I smell a meme!
Academy Award Nominees for Best Picture over the last 165432165245 years. You know how it goes, bold the one's you've seen.
1944 (17th)
Going My Way
Double Indemnity
Gaslight
Since You Went Away
Wilson
1945 (18th)
The Lost Weekend
Anchors Aweigh
The Bells of St. Mary's
Mildred Pierce
Spellbound
1946 (19th)
The Best Years of Our Lives
Henry V
It's a Wonderful Life: I've seen parts of it here and there and I just never really got into it
The Razor's Edge
The Yearling
1947 (20th)
Gentleman's Agreement
The Bishop's Wife
Crossfire
Great Expectations
Miracle on 34th Street
1948 (21st)
Hamlet: I love the play, but I've only seen the weird Mel Gibson version because my 9th grade English teacher had a thing for Mel--weird.
Johnny Belinda
The Red Shoes
The Snake Pit
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
1949 (22nd)
All the King's Men
Battleground
The Heiress
A Letter to Three Wives
Twelve O'Clock High
1950 (23rd)
All about Eve
Born Yesterday
Father of the Bride
King Solomon's Mines
Sunset Blvd.
1951 (24th)
An American in Paris
Decision before Dawn
A Place in the Sun
Quo Vadis
A Streetcar Named Desire
1952 (25th)
The Greatest Show on Earth
High Noon
Ivanhoe
Moulin Rouge
The Quiet Man
1953 (26th)
From Here to Eternity
Julius Caesar: Read the play, left me kind "eh" so I'm not inclined to see this
The Robe
Roman Holiday
Shane
1954 (27th)
On the Waterfront: Just saw this a few months ago. Very good, and I'm not a big Brando fan, but he was quite good in it
The Caine Mutiny
The Country Girl
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: I watched most of it, it's good cheesy fun
Three Coins in the Fountain
1955 (28th)
Marty
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
Mister Roberts
Picnic
The Rose Tattoo
1956 (29th)
Around the World in 80 Days
Friendly Persuasion
Giant
The King and I
The Ten Commandments: I've seen it so many times I could probably qoute huge chunks of it, yet it will never make my top movies list. I don't know why--maybe it's because Charlton Heston rubs me the wrong way in RL and now I find it harder to watch him in any movie.
1957 (30th)
The Bridge on the River Kwai: Love. It. I got it for my dad one Christmas and we watched it together and I've been in love with it ever since. It also marked the beginning of my love for Sir Alec Guiness.
Peyton Place
Sayonara
12 Angry Men
Witness for the Prosecution
1958 (31st)
Gigi
Auntie Mame
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
The Defiant Ones
Separate Tables
1959 (32nd)
Ben-Hur
Anatomy of a Murder
The Diary of Anne Frank
The Nun's Story
Room at the Top
1960 (33rd)
The Apartment
The Alamo
Elmer Gantry
Sons and Lovers
The Sundowners
1961 (34th)
West Side Story: First saw it in 8th grade. I liked it alright, but it doesn't own me like Fiddler does.
Fanny
The Guns of The Navarone
The Hustler
Judgment at Nuremberg
1962 (35th)
Lawrence of Arabia: Oh god, I love this movie! I started watching it on TCM one day and had to leave part-way through and later I bought it at Target for, like, $9 and it was the best $9 ever spent on a movie. I already loved both Peter O'Toole and Alec Guiness, but the thing that keeps me coming back again and again is the beautiful photography. This is the kind of movie CineaScope was made for. Oh, and the fabulous soundtrack too! And Omar Sharif!!!!!!
The Longest Day
Meredith Willson's The Music Man
Mutiny on the Bounty
To Kill a Mockingbird
1963 (36th)
Tom Jones
America America
Cleopatra
How the West Was Won
Lilies of the Field
1964 (37th)
My Fair Lady
Becket
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb: I haven't, but I want to. To my Netflix queue!
Mary Poppins
Zorba the Greek
1965 (38th)
The Sound of Music: I saw it when I was younger and I was all "And?" I just don't get the hooplah over it. Say what you will, that's just how I feel.
