that the police are in constant contact with, he comes out of the bank on several occasions to talk to Detective Moretti, the policeman in charge of handling the hostage situation. Sonny soon becomes a local hero as he is attempting to stand up for the common man. Sonny later becomes a gay icon as we discover he married a man in a secret ceremony and has robbed the bank in order to pay for his wife Leon's sexual reassignment surgery. However, Leon is less than thrilled with this revelation and it seems as if he's been trying to escape Sonny for years. Meanwhile, the more menacing Sal is getting increasingly agitated as he doesn't really care for Sonny's flamboyance and his need to be a friend to all of their hostages. Soon, the stage is set for the final act in which Sonny and Sal attempt to escape, while the police endeavour to stop them.
I found Dog Day Afternoon to be a slow burning story that took its time to develop. It was only after Moretti and his team arrived that I really started to get involved in the film. Lumet and writer Frank Piersen create an intriguing anti-hero in Sonny, a character who we begin to learn more of once the hostage situation is in full swing. Throughout the film our perception of Sonny changes as we learn that, in an odd sort of way, he's trying to do the best for everyone. The character of Sal is more interesting, as we have to make our own minds up about him, and he really isn't as in your face as Sonny is. The pairing of Al Pacino and John Cazale is a great one and their loud and calm double act contrasts their roles in The Godfather films. I found Pacino to be more captivating here than he was in The Godfather films and I found that the character of Sonny really tested him. Meanwhile Chris Sarandon was brilliant in his handful of scenes as Leon, the pre-op transsexual who wanted nothing to do with his new husband. The claustrophobic nature of the over-heated bank added to the tense feel of the film as Sonny started to lose his head. As I'd never seen the film before, I have to admit that the final sequence had me on the edge of my seat. I felt that Dog Day Afternoon perfectly enforced my views that Lumet is an assured director who gets the best out of his actors and utilises his setting to full effect.
If I hadn't thought that already then I would've definitely to come that conclusion after watching Network. Of all of Lumet's films Network definitely did the best at the Oscars and Paddy Chayefsky's script is still widely regarded as one of the best of all time. Though I'd never seen Network before I was aware that it centred around Peter Finch's Howard Beale and the fact that he claimed he was going to commit suicide live on air. What I didn't realise was that the main story was a lot bigger than that and involved the UBS Network's head of programming Diana Christensen and her wish to put Beale back on the air after he becomes one of the biggest talking points in the country. Christensen is portrayed as a woman who puts her career before anything else and can't seem to sustain a relationship with anyone. Even her affair with the married former head of news Max Schumacher doesn't satisfy her and he eventually tries to act as the voice of reason in the film. Meanwhile Beale's power over the masses has no ends and he soon attempts to block a merger between UPS' owner CCA and Saudi Arabians. Obviously the CCA aren't happy about this and attempt to put end to Beale once and for all. But, as Network shows us throughout, people are guided by television and trust it more than they do the people in their own lives.
Coming into Network, I was expecting it to all revolve around Peter Finch as Howard Beale, but I was wrong. Even though Finch rightfully won the Best Actor Oscar, I would've said he was more of a supporting performer while William Holden was the real star of the show. Holden's Schumacher is the wise old sage of the film and he is the only person who doesn't always think about what's best for ratings. Chayefsky's satirical look at the world of television is incredibly witty and the dialogue is written with a sort of beat at the heart of it. Finch is utterly spellbinding as the crazy Beale while Faye Dunaway puts in an Oscar-winning performance as Diana. I found Dunaway to be great here also, playing the strong woman in a man's world she was almost the tragic heroine of the piece as she discovered that she couldn't be anything other than her job. Robert Duvall as the company' money man and Ned Beatty as CCA's chairman both put in great supporting turns with the latter really playing the film's version of the devil incarnate. In fact, the only cast member not to make much of an impression was Beatrice Straight, odd seeing as she won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role in the film. Straight does hold the record for appearing on screen for the shortest time. Network continues Lumet's love of filming inside a certain location, with the UPS network buildings housing the majority of the film. Once again these buildings feel quite claustrophobic as they contain rooms full of people talking about meaningless statistics and programme concepts. Overall, I found Network to be a more wholly enjoyable film than Dog Day Afternoon even if it wasn't as intriguing or gripping. Network, and in particular its script, has influenced a whole generation of directors and screenwriters, many of whom have mocked the industry in which they made their name. Though Network is an incredibly influential film, it still holds up today in its own right and I do think people should seek it out if they haven't already seen it.
