Snugglecub – Page 26 – Academy Award Best Picture Winners

1937 – Irene Dunne

1937 – Irene Dunne

The Awful Truth

First off, let me say that Irene Dunne was gorgeous, full of personality and talent, and she knew how to act. It isn’t surprising that this was not her first nomination for Best Actress. In fact, it was her third of five nominations in the category. She was incredible, and she never disappoints.

Here, she plays Lucy Warriner, a loving and devoted wife whose marriage ends because her husband believes she has cheated on him. Never-mind that it is already established that her husband actually has been cheating. But the accusation of her infidelity is enough to make her call the lawyer on the spot, and file for divorce. She starts dating a wealthy man for whom she has no feelings. And when it later becomes clear that she had never been unfaithful, and she realizes that she still loves her husband, the two reconcile, and the marital trust is restored. But I noticed that his original indiscretion is never mentioned beyond the two second shot where she catches him in a lie about his whereabouts on a trip.

Dunne knew exactly how to play each scene. From the moment she first appears on the screen, she is in complete control of her craft. And throughout the course of the movie, she runs the gambit of emotions from happy to nervous, from depressed to cautious, from angry to drunk, and finally to hopelessly in love. Dunne played it all believably and she made it look easy. I also loved some of the well-placed quick witted lines that were common to the screwball comedies of the era. Dunne delivered them with perfect timing and just the right amount of dryness.

But the film ended with a genuinely dramatic moment to give the narrative a little weight. Dunne really shined during this climax. Though less than three minutes from the rolling of the ending credits, it was the first scene where the jokes and quick quips were all gone, the silliness was done, and some real dramatic emotion rose to the surface. Dunne was beautiful as she tells her husband that the marriage only ended because of what he had imagined she had done, not because of what she had actually done. It was wonderful how she stood up for herself, refusing to take the blame for his groundless suspicions. Well-done, Dunne.

1937 – Luise Rainer (WINNER)

1937 – Luise Rainer

The Good Earth

I am quite confident in saying two things about Luise Rainer’s performance in this movie. First, I think she was very well cast. And the second is that she totally deserved her Oscar win. She was incredible. Yes, she was as Caucasian as she could be, but her eyes actually held a marginally Chinese resemblance. Her co-star Paul Muni, though he acted his part well, didn’t look remotely Chinese. I’m sorry to say, he didn’t even come close to looking Asian.

True, the film was about the poor farmer Wang Lung, and his wife O-Lan, but O-Lan seemed to take the lion’s share of the dramatic work, and Rainer did a fantastic job. If I had any criticism about her performance, it would be this: O-Lan was supposed to be an unattractive woman, but Rainer’s beauty often shined through the makeup they used to make her less appealing. She was just too gorgeous. But she acted the hell out of the part. The way she carried herself, her often blank facial expression as the men in her life treated her with complete indifference, and the way she spoke like one who is used to being ignored, was masterfully done.

You see, O-Lan was a woman in a strongly male dominated society. Women were seen as property, not people. Their only value was in how hard they could work, and how many male children they could bear. O-Lan was treated without respect for most of her life, even though it was she who often held the family together and not Wang Lung. And when the family was starving and destitute, it was O-Lan who risked her life during a dangerous time of revolution to illegally loot the jewels that saved her family, changing her husband from a penniless pauper to wealthy Lord. And for this, he never even said thank you, not until she was on her death-bed.

Rainer just seemed so natural in her carefully buried emotions and her strained devotion to her husband. Because of her performance, I almost felt like O-Lan was the real lead of the film, even though Muni’s part was just as important. She just seemed like a stronger character. This is one of those performances where the Academy voters got it absolutely right. Rainer’s performance was nuanced and detailed, at times, subtle, and yet always believable. Perfect Performance.

1937 – Mae Whitty

1937 – Mae Whitty

Night Must Fall

Dame Mae Whitty was perfectly cast as the cranky old rich lady. She had a natural air of privilege and entitlement about her that was unmistakable. She was self-righteous, cantankerous, and mean spirited, everything that the character of Mrs. Bramson was supposed to be. She was so perfectly annoying to watch on the screen, which only tells me that Mae Whitty, the actress did her job well. But she wasn’t so over-the-top that she wasn’t believable. The way I see it, there was a fine line between being the character, and being a caricature, and I could easily see a lesser actress crossing that line.

Mrs. Bramson was a wealthy property owner in the small English village who lorded her status and position over everyone. She expected everyone to always defer to her because it was her right. But she consistently used her age and her money to manipulate and control everyone around her. She was bound to a wheelchair, and masterfully played the sympathy card at every opportunity. I’m old. I’m infirm. Take care of me. Please me. Ugh! And I wasn’t a bit surprised when she was alone, and got up out of her chair without the slightest bit of difficulty.

