“Fool’s Gold” gets a $22 million opening weekend. It’s enough to make anyone weep for the future of cinema.
On the other hand, it’s merely a blip on the pop-culture radar compared to the lingering sting of Oscar’s most devastating mistakes — as enumerated in this week’s Sympatico/MSN movie column.
Because Roberto Benigni can never be forgiven. Ever.
The sad thing is, Marty got overlooked in favour of an actor’s “flashy directorial debut” *twice*. (Redford and Costner.) And then he lost a third time to Eastwood.
Which of course you point out later in the article; just underscorin’ the irony.
The most egregious part of Celine Dion’s Oscar win for “My Heart Will Go On” was the fact that she beat out Elliott Smith’s “Miss Misery” from Good Will Hunting. One of the best songs from arguably the greatest songwriter of his generation.
That was the year when they had all of the original songs played one after another, sandwiching poor little Elliott, alone with a guitar in his white suit, between Faith Hill’s over the top production and Celine Dion’s chest thumping.
One of the most surreal Oscar moments.
Prior to the safe Forrest Gump beating edgier Pulp Fiction, the worst Best Picture injustice was the TV-movie worthy Kramer vs. Kramer beating out both Apocalypse Now (!?!) and my favorite of that year, All That Jazz.
And you’re right…Blame Canada was robbed.
Injustice? Jane Alexander’s quiet and wrenching performance in ‘Testament’ losing out to Shirley MacLaine chewing the scenery in ‘Terms of Endearment.’ After 25-odd years I should probably let it go. But if you’re in the mood for a double-feature of nuclear apocalypse and cancer, watch them back to back and judge for yourself.
Actually, if you’re in a mood for nuclear apocalypse and cancer, you should really watch some Bugs Bunny instead. And have some nice soothing hot cocoa. And a cookie.
The 1981 Academy Awards was my first, formative Oscar experience–and my first crushing Oscar outrage as “Raiders of the Lost Ark” went down to “Chariots of Fire”. I do notice that the “bad” nominees of yesteryear have nothing on the bad nominees of the last twenty or so years.
1941 also seems a watershed moment as The Maltese Falcon, The Little Foxes, Suspicion and ummm…Citizen Kane are dropped by
How Green Was My Valley–a film I would watch thirty more times before subjecting myself to Braveheart, Gump, Gladiator or American Beauty again.
Regardless of whether Pulp Fiction was better (of course it was), Forrest Gump at least has some good jokes, a few really spectacular moments and a great performance by Gary Sinise.
I’m tempted to vote for the tiresome, overwrought Gladiator beating Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, but at least Gladiator had a great performance by Oliver Reed and really launched Russell Crowe’s career, for which, on balance, I think we can be thankful. (I mean, no Gladiator probably means no Master and Commander or 3:10 To Yuma.)
No, the Best Picture travesty is Crash, which not only wasn’t the best picture that year but was in fact the worst picture of all five nominated, and furthermore in fact worse than many other movies that were not nominated. Crash is a giant, festering hump of Academy-baiting dogshit with practically nothing to recommend it.