Next time we take things a bit easier with a lightweight comedy about the afterlife.
One of the things that makes 12 Angry Men so effective is that it's almost entirely set in the jury room and I felt the same way about Dog Day Afternoon. Though it's not restricted to one setting, Dog Day Afternoon is almost wholly set in and around a bank that is being robbed. The film begins with Sal and Sonny robbing a bank and attempting to commit the crime without being caught. Things soon go awry when they discover that there's hardly any money left in the bank and instead decides to steal a bunch of traveller's cheques. However, as Sonny tries to burn off the bank's register on the cheques, smoke starts to billow from the bank which in turn alerts locals that something's not right at the bank. Soon the pair are discovered and the police descend on the bank and, as they attempt to diffuse the situation, we learn more about our central pair. As Sonny is the man that the police are in constant contact with, he comes out of the bank on several occasions to talk to Detective Moretti, the policeman in charge of handling the hostage situation. Sonny soon becomes a local hero as he is attempting to stand up for the common man. Sonny later becomes a gay icon as we discover he married a man in a secret ceremony and has robbed the bank in order to pay for his wife Leon's sexual reassignment surgery. However, Leon is less than thrilled with this revelation and it seems as if he's been trying to escape Sonny for years. Meanwhile, the more menacing Sal is getting increasingly agitated as he doesn't really care for Sonny's flamboyance and his need to be a friend to all of their hostages. Soon, the stage is set for the final act in which Sonny and Sal attempt to escape, while the police endeavour to stop them.
I found Dog Day Afternoon to be a slow burning story that took its time to develop. It was only after Moretti and his team arrived that I really started to get involved in the film. Lumet and writer Frank Piersen create an intriguing anti-hero in Sonny, a character who we begin to learn more of once the hostage situation is in full swing. Throughout the film our perception of Sonny changes as we learn that, in an odd sort of way, he's trying to do the best for everyone. The character of Sal is more interesting, as we have to make our own minds up about him, and he really isn't as in your face as Sonny is. The pairing of Al Pacino and John Cazale is a great one and their loud and calm double act contrasts their roles in The Godfather films. I found Pacino to be more captivating here than he was in The Godfather films and I found that the character of Sonny really tested him. Meanwhile Chris Sarandon was brilliant in his handful of scenes as Leon, the pre-op transsexual who wanted nothing to do with his new husband. The claustrophobic nature of the over-heated bank added to the tense feel of the film as Sonny started to lose his head. As I'd never seen the film before, I have to admit that the final sequence had me on the edge of my seat. I felt that Dog Day Afternoon perfectly enforced my views that Lumet is an assured director who gets the best out of his actors and utilises his setting to full effect.
If I hadn't thought that already then I would've definitely to come that conclusion after watching Network. Of all of Lumet's films Network definitely did the best at the Oscars and Paddy Chayefsky's script is still widely regarded as one of the best of all time. Though I'd never seen Network before I was aware that it centred around Peter Finch's Howard Beale and the fact that he claimed he was going to commit suicide live on air. What I didn't realise was that the main story was a lot bigger than that and involved the UBS Network's head of programming Diana Christensen and her wish to put Beale back on the air after he becomes one of the biggest talking points in the country. Christensen is portrayed as a woman who puts her career before anything else and can't seem to sustain a relationship with anyone. Even her affair with the married former head of news Max Schumacher doesn't satisfy her and he eventually tries to act as the voice of reason in the film. Meanwhile Beale's power over the masses has no ends and he soon attempts to block a merger between UPS' owner CCA and Saudi Arabians. Obviously the CCA aren't happy about this and attempt to put end to Beale once and for all. But, as Network shows us throughout, people are guided by television and trust it more than they do the people in their own lives.
