Oscar 2010 In Review

The ceremony was okay; I didn’t think the hosts were as bad as some people thought.  Overall, I was happy with the winners in the early categories (Inception winning Cinematography, Sound, Sound Editing, Visual Effects; The Social Network winning Adapted Screenplay, Editing, Score), though director and picture disappointed.  Let’s get into it.

Here are my thoughts about the main categories:

BEST PICTURE

127 Hours

Black Swan

The Fighter

Inception

The Kids Are All Right

The King’s Speech

The Social Network

True Grit

Toy Story 3

Winter’s Bone

Winner: The King’s Speech

I enjoyed the film when I watched it, but best of the year?  Well crafted, well made, good actors (Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush do play off each other very well).  But, in the end, nothing we haven’t already seen.  This post-nominations trailer makes me like the film less; give it a rest, Harvey Weinstein (The English Patient, Shakespeare in Love, Chicago).  Oscar voters love this shit.

Personal preference: The Social Network

I like the point made that this film could be about the guy who invented the washing machine and if the same level of acting (chief among the ensemble Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield), directing (David Fincher), dialogue (Aaron Sorkin!) and technical prowess (the music, the editing, the cinematography,  the sound) was brought to the table, it’d be just as good.  The film is about the founding of Facebook, but it’s also a classic story of success and betrayal.  A film where characters are giving depositions should not be this interesting, but it is. 

Snubbed for a nod: Carlos

Olivier Assayas (who directed the great French import Summer Hours 2 years ago) brings us a three-part film that was produced for French television, but also saw a theatrical release in the United States.  Eligibility rules aside, this is not only the best foreign-language film of the year, but one of the best films of the year, standing tall over other American productions.  The film chronicles the life of Carlos the Jackal (Edgar Ramirez in a charismatic performance), the Venezuelan terrorist and murderer who orchestrated bombings and assassinations across Europe and raided OPEC Headquarters in Vienna in 1975.  The behavior is seductive and repulsive, all at once.  Glad it won the Golden Globe for Best TV Miniseries/Made for TV Movie.  But it’s so much more.

BEST DIRECTOR

Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan

David O. Russell, The Fighter

Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech

David Fincher, The Social Network

Joel and Ethan Coen, True Grit

Winner: Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech

Tom Hooper (some BBC series, but also the great John Adams miniseries), meet John G. Avildsen, George Roy Hill, and Franklin J. Schaffner.  If you don’t know who those three directors are, you got the point. (Hint: Rocky, The Sting, and Patton)

Personal preference: David Fincher, The Social Network

David Fincher (Se7en, Fight Club, Zodiac, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) is hanging with Sidney Lumet (Network), Ingmar Bergman (Cries and Whispers), and Robert Altman (M*A*S*H).  Good company.*

*I’m being a snarky bastard, but yeah, those three great directors all lost to lesser work.  That’s my point.  Okay, enough complaining.

Snubbed for a nod: Edgar Wright, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Christopher Nolan (Memento, Batman Begins, The Prestige) was snubbed for The Dark Knight and is now snubbed for Inception; I guess members of the Academy hates someone else more than Fincher. 

But even so, I would have loved a director nod for Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz).  Scott Pilgrim vs. the World bombed in theaters, but this is the first movie to use the narrative language of video games (and comic books and indie rock, love it) to tell an eternal story about young love.  Every scene is packed with color, sound, clever writing, and solid acting.  Maybe the most entertaining of the films I’m talking about here.  Thank you, Edgar Wright.

BEST ACTOR

Javier Bardem, Biutiful

Jeff Bridges, True Grit

Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network

Colin Firth, The King’s Speech

James Franco, 127 Hours

Winner: Colin Firth, The King’s Speech

Along with Geoffrey Rush, Colin Firth is the best part of the film.  This win is as much a make-up Oscar for losing last year for A Single Man, which is a better film and performance.  But still, he’s fine here.

