My Yearlong Best Picture Oscar Experiment - Part 2

Regular readers will know that I have previously written about an Oscar experiment I have set out to do in the calendar year 2019.  Yep, regardless of whether I have seen them before or not, I will set out to watch every single Best Picture winner.  That's 91 films in total.   I am not doing this in any order.   But, every two months or so, I will update you on how I am doing.   So, back in early March, I told you about the first 28 movies I saw.   Here goes with the next batch.

29.  Gentleman's Agreement (1947):  After the long siege of WWII, Hollywood decides to tackle heavier topics and anti-Semitism is a good place to start.  Gregory Peck poses as a Jew.   The scene where he tries to get a room in an exclusive hotel is a classic.

30.  All The King's Men (1949):  The heavy-handedness of Hollywood post WWII continues with this veiled look at a politician that resembles Huey Long.  An interesting sidelight.  The first time I saw this movie was in 12th grade English.   Except they showed it over the course of a week for a half-hour at a time.   Not the way to see a Best Picture.

31.  Ordinary People (1980):  I have always loved this movie about a family quietly dealing with grief.   Redford can direct.   Mary Tyler Moore can act.  And Timothy Hutton, after winning an Oscar for this, never really topped this performance.

32.  Birdman (2014):  After my recent viewing, I am still waiting for somebody to explain it to me.

33.  The Departed (2006):  Scorsese is finally rewarded.   This grim "bad cop" saga is the pinnacle of the director's career and worthy of the recognition.

34.  Moonlight (2016):  I still believe that the snafu over reading the wrong Oscar result (vs. "LaLa Land') is further validation that the voting system is rigged.   On second viewing, "Moonlight" still doesn't break any new ground.  And, is it me or is the guy playing the main character as an adult one of the worst acting performances ever???

35.  Silence of the Lambs (1991):  A flat-out thriller that usually doesn't get Oscar recognition, but this one did.   Elevated by magnificent performances from Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins.  Have a fava bean, please.

36.  An American in Paris (1951):  I'm usually a sucker for a good MGM musical, but this one might be my least favorite.   There's really no plot and, frankly, the last half-hour which is nothing but a Gene Kelly ballet is...well...dull.

37.  Out of Africa (1985):  The first time I saw it, I fell asleep in the theater.  This time, in 2019, I was lucky.  The sofa was much more comfortable.   Yawn.

More to come.

Dinner last night:  Chopped salad.