Coming into Network, I was expecting it to all revolve around Peter Finch as Howard Beale, but I was wrong. Even though Finch rightfully won the Best Actor Oscar, I would've said he was more of a supporting performer while William Holden was the real star of the show. Holden's Schumacher is the wise old sage of the film and he is the only person who doesn't always think about what's best for ratings. Chayefsky's satirical look at the world of television is incredibly witty and the dialogue is written with a sort of beat at the heart of it. Finch is utterly spellbinding as the crazy Beale while Faye Dunaway puts in an Oscar-winning performance as Diana. I found Dunaway to be great here also, playing the strong woman in a man's world she was almost the tragic heroine of the piece as she discovered that she couldn't be anything other than her job. Robert Duvall as the company' money man and Ned Beatty as CCA's chairman both put in great supporting turns with the latter really playing the film's version of the devil incarnate. In fact, the only cast member not to make much of an impression was Beatrice Straight, odd seeing as she won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role in the film. Straight does hold the record for appearing on screen for the shortest time. Network continues Lumet's love of filming inside a certain location, with the UPS network buildings housing the majority of the film. Once again these buildings feel quite claustrophobic as they contain rooms full of people talking about meaningless statistics and programme concepts. Overall, I found Network to be a more wholly enjoyable film than Dog Day Afternoon even if it wasn't as intriguing or gripping. Network, and in particular its script, has influenced a whole generation of directors and screenwriters, many of whom have mocked the industry in which they made their name. Though Network is an incredibly influential film, it still holds up today in its own right and I do think people should seek it out if they haven't already seen it.
Next time we take things a bit easier with a lightweight comedy about the afterlife.
Friday, 13 September 2013
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Day 231: Boxing Clever
So far in the 1970s we've seen a lot of worthy winners of the Best Picture accolade - The French Connection, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and The Godfather films. However, not all Best Picture winners can meet the lofty heights of these cinematic masterpieces. A case in point is the next film on the list - Rocky, which is often regarded as one of the films that shouldn't have won the award. I've personally viewed Rocky as a sports movie but boxing does play a very small part in the first part of the franchise.
Like with Star Wars, I feel that Rocky is sometimes judged a series of films rather than just one alone. While the sequels had a sort of camp value to them, the first Rocky film has a simple story and a good heart. Though I'm guessing most of you would've seen the film, the Rocky of the title is Sylvester Stallone's debt collector and amateur boxer Rocky Balboa. The majority of the movie is based on the current state of Rocky's life as he is kicked out of the gym he's trained at for years and chastised by his boss for being too kind. Indeed, Rocky's one pleasure life is going to his local pet store mainly because he's in love with shop assistant Adrian, the timid sister of Rocky's best friend Paulie. Rocky' life changes after world champion Apollo Creed selects Rocky to be his opponent in a special match, following the injury of Apollo's top title contender. While Apollo views the bout as nothing more than a show, Rocky treats it as a fight and trains the hardest he's ever trained. At the same time, Rocky and Adrian grow closer and I feel that the film is just as much a love story as it is a film about boxing.
It's fair to say that the most memorable scenes from Rocky are the ones involving the boxing match and Rocky's training for it. We remember his punching of the meat and his running up down the steps as well as the iconic 'Gonna Fly Now', which was nominated for Best Original song. What we don't recall is that the majority of the film is simply about Rocky going about his daily life and trying to make something of himself. His courtship with Adrian are some of the film's most compelling scenes as Rocky explains how he came to be a boxer in the first place. Though he probably lost sight of the character in later films, Sylvester Stallone really made Rocky a sympathetic character who you wanted to follow. Stallone's script was simplistic but at the same time believable and I never felt bored. All in all the film received four acting nominations for Stallone alongside Burgess Meredith as long-in-the-tooth coach Mickey and Burt Young as Paulie. For me though the best performance came from Talia Shire who transformed from meek wallflower into Rocky's gorgeous girlfriend. While I liked the film, I can't really say it was a masterpiece and it didn't really feel like a film that deserved winning Best Picture. Ultimately Rocky is a great character study with some memorable set pieces and fine performances which makes it more than just a sports movie. But you'll just have to wait and see to find out who I thought should have won Best Picture at the 1977 ceremony.
Next time a double bill of films from the director of one of my favourite films of all time.
