The first Oscars I lived through
Friday, March 27, 2020 at 8:00PM 
Throughout my life, I've always had trouble remembering numerical data, be it phone numbers or birthdays. Curiously enough, that never stopped me from being able to memorize movie's release years or various tidbits of Oscar trivia. That's why I started associating Best Picture winners to people's ages, to remember them. Some people have astrology; I have the Oscars. For instance, my sisters are Terms of Endearment, Dances with Wolves and Gladiator and my parents are West Side Story and The Sound of Music.
Although, maybe I shouldn't have chosen such a systemsince I've always detested my Best Picture, which won the Oscar precisely 25 years ago today. It was none other than 1994's maudlin hymn to political passivity and dumb luck known as Forrest Gump…
To this day, I despise Forrest Gump with a passion. I thought my opinion might have changed over the years, but a recent rewatch only made my animosity grow stronger. While there may be something to be appreciated in the movie's scope as well as its craft, the narrative is insufferable. Racism is made the subject of silly jokes, the civil rights movement is vilified, war is simplified, and there's an air of anti-intellectualism throughout. Not to mention the misogynistic treatment of the movie's romantic interest, whose punitive arc seems taken straight out of a Hays Code.
Anyway, not everything about the 1994 Oscars was bad. True, it was the year Harvey Weinstein asserted his reign of terror over awards season with Miramax getting more nominations than any other studio, but it was also when Hans Zimmer won his only Oscar and drag queen finery was honored with a Best Costume Design prize. Let's celebrate the 25th anniversary of that golden and historical night, starting with the host's monologue:
Well, there were many good things about that ceremony, but David Letterman's sorry excuse for a hosting job wasn't one of them. And we talk about bad monologues nowadays. Maybe it's a good thing we don't have hosts anymore since, if Oscar history is to be trusted, for every Whoopi Goldberg we must get years' worth of Billy Crystal and David Letterman. The only bright spot of this dreary monologue is that it starts with a good joke, one directed at the Hoop Dreams kerfuffle, something we'll talk about later on.
But before that, it's time for some Oscar wins and a bunch of acceptance speeches.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Dianne Wiest's second win is usually considered among the very best of the Supporting Actress category. While I don't share that exact feeling, one must admit that it's a bombastic performance, both hilarious and intelligent. She's a great thespian and her speech was a class act which included the rare name drop of crew members like costume designer Jeffrey Kurland, production designer Santo Loquasto and cinematographer Carlo di Palma. That said, the mentions of Woody Allen and Harvey Weinstein read very differently in 2020 than they probably did in 1995.
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
To this day, The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert is the last contemporary-set movie to nab the Oscar for Best Costume Design. If it remains the last, at least it's a stunner. Fashion-wise, we have to say that co-costume designer Lizzy Gardiner wore the most memorable outfit of the night, eclipsing every movie star present with her witty credit card eleganza.
BEST MAKE-UP
What a great win. The team behind the wondrous makeup of Ed Wood is made up of some legendary filmmakers. All of them were already Oscar winners before this night and Rick Baker would go on to win five more statuettes. His last one won in 2011, was for The Wolfman, whose gory effects famously elicited a "that's gross" from Cate Blanchett.
BEST SOUND EFFECTS EDITING
From Sarah Jessica Parker's presentation, we can deduce that people have had difficulty distinguishing between the two sound categories for ages. It doesn't help when the Academy insists on rewarding the same films in both categories. At least, Speed is a good winner.
BEST EDITING
We arrive at the first of six victories for Forrest Gump. Since we'll have more opportunities to talk about that, let's instead pay attention to some of its illustrious competitors. This was one of only two nominations Sally Menke received and, 25 years later, her loss feels absurd. No movie from the 90s had more influential editing than Pulp Fiction. Onto other matters, this was Hoop Dreams' sole nomination and, to this day, it's only the second documentary to get recognized by the Academy's editors branch.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Like Wiest, Martin Landau won the SAG and the Golden Globe before conquering the Academy Award. While it wasn't a surprise, that doesn't mean it wasn't deserved or that watching Landau hold an Academy Awards isn't a thrilling sight. Still, I must admit Samuel L. Jackson would have gotten my vote for his unforgettable performance in Pulp Fiction.