Personal preference: James Franco, 127 Hours

Of the nominees, James Franco (Milk, Pineapple Express) did the best work, essentially carrying the film on his shoulders.  All of director Danny Boyle’s stylish touches aside, without this performance, the film would fail.  It didn’t.

Snubbed for a nod (and should have won): Ryan Gosling, Blue Valentine

Ryan Gosling (Half Nelson, Lars and the Real Girl) gives a lived-in performance here as a husband trying to hold on.  The same things that made him appealing to Michelle Williams’ character at the beginning of their relationship repulses her years later.  He communicates that well to the audience, as we like him and loathe him.  A difficult task, but done masterfully here.  Give him an Oscar already!

BEST ACTRESS

Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right

Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole

Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone

Natalie Portman, Black Swan

Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

Winner: Natalie Portman, Black Swan

Portman (The Professional, Beautiful Girls, Closer) does career-best work here.  This is probably my second favorite film of the year behind The Social Network and Portman is a big reason for that. 

Personal preference: Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

Williams (Brokeback Mountain, Wendy and Lucy) plays a woman that can be judged as unlikeable when compared to her husband, played by Ryan Gosling.  But the dynamics of the marriage and who the husband and wife are before and during the relationship have a lot to say for why it all goes wrong.  She cannot be so easily judged and that’s the point. 

Snubbed for a nod: Tilda Swinton, I Am Love

Swinton has done good work before (Michael Clayton, Julia), and this is no different.  A repressed wife and mother married into a family of Italian aristocrats who finds her sensual side.  She has lost her cultural identity as a Russian when she married into this family. Sex and food can do the trick. 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christian Bale, The Fighter

John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone

Jeremy Renner, The Town

Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right

Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

Winner: Christian Bale, The Fighter

I hope he isn’t FUCKING DONE WITH US PROFESSIONALLY, because he’s a good actor.  Loved him in American Psycho and Rescue Dawn, and of course “he’s Batman”.  The Fighter is a pretty weak film, but Bale’s the best part.  And in a year of weak supporting actors, he’s a deserving winner. 

Personal preference: As I said, I’m glad Bale won, though the nom for John Hawkes was nice.  Winter’s Bone is a so-so film, but a great actor rising above.

 Snubbed for a nod: Andrew Garfield, The Social Network

As good as Jesse Eisenberg is as Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network, Andrew Garfield as Eduardo Saverin does betrayal and revenge very well.  When Zuckerberg makes his millions, we enjoy the success, but we feel the betrayal of his best friend.  “You better lawyer up, asshole, because I’m not coming back for 30%.  I’m coming back for everything.”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Amy Adams, The Fighter

Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech

Melissa Leo, The Fighter

Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit

Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

Winner: Melissa Leo, The Fighter

Good actress, terrible role and performance in a weak film.  I won’t fault the win.  She was great on TV’s Homicide: Life on the Street and the films 21 Grams and Frozen River.  But her role here makes Bale look even better.

Personal preference: Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit

This is really a lead performance, but I’ll support the category fraud.  Awarding child performers can be problematic; Tatum O’Neal never did better than Paper Moon.  But Anna Paquin has a nice career beyond The Piano.  So those concerns aside, Steinfeld was the heart and soul of True Grit.  She stole the movie from Jeff Bridges and gave us the emotional connection for the film.  Expect good things from her in the future.

Snubbed for a nod: Greta Gerwig, Greenberg

I’m tempted to say Naomi Watts in Mother and Child or Olivia Williams in The Ghost Writer.  But I’m going to commit my own category fraud and put Greta Gerwig in here.  She’s the sympathetic foil to Ben Stiller’s narcissistic asshole.  Stiller’s name gets you into the theater, but Gerwig is the reason to stay.

2010 Oscars Predictions!

Here they are!  Will update post afterwards to reflect how close my predictions were.

