School Security: Deputized Security Officers

Deputized Security Officers 

My idea is a deputized security person: a plainclothes officer on site watching monitors of each entrance at a school, can spot intruder, notify police, hopefully take out the shooter (head shot, they wear body armor), or occupy them until backup.

A sonic gunshot detector is easy, wireless alarm to police IF a shot occurs in a school so they know right away, that should be minimum.

If multiple shooters, say four at four different doors), the DSF officer makes a decision to coordinate from within the security room or do what he can solo because with the advantage that he knows where each is, he can at least slow them down, plus he's in wireless contact with police throughout.

Parents (through the PTA) can take donations for the initial security system, not that much - you can likely find retired volunteers like myself that won't need a salary.. maybe two four-hour a day volunteers, it may be stressful and you don't want to leave. A microwave and fridge should be in the room, and hopefully close to a restroom.. Let's face it, if thousands of small retailers can have these security systems to save their merchandise then WE can do this to SAVE KIDS - A NO BRAINER  - WE CANNOT SAY THIS IS TOO EXPENSIVE, NO EXPENSE IN THIS AREA IS TOO MUCH. The kids will know they have a helpful watcher ON SITE, hopefully in a hidden location not easily cased by someone planning an attack.. eventually there'll be a coordinated terrorist attack and this will help with that as well.

In Peter Berg’s film KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, after the first responders showed up to an attack by shooters in an SUV on a softball game, the terrorists had a bomb ready as an arriving ambulance, and set off a secondary explosion that killed another few hundred emergency personnel, including the FBI officer in charge, the first attack was just a draw for that.. everyone needs to keep that in mind as well.

Of course, these will be trained personnel with no history of any dangerous mental conditions (hey, we've all had the blues) just like you would for any security officer that may require arming.. you can likely get lots of ex law enforcement and ex-military as volunteers.. fight fire with fire, this are assaults, we can't wait until after the fact to send 500 armed police in, at that point its just another waiting target and lots of overtime pay. 

Someone mentioned the idea of arming teachers who qualify is also a good augmentation to the Deputized Security Officer, but of course they will not have monitors or body armor so the teacher will possibly be another victim, less likely for the DSO, but any additional firepower will help and slow down the attackers.
Also getting a wireless radio system on each custodian is a good idea, so they can also communicate with law enforcement - this technology is cheap nowdays and we are the technology kings so we can do it.

If I was a DSO, I'd want both a pistol and a sniper rifle w a scope, it may take a head shot from a distance to take out a shooter, but the pistol may be your only option depending on the situation and how fast you have to respond.. if possible the security room can double as a sealed panic room if say it's a coordinated assault w multiple shooters and the DSO can best help by coordinating police from within from a secure location with multiple camera eyes.

So far, no group of terrorists have done this, but YOU KNOW THAT'S COMING - we have to prep for that NOW, don't wait until after the fact because "the feds cut our state budget" --- GET PEOPLE TO PAY - IT'S OUR KIDS, WE CAN PAY FOR THIS, screw the budgets.

My Five Best Photo Contest Entries

I just entered these five photos of mine at the 1x photo site for their contest. My categories are Landscape (Sunset Fisherman at Grizzly Island Wildlife Refuge), Nature (Blackbirds on a Bench), Architecture (Nieman Marcus Holiday Ceiling, Leila's - Curtain Dance), and Street (Hudson Peach Farms Halloween Decor)

Please check out their site in case there are viewer votes! I don't know, it's in German, lol.. plus I can't vote if I'm a contestant. I need fame, adulation, and some lettuce - show me the manna.

Top Ranked Black and White Films

All Ranked Black and White Films, and more (2011 Edition)
I dipped down to the top 1200 films to create a bigger list of bw titles, as only 298 made the top 1000.

