Best Motion Picture Story 1953

1927/28 through 1997
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What were the best motion picture stories of 1953?

Above and Beyond (Beirne Lay Jr.)
0
No votes
The Captain's Paradise (Alec Coppel)
2
18%
Hondo (Louis L'Amour)
1
9%
Little Fugitive (Ray Ashley, Morris Engel and Ruth Orkin)
4
36%
Roman Holiday (Dalton Trumbo)
4
36%
 
Total votes: 11

The Original BJ
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Re: Best Motion Picture Story 1953

Post by The Original BJ »

Playing a bit of catch-up...

Mid-century war movies, except when especially artful, tend not to be my cup of tea, and Above and Beyond doesn't come close to anything I'd view as special. It's a standard military picture of the era, without much wit or invention. It also is a bit strange as a "story" nominee, given that the main thrust of the movie is biographical/historical -- what, exactly, did the writer come up with here?

I'm pretty shocked that Little Fugitive has won this poll. It's not that it's such a unlikable thing -- by its nature, it's a bit crude, but its shaggy dog aspects do have an endearing quality to them. But I don't see all that much of a story here either -- by the time the kid reaches Coney Island, the plot essentially halts, and the film becomes a series of vignettes of him in various boardwalk locales. Given the available competitors, I could never vote for something with a plot this thin.

The Captain's Paradise is a completely admirable choice -- it has a clever premise, and takes this set-up to some compelling and amusing places. Some times the plot can be a bit schematic -- as soon as Yvonne De Carlo shocks Guinness by wanting a quiet night in of home cooking, you know exactly what he's going to get when he arrives back with Celia Johnson -- but the story has its fair share of surprises, and the commentary about whether or not one can find complete happiness in any one relationship is pretty sharp, especially for the era.

But I'm going to go with Roman Holiday. It, too, isn't necessarily the best fit for "story" prizes, given how much of the film's strength rests on the chemistry between the actors, the sights and sounds of Rome, and the sweetness of the dialogue. And yet, perhaps the fact that it works so well is still a testament to its foundation, and the way the movie's arc from a whimsical romantic beginning to a bittersweet ending has such resonance. You'd never get that kind of ending in a contemporary Hollywood romantic comedy, but it's such a perfect note here, and overall the movie is a light but very winning charmer.
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Re: Best Motion Picture Story 1953

Post by Big Magilla »

The Original BJ wrote:On another note, the Hondo nomination was, of course revoked, so I'm not sure it's really kosher to vote that way.
Maybe we should give Louis L'Amour a special award for integrity as he was the one who questioned his own nomination unlike several fraudulent nominees in this category that we've already discussed.
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Re: Best Motion Picture Story 1953

Post by Big Magilla »

I don't have any objection to sitting on this thread for at least the first two weeks in December. I'm actually quite busy myself right now. In addition to supplying Wesley's main site with material, I have recently taken on the responsibility of editor of my community newspaper. It's a once monthly publication that thankfully goes on hiatus in December, but stuff comes to me for the next publication on a regular basis. Fortunately we're only 145 households, unlike some of the larger communities in the area, so it's manageable.

But for now, on with the show!

I agree with Tee on Above and Beyond - it's standard military stuff, a three star film at best.

I find Hondo a decent little western, but it suffers in comparison to the similarly themed Shane which was released two months earlier.

It's been some time since I've seen The Captain's Paradise which I remember as being abusing, but a bit too talky. I probably need to see it again.

Roman Holiday is a charming film, and the likely winner here, but let's remember that the story award is not a dialogue award. The dialogue is part of Roman Holiday's screenplay which was also nominated this year.