Darling
Doctor Zhivago: This, I have an inordinate amount of love for. First, Alec Guiness (of course!). Second, Omar Sharif (younger Omar Sharif is so very pretty). And of course the score. Who cares if it doesn't always adhere very well to the book, David Lean films own me in a way I can't explain.
Ship of Fools
A Thousand Clowns
1966 (39th)
A Man for All Seasons
Alfie
The Russians Are Coming The Russians Are Coming
The Sand Pebbles
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
1967 (40th)
In the Heat of the Night
Bonnie and Clyde
The Graduate
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
1968 (41st)
Oliver!
Funny Girl
The Lion in Winter
Rachel, Rachel
Romeo and Juliet
1969 (42nd)
Midnight Cowboy
Anne of the Thousand Days
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Hello, Dolly!
Z
1970 (43rd)
Patton
Airport
Five Easy Pieces
Love Story: Alright, I may as well be honest. I watched it and I totally cried--like, a lot. I was alone at the time so there was no one there (mostly my mother) to make fun of me for crying at such a sappy, melodramatic, cloying movie. But I couldn't help it. (of course, I have also been known to cry at reruns of Full House and f-ing greeting card commercials if I'm in a weird emotional mood--which is more often than I'd like!)
MASH
1971 (44th)
The French Connection
A Clockwork Orange
Fiddler on the Roof: Like I said further up the list, this one totally owns me. I know every song, every part, every everything. It was the first musical I performed in during high school, and it will always be my favorite.
The Last Picture Show
Nicholas and Alexandra
1972 (45th)
The Godfather
Cabaret
Deliverance
Sounder
The Emigrants
1973 (46th)
The Sting
American Graffiti
The Exorcist
A Touch of Class
Cries and Whispers
1974 (47th)
The Godfather, Part II
Chinatown
The Conversation
Lenny
The Towering Inferno
1975 (48th)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Barry Lyndon
Dog Day Afternoon
Jaws: I don't get the draw of this. Please, someone explain it to me.
Nashville
1976 (49th)
Rocky
All the President's Men
Bound for Glory
Network: It's in my Netflix queue--it should be here later this week.
Taxi Driver
1977 (50th)
Annie Hall
The Goodbye Girl
Julia
Star Wars: Another one I Just. Don't. Get. And it's not that I'm against sci-fi, 'cause I'm not. And this has younger pterry Harrison Ford going for it, but it's just not enough to keep me interested.
The Turning Point
1978 (51st)
The Deer Hunter
Coming Home
Heaven Can Wait
Midnight Express
An Unmarried Woman
1979 (52nd)
Kramer vs. Kramer
Apocalypse Now: I saw the director's cut a couple of years ago and it was a lot longer and unevenly paced than I expected. There were some great things in it (I'm a big Martin Sheen fan), but I was left with this vague feeling of "huh?" at the end. I don't know.....it's one of those Important Films that everyone talks about ad nausem and you can't help but feel let down when you finally get to see it.
All That Jazz
Breaking Away
Norma Rae
1980 (53rd)
Ordinary People
Coal Miner's Daughter
The Elephant Man
Raging Bull
Tess
1981 (54th)
Chariots of Fire
Atlantic City
On Golden Pond
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Reds
1982 (55th)
Gandhi: It felt a bit long, but I got to see a younger Candice Bergen in it, so that was kinda fun.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Missing
Tootsie
The Verdict
1983 (56th)
Terms of Endearment: I saw it, I cried like you're supposed to, but I was left feeling "eh". Another one where the hype will ruin it for you if you are susceptible to that kind of thing (which I am a lot of the time--which is why I avoid reviews of new movies I want to see so my experience won't be colored by someone else's)
The Big Chill
The Dresser
The Right Stuff
Tender Mercies
1984 (57th)
Amadeus
The Killing Fields: Utterly horrifying and moving. Haing S. Ngor basically plays himself in the film, but the story is so engrossing that you don't care. And Sam Waterston earned every bit of his Oscar nomination.
