92.)
The song "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" is something I found super creepy and I can't say I dig the story. It's also a musical, which is not my cup of tea and neither is the romantic setting of Paris, which when I visited decades ago, smelled like a stinky river. Forget me though, because it went home with 9 Oscars.
Who it Beat: Auntie Mame, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Separate Tables, The Defiant Ones
What Should Have Won: The Defiant Ones
My Favorite of 1958: Vertigo
91.)
I like Albert Finney, but I do not like a horned up version of Finney chasing girls across the English countryside. In fact it hasn't aged well with a 6.5 on IMDB, the fourth lowest among the Best Picture winners.
Who it Beat: Lilies of the Field, America America, How the West Was Won, Cleopatra
What Should Have Won: Lilies of the Field
My Favorite of 1963: High/Low
90.)
The third lowest rated Best Picture on IMDB (5.9) is about westward expansion and manifest destiny, just in a really boring package.
Who it Beat: East Lynne, Skippy, The Front Page, Skippy, Trader Horn
What Should Have Won: The Front Page
My Favorite of 1931: City Lights
89.)
Cavalcade (1933)This movie earns the second lowest rating on IMDB (5.8) for a Best Picture winner and really stretches itself out to almost two hours, but feels so much longer.
Who it Beat: 42nd Street, A Farewell to Arms, I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang, Lady for a Day, Little Women, She Done Him Wrong, Smilin' Through, State Fair, The Private Life of Henry VIII
What Should Have Won: I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang
My Favorite of 1933: Duck Soup
88.)
This film boasts, "Singing, Dancing, and Talking!", but these things don't stand the test of time. At 5.7, this is the lowest rated BP Winner, and it would go on to spawn three inspired films, The Broadway Melody of 1936, 38, and 40.
Who it Beat: Alibi, In Old Arizona, The Hollywood Revue of 1929, The Patriot
What Should Have Won: I haven't watched any of the others and The Patriot is said to have caught fire and is lost forever. The trailer for the film is the only thing left and that was better than this movie, so The Patriot it is.
My Favorite of 1929: Un chien andalou
87.)
For some reason, Gene Kelly's acting leaves a lot to be desired for me. It's once again a musical set in Paris featuring Leslie Caron and directed by Vincente Minnelli, but less creepy than Gigi, so here it is.
Who it Beat: A Place in the Sun, A Streetcar Named Desire, Decisions Before Dawn, Quo Vadis
What Should Have Won: A Place in the Sun
My Favorite of 1951: Strangers on a Train
86.)
This is not a film that ages well and cannot be saved by the fun cameos throughout the movie from Buster Keaton to Frank Sinatra. At almost three hours, it seems like 80 days to finish this.
Who it Beat: Friendly Persuasion, Giant, The King and I, The Ten Commandments
What Should Have Won: Giant
My Favorite of 1956: The Killing
85.)
The Great Ziegfeld (1936)William Powell was a busy man in 1936, but it was slightly strange that this vehicle won Best Picture, while he was nominated for Best Actor for My Man Godfrey. This is yet another example of how the academy often mistakes length with quality, as The Great Ziegfeld clocks in just a shade under three hours.
Who it Beat: A Tale of Two Cities, Anthony Adverse, Dodsworth, Libeled Lady, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, Romeo and Juliet, San Francisco, Three Smart Girls, The Story of Louis Pasteur
What Should Have Won: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
My Favorite of 1936: Modern Times
84.)
Grand Hotel (1932)Lots of famous faces, some briefly interesting things happen, but not an overall memorable experience.
Who it Beat: Arrowsmith, Bad Girl, Five Star Final, One Hour with You, Shangai Express, The Champ, The Smiling Lieutenant
What Should Have Won: Five Star Final
My Favorite of 1932: Freaks
83.)
How Green Was My Valley (1941)This movie beat Citizen Kane. This movie. Enough said.
Who it Beat: Citizen Kane, Blossoms in the Dust, Here Comes Mr. Jordan, Hold Back the Dawn, One Foot in Heaven, Sergeant York, Suspicion
What Should Have Won: Citizen Kane
My Favorite of 1941: Citizen Kane
82.)
Mrs. Miniver (1942)There's plenty of movies about World War II from the British perspective in the early 1940's, with some being done better than others. Alone in 1942 there were three war films nominated for Best Picture. There's certainly lots of explosions, but it just didn't do much for me.
Who it Beat: 49th Parallel, King's Row, Random Harvest, The Magnificent Ambersons, The Pride of the Yankees, The Talk of the Town, The Pied Piper, Wake Island, Yankee Doodle Dandy
What Should Have Won: The Pride of the Yankees
My Favorite of 1942: The Pride of the Yankees
81.)
Going My Way (1944)Bing Crosby is a preacher who brings a youth movement and a new attitude to help save a financially failing church. He's also handsome so it's sort of a 1940's Fleabag. It became the first movie to have its sequel (The Bell's of St. Mary's) nominated for Best Picture. At least, unlike Wilson, it didn't feature blackface.
Who It Beat: Double Indemnity, Wilson, Gaslight, Since You Went Away
What Should Have Won: Double Indemnity
My Favorite of 1944: Double Indemnity
80.)
Laurence Olivier is a fine actor, but if I need to stay awake, Olivier + Shakespeare is not a great formula. In fact, 1948 had plenty of films with rave reviews that I just couldn't get into. I often struggle watching movies about Shakespeare plays that aren't comedies.
Who It Beat: The Red Shoes, The Snake Pit, Johnny Belinda, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
What Should Have Won: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
My Favorite of 1948: Rope
79.)
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)This is one of the longest, most tedious films that I have sat through. At almost three hours it feels like Hamlet, but without the memorable dialogue. So then why is this higher than Hamlet? Two words, Harold Russell. The frustrating part is that in all the promotional items for this film he is nowhere to be found. Russell lost both his hands after dynamite that he was holding exploded in his hands. Seeing as he is someone who actually served, he brings credibility to the role of a disabled veteran, and he's also a pretty solid actor. He rightfully took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, but wouldn't make another film appearance until 1980.
Who It Beat: The Yearling, It's a Wonderful Life, Henry V, The Razor's Edge
What Should Have Won: It's a Wonderful Life
My Favorite of 1946: Notorious
78.)
West Side Story (1961)I get that back in the day musicals were all the rage and that some people are still really into them, but I just can't. Jets v. Sharks, an updated Romeo + Juliet are all fine and well, but three of the other films this year were just so much better. At least it's better than Fanny.
Who It Beat: Fanny, The Hustler, The Guns of Navarone, Judgment at Nuremberg
What Should Have Won: Judgment at Nuremberg
My Favorite of 1961: Judgment at Nuremberg
77.)
My Fair Lady (1964)Well I enjoyed this better than Pygmalion and there are some brief moments of enjoyment, but overall, it's just another musical where everyone knows all the dance moves and words. It also takes the award from another one of my favorite movies.
Who it Beat: Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, Zorba the Greek, Becket, Mary Poppins
What Should Have Won: Dr. Strangelove
My Favorite of 1964: Dr. Strangelove
76.)
The Sound of Music (1965)I've been to place where she frolics around, I know most of the songs, and still it's a movie about World War II that if I never see it again, I would be just fine.
Who It Beat: A Thousand Clowns, Darling, Doctor Zhivago, Ship of Fools
What Should Have Won: Doctor Zhivago
My Favorite of 1965: For a Few Dollars More
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