#1. Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under the Influence (1974) — #1. Gena Rowlands in *A Woman Under the Influence* (1974)

THE OSCAR 100 - The 100 Greatest Oscar-Nominated Performances

August 27, 2018 by Andrew Carden in Oscar Flashback, Lists

Enjoy! :)

#100-96: Kathleen Turner, Shelley Winters, Rosie Perez, Lesley Ann Warren and Kathy Bates
#95-91: Gary Busey, James Stewart, John Hurt, Glenn Close and Maureen Stapleton
#90-86: Morgan Freeman, Sally Kirkland, Jill Clayburgh, George Sanders and William Holden
#85-81: Robert De Niro, Michael O'Keefe, Judith Anderson, Michael Caine and Jason Miller
#80-76: Dustin Hoffman, Bette Davis, Meryl Streep, Fredric March and Elizabeth Taylor
#75-71: Agnes Moorehead, Piper Laurie, Sissy Spacek, Barbara Stanwyck and Jean Hagen
#70-66: Jane Alexander, Cloris Leachman, Ellen Burstyn, Martin Landau and Natalie Portman
#65-61: Angela Lansbury, Shirley MacLaine, Vivien Leigh, Jane Darwell and Faye Dunaway
#60-56: Brenda Blethyn, Olivia de Havilland, Dorothy Malone, Geraldine Page and Thelma Ritter
#55-51: Kim Stanley, Teri Garr, Susan Tyrrell, Patricia Neal and Meryl Streep
#50-46: Ingrid Bergman, James Coburn, Nick Nolte, Joan Allen and Anthony Hopkins
#45-41: Robert Duvall, William Holden, Marlon Brando, Barbra Streisand and Whoopi Goldberg
#40-36: Ellen Burstyn, Katharine Hepburn, Julianne Moore, Ian McKellen and Roy Scheider
#35-31: Peter O'Toole, Katharine Hepburn, Joanne Woodward, Joan Crawford and Angela Bassett
#30-26: Al Pacino, Edith Evans, Judy Garland, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton
#25-21: Peter Sellers, Orson Welles, Montgomery Clift, Katharine Hepburn and Robert Forster
#20-16: Jodie Foster, Martin Landau, Jessica Lange, Patty Duke and Anne Bancroft
#15-11: Charlie Chaplin, Timothy Hutton, Mary Tyler Moore, Ida Kaminska and Gregory Peck
#10-6: Jack Nicholson, Gloria Swanson, Shirley Booth, Anthony Hopkins and Rod Steiger
#5-1: Henry Fonda, Juanita Moore, Montgomery Clift, Celia Johnson and Gena Rowlands

Over the past couple of months, with the Oscar season drawing to a close, I've been mulling over possible projects to dive into during the post-season. In the past, I've reviewed every year of Best Original Song, plus all acting categories graced by Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson. Those, plus more modest side projects, like Horror at the Oscars. All of these were a blast to work on, so I've of course been eager to approach another 'Oscar Flashback' for this year.

Ideas crossed my mind like reviewing every Bette Davis or Katharine Hepburn category, or even 'The Fondas,' a mix of the Henry, Jane and Peter years. Or perhaps veering from actors to directors, reviewing each category in which say, Steven Spielberg or William Wyler appeared. I've also considered approaching a single category, as I did with Original Song, like Best Costume Design or even Best Animated Short Film (of which the vast majority of past nominees are available for online viewing).

While I won't rule out tackling any or all of those in the future, I don't quite feel the fire in the belly at this moment. Instead, I'm going to try something a little different but probably just as challenging and time-consuming (and, hopefully, rewarding).

There is no shortage of Oscar rankings to be found online, lists composed by fellow awards season aficionados of their favorite Oscar-winning performances or Best Picture winners, ranked from best to worst. Which is fantastic...but what if someone, a film buff who has inexplicably had the time and dedication to see nearly every Oscar-nominated performance, looked back and compiled a list (including commentary) of the 100 greatest acting turns recognized by the Academy?

Yes, over the coming months, I'll be traveling back in awards season history as I reveal my picks for the 100 best performances ever nominated for an Oscar. First, I need to fill in a few gaps - there are a handful of recognized turns I've yet to get around to, plus a few performances I've seen but barely recall and I'm not about to put this thing together without revisiting them. After that, the list shall be compiled and, beginning with #100, I plan to reveal five performances each week, looking back at what made each portrayal so special and what ended up going down in each Oscar race.