PICTURE: King's Speech
DIRECTOR: Tom Hooper
ACTOR: Colin Firth
ACTRESS: Natalie Portman
SUP. ACTOR: Christian Bale
SUP. ACTRESS: Melissa Leo
ORIG. SCREENPLAY: King's Speech
ADAP. SCREENPLAY: Social Network
ANIMATED FILM: Toy Story 3
FOREIGN FILM: In a Better World
ART DIRECTION: King's Speech Alice in Wonderland
CINEMATOGRAPHY: True Grit  Inception
COSTUME DESIGN: King's Speech Alice in Wonderland
EDITING: Social Network
SCORE: King's Speech The Social Network
SONG: Toy Story 3
MAKEUP: Wolfman
SOUND MIX: Inception
SOUND EDITING: Inception
VISUAL EFFECTS: Inception
DOCUMENTARY: Inside Job
DOC- SHORT SUBJECT: Strangers No More
SHORT FILM- ANIMATED: The Gruffalo The Lost Thing
SHORT FILM- LIVE ACTION: God of Love

The King's Speech: 7 4 wins
Inception: 3 4 wins
The Social Network: 2 3 wins
Alice in Wonderland: 2 wins
The Fighter- 2 wins
Toy Story 3: 2 wins

19 out of 24.  Pretty good.

Oscar History Part 8: 2001-2009

This is it.  I work through to 2009 and talk about my overall agreement with the Academy's choices at the end of this post.  Coming up will be my 2010 Oscar predictions, my reactions to the winners, and my top ten of 2010. 

2001

Winner: A Beautiful Mind

My pick: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Other notable films: Mulholland Drive, Amelie, In the Bedroom, Memento, Gosford Park, The Royal Tenenbaums

Ron Howard's A Beautiful Mind is a terrible choice.  Peter Jackson's 3-part adaptation of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings begins, but the Academy chooses to wait to honor the total effort; I feel that the immersion into this fantastical world is accomplished best in this entry, while the other films become too involved in staging battle sequences.  Also: David Lynch's beautiful dream-turned-nightmare Mulholland Drive, Jean-Pierre Jeunet's whimsical romantic comedy Amelie, Robert Altman's parlor drama about the upper and servant classes Gosford Park, Todd Field's character study of a family tragedy In the Bedroom, Wes Anderson's estranged and eccentric family portrait The Royal Tenenbaums, and Christopher Nolan's mindfuck of a murder investigation Memento.

2002

Winner: Chicago

My pick: The Pianist

Other notable films: Road to Perdition, 25^th Hour, Minority Report, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Chicago was the first musical to win the Oscar since Oliver!, reviving the genre.  But the best film to me is Roman Polanski's portrait of a Polish Jewish musician surviving the horrors of war The Pianist.  Also: Sam Mendes' tale of Irish gangsters and revenge Road to Perdition, Spike Lee's study of a man facing imprisonment and of post 9/11 New York in 25th Hour, Steven Spielberg collaborating with Tom Cruise in a science fiction masterpiece Minority Report, and Peter Jackson's 2nd Lord of the Rings film The Two Towers.

2003

Winner: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

My pick: City of God (Brazil, 2002)

Other notable films: Mystic River, Lost in Translation, In America

The Academy chose to honor Jackson's final part of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and more symbolically, the entire filmmaking effort.  But the best film to me was the 2002 Brazilian portrait of child criminals in the streets of Rio de Janeiro, Fernando Meirelles' City of God.  Also: Clint Eastwood's look at childhood friends reunited by a horrific crime in Mystic River, Sofia Coppola's tender but unlikely relationship Lost in Translation, and Jim Sheridan's autobiographical story of a family of immigrants In America. 

2004

Winner: Million Dollar Baby

My pick: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Other notable films: The Aviator, Sideways, Hotel Rwanda, The Incredibles, Before Sunset

Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby was an interesting character piece, but the best film for me was Michel Gondry's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, mixing the genres of science fiction, comedy, and romance with great ease, and featuring sincere performances by Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet.  Also: Martin Scorsese's biopic of Howard Hughes The Aviator, the real-life tale of genocide in Hotel Rwanda, Alexander Payne's comedic drama about a miserable man Sideways, Pixar's superhero family adventure The Incredibles, and Richard Linklater's follow-up about lost loves crossing paths again Before Sunset.

