Winners indicated (*). I still need to see films like Sansho the Bailiff, Journey to Italy, Fear, Suddenly, The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, Broken Lance, There's No Business Like Show Business, The Glenn Miller Story, Gate of Hell, Brigadoon, Them!, The Last Time I Saw Paris, The Gold of Naples, The Last Bridge, The Raid, Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto, Vera Cruz, Witness to Murder, Demetrius and the Gladiators, and The Naked Jungle.
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| Rear Window |
BEST PICTURE:
Dial M for Murder
Johnny Guitar
On the Waterfront
Rear Window*
Seven Samurai
BEST DIRECTOR:
Alfred Hitchcock, Dial M for Murder
Alfred Hitchcock, Rear Window
Elia Kazan, On the Waterfront
Akira Kurosawa, Seven Samurai*
Nicholas Ray, Johnny Guitar
 |
| On the Waterfront |
BEST ACTOR:
Marlon Brando, On the Waterfront*
James Mason, A Star is Born
Toshiro Mifune, Seven Samurai
Ray Milland, Dial M for Murder
James Stewart, Rear Window
BEST ACTRESS:
Joan Crawford, Johnny Guitar
Judy Garland, A Star is Born
Audrey Hepburn, Sabrina
Grace Kelly, Rear Window*
Giulietta Masina, La Strada
 |
| A Star is Born |
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Humphrey Bogart, The Caine Mutiny
Lee J. Cobb, On the Waterfront
Karl Malden, On the Waterfront
Rod Steiger, On the Waterfront*
John Williams, Dial M for Murder
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Mercedes McCambridge, Johnny Guitar
Thelma Ritter, Rear Window
Ginger Rogers, Black Widow
Eva Marie Saint, On the Waterfront*
Jan Sterling, The High and the Mighty
 |
| Dial M for Murder |
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
Dial M for Murder
Hobson's Choice
Johnny Guitar
Rear Window*
Sabrina
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
The Barefoot Contessa
It Should Happen to You
La Strada
On the Waterfront*
Seven Samurai
 |
| Seven Samurai |
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:
Dial M for Murder
Johnny Guitar
On the Waterfront
Rear Window
Seven Samurai*
BEST FILM EDITING:
Johnny Guitar
On the Waterfront
Rear Window*
Seven Samurai
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
 |
| Johnny Guitar |
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE:
The Caine Mutiny
The Creature from the Black Lagoon
La Strada
On the Waterfront*
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
BEST ORIGINAL SONG:
"Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep", White Christmas
"Johnny Guitar", Johnny Guitar
"The Man That Got Away", A Star is Born*
"River of No Return", River of No Return
"A Whale of a Tale", 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Additional Categories
 |
| La Strada |
BEST ART DIRECTION:
Johnny Guitar
Rear Window*
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Three Coins in the Fountain
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
BEST COSTUME DESIGN:
Johnny Guitar*
Magnificent Obsession
Sabrina
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Seven Samurai
 |
| 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea |
BEST MAKEUP:
La Strada
Seven Samurai*
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
BEST SOUND (MIXING AND EDITING):
The Caine Mutiny
On the Waterfront
Rear Window
Seven Samurai
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea*
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS:
The Caine Mutiny
Seven Samurai
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea*
wow, that was a strong year for cinema. On the Waterfront,
ReplyDeleteLa Strada, Seven Samurai, Rear Window, Dial M. Classics right there.
I know, right? It's probably my favorite personal Best Picture lineup.
DeleteWow, you forget how many great movies came out in a given year until you see it laid out in something like this. Always love these, reminds me of some great movies I've missed. Interesting choices, going with Rear Window for Best Pic but Kurosawa for Best Director. I love both films so I understand the dilemma.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest dilemma for me is in Best Picture: Rear Window vs. Dial M for Murder, which is a VERY close runner-up.
DeleteNo score nod for Johnny Guitar!?!?!?! It's so epic and awesome, and this is coming from someone who didn't like the movie much at all!
ReplyDeleteLOL, I feel ridiculous in that I kind of hate Rear Window. I mean, I know that it is considered a masterpiece and a classic but I just found it so BORING.
Deciding between Malden and Steiger for my personal Supporting Actor winner is like Sophie's Choice. They are both so incredible.
Aside from snubbing Dial M in favor of Rear Window, my Sophie's Choice is the Best Original Score category. Choosing 5 was tough, and Johnny Guitar was very much in the running.
DeleteHa, I couldn't tell you how many times I've seen Rear Window. I even put it or Dial M on as background noise sometimes. :)
I agree with Chris. Such a good year for movies. Lot of wealth to spread around.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I love this year. There are just so many wonderful films!
Delete'54, another great year. I'm so with you on Rear Window taking it, but I have to give you props for such a strong showing for Johnny Guitar. I adore that movie so much.
ReplyDeleteThanks man. Yeah, all 5 of my Best Picture nominees are in my top 100 now. (I've updated it on letterboxd, but not here yet.) I just saw Johnny Guitar recently, and I see why it has such a passionate following. It's easily my favorite Ray film.
DeleteAnother strong year, one of my favorites of the decade, that necessitated leaving off many great films and performances. Looking at the actual nominations the academy chose to leave most of them off too! Movies I admired but that didn't make the cut: The Caine Mutiny, Executive Suite, Hobson's Choice, It Should Happen to You, Johnny Guitar, and White Christmas (I know it's hokey but I love it) and a few others. I like Dial M for Murder but think it's hindered by it's staginess. I haven't seen La Strada or Seven Samurai yet.