Production still from Lang's Metropolis

BW rank - Title (Year) - Director - Overall Rank
1. Seven Samurai, The (1954) Kurosawa, Akira #2
2. Metropolis (1927) Lang, Fritz #7
3. Modern Times (1936) Chaplin, Charles #9
4. Night of The Hunter, The (1955) Laughton, Charles #10
5. Citizen Kane (1941) Welles, Orson #11
6. Psycho (1960) Hitchcock, Alfred #14
7. M. (1931) Lang, Fritz #16
8. It's a Wonderful Life (1946) Capra, Frank #17
9. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) Kubrick, Stanley #18
10. Sunset Boulevard (1950) Wilder, Billy #19
11. Bicycle Thief, The (1949) De Sica, Vittorio #21
12. Third Man, The (1948) Reed, Carol #23
13. Raging Bull (1980) Scorsese, Martin #25
14. City Lights (1931) Chaplin, Charles #27
15. Rashomon (1950) Kurosawa, Akira #29
16. Seventh Seal, The (1956) Bergman, Ingmar #31
17. Passion of Joan of Arc, The (1928) Dreyer, Carl Theodor #34
18. General, The (1927) Keaton, Buster/Clyde Bruckman #35
19. 400 Blows, The (1959) Truffaut, François #37
20. Touch of Evil (1958) Welles, Orson #38
21. 8½ (1963) Fellini, Federico #40
22. All About Eve (1950) Mankiewicz, Joseph L. #41
23. On the Waterfront (1954) Kazan, Elia #42
24. Sunrise (1927) Murnau, F.W. #43
25. Gold Rush, The (1925) Chaplin, Charles #48
26. Au Hasard Balthazar (1966) Bresson, Robert #50
27. Duck Soup (1933) McCarey, Leo #53
28. Notorious (1946) Hitchcock, Alfred #54
29. Casablanca (1942) Curtiz, Michael #55
30. Battle of Algiers, The (1966) Pontecorvo, Gillo #60
31. Pather Panchali / Apu Trilogy I (1955) Ray, Satyajit #62
32. Rules of the Game, The (1939) Renoir, Jean #63
33. Some Like it Hot (1959) Wilder, Billy #66
34. Manhattan (1979) Allen, Woody #67
35. King Kong (1933) Cooper, Merian C./Ernest B. Schoedsack #68
36. Sherlock Jr. (1924) Keaton, Buster #69
37. Double Indemnity (1944) Wilder, Billy #71
38. Jules et Jim (1961) Truffaut, François #73
39. La Dolce Vita (1960) Fellini, Federico #74
40. Tokyo Story (1953) Ozu, Yasujiro #76
41. Umberto D (1952) De Sica, Vittorio #80
42. Manchurian Candidate, The (1962) Frankenheimer, John #81
43. Apartment, The (1960) Wilder, Billy #82
44. Ugetsu (1953) Mizoguchi, Kenji #85
45. Persona (1966) Bergman, Ingmar #86
46. L'Atalante (1934) Vigo, Jean #88
47. Paths of Glory (1957) Kubrick, Stanley #91
48. Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The (1948) Huston, John #93
49. Man With a Movie Camera, The (1929) Vertov, Dziga #95
50. Ikiru (1952) Kurosawa, Akira #101
51. Maltese Falcon, The (1941) Huston, John #103
52. Wild Strawberries (1957) Bergman, Ingmar #104
53. High Noon (1952) Zinnemann, Fred #106
54. Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The (1962) Ford, John #107
55. Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (1922) Murnau, F.W. #112
56. La Strada (1954) Fellini, Federico #114
57. 12 Angry Men (1957) Lumet, Sidney #116
58. Battleship Potemkin (1925) Eisenstein, Sergei #123
59. Masculine-Feminine (1966) Godard, Jean-Luc 126
60. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) Mulligan, Robert #130
61. Great Dictator, The (1940) Chaplin, Charles #131
62. Magnificent Ambersons, The (1942) Welles, Orson #132
63. Repulsion (1965) Polanski, Roman #139
64. Ordet (1955) Dreyer, Carl #143
65. Grapes of Wrath, The (1940) Ford, John #144
66. His Girl Friday (1940) Hawks, Howard #147
67. Intolerance (1916) Griffith, D.W. #148
68. Lady Eve, The (1941) Sturges, Preston #149
69. Rebecca (1940) Hitchcock, Alfred #153
70. Big Sleep, The (1946) Hawks, Howard #154
71. Sweet Smell of Success (1957) Mackendrick, Alexander #156
72. Strangers on a Train (1951) Hitchcock, Alfred #157
73. Streetcar Named Desire, A (1951) Kazan, Elia #158
74. Breathless (1959) Godard, Jean-Luc #159
75. It Happened One Night (1934) Capra, Frank #160
76. Greed (1924) von Stroheim, Erich #161
77. Birth of a Nation, The (1915) Griffith, D.W. #162
78. Yojimbo (1961) Kurosawa, Akira #163
79. Wages of Fear, The (1952) Clouzot, Henri-Georges #168
80. My Life to Live (Vivre sa vie) (1963) Godard, Jean-Luc #171
81. Nights of Cabiria (1957) Fellini, Federico #172
82. Best Years of Our Lives, The (1946) Wyler, William #175
83. Gospel According to St. Matthew, The (1964) Pasolini, Pier Paolo #176
84. Hard Day's Night, A (1964) Lester, Richard #181
85. L'Avventura (1960) Antonioni, Michelangelo #183
86. Man Escaped, A (1956) Bresson, Robert #188
87. Blue Angel, The (1930) von Sternberg, Josef #196
88. Grande Illusion, La (1937) Renoir, Jean #197
89. Hustler, The (1961) Rossen, Robert #207
90. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) Capra, Frank #209
91. Last Year at Marienbad (1961) Resnais, Alain #213
92. Diaboliques, Les (1955) Clouzot, Henri-Georges #214
93. Un Chien Andalou (1929) Buñuel, Luis #216
94. Bringing Up Baby (1938) Hawks, Howard #218
95. Rocco and His Brothers (1964) Visconti, Luchino #223
96. Kid, The (1921) Chaplin, Charles #226
97. Eyes Without a Face (1959) Franju, Georges #229
98. Viridiana (1961) Buñuel, Luis #231
99. Andrei Rublev (1966) Tarkovsky, Andrei #238
100. Killer of Sheep (1977) Burnett, Charles #239
101. Sansho the Bailiff (1954) Mizoguchi, Kenji #240
102. Palm Beach Story, The (1942) Sturges, Preston #242
103. Throne of Blood (1957) Kurosawa, Akira #244
104. Hiroshima mon amour (1959) Resnais, Alain #246
105. Broken Blossoms (1919) Griffith, D.W. #247
106. Mon oncle (1958) Tati, Jacques #251
107. L'Âge d'or (1930) Buñuel, Luis #263
108. Shadow of a Doubt (1943) Hitchcock, Alfred #264
109. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) Milestone, Lewis #266
110. Shadow of a Doubt (1943) Romero, George A. #267
111. Band of Outsiders (Bande à part, 1964) Godard, Jean-Luc #268
112. Paisan (1946) Rossellini, Roberto #280
113. Stagecoach (1939) Ford, John #283
114. L'Eclisse (1962) Antonioni, Michelangelo #286
115. Rome, Open City (1945) Rossellini, Roberto #291
116. Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, The (1919) Wiene, Robert #292
117. World of Apu, The (1959) Ray, Satyajit #297
118. Les Enfants du paradis (1945) Carné, Marcel #305
119. Brief Encounter (1945) Lean, David #310
120. Diary of a Country Priest (1950) Bresson, Robert #312
121. Last Picture Show, The (1971) Bogdanovich, Peter #313
122. My Darling Clementine (1946) Ford, John #316
123. Pandora's Box (1928) Pabst, G.W. #319
124. Roman Holiday (1953) Wyler, William #320
125. Trouble in Paradise (1932) Lubitsch, Ernst #323
126. Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928) Keaton, Buster/Charles F. Reisner #331
127. To Be or Not to Be (1942) Lubitsch, Ernst #332
128. Philadelphia Story, The (1940) Cukor, George #340
129. Golden Coach, The (1952) Renoir, Jean #345
130. October (1927) Eisenstein, Sergei #347
131. I Vitelloni (1953) Fellini, Federico #348
132. Vampyr (1932) Dreyer, Carl #349
133. Napoléon (1927) Gance, Abel #354
134. La Notte (1961) Antonioni, Michelangelo #357
135. Exterminating Angel, The (1962) Buñuel, Luis #365
136. Killing, The (1956) Kubrick, Stanley #366
137. I Was Born, But… (1932) Ozu, Yasujiro #370
138. 39 Steps, The (1935) Hitchcock, Alfred #372
139. Earth (1930) Dovzhenko, Alexander #375
140. Forbidden Games (1951) Clément, René #383
141. Pépé le Moko (1937) Duvivier, Julien #384
142. In a Lonely Place (1950) Ray, Nicholas #392
143. Freaks (1932) Browning, Tod #394
144. Gertrud (1964) Dreyer, Carl #398
145. Top Hat (1935) Sandrich, Mark #401
146. Anatomy of a Murder (1959) Preminger, Otto #405
147. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) Nichols, Mike #406
148. Night and Fog (1955) Resnais, Alain #414
149. Los Olvidados (1950) Buñuel, Luis #420
150. White Heat (1949) Walsh, Raoul #422
151. Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) Deren, Maya #427
152. Shoot the Piano Player (1960) Truffaut, François #428
153. Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948) Ophüls, Max #433
154. Faces (1968) Cassavetes, John #435
155. Night at the Opera, A (1935) Wood, Sam #436
156. Orpheus (1950) Cocteau, Jean #440
157. Aparajito (1956) Ray, Satyajit #443
158. Le Million (1931) Clair, René #448
159. High and Low (1963) Kurosawa, Akira #450
160. Shadows (1959) Cassavetes, John #452
161. Late Spring (1949) Ozu, Yasujiro #454
162. Strike (1924) Eisenstein, Sergei #455
163. Mr. Hulot's Holiday (1953) Tati, Jacques #459
164. Frankenstein (1931) Whale, James #467
165. Ninotchka (1939) Lubitsch, Ernst #473
166. Rififi (1955) Dassin, Jules #474
167. Asphalt Jungle, The (1950) Huston, John #475
168. Lolita (1962) Kubrick, Stanley #476
169. Great Expectations (1946) Lean, David #482
170. Ivan the Terrible, Part One (1944) Eisenstein, Sergei #485
171. Fallen Idol, The (1948) Reed, Carol #491
172. Mouchette (1967) Bresson, Robert 497
173. Crowd, The (1928) Vidor, King #502
174. To Have and Have Not (1944) Hawks, Howard #506
175. Last Laugh (1924) Murnau, F.W. #508
