Nominees: Aparajito, Lust for Life, The Wrong Man, Street of Shame, Samurai 3: Duel at Ganryu Island, Gervaise, Patterns, The Bitter Stems
Oscars pick: Around the World in 80 Days
Nominees: Friendly Persuasion, Giant, the King and I, The 10 Commandments
Around the World in 80 Days is the worst flick to ever win Best Picture. Some folks call it somewhat entertaining -- about the only entertainment I derived from it was in the cameo by Buster Keaton. The cinematography was pretty, but the movie is a ponderous, overlong, glorified travelogue.
If the Academy hadn't already stubbed its toe giving DeMille's Greatest Show on Earth the award a few years back, they might have gone with the superior 10 Commandments. Tomatoes called it "Bombastic and occasionally silly but extravagantly entertaining. Of Oscar's nominees, that's my favorite.
The movie that many embrace as the year's best wasn’t even nominated, John Ford's The Searchers. It's a breathtakingly beautiful looking film and Ford's manner of filming vistas with a wide-open line of sight has been imitated by the likes of Kurosawa and Eastwood. The general composition of the piece is so impressive that one could sit back and appreciate single frame shots of the film as they would art in a gallery.
The story of two men’s tireless pursuit of a tribe of Indians that killed and kidnapped members of their family - makes for one of the greatest, most powerful.... and troubling westerns ever produced. It’s about a changing west, and a man, Ethan Edwards, who is set in that past, and who is fueled by hatred for those he hunts (and by his unspoken love for Martha.) It features one of John Wayne’s finest performances, one of the best of any actor in any age. He shows a great range - in quiet moments when you see the subtle anguish on his face when he realizes that he’s too far away to save his family from being massacred. In the volatile, as when he expresses his anger and sickness over what he saw in the hills. And the twisted small smile he wears when he shoots the eyes of a dead Indian. The racism in the man is white hot and ugly. However, in the end, it is love that prevails. The Duke spoke about what was going on in Ethan's mind when picked up Debbie and looked into her face in that final sequence. Wayne figured he saw in her eyes the woman he'd loved (Martha), and that was enough to overcome his hatred.
So why did I even consider another film? Because the Searchers has its flaws. The theatrical romance and moments of ham-fisted comedy (especially during the letter reading scenes) are awkwardly slotted into the story. But when I watched my other contender’s looking for something better. None could surpass Ford's masterpiece.
Note: Here are some interesting thoughts on the movie and the stellar book by Glenn Frankel (The Searchers: The Making of an American Legend) from Martin Scorsese
The Searchers strongest competition came from Vincente Minnelli and his look at the life of Vincent van Gogh, Lust for Life speaks to me on a deeply personal level. I know how the creative process can consume you; it’s something akin to madness.
Other movies I enjoyed and considered for nomination: Kubrick's tense noir caper, The Killing, which is highlighted by quick cutting dialog and vivid performances, especially Sterling Hayden, Elisha Cook Jr. and Marie Windsor as one devilishly delightful femme fatale. A couple of sci-fi classics, Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The Forbidden Planet, (which was Shakespeare in space). Bigger than Life, Nicholas Ray's honest, if melodramatic examination of drug addiction, Bunuel's gripping Death in the Garden, the drama Tea and Sympathy (ignore the tacked-on epilogue), and the western produced by John Wayne’s company, Seven Men from Now.
Honorable Mentions:
Ellie Lambeti, A Girl in Black * Carol Baker, Baby Doll * Betsy Blair, Calle Mayor * Vera Miles, The Wrong Man * Machiko Kyō, Street of Shame * Simone Signoret, Death in the Garden * Marie Windsor, The Killing * Karuna Banerjee, Aparajito * Patty McCormack, The Bad Seed
Honorable Mentions:
Kirk Douglas, Lust for Life * James Mason, Bigger Than Life * Henry Fonda, The Wrong Man * Toshirō Mifune, Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island * Carlos Cores, Bitter Stems * Eli Wallach & Karl Malden, Baby Doll * Sterling Hayden, The Killing * Humphrey Bogart, The Harder They Fall