But she was an integral part of the plot and Whitty’s performance was good. But notice that I don’t say she was great. It’s too bad that Mrs. Bramson was written as a bit of a one note character, which wasn’t Whitty’s fault. The only part of the movie in which Whitty was able to show some real acting chops was right before her character, spoiler alert, was murdered. She was alone in the house, something she wasn’t used to. She became genuinely frightened. I liked the way the actress drew me into her fear. When Danny came in the room, her sense of relief and pent-up fear was perfectly portrayed. The way her hands trembled as she drank a glass of water was spot-on.

And honestly, I think it was her last few minutes of screen time that really earned her the award nomination. She was wonderful. She was good in the rest of the film, but great in that final sequence. The trick is, she was so perfect for this role, I just can’t picture her playing anything else, though I’m sure she frequently did.

1937 – Robert Montgomery

1937 – Robert Montgomery

Night Must Fall

Robert Montgomery deserved his nomination, yet, at the same time, I’m glad he didn’t win. He was good, but there were things about his performance that I didn’t like. He seemed to be trying too hard to be dramatic. The result is that there were moments in which his acting seemed too over-the-top. He needed a little more subtlety in his portrayal of the bad guy. I’ll explain.

First, I think the plot would have been better served if we hadn’t known, from the first moment Danny was on the screen, that he was the killer. I couldn’t tell if this was the fault of the actor, the director, or the script, but I suspect it was a combination of all three. It was immediately clear that he was the guilty party, and I’m not sure if I was supposed to know that or not. I think there could have been more suspense, more drama when he interacted with the other characters, and more conflict if his guilt was in question, at least for a little while. Second, in order to display the character’s nervous and guilty mannerisms, his acting resembled the style of acting that was necessary in the silent film era. His facial expressions and movements were sometimes too exaggerated. Not all the time, mind you, but often enough that it caught my attention.

But there were also some things that I really liked about his performance. For example, he did a good job of consistently using an Irish accent. It sounded believable, and it never wavered, so good job on that. Another thing was that he had the perfect look for the character. There was both an innocence and an enthusiasm about his handsome face that was necessary for the role. In fact, his look went a long way to cover up some of the problems with his acting.

In other words, despite his over-the-top performance, he was still captivating to watch on the screen. Yes, we knew he was the killer, but with a face so innocent, I was constantly wondering why. Unfortunately the answer was never really given. Apparently, Danny was just a killer without a solid motive. I mean the little conversation about his childhood might have explained his murderous tendencies, but we never actually learned why he killed the first lady in the first place. Oh Well.

1937 – Charles Boyer

1937 – Charles Boyer

Conquest

This was a somewhat true movie about Napoleon and, at least according to the movie, the love of his life, the Polish Countess, Mari Walewska, played by Greta Garbo. Boyer seemed to be the perfect choice to play the famous French Emperor, and he did a wonderful job. This was really an Oscar-worthy performance

Boyer played Napoleon as confident, arrogant, charismatic, and possessed of a self-importance that bordered on a god complex. All these qualities in such excess actually made him an unlikeable man. They made him seem selfish, demanding, volatile, and petulant. But darn if Boyer didn’t make him somewhat charming at the same time, despite being a jackass most of the film.

The film focused on the romance between Napoleon and the Countess Walewska, not on his brilliance as a military tactician. But as my bit of research revealed, that is really where the real Napoleon’s true charisma shined. He was a great military leader who was not afraid to fight right along-side his men in battle, and they loved him for it. But the film only used Boyer as a romantic lead who happened to be the famous Napoleon. And Boyer was nothing if not charming.

Boyer took the role of Napoleon quite seriously. He changed his appearance to look like the historical figure. He got a matching haircut, and I think, though I cannot confirm, he wore a bit of padding to give the character a slight paunch, especially in his later years. I also think he held himself differently to give himself a smaller stature. He often had hunched shoulders or was leaning slightly forward. While Napoleon was only about five feet tall, which was only slightly shorter than average height for the time, Boyer was five-foot-nine.

So then why didn’t Boyer win the Oscar? First he was up against Spencer Tracy in Captains Courageous. That was a hard one to beat. But second, is that though his performance was fine, the script let him down, making him a little too unlikeable. And as I’ve said before, an Oscar winner needs to be a synthesis of good acting and a good script. Here, the script wasn’t bad, but it was, in my opinion, only average.

1937 – Spencer Tracy (WINNER)

1937 – Spencer Tracy

Captains Courageous

Spencer Tracy was an actor who was very often cast in the role of a kindly father figure. And in this movie, it was a perfect fit for him, as the movie was about a spoiled child who was in need of a kindly father figure to turn him from a brat into an upstanding, mature young man. Tracy was made for this role, despite the fact that the character of Manuel Fidello, a Portuguese sailor and fisherman. Ok, so his accent was a little inconsistent, but he was still wonderful.