JEAN HERSHOLT HUMANITARIAN AWARD
Exhibit A of why the Honorary Academy Awards should be handed out on air, during the main ceremony.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
As usual, the Academy loves to bestow its Best Cinematography award to films full of postcard-ready sweeping vistas. Considering this was the first of two consecutive wins for John Toll and that his victory for 1995's Braveheart is infinitely more deserved, it's difficult not to be a bit bitter about this result. Of the nominees, Piotr Sobociński would get my vote, but I wouldn't have been sad if Deakins had won.
SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL AWARDS
There's not much to say about these awards, just that Jamie Lee Curtis entrance was spectacular and her presentation was perfectly charming. Good job from all involved.
BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT FILM & BEST ANIMATED SHORT-FILM
Ties are a fascinating Oscar phenomenon and this is a helpful reminder that Peter Capaldi is an Academy Award winner. Speaking of obscure Oscar trivia, does anyone know when ceremonies started featuring this sort of animated presenters?
BEST ART DIRECTION
This is the only win for The Madness of King George and it's a bit of a surprise. While the splendor of Georgian interiors is nothing to scoff at, there were much showier works in contention that year. The sheer scope of Forrest Gump makes it seem like a shoo-in and then there's Dante Ferretti's century-spanning designs for Interview with the Vampire.
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
The Mask should have won and I deeply despise that damned feather. That's all.
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT-FILM & BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Rare is the year when the most controversial Oscar category is Best Documentary. It happened in 1994, though, when Hoop Dreams was shockingly snubbed after a season that had critics speculating that the epic doc could perhaps even nab an elusive Best Picture nomination and become the first non-fiction film to do so. Still, it happened and it caused a justified outrage, so much so that the Academy did what they never do, asking Price Waterhouse Cooper for the results of the nomination voting. Thanks to a convoluted system, Hoop Dreams ended up in the sixth spot, a result that impelled the Academy to change its methodology and eventually create the Documentary branch. Hoop Dreams is a stone-cold masterpiece.
BEST SOUND
Speed's a perfectly good winner, though I must again grumble about the Academy's habit of giving its two sound awards to the same picture. At least, it wasn't Forrest Gump.
HONORARY ACADEMY AWARD
Exhibit B of why the Honorary Academy Awards should be handed out on air, during the main ceremony.
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Despite being one of the most famous movie composers of our days, Hans Zimmer has only ever won one Academy Award. Unlike many other Oscar winners with illustrious careers, he can pride himself having won for one of his very best works. Because of that, it's difficult to begrudge him the victory, even though these Oscars marked the first time Thomas Newman would lose the award. In 2020, he's the most nominated composer never to have won.
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
As I've never seen Cuba's Strawberry and Chocolate, I don't know which of these nominees would get my vote. At the moment, I'm split between Before the Rain's tales of war and Eat Drink Man Woman's lovely fusion of Ozu's father-daughter melodramas with food porn. It should be noted that due to some very inconsistent rulings and since-changed norms, Three Colors: Red was disqualified as Switzerland's contender just as its predecessor, Three Colors: Blue, had been when it was submitted by Poland. Regarding the actual winner, we must contend that it was a heartfelt acceptance speech and the bit about Nikita Mikhalkov's daughter was adorable.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Circle of Life" should have won.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
An obvious winner but not an undeserved one. As previously mentioned, Pulp Fiction is one of the most influential films of the 90s and a good part of that comes from its ingenious structure and memorable dialogues.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
I would have voted for Quiz Show regardless of the controversy surrounding the film's historical accuracy. Truth be told, any of the nominees would have been more deserving than Forrest Gump. Though my judgment might be clouded by a general dislike for the movie, wasn't this one of the night's worst speeches?