176. Alexander Nevsky (1938) Eisenstein, Sergei #510
177. Closely Watched Trains (1966) Menzel, Jirí #512
178. Winter Light (1962) Bergman, Ingmar #513
179. 42nd Street (1933) Bacon, Lloyd #514
180. Scarface (1932) Hawks, Howard #519
181. White Ribbon, The (2009) Haneke, Michael #522
182. How Green Was My Valley (1941) Ford, John #529
183. Voyage in Italy (1953) Rossellini, Roberto #533
184. Chimes at Midnight (1966) Welles, Orson #539
185. Lola (1961) Demy, Jacques #540
186. Alphaville (1965) Godard, Jean-Luc #545
187. Day of Wrath (1943) Dreyer, Carl #547
188. Ivan the Terrible, Part Two (1946) Eisenstein, Sergei #552
189. Silence, The (1963) Bergman, Ingmar #554
190. Smiles of a Summer Night (1955) Bergman, Ingmar #559
191. Monsieur Verdoux (1947) Chaplin, Charles #560
192. Shop Around the Corner, The (1940) Lubitsch, Ernst #561
193. Le Jour se lève (1939) Carné, Marcel #562
194. Big Heat, The (1953) Lang, Fritz #563
195. Ace in the Hole (1951) Wilder, Billy #566
196. Place in the Sun, A (1951) Stevens, George #575
197. Ivan's Childhood (1962) Tarkovsky, Andrei #579
198. Germany, Year Zero (1947) Rossellini, Roberto #580
199. Music Room, The (1958) Ray, Satyajit #582
200. Only Angels Have Wings (1939) Hawks, Howard #584
201. Ben-Hur (1926) Niblo, Fred #594
202. Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962) Varda, Agnès #599
203. Mildred Pierce (1945) Curtiz, Michael #600
204. Nanook of the North (1922) Flaherty, Robert #603
205. Swing Time (1936) Stevens, George #605
206. Tabu (1931) Murnau, F.W. #607
207. Triumph of the Will (1935) Riefenstahl, Leni #615
208. Cat People (1942) Tourneur, Jacques #616
209. Story of the Late Chrysanthemums, The (1939) Mizoguchi, Kenji #618
210. Faust (1926) Murnau, F.W. #619
211. Crime of Monsieur Lange, The (1936) Renoir, Jean #621
212. Lady from Shanghai, The (1947) Welles, Orson #622
213. Lady Vanishes, The (1938) Hitchcock, Alfred #623
214. Miracle in Milan (1951) De Sica, Vittorio #631
215. Make Way for Tomorrow (1937) McCarey, Leo #634
216. Odd Man Out (1947) Reed, Carol #635
217. Life of Oharu, The (1952) Mizoguchi, Kenji #636
218. Floating Clouds (1955) Naruse, Mikio #638
219. Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) Reisz, Karel #639
220. Dr. Mabuse, The Gambler (1922) Lang, Fritz #641
221. Detour (1945) Ulmer, Edgar G. #644
222. Salvatore Giuliano (1961) Rosi, Francesco #646
223. El Verdugo (1963) Berlanga, Luis García #648
224. My Night at Maud's (1969) Rohmer, Eric #650
225. Day the Earth Stood Still, The (1951) Wise, Robert #656
226. Scarlet Empress, The (1934) von Sternberg, Josef #666
227. Wind, The (1928) Sjöström, Victor #675
228. Cameraman, The (1928) Keaton, Buster/Edward Sedgwick #677
229. Man of Aran (1934) Flaherty, Robert #678
230. Limelight (1952) Chaplin, Charles #683
231. El (1952) Buñuel, Luis #684
232. Navigator, The (1924) Keaton, Buster/Donald Crisp #687
233. It's a Gift (1934) McLeod, Norman Z. #688
234. Wedding March, The (1928) von Stroheim, Erich #692
235. Accattone (1961) Pasolini, Pier Paolo #695
236. Charulata (1964) Ray, Satyajit #697
237. Olympia (1938) Riefenstahl, Leni #701
238. Loves of a Blonde (1965) Forman, Milos #702
239. I Am Cuba (1964) Kalatozov, Mikheil #705
240. Canterbury Tale, A (1944) Powell, Michael/Emeric Pressburger #709
241. Mother (Mat, 1926) Pudovkin, Vsevolod #714
242. Don't Look Back (1967) Pennebaker, D.A. #716
243. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) Capra, Frank #725
244. Witness for the Prosecution (1957) Wilder, Billy #726
245. Servant, The (1963) Losey, Joseph #730
246. Pyaasa (Thirst, 1957) Dutt, Guru #733
247. Zelig (1983) Allen, Woody #739
248. Our Hospitality (1923) Keaton, Buster/John Blystone #740
249. Through a Glass Darkly (1961) Bergman, Ingmar #742
250. Plaisir, Le (1951) Ophüls, Max #745
251. Memories of Underdevelopment (1968) Alea, Tomás Gutiérrez #747
252. La Commune (Paris, 1871) (2000) Watkins, Peter #754
253. Gun Crazy (Deadly is the Female, 1950) Lewis, Joseph H. #758
254. Cloud-Capped Star, The (1960) Ghatak, Ritwik #772
255. Happiness (1934) Medvedkin, Aleksandr #774
256. Blood of a Poet, The (1930) Cocteau, Jean #778
257. They Were Expendable (1945) Ford, John #781
258. In Cold Blood (1967) Brooks, Richard #782
259. Love Me Tonight (1932) Mamoulian, Rouben #784
260. Quai des Orfèvres (1947) Clouzot, Henri-Georges #788
261. Hidden Fortress, The (1958) Kurosawa, Akira #789
262. Piccadilly (1929) Dupont, Ewald André #792
263. La Terra trema (1948) Visconti, Luchino #794
264. I Know Where I'm Going! (1945) Powell, Michael/Emeric Pressburger #799
265. Terra em Transe (1967) Rocha, Glauber #809
266. Mafioso (bw, 1962) Lattuada, Alberto #812
267. Henry V (1944) Olivier, Laurence #815
268. Seven Chances (1925) Keaton, Buster #827
269. Foolish Wives (1922) von Stroheim, Erich #839
270. Europa '51 (1952) Rossellini, Roberto #842
271. Cranes Are Flying, The (1957) Kalatozishvili, Mikheil #846
272. Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) Ford, John #866
273. Harakiri (1962) Kobayashi, Masaki #867
274. Miracle of Morgan's Creek, The (1944) Sturges, Preston #869
275. I Walked with a Zombie (1943) Tourneur, Jacques #870
276. Devil is a Woman, The (1935) von Sternberg, Josef #878
277. Virgin Spring, The (1960) Bergman, Ingmar #884
278. Pickup on South Street (1953) Fuller, Sam #888
279. Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) Kramer, Stanley #889
280. Children of Hiroshima (1952) Shindô, Kaneto #891
281. Que viva Mexico! (1932) Eisenstein, Sergei #893
282. Circus, The (1928) Chaplin, Charles #895
283. Spring in a Small Town (1948) Fei Mu #909
284. Bob le flambeur (1956) Melville, Jean-Pierre #910
285. La Chienne (1931) Renoir, Jean #913
286. Stalag 17 (1953) Wilder, Billy #929
287. There's Always Tomorrow (1956) Sirk, Douglas #930
288. Ossessione (1943) Visconti, Luchino #940
289. Bad and the Beautiful, The (1952) Minnelli, Vincente #945
290. Les Dames du Bois de Boulogne (1945) Bresson, Robert #950
291. Red Beard (1965) Kurosawa, Akira #963
292. Innocents, The (1961) Clayton, Jack #973
293. Sawdust and Tinsel (1953) Bergman, Ingmar #976
294. Touchez Pas A Grisbi (1954) Becker, Jacques #978
295. Angel (1937) Lubitsch, Ernst #981
296. Hour of the Furnaces, The (1968) Getino, Octavio & Fernando E. Solanas #982
297. From Here to Eternity (1953) Zinnemann, Fred #993
298. Control (2007) Corbijn, Anton #999
299. Big Risk, The (1960) Sautet, Claude #1005
300. Misfits, The (1961) Huston, John #1006
301. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) Siegel, Don #1010
302. Stromboli (1950) Rossellini, Roberto 1013
303. Duel in the Sun (1946) Vidor, King #1024
304. Barren Lives (1963) Dos Santos, Nelson Pereira 1029
305. Storm Over Asia (1928) Pudovkin, Vsevolod #1031
306. Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) Clooney, George #1034
307. Salesman (1968) Maysles, Albert/David Maysles/Charlotte Zwerin 1046
308. Tarnished Angels, The (1957) Sirk, Douglas 1050
309. La Haine (1995) Kassovitz, Mathieu #1067
310. Woman in the Window, The (1944) Lang, Fritz #1070
311. Hallelujah! (1929) Vidor, King #1073
312. They Live by Night (1948) Ray, Nicholas #1091
313. Trial, The (1962) Welles, Orson #1092
314. Gilda (1946) Vidor, Charles #1095
315. Harvey (1950) Coster, Henry #1098
316. Thing from Another World, The (1951) Nyby, Christian/Howard Hawks #1099
317. Design for Living (1933) Lubitsch, Ernst #1106
318. Othello (aka Tragedy of Othello, 1952) Welles, Orson #1111
319. Fires Were Started (1943) Jennings, Humphrey #1114
320. Outskirts (Okraina, 1933) Barnet, Boris #1117
321. Firemen's Ball, The (1967) Forman, Milos #1121
322. Anatahan (1953) von Sternberg, Josef 1126
323. Big Parade, The (1925) Vidor, King #1127
324. Barefoot Contessa, The (1954) Mankiewicz, Joseph L. #1134
325. Holiday (1938) Cukor, George #1157
326. Branded to Kill (1967) Suzuki, Seijun #1158
327. Hour of the Wolf (68) Bergman, Ingmar #1160
328. Blair Witch Project, The (1999) Myrick & Sanchez #1162
329. Billy Liar (1963) Schlesinger, John #1163
330. La Ronde (1950) Ophüls, Max #1166
331. I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932) LeRoy, Mervyn #1174
332. Morocco (1930) von Sternberg, Josef #1175
333. Tom, Tom the Piper's Son (1969) Jacobs, Ken #1176
334. Wagon Master (1950) Ford, John #1185
335. Unfaithfully Yours (1948) Sturges, Preston #1189
336. Under the Roofs of Paris (1930) Clair, René #1195
337. Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach, The (1968) Straub, Jean-Marie #1196
338. Moonfleet (1955) Lang, Fritz #1199
339. Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959) Dutt, Guru #1202
340. Shame (Skammen, 1968) Bergman, Ingmar #1224
341. Flowers of St. Francis, The (1950) Rossellini, Roberto #1234
342. Liebelei (1933) Ophüls, Max #1235