2005

Winner: Crash

My pick: Brokeback Mountain

Other notable films: The New World, Munich, Kingdom of Heaven (directors cut), Good Night and Good Luck, A History of Violence, Cache

Crash is a terrible movie, dumbing down race relations and playing to the lowest common denominator.  The snubbing of Ang Lee's Brokeback Mountain is a mistake that the Academy will never let down.  Also: Terrence Malick's portrait of Pocahontas and the arrival of the English into The New World, Steven Spielberg's dramatization of the 1970s Israeli hit squad retaliating for the deaths of Olympic athletes in Munich, Ridley Scott's meditation on religious pluralism in the historical backdrop of the Crusades in Kingdom of Heaven (see the directors cut), George Clooney's look at broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow facing down Senator Joseph McCarthy in Good Night and Good Luck, David Cronenberg's story of a family man's dark past in A History of Violence, and Michael Haneke's tensed drama about a terrorized family and class status Caché.

2006

Winner: The Departed

My pick: United 93

Other notable films: Children of Men, Pan’s Labyrinth, The Prestige, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly 

I love that Martin Scorsese was finally honored by the Academy, and The Departed is a great film.  But my pick is the real-time account of the fourth hijacked plane on 9/11 United 93.  The best direction was Alfonso Cuaron's dystopian vision of a dying world in Children of Men.  Also: Guillermo del Toro's wartime childhood fantasy Pan's Labyrinth, Julian Schnabel's portrait of a man struggling to communicate after a traumatic stroke The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, and Christopher Nolan's film about rival magicians The Prestige.

2007

Winner: No Country for Old Men

My pick: There Will Be Blood

Other notable films: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Zodiac, Once, I’m Not There, 4 Months 3 Weeks and 2 Days

The Coen Bros.' No Country for Old Men is a taut thriller and post-modern Western.  I would have preferred Paul Thomas Anderson's portrait of an oil man consumed by greed, featuring an iconic performance by Daniel Day Lewis, in There Will Be Blood.  Also: another unconventional Western film and character study The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, David Fincher's procedural look at the search for a serial killer in Zodiac, a beautiful romance between musicians in Once, a non-traditional biography of the lives (not a typo) and the influence of Bob Dylan in I'm Not There, and the Romanian character piece about a woman seeking an illegal abortion 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days.

2008

Winner: Slumdog Millionaire

My pick: The Dark Knight

Other notable films: Milk, Rachel Getting Married, Wall-E, The Wrestler

Not really a fan of Slumdog Millionaire, though I appreciate the style that Danny Boyle brings to his films.  My pick is a film snubbed of major nominations for picture and director: Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins sequel The Dark Knight elevates the comic book genre and works as a successful crime film/tragedy, anchored by a strong cast.  Also: Gus Van Sant's chronicle of the life of the first openly gay public official and the 1970s movement for equality in Milk, Jonathan Demme's character piece about a broken family and an impending wedding in Rachel Getting Married, Darren Aronofsky's portrait of a washed-up athlete The Wrestler, and Pixar's science fiction masterpiece about a romance between two robots in Wall-E.

2009

Winner: The Hurt Locker

My pick: Inglourious Basterds

Other notable films: A Serious Man, The White Ribbon, In the Loop, Up, Summer Hours (France, 2008)

The awarding of the the Iraq war drama/thriller The Hurt Locker and the first female director Kathryn Bigelow was a solid choice for the Academy.  I would argue that the better film was Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds is a war film that knows it's a fantasy and a movie, and brings us into this world.  Also: the Coens' re-imagining of the biblical story of Job in A Serious Man, the darkly comedic political satire about the ramp-up to war In the Loop, Michael Haneke's terrifying portrait of the hypocrisies and outbursts of violence that plague a pre-WWI German village The White Ribbon, Pixar's story of aging and friendship Up, and Olivier Assayas' tale of three siblings relinquishing their past after their mother's death in Summer Hours. 