IRVING G. THALBERG MEMORIAL AWARD
Ok, maybe not all Honorary Oscar should be televised live. Just kidding, though I do think Arnold Schwarzenegger's articulate presentation was better than Clint's actual speech.
BEST ACTRESS
Just like this year, the 1994 Oscars saw a Best Supporting Actress winner of the previous decade conquer a Lead Actress statuette thanks, in part, to a competition that didn't manage to garner much enthusiasm. There's even a Jo March in both races. Putting aside such comparisons, we must admit that Lange's second win is a bizarre little chapter in Oscar history, coming for a film that seemed like it would never be released and which bombed at the box office. Not only that, but Blue Sky is one of the actress's lesser efforts, showing the limitations of her usual technique of total abandonment and perennial onscreen volatility. Lange never pulls any punches and, while that may be a genius move in films like Frances, it can quickly veer into camp if the production doesn't support that sort of emotional pyrotechnics. Blue Sky is incapable of containing Lange's fire and fury, never giving it any shape, place or purpose. It's a performance that's impressive to watch, but it's not Oscar-worthy by any means.
BEST ACTOR
Speaking of undeserved Oscar wins, I despise this victory and for years it sullied my view of Tom Hanks himself. If there was an actor worthy of winning a second Oscar in 1994, it was Paul Newman for his beguiling work in Robert Benton's Nobody's Fool. All things said, Hanks is incapable of giving a bad acceptance speech and this one is charming. It almost brought a tear to my eye.
BEST DIRECTOR
Kieslowski should have won, even though it's only thanks to a miracle of aggressive campaigning that he was nominated in the first place. At the very least, it's nice to see Steven Spielberg's enthusiasm at Zemeckis' victory.
BEST PICTURE
You've probably tired of reading my jibes at Forrest Gump, so let's end this retrospective with some positivity for the other Best Picture nominees. Quiz Show may play fast and loose with historical fact, but its social critique is on-point and smartly explored by an elegant script and Robert Redford's direction. Compared to other major releases from 1994, it's nakedly political and unafraid of confronting its audience with difficult questions about the insidiousness of antisemitism. In contrast, The Shawshank Redemption doesn't challenge its audience so much as it placates them with heartfelt humanism, though it's earnest rather than schmaltzy. Four Weddings and a Funeral is an explosion of charm that's impossible to resist and Pulp Fiction deserves its reputation as one of the most important American films of the past few decades.
Any of them would have been a worthy Best Picture winner.
Reader Comments (51)
Your opinion, as well written as it always is, is tediously bullshit at this point.
One could say we have different tastes, tho it'd be an inaccurate assessment, as my "taste" ranges enough that there is clearly some desire for objectivity.
In all honesty I'm just so sick of all this uniformity. People think their opinions are unique, yet they're all subscribers to a group that yields the depths of "I know!".
I can see the opinion coming before I click. And it reeks of pretentiousness.
This is an awesome and comprehensive piece, though I do like the film much, much more than you do. Good talking to you today - keep up the great writing!
God, the irony of “Me”’s post above. I don’t know what has gotten into the comment section on this website recently, but can these people... grow up?
Great read as always Cláudio. Whole heartedly agree re: Lange’s win. Baffling, really. I doubt she even thinks of Blue Sky. Ryder, like Ronan, would’ve been my choice.
Absolutely love your writing - keep at it.
Well, I'm sorry you missed 1993 by just one year. One of the bests shows ever.
Forrest Gump won 6 and somehow underperformed. I remember everyone predicting like 9 Oscars for that movie/cultural phenomenon. Ed Wood and Speed did so well that night.
I'm totally fine with Jessica's 2nd. It was the only way to go with that lineup.
It suddenly dawned on me that Sarandon (Bette Davis) won Best Actress the following year after Lange (Joan Crawford)!