I have seen several films with Spencer Tracy, and he is always good. He always seemed to have a genuineness about him that made him very believable on the screen. He just seemed so likeable, so kind, and so generous of spirit, that it had to be more than just acting. It was a part of the man, and as natural to him as breathing, which is just what Manuel needed.

And we got to hear him sing. His voice was soft and gentle, and was actually a bit of a plot point that endeared him to the young Harvey, excellently played by Freddie Bartholomew. His song, called Manuel’s love song, was like a sweet lullaby that made me feel all warm and fuzzy. His voice wasn’t beautiful, but the gentleness that Spencer Tracy put into his performance really sold the song, making the two scenes where he sang it poignant and memorable. And the soft sounds of the hurdy-gurdy he played gave it a sweet beauty that I really liked.

In this film, he had a rougher appearance than I am used to seeing from him. He wasn’t a priest or a wealthy patriarch. They gave him a bushy perm, and dressed him in the clothes of a working fisherman, and he actually pulled it off. He was a working class laborer with a heart of gold, who reluctantly develops a paternal relation with the spoiled Harvey. Just by being a kindly, honest man, he teaches the young boy about love and friendship. He drives home the point of the story, which is that children need love and attention in order to grow up into kind, responsible adults. Tracy was wonderful in this performance, and I’m glad that he took home the Oscar. Incidentally, this was the first of his two Oscar wins for Best Actor, out of his nine nominations.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 Cast Photos

James and Oliver Phelps as Fred and George Weasley

Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange

Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, and Daniel Radcliffe as Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Harry Potter

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Cast Photos

Character Posters

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Well, this is the movie that ended the Harry Potter franchise. Of course, we still have the ongoing spin-off Wizarding World Franchise, Fantastic Beasts, which I almost consider part of the Harry Potter franchise, but I’ll be getting to those soon enough. This movie was so well constructed. The pacing, the action, the emotion, the drama, and the climactic resolution of a story that began ten years earlier. It would be easy enough to say that the entire cast did a fantastic job, but I really think they did.

First I have to acknowledge what a rare and special thing it was to have, with only a few exceptions, a cast that remained the same for the entire run of the series. There were a few minor characters that were changed, but for the most part, every actor stuck around for the entire ten years. And this is most remarkable for the actors that started out as children. Their skills in front of the camera just kept improving and improving from one film to the next. And the stand out member of the cast in this final Harry Potter film, was none other than Harry, himself, Daniel Radcliffe. He really was incredible in this movie. The pure range of raw and difficult emotions that he embodied was nothing short of amazing. My hat is off to him for giving the world such a wonderful character in such a fantastic way.

So all the pieces are in place. All the plots and subplots have been laid out. And all we have left to do is to wrap it all up with a nice bow on top. And let me tell you, I think they really delivered. The ending was appropriately epic, exciting, and memorable. The visual effects were stunning. The action sequences were chaotic and thrilling. And though we all knew that our hero Harry was going to win in the end, there was no disappointment in how it was handled. And it was important to note that not all our favorite characters survived until the end, which I loved. It just made the story that much more realistic. Heroes can die, and it is silly to think that only the bad guys die in a war. Here, Fred Weasley dies, which was heartbreaking. Tonks and Remus Lupin both die. Lavender Brown dies. And Harry dies. Mustn’t forget that, though of course, he chose to let the remnant of Voldemort’s soul die instead of himself. He came back, and the rest is history.

There were so many scenes that were done right, making them memorable. The battle of Hogwarts was a major part of the film, and I’d even say its focus. But I admit to sometimes forgetting that the first sequence of the film is the daring raid into Gringot’s. It almost seems to belong in the previous film, and I have to remind myself which movie it actually is in. It was really cool! I loved how Hermione disguised herself as Bellatrix Lestrange, and Ron gave himself a beard and bushy hair, making himself really look like a Death Eater. Also Warwick Davis as Griphook was incredibly good. He was so properly menacing! And the daring escape on the back of a dragon was so cool!

I also really liked the character of Aberforth Dumbledore. The actor who played him, Ciarán Hinds, did a fantastic job. The short scene where he questions harry about his reasons for trying to finish what Albus Dumbledore had started was a great scene. And I also loved it when he showed up in the battle of Hogwarts to drive away the Dementors.

And I have to mention how much I actually really enjoyed that ending scene that took place nineteen years later. I thought it was very tastefully done, giving us a tiny bit of the aftermath of such an epic tale. I liked that they showed us that Draco and Harry had matured into adults and had made a sort of peace with each other. And I think they did a fine job aging the actors, and showing the audience that life goes on after such traumatic events. It was an appropriate end to the complex and epic story about the boy who lived. Well-done everybody.