Night of the Hunter, actor Charles

Laughton's only film as director

Top 100 Holocaust Films

[First published for Jewish Heritage Month, for my Jewish friends. No matter what your religion (or lack of one) everyone deserves justice and dignity in life, that should be basic human right that we all should fight for vigilantly]

I received this following message via email on 4/17/2012, and did not know about this observance in Israel, so I'm sure many of you don't as well, so I wanted to repeat this here: "Tomorrow evening is in Israel what we call Yom HaShoa, Holocaust Day. The Memorial day for the Jews who perished then. While it is not a holiday, light memorial candles for the known and unknown members of our families and others who died at the time. No music is heard and nothing that could be termed entertainment is open (e.g. bars, gyms) and the TV program only shows films related to the holocaust. (Which is one of the reasons I have seen so many of those that you list). - Adriana Marin Grez 

She also suggests that if possible, we donate to a holocaust survivors charity, as many survivors are still alive and living below poverty level. Here's a legitimate one in Israel: The Zdaka Center


Holocaust Films

These are all the holocaust films I found in my research, both ranked and unranked. I'm sure I've missed some, and some are borderline, see the note below the list. Many of these will not be for children, and some are definitely not for the squeamish, as this is about as horrifying as mankind can become.

RANKED [updated 4.17.12]

1. Schindler's List [Spielberg, 1993] #30 [photo top]
2. Shoah [Lanzmann, 1985] #98 Up since 2009
3. The Pianist [Polanski, 2004] #142 New since 2009
4. Army of Shadows [Melville, 1969] #277 Up since 2009
5. Downfall [Hirschbiegel, 2004] #327 New since 2009
6. Triumph of the Will [Riefenstahl, 1935] #614 Down since 2009 - this propaganda film shot by actress Leni Riefenstahl at Hitler's 'request' is tough to watch but demonstrates the power of both patriotism and propaganda. Everyone should see this so you can see how people can be manipulated by the media - Riefenstahl apologized after the war but I think she made a necessary record of evil for everyone to see, and like many, she was optimistic and bought into the disinformation and deception
7. Night and Fog [Resnais, 1955] #413 Up since 2009
8. Life is Beautiful [Begnini, 1997] #445 Up since 2009
9. Come and See [Klimov, 1985] #491 This terrific film is moving up in ranking; the same story was filmed in English as Defiance, but this is the more harrowing and passionate film
10. Au Revoir Les Enfants [Malle, 1987] #872 Up since 2009
11. Hitler: A Film from Germany [Syberberg, 1977] #1219 Down since 2009

Ironically, Oskar Schindler was a failed capitalist who saw an opportunity to succeed with cheap Jewish labor in WW2, and only later developed a conscience.

Shoah is absolutely gut-wrenching, interviews with survivors from both sides, and not for the squeamish; it has some horrifying descriptions, but is a 9 1/2 hr masterpiece of devotion to a cause.

Triumph of the Will from the brilliant actress turned director Leni Reifenstahl doesn't deal with the holocaust directly, but one can see the roots develop in this brilliant piece of propaganda filmmaking which shows the rise to power of the Nazis. The film was so successful worldwide that Time Magazine awarded Hitler "Man of the Year" in 1935! Her Olympia documented the 1936 summer Olympics held in Berlin, which was to be a showcase for the superiority of the German race; even though American sprinter Jesse Owens stunned this image by sweeping his races, the Germans did win the most medals overall. However, during this period public anti-Semitism was hidden away briefly to fool the athletes and press by showing a false and peaceful Berlin.

