Nominees: Exotica, The Shawshank Redemption, Leon: The Professional, Quiz Show, Three Colors: White, Chunking Express, Pulp Fiction, Crumb, Before the Rain, Vanya on 42nd Street, Hoop Dreams
Oscars pick: Forrest Gump
Nominees: Four Weddings and a Funeral, Pulp Fiction, Quiz Show, The Shawshank Redemption
I don't loathe the flawed Forrest Gump. While criticisms are valid, I find worth in its clever and fascinating technical characteristics. Nevertheless, in a year with so many great movies, I don't see how it earns even a nomination. Consider the competition and you'll find a landslide of film more worthy of the little guy in gold.
The motion picture a lot of people latch onto in 1995 is Pulp Fiction. And while I do not number myself among the Tarantino faithful, even I have to admit that this was damn fine filmmaking. I was especially fond of the Bruce Willis bits. Pulp has been analyzed and debated to death (is it neo-noir, is it postmodernism?) Me, I see it as clip-art. The director stuck together a lot of bits and pieces from other movies (for example, the adrenaline needle scene, which is lifted straight from Scorsese's little-seen documentary American Boy) and somehow pulled it all together to make something weird and distinctly his.
For me, there were far better movies than Oscar's Gump -- even several that are stronger than the peoples champion, Pulp.
And what a crowded field: From the beautifully scripted and acted Quiz Show and Shawshank Redemption, to the unique, anti-narrative of 'Hong Kong Second Wave' film master, Wong Kar Wai, and his challenging Chungking Express (which was a favorite of Tarantino's). There were also a couple of superb documentaries, which Oscar inexplicably ignored
Above these stands my #2, Exotica from Canadian writer/director Atom Egoyan. Focused around a strip club, the story explores the tragic and dispirited lives of its characters. It is one of the most original, complex and sad/touching movies I've ever seen (See Roger Ebert's thoughtful essay on the film at his website rogerebert.com).
My #1 is Kryzystof Kieslowski's Three Colors: Red. The final chapter in a trilogy, it is a poignant piece that excels on every cinematic level - from color to sound to editing to script. I loved Film Critic Geoff Andrew’s insightful critique...
"While Kieslowski dips into various interconnecting lives, the central drama is the electrifying encounter between Valentine - caring, troubled - and the judge, whose tendency to play God fails to match, initially, the girl's compassion. It's a film about destiny and chance, solitude and communication, cynicism and faith, doubt and desire; about lives affected by forces beyond rationalization. The assured direction avoids woolly mysticism by using material resources - actors, color, movement, composition, sound - to illuminate abstract concepts. Stunningly beautiful, powerfully scored and immaculately performed, the film is virtually flawless, and one of the very greatest cinematic achievements of the last few decades. A masterpiece."
Geoff echoes my sentiments to a tee. I recently spent 6 hours of my life going over the 3 Colors Trilogy again and by the end, there was not a doubt in my mind what the best film of 1994 was. Red is a remarkable achievement, a work of art in every sense of the word.
This was Kryzystof's final film; he died in 1996 after botched heart surgery. While Oscar did reward him with a best director nod, it did not offer the movie a best picture or best foreign language film nomination. Ultimately the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences pulled a Mr. Bungle -- breaking up a good 3-year run for itself and slipping back into safe, tepid waters.
Honorable Mentions:
Irène Jacob, Three Colors: Red * Isabelle Adjani, Queen Margot * Natalie Portman, Leon * Julianne Moore, Vanya on 42nd Street * Toni Collette, Muriel's Wedding * Sandrine Bonnaire, Joan the Maid I & II * Sandra Oh, Double Happiness * Inna Churikova, The Year of the Dog
Honorable Mentions:
Jean-Louis Trintignant, Three Colors Red * Samuel L. Jackson, Pulp Fiction * Nigel Hawthorne, The Madness of King George * Johnny Depp, Ed Wood * Ralph Fiennes, Quiz Show * Morgan Freeman & Tim Robbins, The Shawshank Redemption * Xia Yu, In the Heat of the Sun
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