----------------------------

So there you have it.  82 years of Academy Awards.  How often have I agreed with their choices? 17 times, or 21%.

All Quiet on the Western Front, It Happened One Night, Casablanca, The Lost Weekend, From Here to Eternity, On the Waterfront, The Bridge on the River Kwai, West Side Story, Lawrence of Arabia, The Godfather, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Deer Hunter, Platoon, The Silence of the Lambs, Unforgiven, Schindler's List, and American Beauty.

This doesn't look very good, especially over the last 10 years.  But I'm not being completely contrary.  Often, my picks are close to a coin flip.  The showdowns below are choices that I can live with.  Note that in all but three instances, my choice did receive a Picture nomination, and for those three instances, the directors (Alfred Hitchcock, Ingmar Bergman, Paul Greengrass) all received director nominations, indicating that the three films narrowly missed Picture nominations (and that the directors branch were ahead of the curve).
Academy over me:

Rebecca over The Grape of Wrath

All About Eve over Sunset Boulevard

The Apartment over Psycho (Academy did not nominate)

The Sound of Music over Doctor Zhivago

The Godfather Part II over Chinatown

Annie Hall over Star Wars

Terms of Endearment over Fanny and Alexander (Academy did not nominate)

The Departed over United 93 (Academy did not nominate)

No Country for Old Men over There Will Be Blood

The Hurt Locker over Inglourious Basterds

These 10 additional showdowns increase my acceptance of the Academy's 82 Best Picture choices from 17 to 27 times, or 33%. 

Counting my Best Picture picks, the Academy did have the brains to at least nominate my choices 51 out of 82 years, with the largest streak occuring from 1969 (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) to 1982 (E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial); the 1970s were truly the best decade for film, so much so that even the Academy couldn't ignore the output. 

I'll spare you the full list, but recognize that where the Academy and I parted ways were often foreign films, some of which may not have been eligible (Metropolis, Nosferatu, La Belle et La Bette, The Bicycle Thief, Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Fanny and Alexander, Ran, City of God), films that were critically divisive and/or commerically insignificant at the time of release- this is the beauty of hindsight (Sullivan's Travels, Vertigo, Once Upon a Time in America, Heat, Almost Famous, United 93), and genre films not taken seriously as films worthy of recognition as the best picture (King Kong, The Bride of Frankenstein, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Psycho, The Great Escape, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Princess Bride, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and The Dark Knight).

What do you think?

Oscar History Part 7: 1990-2000

1990

Winner: Dances with Wolves

My pick: Goodfellas

Other notable films: Miller’s Crossing, Presumed Innocent, Edward Scissorhands, Misery, The Grifters

The Academy will never let this down.  Kevin Costner's Dances with Wolves has the burden of being a great film that beat a better film.  Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas is a master at work, an engaging slice-of-life in the Mafia that both attracts and repulses us.  Also: the Coen Brothers give their own unique take on organized crime in Miller's Crossing, Alan J. Pakula adapts a great courtroom murder mystery with Harrison Ford as the accused in Presumed Innocent, Stephen Frears' The Grifters is a neo-noir film of the best kind, Tim Burton and Johnny Depp begin their long collaborative relationship in the fairytalesque Edward Scissorhands, and Rob Reiner makes a human monster in his adaptation of Stephen King's Misery. 

1991

Winner and my pick: The Silence of the Lambs

Other notable films: JFK, Boyz N the Hood, Beauty and the Beast, Grand Canyon, Europa Europa (Germany 1990)

Not Oscar bait at all.  And that's the way I like it.  Jonathan Demme gets great performances out of Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins in an unlikely pairing in The Silence of the Lambs.  Also: Oliver Stone's pastiche of American history through a conspiracy lens in JFK, John Singleton's look at life in South Central Lost Angeles in Boyz N the Hood, Disney's animation renaissance reaches its peak in Beauty and the Beast, Lawrence Kasdan's statement on lives and relationships in the early 1990s in Grand Canyon, and the true-life story of a Jew escaping persecution by posing as Aryan in Europa Europa.

