A Man For All Seasons

 And this week's Friday night movie has been... A Man For All Seasons!

Original image located here. Accessed 31st May 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 39 (1966)

It could be said that this is the forgotten Best Picture winner of the 1960s. After all, it does share room with some heavy hitters (ie Sound of Music, Lawrence of Arabia) so maybe it got lost in the crush?

Looking at it now, one could make the case that this is an early slice of Oscar bait: it is a biopic (tick), it has some big names in the cast (tick), it is a costume drama (tick) and it is about someone who sticks by their convictions even they lose everything and, eventually, their life (tick).
Cynicism aside though, there is a lot going for this movie: The direction is superb, it's beautifully shot and works with it's origins as a stage play. But the real meat is the acting: Orson Welles makes the most of his one scene, Robert Shaw is both compelling and frightening as Henry VIII (How come he never got more scenes?) and Paul Schofield carries the movie, giving it his all.

Unfairly forgotten? One would think so.

The Sound of Music

And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Sound of Music!

Original image located here. Accessed 24th May 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 38 (1965)

You know, I was perfectly content to live my life without watching this but it seems that fate had other plans.
From the outset, this movie has a formidable reputation being a childhood favourite for many and a less -than-favourable one as being emblematic of being sickeningly sweet. The latter is perhaps best represented by the movie referenced in Addams Family Values.

Personally I found it difficult to resist the charms of this movie. Yes it is very long, yes it seems a very sanitised version of what was happening at the time and yes, it does seem tooth-rotting in it's sweetness. But I will give it props for it's scenery, it's intense final portion and, lets just face it, Julie Andrews is a force of nature that is difficult to resist.