Like with Star Wars, I feel that Rocky is sometimes judged a series of films rather than just one alone. While the sequels had a sort of camp value to them, the first Rocky film has a simple story and a good heart. Though I'm guessing most of you would've seen the film, the Rocky of the title is Sylvester Stallone's debt collector and amateur boxer Rocky Balboa. The majority of the movie is based on the current state of Rocky's life as he is kicked out of the gym he's trained at for years and chastised by his boss for being too kind. Indeed, Rocky's one pleasure life is going to his local pet store mainly because he's in love with shop assistant Adrian, the timid sister of Rocky's best friend Paulie. Rocky' life changes after world champion Apollo Creed selects Rocky to be his opponent in a special match, following the injury of Apollo's top title contender. While Apollo views the bout as nothing more than a show, Rocky treats it as a fight and trains the hardest he's ever trained. At the same time, Rocky and Adrian grow closer and I feel that the film is just as much a love story as it is a film about boxing.
It's fair to say that the most memorable scenes from Rocky are the ones involving the boxing match and Rocky's training for it. We remember his punching of the meat and his running up down the steps as well as the iconic 'Gonna Fly Now', which was nominated for Best Original song. What we don't recall is that the majority of the film is simply about Rocky going about his daily life and trying to make something of himself. His courtship with Adrian are some of the film's most compelling scenes as Rocky explains how he came to be a boxer in the first place. Though he probably lost sight of the character in later films, Sylvester Stallone really made Rocky a sympathetic character who you wanted to follow. Stallone's script was simplistic but at the same time believable and I never felt bored. All in all the film received four acting nominations for Stallone alongside Burgess Meredith as long-in-the-tooth coach Mickey and Burt Young as Paulie. For me though the best performance came from Talia Shire who transformed from meek wallflower into Rocky's gorgeous girlfriend. While I liked the film, I can't really say it was a masterpiece and it didn't really feel like a film that deserved winning Best Picture. Ultimately Rocky is a great character study with some memorable set pieces and fine performances which makes it more than just a sports movie. But you'll just have to wait and see to find out who I thought should have won Best Picture at the 1977 ceremony.
Next time a double bill of films from the director of one of my favourite films of all time.
Thursday, 12 September 2013
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Day 229-230: The Rise of the Summer Blockbuster
Throughout my reviews of 1970s films I've noted how many of the stars and directors would go on to change the cinematic landscape. One such film-maker was Steven Spielberg who, in 1975, essentially created the summer blockbuster. At the time Spielberg had only directed one cinematic feature, The Sugarland Express, and so nobody expected his film about a shark to be particularly historical. But, by putting the film out over the summer, traditionally the time in which studios dumped their less-appealing films, Spielberg capitalised on a new market. His film went on to become the most successful film of all time, for at least two years, and essentially created what we know today as the summer blockbuster.
That film was of course Jaws, adapted from the book by Peter Benchley, and focusing on a shark which threatens the residents of the close-nit Amity Island. Amity's Chief of Police Martin Brody is the first to identify a shark attack after a young girl is killed. But the island's mayor is keen not to close the beach as summer season is on its way. The mayor also clashes with Brody, who was once a cop in the big city, as he doesn't think he understands island life. Following another death by shark, Brody calls in marine biologist Matt Hooper who is able to identify the type of shark the islanders should be looking for. With summer trade at its busiest, the shark strikes again and it's only then that the mayor instructs Brody to hunt down the animal. Brody hires old sea dog Quint and he and Hooper join him on the hunt for the shark. Obviously the search is hard and the mismatched trio don't always live harmoniously together. Indeed Quint's old-fashioned mentality and Hooper's gadgetry aren't best suited to one another while Brody's hatred of the water doesn't exactly make him the ideal candidate to look for a shark.
