The Oscar-winning Songs Countdown: 1998

If the Oscar race was a game of poker, in 1998 the Best Picture nominations dealt a full house; three WWII movies and two historic movies prominently featuring Queen Elizabeth I.

Openly gay actors had recently been Oscar-nominated for playing straight (i.e Denholm Elliott in A Room With A View, Nigel Hawthorne in The Madness Of King George), also straight actors had been nominated (i.e. Peter Finch in Sunday, Bloody Sunday) and even won (i.e. William Hurt in The Kiss Of The Spider Woman) for playing gay. This year, an out gay actor had the opportunity to do the same while actually playing a gay part.

Englishman Ian McKellen, widely regarded as one of greatest stage and screen actors, had been out since 1988. He did it on the BBC Radio 4 program, while discussing Margaret Thatcher's "Section 28" legislation, which made the promotion of homosexuality as a family relationship by local authorities an offense. It was reason enough for McKellen to take a stand. He has been active in the gay rights movement ever since.

In 1998 he starred in Gods And Monsters, the story of James Whale, the director of Frankenstein (1931) and Bride of Frankenstein (1935), in the time period following the Korean War. Whale was gay and develops a friendship with his gardener, an ex-Marine. The film, directed by Bill Condon, who had recently had a big hit with the horror flick Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh, had a healthy box-office and did very well with the critics: the San Francisco Examiner called it "One of the most complex and powerful literary scripts in recent times", while Variety said, "it’s an engrossing, unusual, imaginatively executed bit of psychological gamesmanship."

Another film that was based on true-life characters was Hilary and Jackie. It told the tragic story of world renowned classic cellist Jacqueline du Pré, as told from the point of view of her sister, flutist Hilary du Pré-Finzi. It was led by two actresses who were on a hot streak, Emily Watson (fresh from her amazing performance in Breaking The Waves) and Rachel Griffiths who was favorably noticed in Muriel's Wedding and Jude. They were surrounded by solid British thespians like James Frain, David Morrissey, Charles Dance, Celia Imrie, and Rupert Penry-Jones.

The two lead performers were awarded excellent reviews: the Los Angeles Times proclaimed, "It takes two to be sisters, two to have a rivalry, and two exceptional actresses to turn Hilary and Jackie into a compelling look at the most intimate and troubling of family dynamics", while Variety agreed, saying "Eye-grabbing performances from Emily Watson and Rachel Griffiths".

Meryl Streep's vehicle for 1998, was also based on a real-life person, Prudence Pantano Quindlen, the mother of Anna Quindlen, the author of the book on which the script of One True Thing was based. Meryl's co-stars were Oscar-winner William Hurt and rising star Renée Zellweger, but it was Meryl who stole the show, as usual. The New York Daily News applauded "A beautifully rich performance by Meryl Streep".

While One True Thing, in spite of the good performances, was a by-the-numbers family melodrama, American History X was edgier stuff: the story of a former neo-nazi skinhead who tries to prevent his younger brother from going down the same wrong path that he did. Directed by Tony Kaye, who was primarily known for making music videos, it managed to divide critics. They all agreed, however, on the power of Edward Norton's star-making performance. Film.com said it best: "Norton's performance, which is every bit as varied as his Oscar-nominated work in Primal Fear, once more demonstrates that he's one of the most remarkable chameleons working in film."

Affliction also offered a not altogether pleasant viewing experience, concerning a deeply troubled small town cop who investigates a suspicious hunting death while events occur that cause him to mentally disintegrate, frightened to death of following in his father's footsteps. The movie was based on a novel by Russell Banks, whose novel, The Sweet Hereafter, was adapted into a critically acclaimed movie by Atom Egoyan the year before. It was written and directed by Paul Schrader, the man who wrote the screenplays for such Scorsese classics like Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and The Last Temptation of Christ and had also written and directed the impressive Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters in 1985. Affliction benefitted from the performances of four experienced actors, Nick Nolte, James Coburn, Sissy Spacek, and Mary Beth Hurt.

The critics were generally enthusiastic: the Austin Chronicle exclaimed, "In this magnificent, profoundly tragic film, Nolte, and Coburn each turn in career-best performances as a father and son who embody the ancient, seemingly ineradicable male pathology of violence, retribution, and the slow death of the soul."