I’m just going to say it. I love Nathaniel and have been a Film Experience reader for over a decade, but Cláudio, you have become the MVP of this site. You post regularly, you have great writing talent, just like Nathaniel, and, I think, most importantly, you focus on what most of us come here for: The Oscars! I love past year breakdowns, performance deep dives, etc. I think a lot other readers do too. There’s a reason the Supporting Actress Smackdown is so popular. I want to make it clear, Nathaniel is still awesome and has, understandably, moved into more of oversight, a managerial role, as the sight has grown. But Nat- you’ve found your star.
All this said... I kind of love Forrest Gump. It’s manipulative as hell, but I cry at the “is he smart? Or is he...” part every single time. It’s hurt more by the over-rewarding it received, both in box office and Oscars, than its actual quality. Beating Shawshank and Pulp Fiction didn’t help, either.
I'm not a smart man, but I know what love is.
RIVERS
Jacob -- Thank you for the kind words.
Regarding Forrest Gump, I truly dislike the film and Tom Hanks' work in it. I thought my newfound love for the actor might have me reconsider it as a whole and Hanks' performance in particular, but it didn't happen. To those who love Forrest Gump, I'm sorry for my admittedly mean jibes at the movie.
All that said, the “is he smart? Or is he...” scene you mention got to me. It was one of the few times that I believed in Forrest as a human being instead of a narrative mechanism. I wish all filmmakers involved were more curious to explore Forrest's actual thoughts and perspective outside of his greeting card worthy aphorisms. At that moment, we see that this man is self-aware, he knows how other people perceive him, how it hurts to be mocked one's whole life and he doesn't wish his child to have to endure a similar existence. His cheeriness throughout most of the movie feels unidimensional and effortless in comparison. However, it could have been portrayed more complexly, like a tough deliberate choice of someone that has gradually learned to live with himself and be happy regardless of his assumed limitations.
Maybe, people who love the movie can see all that complexity in the narrative as it's presented, but I couldn't help but feel that the production was actively running away from giving Forrest any depth or ambiguity. Just look at the famous scene in Washington, when he supposedly delivers an arrowing speech about his experiences in Vietnam but we hear none of it. His interior conflict or pain, or whatever it is that he revealed in that moment, is denied to the audience in name of a mirthless joke. It's a movie about a man living an insane life that's more interested in the surface-level humor of that life than in the person living it.
In any case, thank you for the feedback and, again, I appreciate your kind words very much.
Re: Forrest Gump. Gary Sinise's Lieutenant Dan (aka Lieutenant Daaaaaaan) was the best part of movie. I haven't seen it in forever but I'm pretty sure this is still true.
Eat Drink Man Woman should have won best foreign language film. Hoop Dreams' exclusion in documentary is like Volver's exclusion in foreign film in its year (or 4 Months, 3 Weeks and Two Days in its year): completely inexplicable.
I’ve tried to block this year from my memory. Gross.
For me, it was the year Unforgiven won Best Picture. I don't remember much of it other than being happy for Clint. I too hate Harvey as I so wished that someone jumped him and gave him a Stone Cold Stunner.
Eh, at least you had a memorable film like Forrest Gump. The film that won Best Picture from my year of birth was Out of Africa, which is perhaps the most dreadfully dull Best Picture winners. I've seen the other nominees and I'd take all of them over Out of Africa.
But at least my year had a strong showing in the Best Animated Short category. Anna & Bella is one of my favorite winners of all time. The Big Snit is another classic and is still beloved in animation circles everywhere. Second Class Mail is also an incredibly fun film that launched the career of Alison Snowden, who had gone on to make such other nominees as George and Rosemary, Animal Behaviour, and the Oscar-winning Bob's Birthday.
Regardless of nominees, who should have won Best Actress this year?
The internet sometimes throws around Jamie Lee Curtis for True Lies, Natalie Portman for Leon: The Professional, Meg Ryan for When a Man Loves a Woman or one of the girls from Heavenly Creatures, but it's hard to determine what the critical consensus is?