Army of Shadows is an engrossing film of the French underground, based on a true story. Come and See is a harrowing Russian film of the Nazi invasion of Belorus, a defenseless agrarian region of small villages that became the scorched earth. It was the massive effort it took by the army to destroy a populace here that led to the invention of what the Nazi command called "the final solution".

UNRANKED (alphabetical)

1. A Generation Apart [1984]
2. A Secret [2007]
3. Adam Resurrected [2008]
4. All My Loved Ones [2000]
5. America and the Holocaust [1994]
6. Angry Harvest [1985]
7. Anne Frank Remembered [1995]
8. Anne Frank: The Life of a Young Girl []
9. Anne Frank: The Whole Story [2001]
10. Auschwitz: Inside the Nazi State [2005]
11. Autumn Hearts: A New Beginning [2007]
12. Billy Graham: The Hiding Place [1975]
13. Bonhoeffer [2003]
14. Bonhoeffer: Agent of Grace [2000]
15. Boy in the Striped Pajamas, The [2008]
16. Boys From Brazil, The [1978]
17. Century of Simon Wiesenthal, The [1994]
18. Charlotte Gray [2001]
19. Children of Chabannes, The [1999]
20. Civilization and the Jews [1984]
21. Conspiracy [2001]
22. Counterfeiters, The [2007]
23. Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler, The [2009]
24. Dear Mr. Waldman [2006]
25. Defamation [2008]
26. Defiance [2008]
27. Devil's Arithmatic, The [1999]
28. Diary of Anne Frank, The [1959]
29. Diplomats for the Damned [2008]
30. Drancy Avenir [1997]
31. Edges of the Lord [2001]
32. Ever Again [2006]
33. Everything Is Illuminated [2005]
34. Fate Did Not Let Me Go [2003]
35. Fateless [2005, Hungary] - love this story, of a kid who survives the camps, enjoys the comraderie of being with his people; for him it was an asylum from the war - amazing!
36. Forgiving Dr. Mengele [2006]
37. Frontline: Shtetl [1996]
38. Fugitive Pieces [2007]
39. Garden of the Finzi-Continis, The [1970]
40. God On Trial [2008]
41. Good Evening Mr. Wallenberg [1990]
42. Goodnight, Mister Tom [1998]
43. Hidden Child, The [2007]
44. Hidden Heroes [1999]
45. Hiding Place, The [1975]
46. Holocaust: Dachau and Sachsenhausen [2005]
47. Holocaust: Ravensbruck and Buchenwald [2006]
48. Holocaust: The Liberation of Auschwitz [2005]
49. Holocaust: The Liberation of Majdanek [2006]
50. Holocaust: Theresienstadt [2005]
51. I Have Never Forgotten You [2006]
52. I'm Still Here [2008] 53. Imaginary Witness [2004]
54. Incident at Vichy [2002] 55. Inheritance [2006]
56. Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport  [2000] #1542
57. Jacob the Liar [1975]
58. Jakob the Liar [1999]
59. Kapó [1959] Italy
60. Last Days, The [1998]
61. Left Luggage [1998]
62. Lies and Whispers [1998]
63. Long Way Home, The [1997]
64. Making Choices [1005]
65. Man in the Glass Booth, The [1975]
66. Massacre in Rome [1973]
67. Maximilian: Saint of Auschwitz [1995]
68. Memory Thief, The [2007]
69. Miracle at Midnight [1998]
70. Miriam [2006]
71. My Heart is Mine Alone [1997]
72. Nazi Officer's Wife, The [2003]
73. Ninth Day, The [2004]
74. November Moon [1984]
75. Pawnbroker, The [1965]
76. Rape of Europa, The [2007]
77. Reader, The [2008] #2175
78. Rose Garden, The [1989]
79. Rotation [1949]
80. Secret Lives: Hidden Children and Rescuers[2003]
81. Secrets of the Dead: Escape from Auschwitz [2008]
82. Shadows in Paradise: Hitler's Exiles [2008]
83. Shop on Main Street, The [1965]
84. Sophie Scholl: The Final Days [2005]
85. Sophie's Choice [1982]
86. The Sorrow and the Pity [1969]
87. Steal a Pencil for Me [2007]
88. Triumph of the Spirit [1989]
89. Verdict on Auschwitz [1993]
90. Voyages [1999]
91. Watermarks [2005]
92. Who Betrayed Anne Frank? [1998]

Thanks to Adriana Marin Grez, who suggested the addition of these films, which I will add here first, along with her descriptions, as I haven't seen any of these myself:

1) The Round Up ( French: La Rafle ) is a 2010 French film directed by Roselyne Bosch and produced by Alain Goldman. Based on the true story of a young Jewish boy, the film depicts the Vel d'Hiv roundup, the mass arrest of Jews by French police who were Nazi accomplices in Paris in July 1942.

2)  A Square of Sky (German: Ein Stueck Himmel)  is a 1982 television series (10 episodes) based on the australian book "A square of sky" written by Janina David, who survived as a child the Warsaw ghetto and its upraising. She was saved by being smuggled out of the ghetto and into a christian convent.

3) The Summer of Aviya . ( Hebrew: הקיץ של אביה ‎, translit. Ha-Kayitz Shel Aviya). The 1989 film is based on a Hebrew language book that became a bestseller. The 1985 autobiographical novel by theater actress Gila Almagor is a memoir of Almagor's childhood and provides insights into Israeli society in the early post-state period.

4) New Land . A 1994 israeli film by Orna Ben Dor, in Hebrew with English subtitles.
It tells the story of 8 year old Anna, who travels from war ravaged Europe to Israel after World War II and their only posessions is a soiled teddy bear and a picture of their mother. Anna wanders the refugee camp searching for her mother, who she hopes also escaped the Nazis, she meets all sorts of characters with painful and colorful stories of their own.

5) Blessed is the Match:Life and Death of Hanna Senesh
At age 22, Hannah Senesh was safe in Palestine in 1944 when she joined the only military rescue mission for Jews during the Holocaust. She was one of only two women to take part in the mission. One of the reasons she did it, was because her mother and brother were stuck in Hungary and she wanted to get them out.

6)   Tadeusz Pankiewicz (a Polish film).
It tells the story of the Polish roman catholic pharmacist, who found his "Under the Eagle" apothecary suddenly in the middle of the Krakow ghetto when the Nazis set it up.  The pharmacy became a meeting place for the ghetto's intelligentsia, and a hub of underground activity. Pankiewicz and his staff risked their lives to undertake numerous clandestine operations: smuggling food and information, and offering shelter on the premises for Jews facing deportation to the camps.

7) A Film Unfinished .
In May 1942 -- two and half years after the Warsaw Ghetto was established and shortly before the Nazis sent the Ghetto's first 300,000 Jews to the extermination camp of Treblinka -- the Reich dispatched a crew of German soldiers to film Jewish life in the Warsaw Ghetto.
Their perverse propaganda goal: to record for posterity examples of the religious practices and "sub-human culture" of the soon to be eliminated judische Rasse , everything from a circumcision ceremony to a burial service; from the extreme poverty of the many to the supposed lack of concern of those few Jews who still had some assets.