It wasn't the only prominent film to feature Nick Nolte in 1998. The other was one of the most eagerly awaited films of the year, if not of the decade.

Terrence Malick had only made two feature films before 1998: both Badlands (1973) and Days Of Heaven (1978) were adored by critics and over the years were promoted to cult status.

But 20 years of silence followed. So, when it was announced that Malick would be adapting The Thin Red Line, James Jones' (From Here To Eternity) autobiographical 1962 novel, focusing on the conflict at Guadalcanal during the Second World War, everybody got very excited. Every Hollywood actor tried to make himself or herself available, even for a bit part in the film. The impressive cast included Nick Nolte, Sean Penn, George Clooney, John Travolta, Woody Harrelson, Jim Caviezel, Elias Koteas, John Cusack, Adrien Brody, Jared Leto, Miranda Otto, John C. Reilly, John Savage, Thomas Jane, Nick Stahl, Ben Chaplin, and Dash Mihok.

The critics liked it, but it also confused them: Roger Ebert wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times, "The movie's schizophrenia keeps it from greatness (this film has no firm idea of what it is about), but doesn't make it bad. It is, in fact, sort of fascinating: a film in the act of becoming, a field trial, an experiment in which a dreamy poet meditates on stark reality."

A film that tackled more straightforwardly (and more successfully) with WWII was Steven Spielberg latest opus, Saving Private Ryan. 5 years after Schindler's List, Spielberg returned with one of the best war films of all-time. Certainly, it contains the best opening action sequence ever in a war film. The Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944 was filmed with such visceral realism that the audience felt virtually sea-sick watching it. Another all-star cast led by the impressive Tom Hanks as Captain Miller, it also included Matt Damon as the titular character, Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg, Vin Diesel, Giovanni Ribisi, Jeremy Davies, Ted Danson, Paul Giamatti, and Dennis Farina.

The critics were over the moon: Time magazine opined, "A war film that, entirely aware of its genre's conventions, transcends them as it transcends the simplistic moralities that inform its predecessors, to take the high, morally haunting ground", while the Austin Chronicle was equally as enthusiastic: "A bitter, bloody masterpiece with adrenalized emotions and hyper-realized images, this is perhaps as close to battle as any sane human being should ever hope to tread."

The film also had a great box office, coming second for the year with $481,840,909 worldwide gross. What about the rest of the year's highest-grossing films?

Well, three of the year's most ridiculous films occupy positions #1, #3, and #6 (Armageddon, Godzilla, and Deep Impact). two OK but not great animated features occupy #5 and #7 (A Bug's Life, Mulan), the 4th (and rather tired) installment of Lethal Weapon is at #10, while two comedies, one good (There's Something About Mary, #4) and one mediocre (Dr. Dolittle, #8) also appear. We've already discussed #2 and we will discuss #9 a bit later). Here's the full list:

The Thin Red Line dealt with WWII in a poetic way, Saving Private Ryan dealt with WWII in a visceral way, Life Is Beautiful (La Vita è Bella) dealt with WWII in Charlie Chaplin's way. To make a comedy out of the Holocaust takes guts - and it can go terribly wrong. Roberto Benigni sort of did it; the critics were divided: Film.com's Elizabeth Weitzman gave the film 100% and said, "Benigni, with great help from young Cantarini, has crafted a work of such complexity that you may find both your brain and your heart simply overloaded. Which, of course, is the rarely achieved goal of all art." On the other hand, Slate's David Edelstein gave the film 0% and said, "Benigni's movie made me want to throw up." I think that Film.com's Peter Brunette said it best: "While most reviewers will accuse it of sentimentality (a charge that is justified), audiences, who don't feel the need to appear rigorous and tough-minded all the time, will flock to it in droves."