A Passage to India
Places in the Heart
A Soldier's Story
1985 (58th)
Out of Africa
The Color Purple
Kiss of the Spider Woman
Prizzi's Honor
Witness
1986 (59th)
Platoon
Children of a Lesser God
Hannah and Her Sisters
The Mission: Has one of my favorite movie scores ever (and if you're a figure skating fan, you've heard selections fom it more time than you care to count). This is another one where the cinematography and score won me over.
A Room with a View
1987 (60th)
The Last Emperor
Broadcast News
Fatal Attraction
Hope and Glory
Moonstruck
1988 (61st)
Rain Man
The Accidental Tourist
Dangerous Liaisons
Mississippi Burning
Working Girl: I had no idea this was nominated, but I have to admit I was pleasantly surprise when I saw it. Maybe it was because it was 3 am, but I really liked this. It's a great example of bad -80s hair and fashion, Melanie Griffith before she went crazy with the collagen.
1989 (62nd)
Driving Miss Daisy
Born on the Fourth of July
Dead Poets Society
Field of Dreams: Eh, it was okay. Not a big Costner fan.
My Left Foot
1990 (63rd)
Dances With Wolves: One I liked when I first saw it but got ruined when I found out how wildly historically inaccurate it was. So much so that I haven't been able to bring myself to watch it since. But I love Mary McDonald!
Awakenings
Ghost:kinda hated this movie…mostly because I can't stand Swazye. And Demi's bowl cut.
Godfather, Part III
Goodfellas
1991 (64th)
The Silence of the Lambs: Creeped me the fuck out. So weird to see Ted Levine as Buffalo Bill.
Beauty and the Beast: I don't love it, I don't hate it
Bugsy
JFK
The Prince of Tides
1992 (65th)
Unforgiven: Clint Eastwood makes some of the most elegantly simple and beautiful movies. And that he still occassionally stars in them and does the score for them are bonuses. This film has an elegantly simple theme that repeats throughout and I just love it.
The Crying Game
A Few Good Men: This movie has so many good things going for it--an Aaron Sorkin-penned script, Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Pollack, Kevin Bacon, even Jack Nicholson keeps his scenery chewing to a minimum--that I can forgive it for starring Tom Cruise, whom I actually kinda like here. Perhaps it's the magic of Sorkin.
Howards End
Scent of a Woman
1993 (66th)
Schindler's List: This is one of those where I see it once and once is about all I can handle.
The Fugitive: This was nominated?! Huh. I remember liking it, but nothing specific comes to mind.
In the Name of the Father
The Piano
The Remains of the Day
1994 (67th)
Forrest Gump: I don't care if this is cloying--I love it! I bawl like a baby every time, just as I do when I watch Philadelphia (these two together make me love Tom Hanks an irrational amount--so much so that I'm willing to forgive craptastic fare live The Da Vinci Code).
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Pulp FictionApollo 13: I like it. Good actors, good visual effects, good suspense (which was difficult to do considering everyone knows what happens in the end). I forgot this was nominated.
Babe
Il Postinoenta
Sense and Sensibility
1996 (69th)
The English Patient
Fargo: I loved it. But it's really Frances McDormand that makes the movie. I'll admit to having an irrational love of Coen brothers' movies, but I thought this was fantastic. Oh, and William H. Macy!
Jerry Maguire: Alright, here's the thing. I wanted to like the movie, I really did. But this was an example of the whole NOT being greater than the sum of its parts. There were aspects I really liked (CubaGooding, Jr., actually, and Regina King), but as a whole, it felt too long and choppy and seemed like a thematic mess. Which I hear is endemic of all Cameron Crowe movies--I wouldn't know since I've only seen two.
Secrets & Lies
Shine
1997 (70th) (The one year where I have seen them all--and it only took me 9 years to do it!)
Titanic: I saw this one, I think, 3 times when it first came out. I remember loving ever second of it. I haven't sen it since, so I don't know it it's held up well over time. Anyone care to share about this, if they know?
As Good as It Gets: I've heard people bag on it recently, mostly about how Nicholson phoned it in, but I really like it. And I really liked him in it. This is definitely my fave James L. Brooks film.
