The Snubby Awards: 1997 Oscars

It's that time again: The Snubby Awards!  For those of you who don't know, the Snubby Awards take a look at all of the Best Picture nominees from a given year and determine if the best film won or if another was snubbed.  If that's the case, they win the coveted Snubby Award!

This time we'll be taking a look at the 1997 Oscars, which was a weaker selection of movies.  Two out of the five are great, two more are good, and one I didn't care for.  The nominees were: Fargo, Jerry Maguire, Secrets & Lies, & Shine with the winner being The English Patient.  Did The English Patient deserve to win or did another movie get snubbed?  Let's find out!

#5. The English Patient

Yep, our Best Picture winner is my least favorite of the nominees.  Aside from Crash, this is my least favorite Best Picture winner.  This movie follows the story of a dying man with severe burns telling a nurse his story.  This movie was the subject of a famous episode of Seinfeld where Elaine gets into hot water for not liking this movie.  I have to agree with Elaine.  I just wanted the guy to stop telling his stupid story about the stupid desert and just die already.  I probably don't feel as strongly as Elaine and I didn't hate this movie, I was just mostly bored.  It's not that interesting of a story.  And the themes of xenophobia don't translate very well.  It may have worked better if they had an actually Hungarian actor in the lead role instead of Ralph Fiennes.  The actors are trying here and the scenes in the desert look good, but it's mostly a dull affair that goes on for far too long.  I don't really get what other people see in this one.

 5/10: Meh 

#4. Shine

Biopics are probably my least favorite genre of film, especially musical biopics.  Maybe it's because I'm the least musically talented person of all time, but they don't interest me very often and most of them feel the same.  I wasn't looking forward to watching Shine, but it ended up being a decent movie.  This is the story of David Helfgott, a talented pianist who spent a lot of time in mental institutions after a breakdown.  Both Geoffrey Rush and Noah Taylor do a great job of playing Helfgott in different periods of his life and Armin Mueller-Stahl gives a vile and vicious performance as Helfgott's father.  The film is also very well shot with some great slow-motion footage of water droplets.  The movie loses steam in the second half, especially when astrology gets involved.  There's also some controversy around how accurate the movie is, particularly with the portrayal of Helfgott's father, which leaves a bad taste in my mouth, but it's still a decent movie as far as musical biopics go.

 7/10: Good 

#3. Jerry Maguire

The story of a sports agent who grows a conscience, which shakes up his entire career and life.  Jerry Maguire is an unfocused movie that is trying to juggle a lot.  It doesn't manage to make all of the story elements work, but it at least gets the emotional beats right.  Tom Cruise does a terrific job in the role and really sells the mental toll this story takes on the character.  There are plenty of iconic moments that are a lot of fun.  This is a pleasant, if mostly unspectacular film.

 7/10: Good 

And now for the Top 2 Movies in no particular order.

Fargo

Maybe it's because I grew up in Minnesota and live in Fargo, but I love this movie.  Yes, the accents are exaggerated to an extreme level, but it's honestly hilarious.  And every once in a great while, you do find someone who sounds exactly like Margie in real life.  This movie has a really tight script, with amazing characters.  William H. Macy is probably my favorite of the bunch and was robbed from Best Supporting Actor.  He honestly should have been in the Best Actor category and won that one.  Again, I may be biased with my background, but this movie captures my homeland better than any other and it's a really fun ride.  I do think it's a little too short and parts could have been expanded upon a little more.  I think the first season of the TV show proves my point, but I still love everything about this film.

 9/10: Great 

Secret & Lies

This movie follows a middle-class, black woman who goes looking for her birth mother only to discover she is a working-class, white woman.  Though a little too long, Secrets & Lies is a fascinating movie and I love the way it explores the relationships and history of the various characters.  Writer and director Mike Leigh spent a very long time working with the actors on developing their characters and it shows.  His use of unbroken takes makes one forget to breathe while watching this movie.  He puts you in the drama alongside the characters and doesn't let you out.  The 3rd act starts off at a backyard barbeque and once that started, I couldn't take a breath of relief until the credits rolled.  It's an emotional roller coaster of a film that makes me really want to check out the rest of Leigh's work.

 9/10: Great 

And the Snubby Award goes to...!

  

Fargo!  I'll admit that my bias and personal history gave Fargo the edge over Secrets & Lies.  I could definitely see myself changing my mind and switching those two on a rewatch.  It was very close.  One thing I know for sure is that The English Patient had no business winning and Fargo was snubbed.

Next time we'll be looking at the 1996 Oscars.  Did Braveheart deserve to win or did another movie get snubbed?  Stay tuned!