He was right; the film was a worldwide hit, grossing more than ten times its budget. Italy, behaving smartly, submitted the film for the Oscars' Foreign Language category, instead of the Venice Film Festival winner The Way We Laughed (Così Ridevano), by Gianni Amelio. Speaking of the Foreign Language category, what an embarrassment of riches that year! Competing against Italy for a place in the five nominations were: for Greece, the Cannes Film Festival winner Eternity and a Day (Μια Αιωνιότητα και μια Μέρα), by Theo Angelopoulos (Θεόδωρος Αγγελόπουλος); for Brazil, the Berlin Film Festival winner Central Station (Central do Brasil), by Walter Salles; for Denmark, The Celebration (Festen), by Thomas Vinterberg; for Sweden, Show Me Love (Fucking Åmål), by Lukas Moodysson; for Spain, The Grandfather (El Abuelo), by José Luis Garci; for Germany, Run Lola Run (Lola Rennt), by Tom Tykwer; for France, The Dreamlife of Angels (La Vie Rêvée des Anges), by Erick Zonca; for Austria, The Inheritors (Die Siebtelbauern), by Stefan Ruzowitzky; for Russia, The Barber of Siberia (Сибирский цирюльник), by Nikita Mikhalkov; for Serbia, The Powder Keg (Bure Baruta), by Goran Paskaljević; for Romania, Terminus Paradise (Terminus Paradis), by Lucian Pintilie; for Portugal, Anxiety (Inquietude), by Manoel de Oliveira; for Argentina, Tango (Tango, No Me Dejes Nunca), by Carlos Saura; for Canada, August 32nd on Earth (Un 32 Août sur Terre), by Denis Villeneuve; for Iran, Children of Heaven (بچه هاي آسمان), by Majid Majidi; for Taiwan, Flowers of Shanghai (海上花), by Hou Hsiao-hsien; and from Thailand, Who Is Running? (ท้าฟ้าลิขิต), by Oxide Pang Chun. There may be other good ones as well, but I' not familiar with them, so I can't say.

Russia's entry was withdrawn when a print of the just-finished film was unable to be sent to Los Angeles in time. My personal five nominations would include: Italy (even though I know I was emotionally manipulated, I enjoyed it nonetheless). Certainly the harrowing Danish entry, the poetic Greek entry, and the low-keyed evocative Spanish entry. For my fifth place, I'm considering two films with children at its center: the Brazilian and the Iranian entry. I have also considered the Argentine, Swedish, German, and French entries.

The late 90s were important for TV; Big Brother was about to conquer the world, for better or for worse. One of Australia's greatest directors, Peter Weir, probably sensed what was coming, because his 1998 film The Truman Show, starring Jim Carrey, Ed Harris, and Laura Linney, was about Truman, a man whose whole life was a reality show... The film got excellent reviews; Variety called it "A gemlike picture crafted with rare and immaculate precision." Time magazine agreed: Hollywood's smartest media satire in years - and a breakthrough for Jim Carrey." The audience also agreed; the film made more than twice its budget.

Then there were the two Elizabethan films; first, there was the actual biography of Queen Elizabeth I, simply called Elizabeth and surprisingly directed by an unknown name to Western film buffs, but one of the most acclaimed directors and thinkers of India, Shekhar Kapur.

The cast was also international; two Australians, Cate Blanchett as Elizabeth, and Geoffrey Rash; Joseph Fiennes, of English, Irish, and Scottish origin; three French actors, Fanny Ardant, Eric Cantona, and Vincent Cassel; the rest of the cast were mostly solid English actors: Christopher Eccleston, Richard Attenborough, John Gielgud, Edward Hardwicke, Kathy Burke, and Emily Mortimer.

The critics were mostly positive. San Francisco Chronicle said it best: "Elizabeth works in a number of ways. It's a feminist film. It's also a kind of spy thriller and a superior historical drama." The film made a modest profit for its producers.

The other Elizabethan film also starred Joseph Fiennes and Geoffrey Rush, and also had Queen Elizabeth I appear in a short but memorable scene, portrayed by Judi Dench. Among its stellar cast was a good sample of British talent, including Tom Wilkinson, Simon Callow, Imelda Staunton, Colin Firth, Rupert Everett, and Jim Carter, while it also surprisingly included two Hollywood stars whom you wouldn't expect to see in this kind of film: Gwyneth Paltrow in a starring role and Ben Affleck in a smaller part. It seems that Ben Affleck took a part in this film to be near his then-girlfriend, Gwyneth Paltrow.

