THE OSCAR GOES TO....

THE 86TH ACADEMY AWARDS

BEST PICTURE

American Hustle

Captain Phillips

Dallas Buyers Club

Gravity

Her

Nebraska

Philomena

12 Years a Slave

The Wolf of Wall Street

I have seen every movie that is nominated for Best Picture. I must say that this is one of the most amazing years in movies that I have seen in a long time. Each movie is totally different from the next yet they each hold a special place in my heart. 

This year is filled with amazing dramas with some based on true stories and excellent performances all around. I think for all these reasons it is a tough year to pick just one. Each one is definitely worthy of the nomination of Best Picture. You can see my reviews here.

I can't pick just one but I think the two most worthy are (not in any particular order so I will go by the alphabet) Dallas Buyers Club and 12 Years a Slave are my picks. These two movies were exceptional in my opinion along with their actors. 

You can get you ballot here: BALLOT

Not to go into too much detail because I have talked about this before so many of you know this already.  My father ran the Atlantic Theater in Chicago around 26th and Pulaski. He started out as an usher and moved his way up to manager. That was back in the day when you only had one screen. 

So I spent a lot of time seeing movies growing up in the 50's and early 60's. I remember my 13th birthday party being there! So Academy Award night was a big deal at our house. I don't remember a whole lot but at some point it became a pizza night for us and so the tradition has continued with my own family. 

In case you were wondering I did have an all time favorite movie that I watched over and over again when I was 8 years old. It was Danny Kaye in The Five Pennies (IMBd) which opened in August of 1959. (Also featuring Louis Armstrong)

Loring "Red" Nichols is a cornet-playing country boy who goes to New York in the 1920s full of musical ambition and principles. He gets a job playing in Wil Paradise's band, but quits to pursue his dream of playing Dixieland jazz. He forms the "Five Pennies" which features his wife, Bobbie, as vocalist. At the peak of his fame, Red and Bobbie's daughter, Dorothy, develops polio. Red quits the music business to move to Los Angeles where the climate is better for Dorothy. As Dorothy becomes a young teen, she learns of her father's musical past, and he is persuaded to open a small nightclub which is failing until some noted names from his past come to help out.

I always look forward to this evening starting with all the before shows leading up to the main event and I hope if you are watching that you enjoy each moment.