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Drum (1976) - Nominated for 2 Academy Awards
So even though I wasn't really that interested in the Oscars, I ended up watching the whole thing last night. Seems like that happens every year. And while there were some nice moments - Scorsese, Arkin, and the writer montage come to mind - I realized that my lack of enthusiasm is tied to the fact that I never have a dog in the fight. And that got me to thinking... I should put some dogs in the fight. Today's post is a look at how the Academy Awards would be handled in a better world.
Female Moonshiners (1969) - Nominated for Best Actress (Sheree Mon) & Named One of the Year's Best Films by Time Magazine
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One-Armed Swordsman (1967) - Nominated for Best Costume Design & Best Music Score
Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold (1975) - Nominated for a Staggering 10 Academy Awards & Named One of the Year's 10 Best by the LA Times
Impulse (1974) - Nominated for Best Actor (William 'Star Trek' Shatner)
Those would be award shows worth sitting through. On a related note, the text you see here and here inviting Academy Members to attend a free screening was legit (just not for these films). Before the rise of home video, all of the 'prestige movies' added a similar box to their LA-area advertisements. Amazingly, many of the invitations were limited to weekday screenings. Apparently some studios thought an Oscar win was worth a $2 weekday ticket, but not quite worth the $3 weekend price.
These days, of course, Academy Members get free screeners and who knows what else. How long do you think it will be before potential nominees start pre-emptively inviting Academy Members to appear in their movies? |