The best story for me is Little Fugitive, a small miracle of a film about childhood. I would never vote for it for Screenplay because the screenplay is basically the story without dialogue or embellishment of any kind, but it's as original a concept as anything that's ever been nominated for this award. It's simple, but thoroughly engaging.
The Original BJ
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Re: Best Motion Picture Story 1953

Post by The Original BJ »

Greg wrote:
Mister Tee wrote: Since, over that period, we'll constantly have items to discuss -- and, presumably, films on which we'll be disposed to make comment -- might I suggest we, starting that first week in December, take a hiatus from this trip back through history?
I think that is a good idea. How long do you think the hiatus should last?
I was going to suggest this as well. I've fallen a bit behind, but should be able to catch up on commenting through 1954 pretty quickly. After that, though, I see a lot of movies I have to catch up on in order to participate, and would relish the chance to have a couple months to become more prepared. (I know it's not all about me, but I do try to comment as much as I can, and would probably start to fall waaaay behind if this current pace kept up, especially during the height of movie season.) Plus, I'd personally rather read people's discussions about THIS year's movies during a time when there's a lot to discuss.

On another note, the Hondo nomination was, of course revoked, so I'm not sure it's really kosher to vote that way.
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Re: Best Motion Picture Story 1953

Post by Greg »

Mister Tee wrote: Since, over that period, we'll constantly have items to discuss -- and, presumably, films on which we'll be disposed to make comment -- might I suggest we, starting that first week in December, take a hiatus from this trip back through history?
I think that is a good idea. How long do you think the hiatus should last?
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Re: Best Motion Picture Story 1953

Post by Mister Tee »

Before I get to the subject at hand:

As Magilla's thread-title of a few days ago notes, busy season will kick off in (now) under three weeks. For at least those first two weeks of December, there'll be developments demanding comment nearly every day. At that point comes the holiday break, and then, right after New Years, the Globes/Broadcasters/SAGs/nominations...in short, the whole miasma that got us assembled here to begin with. Since, over that period, we'll constantly have items to discuss -- and, presumably, films on which we'll be disposed to make comment -- might I suggest we, starting that first week in December, take a hiatus from this trip back through history? This set of threads is great to keep a kind of present-tense discussion going through the less-dense months, but, at the height of awards-clamor, it's more apt to feel like a distraction, one for which some of us might lose patience.

That's my say. Onward to the category -- one that, for the first time, I can ace.

Above and Beyond is standard-issue war/bio about the pilot who dropped the bomb on Hiroshima. Given that this was less than a decade after the event, there was no revisionism afoot: the movie treats the Enola Gay flight as the great moment that ended the war, and any sympathy is reserved for Col. Tibbetts and whatever apprehension he might have had. This is yet another Frank/Panama effort, meaning it’s Hollywood all the way and utterly undistinguished.

Little Fugitive is evidence the writers’ branch has always been the most adventurous part of the Academy -- the most apt to honor off-the-beaten-track. Little Fugitive is an indie before the term existed: a super low-budget story of a kid who mistakenly thinks he’s killed his brother and runs off to Coney Island to hide. There’s not a lot to the movie – there certainly isn’t much dialogue – and the writers’ nomination of it here seems a tip of the hat to the pioneering spirit of the film: the fact it branched out beyond the studio system. Worth a look mainly for historical purposes.

Hondo is a John Wayne Western not directed by either Ford or Hawks – which is to say, nothing beyond routine, which is scary news for a Western-phobe like myself. The movie’s not unpleasant to watch, but, a decade or two on, I remember almost nothing about it.

I guess much of the world loves Roman Holiday, but I’m not really among them. I LIKE the film OK – I’d have to be a Grinch not to, it’s such an ingratiating thing. But the whole “like a fairy tale” feel it has strikes me as a bit half-hearted and precious. I’d have preferred something funnier…for something posing as a comedy, it doesn’t have many laughs. Okay, it’s “amusing”…and charming… but those are pretty weak-tea virtues. The whole thing just doesn’t appeal to my taste.

So I’ll once again be a Ealing whore and vote for The Captain’s Paradise, a comedy that has a considerably more biting premise than Roman Holiday, and also a good many more laughs. I wouldn’t put this at the top of the Ealing pile, but mid-range in that period was a perfectly decent place to land, and my vote goes to it with enthusiasm.
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Best Motion Picture Story 1953

Post by Kellens101 »

What was the best motion picture story of 1953?
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