Duncan -- Considering the eligible titles, my nominees would have been:
Jennifer Jason Leigh, Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle
Gong Li, To Live
Melanie Lynskey, Heavenly Creatures
Julianne Moore, Vanya on 42nd Street
Juliette Lewis, Natural Born Killers
As for the winner, I always feel torn between Moore and Leigh. Though, considering I'd give the Best Actress award of the following year to Julianne Moore in Safe, I'll pick Jennifer Jason Leigh for 1994.
Regardless of critical consensus, who gets your vote?
I'm glad to know that I am not the only one who are not very enthusiasmated with Forrest Gump. Call me boring but I never feel convinced with a fictional story mixing a lot of real events.
Is a shame that Robert Zemeckis won the Oscar for this and wasn't even nominated for Back to the Future, Who Framed Roger Rabbit or Death Becomes Her
Hoop Dreams is not the only documentary to receive a Film Editing nomination -- Woodstock (edited by Thelma Schoonmaker) pulled off the rare feat as well.
alexander -- You are right. Sorry for that rather stupid mistake. Considering that was Thelma Schoonmaker's first nomination, i'm doubly ashamed of the error. On the bright side, this might finally make me watch Woodstock after having the DVD sitting on my shelf for the pasta there years.
<the narrative is insufferable. Racism is made the subject of silly jokes, the civil rights movement is vilified, there's an air of anti-intellectualism throughout>
You could also be talking about Driving Mr. Daisy aka Green Book. Yuck.
How ironic (or is it business as usual?) that two of the best supporting wins ever are surrounded by some of the worst winners ever. Speaking of: Jessica receiving yet another Oscar by default is both ridiculous and criminal. She received no traction but Kathleen Turner would have made an awesome winner for Serial Mom.
My first Oscars includes my all-time favorite Best Actress lineup: Ellen Burstyn, Goldie Hawn, Mary Tyler Moore, Gena Rowlands, and Sissy Spacek. Depending on the season, the month, the day, my winner is different.
You're such a priceless addition to the TFE family, Cláudio!
So personal, so moving, so detailed. You are in a league of your own. Love this piece. Maybe the other writers could do something similar since you've shown how sterling a 'first Oscars' piece can be.
The only upside to the current situation is all the on the shelf pieces that were overwhelmed by the current movies and awards circuits can be visited. can't wait for the dive into the Cesar's Foreign Language category history, many a Smackdown, and of course the completion of SEASONS OF BETTE!
Complaining about Forrest Gump, saying that Dianne Wiest in Bullets was not so great-- then I went up back to search the name of the author-- and well, I understood
I did not realize you were so young! I knew you were a star around this site, but a prodigy as well. Wow.
The two best films of this year were Pulp Fiction & Bullets Over Broadway. Both are masterpieces from incredible directors, and really should have made up a lot of the winners. I really don't know who I would have voted for in Supporting Actress because it would have come down to either of the Bullets ladies. "DON'T SPEAK!" vs. "HA!".
I also totally agree that "The Circle of Life" was far superior to "Can You Feel The Love Tonight?".
For Best Actor, I haven't seen it in awhile but I remember wanting Nigel Hawthorne to win for "The Madness of King George".
Even though it's category fraud, Samuel L Jackson totally deserved Supporting Actor. So weird it's his only nomination. Since Oscar's acting winners have devolved into "Best Actor/Actress we want to win" instead of caring about performance (see all winners from this past season in which every televised voting body voted the exact same way), then I feel Jackson could win easily with a role that has ANY buzz.
Me - I've never seen anyone say anything other than brilliant praise for Weist's win here which Claudio doesn't laud as high as the majority (particularly on this site). That was not an opinion one could see before they clicked the article.
I will concede the way Claudio expresses his dislike for Forrest Gump is very cliche at this point, even though it is genuine. It's been the only lack of creative writing from him during his whole tenure here, so I can't be too harsh.
Agree on Circle Of Life>Can You Feel The Love Tonight.
Lange may not be all time great, but her performance in Blue Sky is undervalued and was an acceptable winner from the nominated field.