Top 10 Favorite Parts

The Escape from Gringot’s on the back of the albino dragon.
Harry’s conversation with Aberforth
McGonagall confronting Snape and asking Harry what he needs. I love how she offers him support without any questions, saying “Do what you have to do.”
Goyle losing control of the Fiend Fire spell, and his death.
Voldemort’s reaction after Rowena Ravenclaw’s diadem is destroyed. Fiennes was brilliant in that moment!
Snape’s death scene, and giving Harry his memories.
Harry learning that Dumbledore had planned his death at Voldemort’s hand, and knowing that it had to happen. Radcliffe’s acting was perfect.
Harry meeting with the shades of his parents, Serius Black, and Lupin. I loved how Serius says “Quicker than falling asleep”
Harry’s conversation with Dumbledore, and Dumbledore’s answer to Harry’s question. “Of course it’s happening inside your head, Harry. Why should that mean that it’s not real?”
Neville Longbottom killing Nagini. Go Neville!

1937 – Janet Gaynor

1937 – Janet Gaynor

A Star is Born

The character of Esther Blodgett seemed to have been written for Janet Gaynor. Here, we have the first woman to have ever taken home an Oscar for the Best Actress category in 1927/1928, being nominated again. And once again, I think she really deserved the honor. She did a great job in this movie, playing the young hopeful actress with dreams of becoming a famous movie star. But the man who helps her to achieve her goals, is the same man who holds her back from greatness, and is also the man she loves.

This is really her story, though in order to make the narrative work, she had to have good chemistry with her leading man, which Gaynor had with Fredrick March. The two looked as natural together on the screen as any movie couple ever did. Add to that her obvious skill as an actress, and you have a great movie. Esther starts out as a naive young woman with stars in her eyes, to a more mature, more experienced soul, who love and tragedy have transformed into a harder woman, more capable of handling the difficult life of a superstar.

There were several scenes where Gaynor’s performance really caught my attention. For example, the scene where she is working as a server at a bougey party. In a sad, almost pathetic effort to make the attending film producers notice her, she tries to impersonate famous Hollywood starlets while serving hors d’œuvres. Of course, Norman Maine only notices her when she is being herself. Another impressive scene is where Esther is accepting an Academy Award for Best Actress. A drunk Norman interrupts her acceptance speech and accidentally strikes her across the cheek in front of the stunned audience. The pained look of utter embarrassment on her face as her peers try to congratulate her is heartbreaking.

But then, in the final scene of the movie in which Esther is addressing the public after Norman’s death, where she proudly associates herself with her husband’s name, Gaynor really shows us some raw emotion and strength. She displays the thick skin the character has grown, and it was a pleasure to watch on the screen. Gaynor was wonderful, and really deserved her nomination.

1937 – Fredric March

1937 – Fredric March

A Star is Born

Well, the story is a popular one, so popular that it has been told on the silver screen at least four times. But this one was the first. This one was the one that introduced us to the tragic character played by March, Norman Maine, a once great actor, whose career has fallen into a downward spiral, accelerated by his desperate battle with alcoholism.

In a nutshell, the character’s story arch can be summed up in a few sentences. As Norman’s star falls, the acting career of the woman he loves skyrockets. Norman is plagued by depression, self-hate, and alcohol abuse, until finally, he realizes that the only way he can save his wife’s career, her dreams, her happiness, is to commit suicide. In the end, he makes that supreme sacrifice out of love. The actor playing this character had to have a wide range to believably give us a pathetic drunk, as well as a charming leading man. March did it all perfectly.

It didn’t hurt that he was a very attractive man with a smile that made him instantly likable. He had a light and easy charm that drew me in, despite his reprehensible behavior. And it was clear that he was sincerely in love with his wife, Esther, played by Janet Gaynor. When he was sober and things were good, he was wonderful. But when he was drunk, the self-pity was palpable. The depression was frightening. The tragic end seemed almost inevitable. A less-skilled actor could have made the part a caricature for whom we had no sympathy and no empathy. But because of March’s incredible performance, we felt for him, wanting him to conquer his addiction to alcohol.

During his final scene, as he tries to convince Esther that he’s feeling better, that he is ready to try sobriety again for her sake, we can see in his eyes that he is saying goodbye. We see his death coming, and we almost agree with his reasons for killing himself. It was a sad and depressing end for the character, but at the same time, an appropriate one. Here, March was on top of his game. This was the third of his five Best Actor nominations, and though he didn’t win, I wouldn’t have been surprised if he had. Well done, Fredric!