ReplyDeletePicture:
On the Waterfront
Rear Window-Winner
Senso
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
A Star is Born
Senso, Star and 7 Brides are all feasts for the eyes and the 1st two have solid stories while the 3rd an amazing production. Waterfront goes to the other extreme making the hard life of the docks real but none have the tight control on the viewers emotions Rear Window does in that small room.
Director:
George Cukor-A Star is Born
Stanley Donen-Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Alfred Hitchcock-Rear Window-Winner
Elia Kazan-On the Waterfront
Luchino Visconti-Senso
And in that small room Hitchcock seemingly does more than the others could with their more varied locales.
Actor:
Marlon Brando-On the Waterfront
Charles Laughton-Hobson's Choice
James Mason-A Star is Born-Winner
James Stewart-Rear Window
Spencer Tracy-Broken Lance
Even though I'm not a Brando fan he is extremely good in Waterfront. Stewart is my runner up, he's able to do so much with Jeff confined as he is by that broken leg & wheelchair. My choice however is Mason, the way he handles Norman Maine's rapid disintegration from charming, if at times troublesome, inebriate to burnt out husk is as compelling as it is heartbreaking.
Other worthies: Humphrey Bogart-The Caine Mutiny, Jack Lemmon-It Should Happen to You, Ray Milland-Dial M for Murder, Robert Mitchum-Track of the Cat and Frank Sinatra-Suddenly
Actress:
Shirley Booth-About Mrs. Leslie
Grace Kelly-Rear Window
Linda Darnell-This is My Love
Judy Garland-A Star is Born-Winner
Judy Holliday-It Should Happen to You
I will be forever mystified by Grace Kelly's win for The Country Girl, a thoroughly ordinary performance when she gave a far superior one the same year in Rear Window. She still wouldn't have been my winner but she would have belonged among the nominees. Linda Darnell had her last role of any consequence in This is My Love, she's extraordinary as the emotional stunted Vida Dove, the film was minor and now impossible to find so she never stood a chance but she's great. Shirley Booth gave her most varied performance in Mrs. Leslie and Judy Holliday found every layer possible in the comic/sad Gladys Glover making someone enormously appealing out of a character that could have been merely an attention hungry clown if played by someone less skillful. It's the other Judy, Garland, that absolutely deserved to win though. In a performance of amazing scope, I think it's a candidate for the greatest performance in film, she used every facet of her talents. Her loss is often considered the biggest error in Oscar history and I completely agree.
Other worthies: Joan Crawford-Johnny Guitar, Dorothy Dandridge-Carmen Jones, Audrey Hepburn-Sabrina, Yvonne Mitchell-The Divided Heart and Alida Valli-Senso
It's one of my favorite years as well. I've read similar reservations about Dial M for Murder, which I'd call Hitch's most underrated film, but I could easily give it Best Picture instead of Rear Window. Actually, I'd have no problem with giving them a tie for the award. I love both, and I could watch them anytime. It was very hard choosing one over the other.
DeleteLove your winners, and it's great to see those Laughton and Holliday nominations. Laughton is one of my favorite actors from this era, but I couldn't fit him into the top 5. Still, he gets wins for The Private Life of Henry VIII and Mutiny on the Bounty, as well as a directing win for The Night of the Hunter.
I really wanted to give Garland, who should've won the Oscar, the win too. Though, she might be my #3 after Kelly and Crawford.
Supporting Actor:
ReplyDeleteLouis Calhern-Executive Suite
Jack Carson-A Star is Born-Winner
Dan Duryea-This is My Love
John Mills-Hobson Choice
Rod Steiger-On the Waterfront
The wholesale love for Waterfront this year crowded out a bunch of worthwhile work and cancelled out all three actors chances. All were fine but only Steiger's work seemed like it deserved a nod to me. Calhern's opportunistic cad, Duryea's vicious twisted soul and Mills timid clerk who steadily grows in confidence are all terrificially realized but it's Carson who impressed me most. Matt Libby is a detestable human being, a machine without feeling and Carson never makes the mistake of trying to make him likable but still somehow makes this soulless creature memorable.
Other worthies: Steve Cochran-Private Hell 36, Fred MacMurray-The Caine Mutiny, John Williams-Dial M for Murder
Supporting Actress:
Lauren Bacall-A Woman's World
Brenda de Banzie-Hobson's Choice
Mercedes McCambridge-Johnny Guitar-Winner
Thelma Ritter-Rear Window
Eva Marie Saint-On the Waterfront
The academy ballot in this field was full of excellent actresses stuck in unworthy roles, three of which feel like compensation nods, except for Saint. How academy darling Ritter missed being nominated for her terrific work in Rear Window in an apparently weak year is odd but then they seemed to be bunching nominations for certain films, here High & Mighty. That's a shame since it cut out de Banzie's wonderfully plucky Maggie Hobson and Betty Bacall's wry, impossibly chic but guarded Liz Burns who steals Woman's World from its top flight cast. My choice however would be McCambridge's flashy work as repressed nut job Emma in Nick Ray's wonderfully strange Johnny Guitar.
Other worthies: Pearl Bailey-Carmen Jones, Glenda Farrell-Susan Slept Here and Mary Wickes-White Christmas
Sorry I got a bit carried away and had to split my ballot but favorite years require that I guess!
I really need to rewatch A Star is Born, as I remember it more for Garland's and Mason's work than I do Carson's performance.
DeleteMcCambridge is a very close runner-up for me. She's amazing in Johnny Guitar.
No problem. I love your comments!