I would have chosen Newman for Actor that year and I feel very alone in holding that opinion.
I had never read the Hoop Dreams Wikipedia page, specifically the 'Academy Awards controversy' section. Everybody take the 30-60 seconds to check it out and have your blood boil. It does remind us that this awards business is often very daft.
Don't forget i'm an Oscar winner via the Best Short Film, Live Action route. After that bitch Hawn sabotaged my chance at Supporting Actress for Swing Shift it's the least I deserved!
My choices:
Film: Quiz Show
Actor: Nigel Hawthorne
Actress: Jessica Lange
S. Actor: Martin Landau
S. Actress: Uma Thurman
Director: Quentin Tarentino
O. Screenplay: Heavenly Creatures
A. Screenplay: Quiz Show
Foreign Film: Before the Rain
I have played the same Best Picture game too, with my family. My parents are Casablanca and All About Eve (wow!), my Best Picture is Gandhi (zzzz....) and my sister's are Annie Hall and Ordinary People.
The first ceremony I watched was 2 years after this, the very interesting year of The English President.
The supporting winners were great the lead winners not so much,Lange is fine in BS but she didn't need an Oscar and Hanks is one of the worst winners.
What a fun topic! I was a kid and REALLY into the Oscars already, but this was when they were still on Monday nights so I think I went to bed after all THE LION KING stuff was done.
There was a recent article I read that interviews Letterman and posits that he is remembered as such an awful host because he kept insisting that he was one. I have a soft spot for Letterman and will die on this hill! We can at least give him credit for quipping after Lizzy Gardiner’s win that “her dress just maxed out”!
I'm a Driving Miss Daisy, so I understand the feeling, Cláudio.
My choices :
Picture: Pulp Fiction
Director : Quentin Tarantino
Actor: Paul Newman
Actress: Jessica Lange
Supporting Actor : Martin Landau
Supporting Actress : Dianne Wiest
Original Screenplay : Pulp Fiction
Adapted Screenplay : Quiz Show
I agree with Jakey regarding David Letterman. I was 20 at the time of these Oscars, and I thought he was a great host. My parents loved him, too, so it wasn't just a generational thing. His reputation as an Oscar host has gotten a raw deal.
I am glad to read your praise for Quiz Show, though. It was my favorite movie of 1994 (then and now) and its criticism of the manipulative power of television has aged so well, particularly in light of Trump's election.
BTW, my movie is One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, not too shabby!
Thank you for supporting my Letterman love, Jules!
Also I misunderstood the assignment and thought Claudio meant the first Oscars he had seen. Get off my lawn. “My” Oscars was the year of PLATOON and Dianne’s first Oscar win.
Sigourney Weaver in Death and the Maiden should have swept the season in Best Actress.
What a great read! Hope to see more of these category-by-category deep dives into other years. Reminder to all bashing the author’s opinions - they are exactly that... OPINIONS! This is a site where we come to discuss movies and read others’ thoughts and experiences with movie-watching. Let’s not start unnecessarily bashing people for sharing their perspectives. Thanks Cláudio!
Sigourney deserved a nom for Copycat if they felt like category frauding her, could have been a worthy winner for The Ice Storm, and like Barrymore (or even Lange) in Grey Gardens, Sigourney's TV performance in Prayers For Bobby was better than the Oscar winner that year. (Bullock).
Also second everything Jacob said. Claudio deserves a raise or a pretty prominent headshot somewhere. Maybe a shrine in his honor? (Just kidding, you've gotten a little testy at folks noticing you being outshone. Remember Nathaniel a 9/10 is still great even next to a 10/10. You manage one of the best sites on the whole internet).
Forrest Gump was one of the handful of VHS's our family owned so despite it's many flaws it still hold sentimental value for me with the family still quoting it occasionally to this day.
Yeah, Letterman really was not that bad (except for the still cringe-y Oprah-Uma nonsense). The Schwarzenegger joke in the monologue is great, as is the remote piece.
