1962

Harakiri (Director: Masaki Kobayashi)

Nominees: To Kill a Mockingbird, Cléo from 5 to 7, The Trial, The Exterminating Angel, The Miracle Worker, The Devil's Trap, Kanchenjungha, The Inheritance, Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, The Graceful Brute, Ivan's Childhood, The Given Word

Oscars pick: Lawrence of Arabia
Nominees: The Longest Day, The Music Man, Mutiny on the Bounty, To Kill a Mockingbird

David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia can sometimes get as dry as the desert its set in. The film lasts nearly 4 hours, and it feels like it, with wide-angle long shot sequences that stretch out beyond reason. But it does tell its tale –set during WWI- on a grand scale. And it frequently sparks to life with humor, adventure, and sharp character interaction, AND Peter O’Toole is impressively charismatic. Nevertheless, I don’t find it the unassailable best picture of the year as many do; it can get repetitive (twice Lawrence has a breakdown, is resolute in wanting out, but is suddenly made to change his mind) and sometimes O’Toole just stares and flashes those pretty blue eyes in lieu of acting.

A film I preferred was the transcendent Harakiri, a brutal but brilliant indictment of the Bushido code.

It's a film that cuts deep emotionally and challenges you intellectually. It asks you to be an active viewer, to puzzle out the mystery and the implications behind it - what it means to this society, and to governments, and ideologies and humanity as a whole. It's scathing, and says "to hell with the rhetoric and sloganeering... let us see the unvarnished truth behind the bullshit!"

It runs long but doesn't feel long. There's not an unnecessary scene because it all matters, everything speaks to the themes of honor (true honor, not the facade put up by those in power), of what it means to be a parent, what it means to be a human being.

Harakiri is a film of visual widescreen beauty, with images that are meaningful and tell the story as much as the dialog. It's incredibly acted - carried by Tatsuya Nakadai somber performance. All in all, it's a towering cinematic achievement in a year filled with fantastic pictures.

Note: Here's a list of other movies I liked. Spotlight on '62

Best Actress: Anne Bancroft, The Miracle Worker
Honorable Mentions:
Leslie Caron, The L-Shaped Room * Irene Papas, Electra & Antigone * Anna Karina, Vivre sa vie * Meena Kumari, Sahib bibi aur Ghulam * Sayuri Yoshinaga, Foundry Town * Corinne Marchand, Cleo from 5 to 7 * Bette Davis, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane * Janet Margolin, David and Lisa

Best Actor: Tatsuya Nakadai, Harakiri (pictured top)

Honorable Mentions:
Leonardo Villar, The Given Word * Toshirō Mifune, Sanjuro * Gregory Peck, To Kill a Mockingbird * James Mason, Lolita * James Stewart & John Wayne, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance * Anthony Perkins, The Trial * Robert Mitchum, Cape Fear * Peter O'Toole, Lawrence of Arabia * Soumitra Chatterjee, Abhijan * Per Oscarsson, The Doll

Supporting Actress: Angela Lansbury, The Manchurian Candidate 
Runners up: Patty Duke, The Miracle Worker, Mary Badham, To Kill a Mockingbird & Margaret Johnston, Night of the Eagle

Supporting Actor: Peter Sellers, Lolita (pictured above)

  

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