The Full Monty: Years of watching Monty Python, and rcently Doctor who, Life on Mars, The Office, and various other British shows helped me enormously when I finally saw this during the summer. My mom said she remembered not being able to understand the first 20 mins. of the movie because the accents were so heavy, but it only took me about 5. And I liked it.
Good Will Hunting: The film that spawned Mattfleck. I remember loving this movie when I saw it in the theater, and I still do. To this day I still use "How do ya like them apples?!" on a regular basis. And I still love Matt Damon an inordinate amount.
L.A. Confidential: I love a good period noir. And this one was quite enjoyable, largely because Kevin Spacey didn't do any of his trademark scenery chewing. Kudos for that.
1998 (71st)
Shakespeare in Love: I really liked this when it came out, but I haven't seen it since. I wonder what I would think now that I'm a bit older?
Elizabeth
Life Is Beautiful: I cried my eyes out when I saw this when it came out. Don't know if I'd stil feel the same way today or not.
Saving Private Ryan: Didn't see this until after I'd seen the Hanks-produced WWII miniseries Band of Brothers (which really spolied me as far as all WWII dramatizations go), so I couldn't help comparing this movie to that miniseries. This was good, just not as good.
The Thin Red Line
1999 (72nd)
American Beauty
The Sixth Sense: I f-ing loved this! The first and still the best of Shamylan's films. I kinda feel for the guy--after a debut like this, it's impossible to live up to the expectations.
The Cider House Rules
The Green Mile
The Insider
2000 (73rd)
Gladiator
Chocolat
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Erin Brockovich: Good stuff, this. I recently rewatched it on TV and liked it a lot more than I rmembered.
Traffic
2001 (74th)
A Beautiful Mind: So sad. Remember seeing Paul Bettany in it and wondering who he was because he was great in this. What ever happened to him?
Gosford Park: Maybe I just wasn't in the right frame of mind to watch this but I was underwhelmed by it. But it has so many actors in it whom I like: MAggie Smith, Hellen Mirren, Clive Owen, Stephen Fry, Bob Balaban, Michael Gambon. Maybe I should re-watch it...
In the Bedroom
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring: Yet another one I Just. Don't. Get. I'm probably one of about 9 people who have seen it and weren't in awe of it. And it's not that I'm totally against the fantasy genre either.
Moulin Rouge!
2002 (75th)
Chicago: I lvoe it, second only to Fiddler. I love everything about it. This is how you do a movie musical for today's audience.
Gangs of New York: I wanted to love it, but I found myself having to work too hard to even like it a lot. Who knows....
The Hours
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
The Pianist: I saw it and I loved it. Plain and simple. I can only bring myself to watch it, like, once a year, but it's always worth it.
2003 (76th)
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Lost in Translation: I liked this. Great soundtrack. Yay for Bill Murray making a comeback!
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Mystic River: Not my favorite Clint Eastwood-directed flick, but I liked it nonetheless. I'm still kind of iffy about Sean Penn.
Seabiscuit: It sucked me in against my will--damn you, Seabiscuit!
2004 (77th)
Million Dollar Baby: My favorite Clint Eastwood ever. Such an intimate story and it sucks you in before you realize it. A deserving winner.
The Aviator: Cate Blanchette as Katherine Hepburn! Good stuff.
Finding Neverland
Ray: I liked it because it didn't shy away from showing him as the bastard he was sometimes.
Sideways: Love this! If you liked it, I recommend watching the DVD with commentary by Paul Giamatti and Thomas Hayden Church.
2005 (78th)
Crash: Good, not great, but good. Still don't think it deserved best picture though. That really belongs to...
Brokeback Mountain: Which should have won for best picture. I waited until after it was out on DVD and the hype died down and I'm glad I did because I loved it.
Munich
Capote: The dude was a manipulate bastard and they make no bones about that here. I was invested from beginning to end.
2006 (79th)
Babel
The Departed: It's bloody and violent and profane and I loved every second of it! Fantastic performances from everyone--I hope this is the one that break's Scorcese's losing streak for the director nod he deserves.
Letters From Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine: Thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. I would love it if this were to win.