Ryder should’ve won for Little Women in ‘94. Of the nominees, she’s the one that stands out. It’s also, barring Reality Bites, the clearest example of Ryder’s charisma and talents, which are both under appreciated even today.
Jennifer Jason Leigh all the way. She made that movie feel artistic, the performance was introspective and the whole thing didn't feel like a biopic because she just felt like she was there, interacting with each character with such honesty, she allowed them all to shine. No wonder actors love to work with her, from Alex Baldwin saying she was the best scene partner he ever had to Billy Campbell singing her praises for her Amy Archer in The Hudsucker Proxy, which she should've won best supporting for that same year. So basically, she should've won two Oscars in 1994 and another one for Georgia the following year.
Best Actress was such a bizarre category that year. Going into nomination morning there were only two locks : Lange and Foster.The other three slots were completely open. I remember there was a very vocal minority that despised Leigh's performance as Dorothy Parker - they felt her accent made much of her dialogue indecipherable. Meg Ryan and Meryl Streep both got SAG nominations and Streep also received a Globe nod. It was the first year (!) that SAG handed out their awards. Too bad Ryan did not sneak in.
My birth year was 1983, so it's winner was Terms of Endearment, which I know it's liked by most people, but it's not my winner that year. It's very soap oper-y and not my style.
On the other hand people dislike Out of Africa, but I thibnk it's one of the best BP winner. So there's that.
Crissy Rock wipes the floor with anyone in Ladybird, Ladybird in 1994.
Didn't realize how much older than most of the readership I am. LOL. My year, 1967, In the Heat of the Night beat out Bonnie & Clyde, Doctor Doolittle, The Graduate and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. Other than Doctor Doolittle, not a bad lineup since most are classics. Rod Steiger grabbed Best Actor over Warren Beatty, Paul Newman, Dustin Hoffman and Spencer Tracy. Katherine Hepburn beat out Audrey Hepburn (Wonder how often two actors with the same last name were nominated against each other? Could this be the only time?), Anne Bancroft, Faye Dunaway and Edith Evans. Best anecdote? This is the year Carol Channing received her oscar nom in Supporting Actress.
Sonja - completely agree with you about Crissy Rock. A performance for the ages
My year is 1963 and Tom Jones, and I'm not sure how I feel about being one of this blog's more seasoned readers lol The win for Forrest Gump is reminiscent of the win for Going My Way exactly 50 years earlier. Going My Way was the top box office film of 1944, had a beloved leading man who won Best Actor (Bing Crosby) and while a pleasant diversion it beat out true classics like Double Indemnity and non-nominated Laura and Meet Me in St. Louis.
Jessica deserved this Oscar. Absolutely.
Concerning my year, do I count Best Picture, Unique and Artistic Production as well as Best Picture, Production?
The first Oscars I lived through were for 1974 - The Godfather Part II won, and Chinatown, The Conversation, Lenny and The Towering Inferno were the other nominees. Not too shabby!
The first ones I watched on TV were 1987 (The Last Emperor et al, and a great host in Chevy Chase, improvising due to the writers' strike).
Re: 1994: it was definitely Forrest Gump vs. Pulp Fiction going in, though Gump had the momentum due to Globe, PGA and DGA wins. I was over the moon that Bullets Over Broadway and Three Colours: Red both did so well in the nominations. I think Wiest is a good winner but I do think Tilly is even better. Wiest acts her role with intelligence and wit. Tilly embodies her role and disappears into it. But how spoilt we were to have them both in the category!
Actually, it marked the first two times Thomas Newman would lose an Oscar, as he was twice nominated for Best Original Score that year (for Shawshank Redemption and Little Women)
I didn't understand Pulp Fiction and probably never will. And I found Forrest Gump annoying from the first time Tom Hanks opened his mouth. Loved Dianne Weist in Bullets Over Broadway. Think Jessica Lange's performance in Blue Sky was great. And have never understood why Sigourney Weaver has been overlooked so often. I think maybe she doesn't play the "Hollywood Game" nor do you ever read about her in the tabloids.