ADDITIONS FROM OTHERS

Escape From Sobibor (1987, d. Jack Gold) - UK/Yugoslavia; another starring Rutger Hauer, w Alan Arkin
Sarah's Key (2010, d. Gilles Paquet-Brenner) - France; stars Kristen Scott Thomas
Levin und Gutman (1983) - listed at IMDB as a German TV series
Jona che visse nella balena (Jonah Who Lived in the Whale, 1993, d. Roberto Faenza) - Italy

[I just saw the trailer for NO PLACE ON EARTH, 2012, Germany, dir by Janet Tobias - that definitely looks to belong on this list; a documentary, it tells the story of a small band of Russian Jews in the Ukraine who hid in a cave for 18 months to escape the Nazis, and some lived to tell about it, and also appear for interviews in this film; I can't imagine being underground in a Russian winter, or never seeing the sky - I'll have to see this and report back w a review -- Jose, 10/31/13]

Additional Notes:


 

Of this list, I would definitely rank the films Garden of the Finzi-Continis and The Shop on Main St., also the Oscar®-winning true story about using imprisoned Jewish forgers to print U.S. and British currency in  The Counterfeiters.



Other films may belong here, some of these may not. I thought about Seven Beauties but since it was about POW's and not the holocaust directly, I didn't include it, but it also helps paint another portrait of the nightmare.

The Night Porter was about the long-lasting effects of the war on a former prisoner and her torturer, brilliantly played by Charlotte Rampling and Dirk Bogarde, directed by Liliana Cavani, also not included above as it had nothing directly to do with the holocaust, though Rampling's character was a teenaged Jewish girl selected for sexual experiments due to her sensual beauty, similar to Susan Strasburg's character in Pontecorvo's Kapo. This was really more an esoteric love story based on sado-masochism than anything else.

I would also rank Nowhere in Africa (Oscar® for foreign language film), about a Jewish mother who takes her daughter to Kenya to escape the war. There the war seems almost non-existant, so this becomes a story more about different cultures mixing than anything more catastrophic. It's a beautiful film, on the same level (and better in some ways) as best-picture winner Out of Africa. In fact, it's currently one of my top 100 favorite films.


Inglourious Basterds (2009)? does this belong - I think with an Oscar®-winning character created by Christolph Waltz called "The Jew Hunter", this dark fantasy warrants inclusion, even with Brad Pitt's ridiculous Southern accent. Though, of course, the kicking shoe in this one was on the other foot. Being a fantasy, and another 'revenge' film as well, this film likely offended as many people as it pleased.

[Note: This post has now been viewed 86,000 times, as of 10/31/13]

The James Bond Film Series

Ursula Andress in Doctor No,

the first James Bond film

I just reviewed the James Bond series at my companion site, 1000 Dvds to See. I concentrated on my favorite Sean Connery films and Casino Royale, the first with Daniel Craig. Personally, I didn't like any of the Roger Moore or Pierce Brosnan 007 films, so I didn't mention those at all. Check them out, they are timeless, along with the novels by Ian Fleming.

Diana Rigg and George Lazenby, in 

On Her Majesty's Secret Service

This was the only film in which Bond got married

2012 Academy Award Winners

Academy Awards 2012
[for films released in 2011]

Most Awards: The Artist (Michel Hazanavicius) and Hugo (Martin Scorsese), 5 each [Iron Lady won 2]

Best Picture: The Artist 
Best Director: Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist

Best Actress: Meryl Streep, Iron Lady [This was Streep's third Oscar, and her 17th nomination, the most ever; her 3rd for acting ties her with Katharine Hepburn]
Best Actor: Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Best Supporting Actress: Olivia Spencer, The Help
Best Supporting Male: Christopher Plummer, Beginners

Best Cinematography: Hugo (Robert Richardson)
Best Film Editing: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter)
Best Art Direction: Hugo (Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo)
Best Special Visual Effects: Hugo (Robert Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossmann, Alex Henning)
Best Makeup: Iron Lady (Mark Coulier, J. Roy Helland)
Best Adapted Screenplay: The Descendants (Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash)
Best Screenplay Directly for the Screen: Midnight in Paris (Woody Allen)

Best Music: The Artist (Ludovic Bource)
Best Song: Brett MacKenzie, ‘Man or Muppet’ (The Muppets)
Best Sound Mixing: Hugo (Tom Fleischman, John Midgley)
Best Sound Editing: Hugo (Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty)

Asghar Farhadi of Iran, with his 

Oscar for best foreign language film

Best Foreign Film: A Separation (dir. Asghar Farhadi, Iran)
Best Documentary: Undefeated (Daniel Lindsay, T.J. Martin, Rich Middlemas)
Best Animated Feature: Rango (dir. Gore Verbinski)

Best Live Action Short: The Short (Terry George, Oorlagh George)
Best Animated Short: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (William Joyce, Brandon Oldenburg)
Best Documentary Short: Saving Face (Daniel Junge, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy)

Note: Never one to miss a chance for propaganda, the Iranian government, which before denounced artists critical of the government and especially filmmakers winning awards at festivals, immediately proclaimed it's first Oscar for foreign language film as "a victory of Israel", which also had a film nominated. In Farhadi's speech, he said that he hoped his film, which is critical of the lack of freedom women possess in his fundamentalist nation, would help remove the "cloud that politics has placed over perceptions of the people of his country".

Best Film Awards for 2011

Current list of best film awards winners for 2011 releases
[Updated 2.27.12]


MAJOR AWARDS

Cannes, Palm d’Or: The Tree of Life (Terrence Malick)
Malick has a degree in philosophy from Harvard, was a Rhodes scholar, and a professor at MIT. This is only his fifth film in 38 years, beginning with Badlands (1973). This film won't please the masses because it lacks a typically literary story with an easy to follow plot, but is one of the most visually stunning films ever made, on a very short list with 2001: A Space Odyssey, Seven Samurai and L'avventura.

Academy Awards: The Artist (Michel Hazanavicius)
British Academy Awards: The Artist
Independent Spirit Awards: The Artist
Golden Globe Awards: The Descendents (Drama), The Artist (Musical/Comedy)

CRAFT GUILD AWARDS
Directors Guild Awards: Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Producers Guild Awards: The Artist (Michel Hazanavicius)
Screen Actors Guild Awards: The Help (Ensemble Cast)


CRITICS AWARDS
I know a lot of people like to scoff at these, notably those who think each Harry Potter film is the best of the year, but the critics are the people who watch hundreds of films annually, so it takes a creative work of artistry to even get their attention and keep them awake amid a plethora of crime, teen comedy, vampire, and gore films.