The Queen: Hellen Mirren owns this. If you haven't seen this, you must. Dry humor in the unlikliest of places.
1944 (17th)
Going My Way
Double Indemnity
Gaslight
Since You Went Away
Wilson
1945 (18th)
The Lost Weekend
Anchors Aweigh
The Bells of St. Mary's
Mildred Pierce
Spellbound
1946 (19th)
The Best Years of Our Lives
Henry V
It's a Wonderful Life: I've seen parts of it here and there and I just never really got into it
The Razor's Edge
The Yearling
1947 (20th)
Gentleman's Agreement
The Bishop's Wife
Crossfire
Great Expectations
Miracle on 34th Street
1948 (21st)
Hamlet: I love the play, but I've only seen the weird Mel Gibson version because my 9th grade English teacher had a thing for Mel--weird.
Johnny Belinda
The Red Shoes
The Snake Pit
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
1949 (22nd)
All the King's Men
Battleground
The Heiress
A Letter to Three Wives
Twelve O'Clock High
1950 (23rd)
All about Eve
Born Yesterday
Father of the Bride
King Solomon's Mines
Sunset Blvd.
1951 (24th)
An American in Paris
Decision before Dawn
A Place in the Sun
Quo Vadis
A Streetcar Named Desire
1952 (25th)
The Greatest Show on Earth
High Noon
Ivanhoe
Moulin Rouge
The Quiet Man
1953 (26th)
From Here to Eternity
Julius Caesar: Read the play, left me kind "eh" so I'm not inclined to see this
The Robe
Roman Holiday
Shane
1954 (27th)
On the Waterfront: Just saw this a few months ago. Very good, and I'm not a big Brando fan, but he was quite good in it
The Caine Mutiny
The Country Girl
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: I watched most of it, it's good cheesy fun
Three Coins in the Fountain
1955 (28th)
Marty
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
Mister Roberts
Picnic
The Rose Tattoo
1956 (29th)
Around the World in 80 Days
Friendly Persuasion
Giant
The King and I
The Ten Commandments: I've seen it so many times I could probably qoute huge chunks of it, yet it will never make my top movies list. I don't know why--maybe it's because Charlton Heston rubs me the wrong way in RL and now I find it harder to watch him in any movie.
1957 (30th)
The Bridge on the River Kwai: Love. It. I got it for my dad one Christmas and we watched it together and I've been in love with it ever since. It also marked the beginning of my love for Sir Alec Guiness.
Peyton Place
Sayonara
12 Angry Men
Witness for the Prosecution
1958 (31st)
Gigi
Auntie Mame
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
The Defiant Ones
Separate Tables
1959 (32nd)
Ben-Hur
Anatomy of a Murder
The Diary of Anne Frank
The Nun's Story
Room at the Top
1960 (33rd)
The Apartment
The Alamo
Elmer Gantry
Sons and Lovers
The Sundowners
1961 (34th)
West Side Story: First saw it in 8th grade. I liked it alright, but it doesn't own me like Fiddler does.
Fanny
The Guns of The Navarone
The Hustler
Judgment at Nuremberg
1962 (35th)
Lawrence of Arabia: Oh god, I love this movie! I started watching it on TCM one day and had to leave part-way through and later I bought it at Target for, like, $9 and it was the best $9 ever spent on a movie. I already loved both Peter O'Toole and Alec Guiness, but the thing that keeps me coming back again and again is the beautiful photography. This is the kind of movie CineaScope was made for. Oh, and the fabulous soundtrack too! And Omar Sharif!!!!!!
The Longest Day
Meredith Willson's The Music Man
Mutiny on the Bounty
To Kill a Mockingbird
1963 (36th)
Tom Jones
America America
Cleopatra
How the West Was Won
Lilies of the Field
1964 (37th)
My Fair Lady
Becket
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb: I haven't, but I want to. To my Netflix queue!
Mary Poppins
Zorba the Greek
1965 (38th)
The Sound of Music: I saw it when I was younger and I was all "And?" I just don't get the hooplah over it. Say what you will, that's just how I feel.