I'm fascinated to see what comes of this pet project and hope you'll join me in reminiscing about what will no doubt be 100 truly remarkable performances.

The Best of Brian De Palma

September 11, 2017 by Andrew Carden in Lists

Growing up, I think even prior to adolescence, I had seen a handful of Brian De Palma pictures, the likes of The Untouchables, Scarface and Mission: Impossible - you know, the ones that actually made a box office profit for him. I was a De Palma admirer for sure but it wasn't until high school, when I first came across Dressed to Kill (I believe it was on the Flix network), that I completely fell head over heels for the filmmaker.

My jaw was nearly on the floor throughout most of that 1980 picture, in particular during the museum scene, which remains one of my all-time favorite sequences captured on film. The combo of De Palma's mastery of the Steadicam, Pino Donaggio's incredible score and of course Angie Dickinson's pitch-prfect performance, left me shaken. Not long after seeing Dressed to Kill, I quickly tracked down Blow Out, Body Double and Raising Cain, all of which I adored, and then the likes of Femme Fatale, Obsession and Sisters, among others. While not every De Palma picture left me floored, I was certainly never bored for a second.

De Palma remains one of my very favorite filmmakers - and I shall never give up hope that he lands that big screen comeback hit that catapults him back on to the industry's A-list of directors. So, in honor of his birthday today, here's a rundown of my top 10 favorite De Palma films (so sorry, Femme Fatale and Sisters)...

10. Body Double (1984)

9. The Fury (1978)

8. Phantom of the Paradise (1974)

7. Scarface (1983)

6. Raising Cain (1992)

5. Carlito's Way (1993)

4. Dressed to Kill (1980)

3. Obsession (1976)

2. Carrie (1976)

1. Blow Out (1981)

The Best of Woody Allen

December 01, 2016 by Andrew Carden in Lists

It was not until sometime in high school that I sat down and finally watched a Woody Allen picture. (Turner Classic Movies had for years already been a staple of my TV-watching schedule but never, for whatever inexplicable reason, did I happen to catch an Allen film there.) That first Allen film happened to be his 1993 release, Manhattan Murder Mystery, which brilliantly paired him back with Diane Keaton - for the first time since 1979's Manhattan. I did not expect to laugh myself so silly and I still, having since then seen nearly every single Allen film, consider Manhattan Murder Mystery among his funniest and most underappreciated pictures.

Over the years, I did play a ton of catch-up on the Allen filmography and, at this point, three of his films grace my list of the top 50 films of all-time - Manhattan, Hannah and Her Sisters and Crimes and Misdemeanors. It's a trio of pictures I absolutely must watch at least once a year.

In honor of his birthday today, I am delighted to present this list of my 10 favorite films of one of my all-time favorite filmmakers...

10. Annie Hall (1977)

9. Another Woman (1988)

8. The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)

7. Husbands and Wives (1992)

6. Interiors (1978)

5. September (1987)

4. Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993)

3. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)

2. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

1. Manhattan (1979)

The Best of Martin Scorsese

November 17, 2016 by Andrew Carden in Lists

From the moment I first sat down and watched Goodfellas, sometime in my early teens, I was completely mesmerized by the filmmaking of Martin Scorsese. Sure, I had seen Cape Fear beforehand, and that was heaps of fun, but his 1990 picture captivated my attention in a way few films had ever done. For some time, in fact, I considered Goodfellas my favorite picture ever. Then, a few years down the road, I saw Casino, which somehow managed to leave me even more awe-struck.

Over the years to follow, I would catch up on every Scorsese film, from the supremely underrated (After Hours and New York, New York) to the slightly overpraised (sorry, Raging Bull) and, sans the rare exception (like the sleep-inducing The Color of Money), not a moment left me underwhelmed. Scorsese is one of the finest, most compelling directors of not only the past half-century but truly all-time.

So, in honor of his birthday today, I am delighted to present this list of my 10 favorite Scorsese pictures, from the very, very good to the spectacularly awesome. And boy does it pain me to leave The King of Comedy off...