A Decade of Oscars: 2001
Although a dark year in American history, 2001 started off like any other year. On the heels of Gladiator’s win, all eyes were set on Michael Bay’s Pearl Harborto be the first on the Oscar ballot. Could a May release date be a winner twice in a row? Everyone seemed to think so . . .
. . . and then they saw the film. I didn’t think it was horrible, but it certainly didn’t have the impact that it looked like it would have. Movie-goers balked at the sappy love story and the over-production that seemed excessive, even by Michael Bay’s standards. Pearl Harboris now remembered as being one of the biggest bombs (no pun intended) in recent history. Needless to say, it did not make the list.
2001 also saw the beginnings of three of the biggest film franchises in cinema history. Just 1 week prior to Pearl Harbor, audiences were introduced to Shrek. Pundits were clamoring for Shrek to join the list of Best Picture nominees, trying to become only the 2nd animated film to do so. In a bittersweet turn of events, the Academy implemented the Best Animated Feature Oscar, and chose to reward Shrek here, instead of giving it one of the coveted 5 Best Picture slots.
In mid-September, right in the middle of the slowest period of the cinematic year, America was attacked. No one had any idea if audiences would continue to escape into theatres, but they did. Film persevered, and movie-goers were soon treated to the beginnings of both the Harry Potter series and the first third of the Lord of the Rings saga, both of which grossed over $300 Million.
When the nominees for Best Picture were announced, LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring was among the nominees. Although a stunning visual treat, I had a hard time believing that one third of a movie should even be on the list of nominees, let alone win. It was a great film, no question. However, can you really reward 1/3 of a film as Best Picture? If it did win, would that mean that the next two annually-scheduled releases would also be locks for Best Picture? There was potential here for a dangerous precedent to be set, and I didn’t feel that the Academy would make that mistake, but there was a lot of buzz, and it seemed viable.
Joining LOTR was In The Bedroom, a sad tale of an older couple who are dealing with the death of their child. Bedroom had great acting performances, and it was a typical Academy-friendly film, but it was not looked at as a serious contender compared to the other 4 nominees.
Gosford Park was also up for Best Picture. Gosford Park was an ensemble piece (of garbage) that, earlier in the Oscar telecast, was the center of the greatest miscarriage of Oscar justice that anyone had ever witnessed. A young scribe named Christopher Nolan, along with his brother, wrote one of the most brilliant screenplays ever. It was a small film called Memento. Just as they were about to be recognized for their brilliance, the name “Julian Fellows” was read as the recipient of the Screenplay Oscar, giving Nolan’s Oscar to Gosford Park. My dear collaborator on this website telephoned me seconds thereafter. I don’t remember the specifics, but I recall it being one of the angriest, most foul-mouthed 2 minutes of our entire relationship. The words “Gosford Park” continue to be taboo to the both of us to this very day. We hold a grudge, and we aren’t ashamed of it.
Also up for Best Picture was A Beautiful Mind. This was the true story of a schizophrenic mathematician who falls into a great conspiracy. Directed by Ron Howard and starring Russell Crowe, this was exactly the type of film that the Academy liked to reward. It was a true story about a man with a disability. Crowe was on a very hot streak. He had lost two years prior for (in my opinion) his best performance ever in The Insider. The Academy saw fit to rectify their oversight by rewarding him in 2000 for Gladiator. He was all but guaranteed to be a back-to-back winner for his role in A Beautiful Mind, but somehow he lost out to Denzel Washington in Training Day. A Beautiful Mind was my pick that year, and if it won, I would finally be a happy camper.
The final film was Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge, a contemporary musical that was visually stunning and epic. Moulin Rouge made a late stride as more and more people saw the film and realized that musicals really weren’t so bad, especially when they featured pop and rock songs that everyone already knew. I thought Moulin Rouge had a chance at winning, but only because I personally dismissed LOTR.
In the end, A Beautiful Mind won the night. I was very happy to see that Fellowship had not been rewarded, because I felt that the world was now safe from “Part 2” winning next year. I mean, how ridiculous would it be for the middle third of a movie to win Best Picture? Perhaps it won’t even be nominated… I think Peter Jackson winning for Best Director would have been an acceptable alternative, as it was his vision that brought this saga to light in the first place. However, it wasn’t in the cards. The only question that remained was: would the third and final installment of the trilogy get all the accolades 2 years from now as a reward for the whole project? It seemed likely, even though undesirable. At least I didn’t have to think about it for 2 more years.
To find out what happened the next year, continue to the 2002 Commentary.
-Steve
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