Darling
Doctor Zhivago: This, I have an inordinate amount of love for. First, Alec Guiness (of course!). Second, Omar Sharif (younger Omar Sharif is so very pretty). And of course the score. Who cares if it doesn't always adhere very well to the book, David Lean films own me in a way I can't explain.
Ship of Fools
A Thousand Clowns
1966 (39th)
A Man for All Seasons
Alfie
The Russians Are Coming The Russians Are Coming
The Sand Pebbles
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
1967 (40th)
In the Heat of the Night
Bonnie and Clyde
The Graduate
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
1968 (41st)
Oliver!
Funny Girl
The Lion in Winter
Rachel, Rachel
Romeo and Juliet
1969 (42nd)
Midnight Cowboy
Anne of the Thousand Days
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Hello, Dolly!
Z
1970 (43rd)
Patton
Airport
Five Easy Pieces
Love Story: Alright, I may as well be honest. I watched it and I totally cried--like, a lot. I was alone at the time so there was no one there (mostly my mother) to make fun of me for crying at such a sappy, melodramatic, cloying movie. But I couldn't help it. (of course, I have also been known to cry at reruns of Full House and f-ing greeting card commercials if I'm in a weird emotional mood--which is more often than I'd like!)
MASH
1971 (44th)
The French Connection
A Clockwork Orange
Fiddler on the Roof: Like I said further up the list, this one totally owns me. I know every song, every part, every everything. It was the first musical I performed in during high school, and it will always be my favorite.
The Last Picture Show
Nicholas and Alexandra
1972 (45th)
The Godfather
Cabaret
Deliverance
Sounder
The Emigrants
1973 (46th)
The Sting
American Graffiti
The Exorcist
A Touch of Class
Cries and Whispers
1974 (47th)
The Godfather, Part II
Chinatown
The Conversation
Lenny
The Towering Inferno
1975 (48th)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Barry Lyndon
Dog Day Afternoon
Jaws: I don't get the draw of this. Please, someone explain it to me.
Nashville
1976 (49th)
Rocky
All the President's Men
Bound for Glory
Network: It's in my Netflix queue--it should be here later this week.
Taxi Driver
1977 (50th)
Annie Hall
The Goodbye Girl
Julia
Star Wars: Another one I Just. Don't. Get. And it's not that I'm against sci-fi, 'cause I'm not. And this has younger pterry Harrison Ford going for it, but it's just not enough to keep me interested.
The Turning Point
1978 (51st)
The Deer Hunter
Coming Home
Heaven Can Wait
Midnight Express
An Unmarried Woman
1979 (52nd)
Kramer vs. Kramer
Apocalypse Now: I saw the director's cut a couple of years ago and it was a lot longer and unevenly paced than I expected. There were some great things in it (I'm a big Martin Sheen fan), but I was left with this vague feeling of "huh?" at the end. I don't know.....it's one of those Important Films that everyone talks about ad nausem and you can't help but feel let down when you finally get to see it.
All That Jazz
Breaking Away
Norma Rae
1980 (53rd)
Ordinary People
Coal Miner's Daughter
The Elephant Man
Raging Bull
Tess
1981 (54th)
Chariots of Fire
Atlantic City
On Golden Pond
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Reds
1982 (55th)
Gandhi: It felt a bit long, but I got to see a younger Candice Bergen in it, so that was kinda fun.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Missing
Tootsie
The Verdict
1983 (56th)
Terms of Endearment: I saw it, I cried like you're supposed to, but I was left feeling "eh". Another one where the hype will ruin it for you if you are susceptible to that kind of thing (which I am a lot of the time--which is why I avoid reviews of new movies I want to see so my experience won't be colored by someone else's)
The Big Chill
The Dresser
The Right Stuff
Tender Mercies
1984 (57th)
Amadeus
The Killing Fields: Utterly horrifying and moving. Haing S. Ngor basically plays himself in the film, but the story is so engrossing that you don't care. And Sam Waterston earned every bit of his Oscar nomination.