One of the joys of watching Jaws is the simplicity of the story and the way in which the shark is introduced through the trickery of the screen. Indeed, it is John Williams' score that created the iconic shark and every time those notes are played you know the threat is imminent. Spielberg's high-concept plot meant that audiences didn't have to think too much about what was going on and instead enjoyed the first real summer blockbuster. However, Jaws isn't a blockbuster in the way we know today and isn't chocked full of special effects and wafer-thin characters. The story was the most important thing for Spielberg, who hired many people to edit Benchley's original script, and he wanted the first two thirds of the story to build up to the three men in a boat adventure. I found this build-up to be incredibly masterfully produced with the islanders willing to ignore the threat of the shark until it was right there in front of them. As Brody, Roy Scheider provided the world-weariness of a man who just wanted to do the right thing and was thwarted at every corner. The then unknown Richard Dreyfuss was a ball-of-energy as the enigmatic Hooper and was the perfect antidote to Robert Shaw's cantankerous Quint. Jaws is primarily a film about three men at different stages in their life who just happen to be chasing a man-eating shark. Jaws definitely still looks as good today as it did when it was released and it proves that most blockbusters just need a good story and an effective way to signify the main villain.
John Williams was back two years later signifying the main villain in another summer blockbuster, which overtook Jaws as the most successful film of all time. That film was Star Wars, a movie that has become incredibly famous to the extent where I feel I don't really need to review it. This is because that everybody has their own memory of when they first watched Star Wars and for me it was watching the trilogy back-to-back just before The Phantom Menace was released in 1999. Though I've caught it on the TV in the following years, this was my chance to watch it through a film graduate's eyes and change some of my memories of the film. It's actually quite hard to write about Star Wars without hurting someone's feelings but the first thing I should say is that it's not that spectacular. I feel when people reminisce about Star Wars they're thinking about the whole trilogy but judging the first film by itself is a lot different. Obviously the film is made great by the special effects, which at the time were ground-breaking, and there's no denying that watching someone pull out a lightsaber for the first time is a truly magical experience. Similarly characters like Chewbacca or Darth Vader just didn't exist in normal mainstream cinema back then and I feel that audiences would've been intrigued by their presence. Obviously John Williams reserves some credit for the aforementioned score which instantly brings back memories of both the film's opening and Darth Vader's legendary strut down the death star.
Director George Lucas was really able to create an incredible universe of characters, planets and spaceships with the mythology of the Star Wars universe seeming vast and mysterious. At the same time the characters of Luke, Leia and Han feel fairly simplistic while the central plot is incredibly basic. However, Lucas was lucky with his choice of actors all of whom share great chemistry. Harrison Ford was an inspired choice to play the swaggering Han Solo and he was totally believable as a gambling drunk. Wide-eyed Mark Hammil perfectly encapsulated the innocent Luke while Carrie Fisher combined sexiness with strength to play Leia who could easily hold her own amongst the boys. Bringing gravitas to proceedings was Alec Guinness as Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi though his casting was mainly to appease the studio heads who didn't like the fact he was casting unknowns. Acting and visuals aside; my 2013 viewing experience of Star Wars was pleasant enough but it didn't blow me away. I can understand how audiences at the time would've been dazzled by everything they saw on screen but today I feel that Star Wars, if judged as a film on its own, is nothing more than an entertaining two hour romp. A while back I had an argument with a friend who was trying to explain to me why Star Wars should have won Best Picture over the film that eventually triumphed. His argument was based on the film's legacy but, at the time, there was no legacy to speak off and the Academy purely had to go on the quality of the overall film. It seemed the Oscars did acknowledge the film's main strengths and gave it six awards mainly in the sound, visual effects and art direction categories. However, I would argue that the film itself isn't exactly a masterpiece even if it influenced hundreds of sci-fi films that would come after it.
Next up we get into the ring with a contender that became a Best Picture Winner.
That film was of course Jaws, adapted from the book by Peter Benchley, and focusing on a shark which threatens the residents of the close-nit Amity Island. Amity's Chief of Police Martin Brody is the first to identify a shark attack after a young girl is killed. But the island's mayor is keen not to close the beach as summer season is on its way. The mayor also clashes with Brody, who was once a cop in the big city, as he doesn't think he understands island life. Following another death by shark, Brody calls in marine biologist Matt Hooper who is able to identify the type of shark the islanders should be looking for. With summer trade at its busiest, the shark strikes again and it's only then that the mayor instructs Brody to hunt down the animal. Brody hires old sea dog Quint and he and Hooper join him on the hunt for the shark. Obviously the search is hard and the mismatched trio don't always live harmoniously together. Indeed Quint's old-fashioned mentality and Hooper's gadgetry aren't best suited to one another while Brody's hatred of the water doesn't exactly make him the ideal candidate to look for a shark.