The Broadcast Film Critics Association: The Artist (Michel Hazanavicius) A silent film?
Online Film Critics Society: The Tree of Life

Austin Film Critics: Hugo (Martin Scorsese)
Boston Society of Film Critics: The Artist
Capri Hollywood: The Artist
Chicago Film Critics Association: The Tree of Life
Dallas-Ft Worth Film Critics: The Descendants (Alexander Payne)
Gotham Awards: The Tree of Life
Hamptons Int’l Film Festival, Audience Award: The Artist
London Critics Circle: not awarded yet
Los Angeles Film Critics: The Descendants (2nd: Tree of Life)
National Board of Review: Hugo (Martin Scorsese)
National Society of Film Critics: Melancholia (Lars Von Trier) 2nd: Tree of Life, Hugo
New York Film Critics Circle: The Artist
Phoenix Film Critics Soceity: The Artist
San Diego Film Critics: not awarded yet
San Francisco Film Critics: The Tree of Life
Satellite Awards: not awarded yet
Toronto Film Critics: The Tree of Life
Washington DC Area Film Critics: The Artist


The Artist (#196 at IMDB) has currently won 74 awards, the most this year so far

The Tree of Life (my favorite so far) has currently won 45 awards out of 67 nominations. It's ranked higher by critics, 85, than fans, 73, typical for a cinematic work of art without a simplistic plot.

The Descendants has currently won 42 awards

Drive (#208 at IMDB) has currently won 38 awards
I liked this a lot, it should have been nominated for best picture; a review is to follow shortly.

Hugo (#205 at IMDB) has currently won 39 awards

The Help has currently won 40 awards (ranked much higher by fans, 81, than critics, 62) I grew up in this environment in Georgia, so this will strike an honest and nostalgic chord for me.

Midnight in Paris (Woody Allen), has won 13 awards
A beautiful Woody Allen fantasy about the immortality of art and artists, and how great art (primarily literature and visual arts) can influence lives for generations, all centered around creative artists who spent time in Paris: Cole Porter, Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Luis Bunuel, Pablo Picasso, Claude Monet, Salvador Dali ("I paint you, with your lips melting into the sand - and of course, a rhinoceros!"), and Toulouse-Lautrec are just a few of the famous artists who come alive for Owen Wilson on his post-midnight walks around Paris. Most of the awards are for Allen's screenplay, which should be a favorite for an Oscar. As an artist (painting and writing) this film reinforced my lifelong belief in the power of creativity.

Senna, a documentary about Gran Prix driver Ayrton Senna, has won 8 awards
This is without doubt the scariest, least controllable sport in the world. My favorite computer game program ever is the Gran Prix simulator from the early 90's - just a 15 minute race left me shaking and stressed, and these guys drive for two hours with their lives on the line. I could never last that long even in a game, not without a morphine drip.

War Horse has currently won 5 awards


We’re not including film festivals since those aren’t typically open for all films, just films entered and accepted into the various festivals.

Actress Jessica Chastain, who is a breakthrough winner this year for The Tree of Live and other films (The Help, The Debt, Texas Killing Fields, Coriolanus, Take Shelter), has already won 17 awards out of 29 nominations


Actor Albert Brooks has won 8 awards for supporting actor in Drive [photo below]. I'm glad, he only won 3 for Broadcast News, and has been overlooked both as a screenwriter and an actor, so this is the most awards he's ever received in his long career.

Academy Awards for Best Picture and Director

Best Picture Oscar® Winners
[updated 2.27.12]
* = Director also won an Oscar

2011 The Artist Directed by Michel Hazanavicius*
2010 The King's Speech Directed by Tom Hooper*
2009 The Hurt Locker Directed by Kathryn Bigelow*
2008 Slumdog Millionaire Directed by Danny Boyle*
2007 No Country for Old Men Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen*
2006 The Departed Directed by Martin Scorcese*
2005 Crash Directed by Paul Haggis
2004 Million Dollar Baby Directed by Clint Eastwood*
2003 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Directed by Peter Jackson*
2002 Chicago Directed by Rob Marshall
2001 A Beautiful Mind Directed by Ron Howard*
2000 Gladiator Directed by Ridley Scott

1999 American Beauty Directed by Sam Mendes*
1998 Shakespeare in Love Directed by John Madden
1997 Titanic Directed by James Cameron*
1996 The English Patient Directed by Anthony Minghella*
1995 Braveheart Directed by Mel Gibson*
1994 Forrest Gump Directed by Robert Zemeckis*
1993 Schindler's List Directed by Steven Spielberg*
1992 Unforgiven Directed by Clint Eastwood*
1991 Silence of the Lambs Directed by Jonathan Demme* [photo rt: Best Actor winner Anthony Hopkins]
1990 Dances with Wolves Directed by Kevin Costner*

1989 Driving Miss Daisy Directed by Bruce Beresford
1988 Rain Man Directed by Barry Levinson*
1987 The Last Emperor Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci* 1986 Platoon Directed by Oliver Stone*
1985 Out of Africa Directed by Sydney Pollack*
1984 Amadeus Directed by Milos Forman*
1983 Terms of Endearment Directed by James L. Brooks*
1982 Gandhi Directed by Richard Attenborough*
1981 Chariots of Fire Directed by Hugh Hudson
1980 Ordinary People Directed by Robert Redford*

1979 Kramer vs Kramer Directed by Robert Benton*
1978 The Deer Hunter Directed by Michael Cimino*
1977 Annie Hall Directed by Woody Allen*
1976 Rocky Directed by John G. Avildsen*
1975 One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest Directed by Milos Forman*
1974 The Godfather Part II Directed by Francis Ford Coppola*
1973 The Sting Directed by George Roy Hill*
1972 The Godfather Directed by Francis Ford Coppola
1971 The French Connection* Directed by William Friedkin*
1970 Patton Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner*

1969 Midnight Cowboy Directed by John Schlesinger*
1968 Oliver! Directed by Carol Reed*
1967 In the Heat of the Night Directed by Norman Jewison
1966 A Man for All Seasons Directed by Fred Zinnemann*
1965 The Sound of Music Directed by Robert Wise*
1964 My Fair Lady Directed by George Cukor*
1963 Tom Jones Directed by Tony Richardson*
1962 Lawrence of Arabia Directed by David Lean*
1961 West Side Story Directed by Jerome Robbins & Robert Wise*
1960 The Apartment Directed by Billy Wilder*

1959 Ben-Hur Directed by William Wyler*
1958 Gigi Directed by Vincente Minnelli*
1957 The Bridge on the River Kwai Directed by David Lean*
1956 Around the World in Eighty Days Directed by Michael Anderson
1955 Marty Directed by Delbert Mann*
1954 On the Waterfront Directed by Elia Kazan*
1953 From Here to Eternity Directed by Fred Zinnemann*
1952 The Greatest Show on Earth Directed by Cecil B. DeMille
1951 An American in Paris Directed by Vincente Minnelli
1950 All About Eve Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz*

1949 All the King's Men Directed by Robert Rossen
1948 Hamlet Directed by Laurence Olivier
1947 Gentleman's Agreement Directed by Elia Kazan*
1946 The Best Years of Our Lives Directed by William Wyler*
1945 The Lost Weekend Directed by Billy Wilder*
1944 Going My Way Directed by Leo McCarey*
1943 Casablanca Directed by Michael Curtiz*
1942 Mrs. Miniver Directed by William Wyler* [photo rt: Greer Garson, Best Actress winner for Miniver]
1941 How Green Was My Valley Directed by John Ford*
1940 Rebecca Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