A Passage to India
Places in the Heart
A Soldier's Story
1985 (58th)
Out of Africa
The Color Purple
Kiss of the Spider Woman
Prizzi's Honor
Witness
1986 (59th)
Platoon
Children of a Lesser God
Hannah and Her Sisters
The Mission: Has one of my favorite movie scores ever (and if you're a figure skating fan, you've heard selections fom it more time than you care to count). This is another one where the cinematography and score won me over.
A Room with a View
1987 (60th)
The Last Emperor
Broadcast News
Fatal Attraction
Hope and Glory
Moonstruck
1988 (61st)
Rain Man
The Accidental Tourist
Dangerous Liaisons
Mississippi Burning
Working Girl: I had no idea this was nominated, but I have to admit I was pleasantly surprise when I saw it. Maybe it was because it was 3 am, but I really liked this. It's a great example of bad -80s hair and fashion, Melanie Griffith before she went crazy with the collagen.
1989 (62nd)
Driving Miss Daisy
Born on the Fourth of July
Dead Poets Society
Field of Dreams: Eh, it was okay. Not a big Costner fan.
My Left Foot
1990 (63rd)
Dances With Wolves: One I liked when I first saw it but got ruined when I found out how wildly historically inaccurate it was. So much so that I haven't been able to bring myself to watch it since. But I love Mary McDonald!
Awakenings
Ghost:kinda hated this movie…mostly because I can't stand Swazye. And Demi's bowl cut.
Godfather, Part III
Goodfellas
1991 (64th)
The Silence of the Lambs: Creeped me the fuck out. So weird to see Ted Levine as Buffalo Bill.
Beauty and the Beast: I don't love it, I don't hate it
Bugsy
JFK
The Prince of Tides
1992 (65th)
Unforgiven: Clint Eastwood makes some of the most elegantly simple and beautiful movies. And that he still occassionally stars in them and does the score for them are bonuses. This film has an elegantly simple theme that repeats throughout and I just love it.
The Crying Game
A Few Good Men: This movie has so many good things going for it--an Aaron Sorkin-penned script, Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Pollack, Kevin Bacon, even Jack Nicholson keeps his scenery chewing to a minimum--that I can forgive it for starring Tom Cruise, whom I actually kinda like here. Perhaps it's the magic of Sorkin.
Howards End
Scent of a Woman
1993 (66th)
Schindler's List: This is one of those where I see it once and once is about all I can handle.
The Fugitive: This was nominated?! Huh. I remember liking it, but nothing specific comes to mind.
In the Name of the Father
The Piano
The Remains of the Day
1994 (67th)
Forrest Gump: I don't care if this is cloying--I love it! I bawl like a baby every time, just as I do when I watch Philadelphia (these two together make me love Tom Hanks an irrational amount--so much so that I'm willing to forgive craptastic fare live The Da Vinci Code).
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Pulp FictionApollo 13: I like it. Good actors, good visual effects, good suspense (which was difficult to do considering everyone knows what happens in the end). I forgot this was nominated.
Babe
Il Postinoenta
Sense and Sensibility
1996 (69th)
The English Patient
Fargo: I loved it. But it's really Frances McDormand that makes the movie. I'll admit to having an irrational love of Coen brothers' movies, but I thought this was fantastic. Oh, and William H. Macy!
Jerry Maguire: Alright, here's the thing. I wanted to like the movie, I really did. But this was an example of the whole NOT being greater than the sum of its parts. There were aspects I really liked (CubaGooding, Jr., actually, and Regina King), but as a whole, it felt too long and choppy and seemed like a thematic mess. Which I hear is endemic of all Cameron Crowe movies--I wouldn't know since I've only seen two.
Secrets & Lies
Shine
1997 (70th) (The one year where I have seen them all--and it only took me 9 years to do it!)
Titanic: I saw this one, I think, 3 times when it first came out. I remember loving ever second of it. I haven't sen it since, so I don't know it it's held up well over time. Anyone care to share about this, if they know?
As Good as It Gets: I've heard people bag on it recently, mostly about how Nicholson phoned it in, but I really like it. And I really liked him in it. This is definitely my fave James L. Brooks film.