1992

Winner and my pick: Unforgiven

Other notable films: The Crying Game, The Last of the Mohicans, The Player, Malcolm X, Howards End, Glengarry Glen Ross, Hard Boiled

Clint Eastwood's ode to the Western says it all: Unforgiven.  Also: Neil Jordan's tale of love, sex, and the Irish turmoil in The Crying Game, Michael Mann and Daniel Day-Lewis making a romantic adventure adaptation of The Last of the Mohicans, Robert Altman's Hollywood satire The Player, Spike Lee and Denzel Washington bringing the life of the controversial figure Malcolm X to the screen, Merchant-Ivory adapting E.M. Forster's tale of class relations in early 20th century England in Howards End, David Mament's acting showcase about real estate salesmen Glengarry Glen Ross, and John Woo's "bullet ballet" with Chow Yun-Fat as a Hong Kong cop in Hard Boiled.

1993

Winner and my pick: Schindler’s List

Other notable films: The Age of Innocence, The Piano, Philadelphia, Short Cuts, Three Colors: Blue

Steven Spielberg shows the horrors of the Holocaust and the efforts of an imperfect man to save as many lives as possible in Schindler's List.  Also: Martin Scorsese adapts the classic of romance in high society The Age of Innocence, Jane Campion's tale of a mute woman desired and used in The Piano, Jonathan Demme directs a brilliant performance by Tom Hanks as a gay attorney with AIDS who is wrongfully terminated by his employers in Philadelphia, Robert Altman adapting Raymond Carver and revisiting his style of multiple stories intersecting and unfolding, this time in Los Angeles, in Short Cuts, and Krzysztof Kieslowski begins his Three Colors trilogy drawing from French Revolutionary ideals with Blue, focusing on a woman seeking emotional liberty after the death of her family.

1994

Winner: Forrest Gump

My pick: The Shawshank Redemption

Other notable films: Pulp Fiction, Hoop Dreams, Ed Wood, Three Colors: Red

The Academy (and the rest of the country) fell for Tom Hanks stumbling through American history in Robert Zemeckis' Forrest Gump, but time has been good to Frank Darabont's adaptation of Stephen King's tale of the human spirit The Shawshank Redemption.  The best direction of the bunch has to be the work of Quentin Tarantino in Pulp Fiction; its many imitators fail to accomplish the great balance of crime, humor, and style. Also: the tale of athletic aspirations of youth in the documentary Hoop Dreams; Tim Burton and Johnny Depp pay tribute to the "worst" director of all time Ed Wood, and Kieslowski finishes his Three Colors trilogy, showing human connection and fraternity in Red.

1995

Winner: Braveheart

My pick: Heat

Other notable films: The Usual Suspects, Dead Man Walking, Sense and Sensibility, Leaving Las Vegas, Apollo 13, Toy Story

Something to say: Mel Gibson's Braveheart is an enjoyable film, but there were so many great choices available.  A film completely ignored by the Academy was Michael Mann's Heat, a classic two-sides-of-the-coin between cop and robber with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro; I don't think either actor has been this good since.  Also: Bryan Singer asks "who is Keyser Soze" in the crime mystery The Usual Suspects, Tim Robbins directs a true-life story of forgivness and repentance in Dead Man Walking, a writer destroys himself with alcohol in Mike Figgis' Leaving Las Vegas, Ang Lee brings his delicate touch to Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, Ron Howard directs the real-life story of the troubled Apollo 13 mission, and Pixar pushes Disney animation foward in the childhood wish fulfillment Toy Story.