One of the joys of watching Jaws is the simplicity of the story and the way in which the shark is introduced through the trickery of the screen. Indeed, it is John Williams' score that created the iconic shark and every time those notes are played you know the threat is imminent. Spielberg's high-concept plot meant that audiences didn't have to think too much about what was going on and instead enjoyed the first real summer blockbuster. However, Jaws isn't a blockbuster in the way we know today and isn't chocked full of special effects and wafer-thin characters. The story was the most important thing for Spielberg, who hired many people to edit Benchley's original script, and he wanted the first two thirds of the story to build up to the three men in a boat adventure. I found this build-up to be incredibly masterfully produced with the islanders willing to ignore the threat of the shark until it was right there in front of them. As Brody, Roy Scheider provided the world-weariness of a man who just wanted to do the right thing and was thwarted at every corner. The then unknown Richard Dreyfuss was a ball-of-energy as the enigmatic Hooper and was the perfect antidote to Robert Shaw's cantankerous Quint. Jaws is primarily a film about three men at different stages in their life who just happen to be chasing a man-eating shark. Jaws definitely still looks as good today as it did when it was released and it proves that most blockbusters just need a good story and an effective way to signify the main villain.
John Williams was back two years later signifying the main villain in another summer blockbuster, which overtook Jaws as the most successful film of all time. That film was Star Wars, a movie that has become incredibly famous to the extent where I feel I don't really need to review it. This is because that everybody has their own memory of when they first watched Star Wars and for me it was watching the trilogy back-to-back just before The Phantom Menace was released in 1999. Though I've caught it on the TV in the following years, this was my chance to watch it through a film graduate's eyes and change some of my memories of the film. It's actually quite hard to write about Star Wars without hurting someone's feelings but the first thing I should say is that it's not that spectacular. I feel when people reminisce about Star Wars they're thinking about the whole trilogy but judging the first film by itself is a lot different. Obviously the film is made great by the special effects, which at the time were ground-breaking, and there's no denying that watching someone pull out a lightsaber for the first time is a truly magical experience. Similarly characters like Chewbacca or Darth Vader just didn't exist in normal mainstream cinema back then and I feel that audiences would've been intrigued by their presence. Obviously John Williams reserves some credit for the aforementioned score which instantly brings back memories of both the film's opening and Darth Vader's legendary strut down the death star.
Director George Lucas was really able to create an incredible universe of characters, planets and spaceships with the mythology of the Star Wars universe seeming vast and mysterious. At the same time the characters of Luke, Leia and Han feel fairly simplistic while the central plot is incredibly basic. However, Lucas was lucky with his choice of actors all of whom share great chemistry. Harrison Ford was an inspired choice to play the swaggering Han Solo and he was totally believable as a gambling drunk. Wide-eyed Mark Hammil perfectly encapsulated the innocent Luke while Carrie Fisher combined sexiness with strength to play Leia who could easily hold her own amongst the boys. Bringing gravitas to proceedings was Alec Guinness as Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi though his casting was mainly to appease the studio heads who didn't like the fact he was casting unknowns. Acting and visuals aside; my 2013 viewing experience of Star Wars was pleasant enough but it didn't blow me away. I can understand how audiences at the time would've been dazzled by everything they saw on screen but today I feel that Star Wars, if judged as a film on its own, is nothing more than an entertaining two hour romp. A while back I had an argument with a friend who was trying to explain to me why Star Wars should have won Best Picture over the film that eventually triumphed. His argument was based on the film's legacy but, at the time, there was no legacy to speak off and the Academy purely had to go on the quality of the overall film. It seemed the Oscars did acknowledge the film's main strengths and gave it six awards mainly in the sound, visual effects and art direction categories. However, I would argue that the film itself isn't exactly a masterpiece even if it influenced hundreds of sci-fi films that would come after it.
Next up we get into the ring with a contender that became a Best Picture Winner.
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