The Full Monty: Years of watching Monty Python, and rcently Doctor who, Life on Mars, The Office, and various other British shows helped me enormously when I finally saw this during the summer. My mom said she remembered not being able to understand the first 20 mins. of the movie because the accents were so heavy, but it only took me about 5. And I liked it.
Good Will Hunting: The film that spawned Mattfleck. I remember loving this movie when I saw it in the theater, and I still do. To this day I still use "How do ya like them apples?!" on a regular basis. And I still love Matt Damon an inordinate amount.
L.A. Confidential: I love a good period noir. And this one was quite enjoyable, largely because Kevin Spacey didn't do any of his trademark scenery chewing. Kudos for that.
1998 (71st)
Shakespeare in Love: I really liked this when it came out, but I haven't seen it since. I wonder what I would think now that I'm a bit older?
Elizabeth
Life Is Beautiful: I cried my eyes out when I saw this when it came out. Don't know if I'd stil feel the same way today or not.
Saving Private Ryan: Didn't see this until after I'd seen the Hanks-produced WWII miniseries Band of Brothers (which really spolied me as far as all WWII dramatizations go), so I couldn't help comparing this movie to that miniseries. This was good, just not as good.
The Thin Red Line
1999 (72nd)
American Beauty
The Sixth Sense: I f-ing loved this! The first and still the best of Shamylan's films. I kinda feel for the guy--after a debut like this, it's impossible to live up to the expectations.
The Cider House Rules
The Green Mile
The Insider
2000 (73rd)
Gladiator
Chocolat
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Erin Brockovich: Good stuff, this. I recently rewatched it on TV and liked it a lot more than I rmembered.
Traffic
2001 (74th)
A Beautiful Mind: So sad. Remember seeing Paul Bettany in it and wondering who he was because he was great in this. What ever happened to him?
Gosford Park: Maybe I just wasn't in the right frame of mind to watch this but I was underwhelmed by it. But it has so many actors in it whom I like: MAggie Smith, Hellen Mirren, Clive Owen, Stephen Fry, Bob Balaban, Michael Gambon. Maybe I should re-watch it...
In the Bedroom
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring: Yet another one I Just. Don't. Get. I'm probably one of about 9 people who have seen it and weren't in awe of it. And it's not that I'm totally against the fantasy genre either.
Moulin Rouge!
2002 (75th)
Chicago: I lvoe it, second only to Fiddler. I love everything about it. This is how you do a movie musical for today's audience.
Gangs of New York: I wanted to love it, but I found myself having to work too hard to even like it a lot. Who knows....
The Hours
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
The Pianist: I saw it and I loved it. Plain and simple. I can only bring myself to watch it, like, once a year, but it's always worth it.
2003 (76th)
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Lost in Translation: I liked this. Great soundtrack. Yay for Bill Murray making a comeback!
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Mystic River: Not my favorite Clint Eastwood-directed flick, but I liked it nonetheless. I'm still kind of iffy about Sean Penn.
Seabiscuit: It sucked me in against my will--damn you, Seabiscuit!
2004 (77th)
Million Dollar Baby: My favorite Clint Eastwood ever. Such an intimate story and it sucks you in before you realize it. A deserving winner.
The Aviator: Cate Blanchette as Katherine Hepburn! Good stuff.
Finding Neverland
Ray: I liked it because it didn't shy away from showing him as the bastard he was sometimes.
Sideways: Love this! If you liked it, I recommend watching the DVD with commentary by Paul Giamatti and Thomas Hayden Church.
2005 (78th)
Crash: Good, not great, but good. Still don't think it deserved best picture though. That really belongs to...
Brokeback Mountain: Which should have won for best picture. I waited until after it was out on DVD and the hype died down and I'm glad I did because I loved it.
Munich
Capote: The dude was a manipulate bastard and they make no bones about that here. I was invested from beginning to end.
2006 (79th)
Babel
The Departed: It's bloody and violent and profane and I loved every second of it! Fantastic performances from everyone--I hope this is the one that break's Scorcese's losing streak for the director nod he deserves.
Letters From Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine: Thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. I would love it if this were to win.
The Queen: Hellen Mirren owns this. If you haven't seen this, you must. Dry humor in the unlikliest of places.