1939 Gone with the Wind Directed by Victor Fleming*
1938 You Can't Take It with You Directed by Frank Capra*
1937 The Life of Emile Zola Directed by William Dieterle
1936 The Great Ziegfeld Directed by Robert Z. Leonard
1935 Mutiny on the Bounty Directed by Frank Lloyd
1934 It Happened One Night Directed by Frank Capra*
1933 Cavalcade Directed by Frank Lloyd*
1932 Grand Hotel Directed by Edmund Goulding
1931 Cimarron Directed by Wesley Ruggles
1930 All Quiet on the Western Front Directed by Lewis Milestone*

1929 The Broadway Melody Directed by Harry Beaumont
1928 Wings Directed by William A. Wellman

Best Directors for non-Winning Pictures (22 of 83)
2005: Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain)
2002: Roman Polanski (The Pianist)
2000: Steven Soderbergh (Traffic)
1998: Steven Spielberg (Saving Private Ryan)
1989: Oliver Stone (Born on the Fourth of July)
1981: Warren Beatty (Reds)
1972: Bob Fosse (Cabaret)
1967: Mike Nichols (The Graduate)
1956: George Stevens (Giant)
1952: John Ford (The Quiet Man)
1951: George Stevens (A Place in the Sun)
1949: Joseph L. Mankiewicz (A Letter to Three Wives)
1948: John Huston (Treasure of the Sierra Madre)
1940: John Ford (The Grapes of Wrath)
1937: Leo McCarey (The Awful Truth)
1936: Frank Capra (Mr. Deeds Goes to Town)
1935: John Ford (The Informer)
1932: Frank Borzage (Bad Girl)
1931: Norman Taurog (Skippy)
1929: Frank Lloyd (The Divine Lady)
1928: Lewis Milestone (comedy – Two Arabian Knights)
1928: Frank Borzage (drama – 7th Heaven)

Multiple wins by directors: John Ford (4), Frank Capra (3), William Wyler (3)
Two each: Frank Lloyd, Steven Spielberg, Frank Borzage, Lewis Milestone, Leo McCarey, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Robert Wise, David Lean, Billy Wilder, George Stevens, Milos Forman, Oliver Stone, Clint Eastwood.

Alfred Hitchcock never won, but his film Rebecca won Best Picture. Other notables who have never won: Sergei Eisenstein, Lena Wertmuller, Frederico Fellini, Ingmar Bergman, Akira Kurosawa, Zhang Yimou, Luis Bunuel, Pedro Almodovar, Alejandro Innaritu, Gillian Anderson, Peter Weir, Cecil B. De Mille, John Frankenheimer, George Lucas, Martin Ritt, Robert Altman, John Sturges, Stanley Donen, and Howard Hawks.

All winning directors were nominated for Best Picture, but the only picture winners whose directors weren't nominated were: Grand Hotel (Edmund Goulding, never nominated; Hotel only received ONE nomination and it was Picture) Driving Miss Daisy (Bruce Beresford, nominated before for Tender Mercies) As someone quipped at the Oscars, "Driving Miss Daisy directed itself."

My Top 25 Winners
1. Lawrence of Arabia
2. Godfather Pt II
3. The Best Years of Our Lives
4. My Fair Lady
5. The Return of the King
6. Bridge On the River Kwai
7. All About Eve
8. Gandhi
9. Dances with Wolves
10. Silence of the Lambs
11. Chicago
12. Schindler’s List
13. Amadeus
14. The Godfather
15. Shakespeare in Love
16. Mrs. Miniver
17. Casablanca
18. Annie Hall
19. The Last Emperor
20. Platoon
21. Patton
22. Million Dollar Baby
23. The Hurt Locker
24. A Man for All Seasons
25. Midnight Cowboy; Terms of Endearment

Runners-Up: Out of Africa, The Deerhunter, The Departed, The Apartment, Driving Miss Daisy

The Worst Winners: Titanic, Broadway Melody, Rocky, Marty, Crash, How Green Was My Valley, Gigi, Braveheart, Kramer vs Kramer, Rain Man, Greatest Show on Earth, Ordinary People, Tom Jones, The Sting, The Lost Weekend, Going My Way, The Great Ziegfield

Best non-winning nominees:
The Best: The Shawshank Redemption, Babe, Dangerous Liaisons, Hannah and Her Sisters, The Tree of Life, Atonement, Babel, Finding Neverland, Traffic, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Hope and Glory, Field of Dreams, Network, Doctor Strangelove, Sunset Blvd, Citizen Kane (!)

Best of the Rest: Goodfellas, Reds, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Five Easy Pieces, A Clockwork Orange, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, To Kill a Mockingbird, The King and I, High Noon, The Caine Mutiny, Shane, Double Indemnity, Gangs of New York, Mister Roberts, It’s a Wonderful Life, The Pride of the Yankees, The Philadelphia Story, The Maltese Falcon, Miracle on 34th St., Treasure of the Sierra Madre, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Thin Man, Lost Horizon. (Yikes, there's some great stuff here!) Now, aren’t these better than half the winners?

Some I picked simply because they were better than the winner, like The Thin Man, A Streetcar Named Desire, Treasure of the Sierra Madre. Some happened to be released in unfortunate years: To Kill a Mockingbird in Lawrence of Arabia’s year, The Conversation in Godfather II’s year, oddly both Francis Coppola films; had he held Conversation back a year, it would have certainly won some Oscars. Some just scared the Academy with X or R ratings, like Clockwork Orange, given an X for violence, Virginia Woolf an R for language! What a farce, these days Halloween-type slasher films are getting PG-13. Sex is now more offensive than homicide... "Everyone's armed but few have protection."

2012 Independent Spirit Awards

Indie Spirit Awards 2012 (for films released in 2011)

This continues the recent tide of approval for The Artist, which has now passed The Tree of Life with the most awards for the year, raising it's total to 69 awards overall, with certainly more to follow at tonight's Oscars®.




Best Feature: "The Artist"
Best Director: Michel Hazanavicius, "The Artist"
Best Female Lead: Michelle Williams, "My Week With Marilyn"
Best Male Lead: Jean Dujardin, "The Artist"
Best Supporting Female: Shailene Woodley, "The Descendants"
Best Supporting Male: Christopher Plummer, "Beginners"

Best Screenplay: "The Descendants" Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash
Best First Feature: "Margin Call"
Best First Screenplay: Will Reiser, "50/50"
John Cassavetes Award: "Pariah"
Best Cinematography: Guillaume Schiffman, "The Artist"
Best Documentary: "The Interrupters"
Best International Film: "A Separation"

Robert Altman Award: "Margin Call" director J.C. Chandor, casting directors Tiffany Little Canfield and Bernard Telsey, and ensemble cast Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Mary McDonnell, Demi Moore, Zachary Quinto, Kevin Spacey and Stanley Tucci

Piaget Producers Award: Sophia Lin, "Take Shelter"
Audi Someone to Watch Award: Mark Jackson, "Without"
Nokia Truer Than Fiction Award: Heather Courtney, "Where Soldiers Come From"
Jameson FIND Your Audience Award: Benjamin Murray and Alyssa Nahmias, "Unfinished Spaces"