1996

Winner: The English Patient

My pick: Fargo

Other notable films: Lone Star, Breaking the Waves, Jerry Maguire

Something to say: Anthony Minghella made a decent film in The English Patient.  But the Coens topped their incredible output in Fargo.  Also: John Sayles' mystery about a crime, relationships, and the past in Lone Star, Cameron Crowe's story of a sports agent with humanity in Jerry Maguire, and Lars Von Trier's tale of a woman's love for her husband in Breaking the Waves.

1997

Winner: Titanic

My pick: L.A. Confidential

Other notable films: Boogie Nights, The Ice Storm, Jackie Brown, Wag the Dog, The Sweet Hereafter

Epic filmmaking at work in James Cameron's Titanic.  But Curtis Hanson's adaptation of L.A. Confidential showcases police corruption and Hollywood celebrity in the 1950s and gives new life to film noir.  Also: Paul Thomas Anderson announces himself as new force among directors in his tale of the ups and downs of an unconventional family made up of cast and crew members in the 1970-80s porn industry in Boogie Nights, Ang Lee shows the cracks in 1970s suburbia in The Ice Storm, Tarantino adapts Elmore Leonard and pays tribute to 1970s blaxploitation films in the crime caper Jackie Brown, Barry Levinson skewers politics and Hollywood in Wag the Dog, and Atom Egoyan penetrates a town suffering a tragedy in The Sweet Hereafter.

1998

Winner: Shakespeare in Love

My pick: The Thin Red Line

Other notable films: Saving Private Ryan, Out of Sight, The Truman Show, The Big Lebowski, A Simple Plan, Rushmore

Shakespeare in Love beating Saving Private Ryan was a joke.  But the return of Terrence Malick after a 20 year absence injected a unique voice into film that had been missing from the other auteurs of that golden era; The Thin Red Line is a beautiful meditation of war and human nature that avoids the conventional archetypes and narratives that even Ryan can't escape.  Also: Steven Soderbergh makes a fun crime drama and an actor out of George Clooney in Out of Sight, Peter Weir earns a career-best peformance out of Jim Carrey in a satire of American television in The Truman Show, the Coens turn Jeff Bridges into an icon for the relaxed in The Big Lebowski, Sam Raimi makes his most mature and effective film in the drama A Simple Plan, and Wes Anderson creates a world that doesn't really exist, populated with entertaining characters in Rushmore.

1999

Winner and my pick: American Beauty

Other notable films: Magnolia, Three Kings, Eyes Wide Shut, The Insider, Being John Malkovich

This was a great year for films.  I can't fault the Academy's choice of American Beauty, the directorial debut of Sam Mendes and featuring a bombastic performance by Kevin Spacey.  I also love Paul Thomas Anderson's ensemble-cast mosaic of parents and children in conflict in Los Angeles in Magnolia. Also: David O. Russell gives George Clooney another solid credit in the Gulf War action satire Three Kings, Stanley Kubrick gives us a final masterpiece in the relationship drama unfolding in a dream landscape Eyes Wide Shut, Spike Jonze debuts in the unconventional Being John Malkovich, and Michael Mann tells the true-life tale of journalism ethics and corporate collusion in The Insider.

2000

Winner: Gladiator

My pick: Almost Famous

Other notable films: Traffic, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Wonder Boys, Requiem for a Dream, O Brother Where Are Thou?, The Virgin Suicides

Ridley Scott's Gladiator is fun, but Spartacus it is not.  My pick is Cameron Crowe's semi-autobiographical tale of a teenager on the road with the band in Almost Famous.  The best direction of the year is present in Steven Soderbergh's Traffic, balancing multiple characters and stories in the U.S. war on drugs.  Also: Ang Lee's tale of love and martial arts in a heightened and historical reality in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Michael Douglas as a struggling writer in Wonder Boys, a haunting debut by Sofia Coppola in The Virgin Suicides, Darren Aronofsky descends us into drugs and despair in Requiem for a Dream, and the Coens put us on a satiric odyssey of Depression-era America in O Brother Where Are Thou?