The Best Best Picture of the 1990s
The idea is simple: pit each best winning film from a decade against each other and see which one comes out on top.
The first Best Best Picture debate is from the 90s. Here are the players:
Dances with Wolves (1990)
The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Unforgiven (1992)
Schindler's List (1993)
Forrest Gump (1994)
Braveheart (1995)
The English Patient (1996)
Titanic (1997)
Shakespeare in Love (1998)
American Beauty (1999)
Harrison: American Beauty
When I look at the contenders for this Best Best Picture debate, I can't help but think, "None of these are the best pictures from their respective years." In fact, some years, none of the nominees are the best picture. Conversely, years like 94 and 98 nominated the best picture, but for whatever reason it lost (Pulp Fiction and Saving Private Ryan, respectively).
Aside: I was curious as to how a film like Shakespeare in Love won over Saving Private Ryan, so I decided to do a little research into how these films get nominated. Unfortunately for me, there was no conspiracy as to why a particular film was chosen, but this article is interesting enough in explaining the process.
My distaste in the Academy's choices for the 1990s aside, the parameters of this debate are simple enough, and I'll abide by them.
There were many factors to deal with in choosing the best best picture, but in the end my decision led me to choose American Beauty.
American Beauty is the story of a disheartened suburban man (Kevin Spacey) and his rebirth over the course of a year. He rejects his cookie-cutter suburban lifestyle for a life that is uniquely his.
Nearly all of the other Best Picture winners (save Silence of the Lambs) were sprawling epics that showcased some primordial emotion from the human conditions (The English Patient, love; Forrest Gump, endurance; Braveheart, freedom). In short, these movies are idealized realities that the people can latch onto.
But as we came closer to the new millennium, we realized that this was not the world of flying cars and food in pill form. This was a world that led a depressed existence. The movie held a mirror up to our collective selves. The film's protagonist, however, gave us hope that we could reject the lives we were forced into for something that makes us happy. Instead of extraordinary characters dealing with extraordinary circumstances, American Beauty's hero was one of us.
.JPG)
Technically speaking, American Beauty also succeeds because of it's sense of control and restraint. Unlike big, boldness of Titanic or Braveheart, American Beauty is a low-key, subtle film. It seems like it's easier to create characters during explosive action and events -- characters who wear their hearts on their sleeves, than to restrain them in an intimate setting.
American Beauty is the best best picture winner of the 90s because it's the most honest. It told us, yes, this world sucks, but if you let go and start following what makes you happy, you'll get through it...or get shot in the head by a former soldier/repressed homosexual.
Aside: I was curious as to how a film like Shakespeare in Love won over Saving Private Ryan, so I decided to do a little research into how these films get nominated. Unfortunately for me, there was no conspiracy as to why a particular film was chosen, but this article is interesting enough in explaining the process.
My distaste in the Academy's choices for the 1990s aside, the parameters of this debate are simple enough, and I'll abide by them.
There were many factors to deal with in choosing the best best picture, but in the end my decision led me to choose American Beauty.
American Beauty is the story of a disheartened suburban man (Kevin Spacey) and his rebirth over the course of a year. He rejects his cookie-cutter suburban lifestyle for a life that is uniquely his.
Nearly all of the other Best Picture winners (save Silence of the Lambs) were sprawling epics that showcased some primordial emotion from the human conditions (The English Patient, love; Forrest Gump, endurance; Braveheart, freedom). In short, these movies are idealized realities that the people can latch onto.
But as we came closer to the new millennium, we realized that this was not the world of flying cars and food in pill form. This was a world that led a depressed existence. The movie held a mirror up to our collective selves. The film's protagonist, however, gave us hope that we could reject the lives we were forced into for something that makes us happy. Instead of extraordinary characters dealing with extraordinary circumstances, American Beauty's hero was one of us.
.JPG)
Technically speaking, American Beauty also succeeds because of it's sense of control and restraint. Unlike big, boldness of Titanic or Braveheart, American Beauty is a low-key, subtle film. It seems like it's easier to create characters during explosive action and events -- characters who wear their hearts on their sleeves, than to restrain them in an intimate setting.American Beauty is the best best picture winner of the 90s because it's the most honest. It told us, yes, this world sucks, but if you let go and start following what makes you happy, you'll get through it...or get shot in the head by a former soldier/repressed homosexual.
Silence of the Lambs
In a recent guide published online by Rottentomatoes.com Silence of the Lambs was listed 22 in the Best of the Best pictures. The only two Best Pictures from the 1990s to beat Silence of the Lambs were Schindler’s List and Unforgiven respectively. All three films are rated at 96% ripe. If I were to have to pick the best of the 1990s I would pick one of these three movies. I’ve been racking my brain but I can’t pick one over the other.
Many would think that the Best Best Picture of the 1990s should say something about the 1990s which would make American Beauty an obvious pick for it’s statement about suburban life and the emasculation of the American Male. I would argue that Silence of the Lambs too says something about the 1990s. The story is about Clarice Starling overcoming a vicious male antagonist in order to stop Buffalo Bill (an icon of Americanism) who skins women. The film is a statement of female power that is only increasing in the 1990s, and is one of multiple films in the 90s to have strong female lead characters. This film along with Thelma and Louise and GI Jane show that women can not only be men’s equals, they can show strength, courage, wit and still retain their femininity.
What do I do now? I’ve decided to take Silence of the Lambs for because it defies convention in two ways. The first is by genre; the list of best picture winners contains few films from horror genre. The horror genre represented a handful of times on the list of nominees and represented once as a winner category. The second reason is it’s interesting statement about the power of women. For this reason I pick Silence of the Lambs for the best Best Picture of the 1990s.
The film is a masterpiece of the horror/suspense genre about Clarice Starling, a young FBI agent who is assigned to get a psychological profile from Hannibal Lecter, a psychologist, serial killer, and cannibal held in a maximum-security prison. The film receives its dramatic power from these interactions between Lecter and Starling as he prods her darkest memories in exchange for information about the killer. It contains terrific performances from both Hopkins and Foster as Lecter and Starling.
Many would think that the Best Best Picture of the 1990s should say something about the 1990s which would make American Beauty an obvious pick for it’s statement about suburban life and the emasculation of the American Male. I would argue that Silence of the Lambs too says something about the 1990s. The story is about Clarice Starling overcoming a vicious male antagonist in order to stop Buffalo Bill (an icon of Americanism) who skins women. The film is a statement of female power that is only increasing in the 1990s, and is one of multiple films in the 90s to have strong female lead characters. This film along with Thelma and Louise and GI Jane show that women can not only be men’s equals, they can show strength, courage, wit and still retain their femininity.All of the films that won or were nominated for the Best Picture are excellent films. Silence of the Lambs is superior to the others because it is such a unique best picture winner. Not only is it in a genre that is unrepresented at Oscar time, but has such a provacative plot related to the agency of women in the United States.
-Josh
No comments:
Post a Comment