Shakespeare in Love's main draw, in addition to the mostly spirited cast, was the witty and literate screenplay by Tom Stoppard and Marc Norman. The plot outline is simple enough: A young Shakespeare, out of ideas and short of cash, meets his ideal woman and is inspired to write one of his most famous plays. It is, however, full of sly theatrical and historical references that one has great fun discovering. As The New Republic commented "With most historical films the informed viewer scrutinizes in order to cluck at errors. With Shakespeare in Love, the more one knows, the more one can enjoy the liberties taken." Roger Ebert put it simply in the Chicago Sun-Times "I was carried along by the wit, the energy, and a surprising sweetness." Amy Taubin of the Village Voice vehemently disagreed: "It soon becomes evident just how inane a film this is." The film was professionally directed by John Madden, but more importantly, it was produced by a team headed by Harvey Weinstein, the man known to possess potent Oscar magic. The audiences flocked to see Shakespeare in Love, placing it at #9 in the list of the year's highest-grossing films.

Other films that stood out that year were the following: A Simple Plan, the Coen-esque crime drama by Sam Raimi; A Civil Action, a courtroom drama with John Travolta and Robert Duvall; Primary Colors, a thinly disguised account of Clinton's political campaign, directed by Mike Nichols and starring John Travolta and Emma Thompson as Bill and Hillary, as well as Kathy Bates as a lesbian political operative; Little Voice, a British dramedy with its fair share of great actors; Bulworth, Warren Beatty's political satire; Out of Sight, Steven Soderbergh's intelligent crime drama that made film stars out of George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez; Pleasantville, a fantasy starring young Tobey Maguire and Reese Witherspoon; What Dreams May Come, a new-age after-life fantasy with Robin Williams; Beloved, Jonathan Demme's version of the Toni Morrison novel, a vehicle for Oprah Winfrey; Velvet Goldmine, the (semi-fictitious) chronicle of glam rock by queer director Todd Haynes; and finally, the popular The Mask of Zorro, starring Antonio Banderas, Anthony Hopkins, and Catherine Zeta-Jones.

The Nominations

Best Picture: Elizabeth, Life Is Beautiful, Saving Private Ryan, Shakespeare in Love, The Thin Red Line.

Best Director: Roberto Benigni (Life Is Beautiful), Steven Spielberg (Saving Private Ryan), John Madden (Shakespeare in Love), Terrence Malick (The Thin Red Line), Peter Weir (The Truman Show).

Best Actor: Nick Nolte (Affliction), Edward Norton (American History X), Ian McKellen (Gods And Monsters), Roberto Benigni (Life Is Beautiful), Tom Hanks (Saving Private Ryan).

Best Actress: Fernanda Montenegro (Central Station), Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth), Emily Watson (Hilary and Jackie), Meryl Streep (One True Thing), Gwyneth Paltrow (Shakespeare in Love).

Best Supporting Actor: James Coburn (Affliction), Robert Duvall (A Civil Action), Geoffrey Rush (Shakespeare in Love), Billy Bob Thornton (A Simple Plan), Ed Harris (The Truman Show).

Best Supporting Actress: Lynn Redgrave (Gods And Monsters), Rachel Griffiths (Hilary and Jackie), Brenda Blethyn (Little Voice), Kathy Bates (Primary Colors), Judi Dench (Shakespeare in Love).

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen

Bulworth, Life Is Beautiful, Saving Private Ryan, Shakespeare in Love, The Truman Show.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium

Gods And Monsters, Out of Sight, Primary Colors, A Simple Plan, The Thin Red Line.

Best Art Direction-Set Decoration: Elizabeth, Pleasantville, Saving Private Ryan, Shakespeare in Love, What Dreams May Come.

Best Costume Design: Beloved, Elizabeth, Pleasantville, Shakespeare in Love, Velvet Goldmine.

Best Cinematography: A Civil Action, Elizabeth, Saving Private Ryan, Shakespeare in Love, The Thin Red Line.

Best Film Editing: Life Is Beautiful, Out of Sight, Saving Private Ryan, Shakespeare in Love, The Thin Red Line.

Best Sound: Armageddon, The Mask of Zorro, Saving Private Ryan, Shakespeare in Love, The Thin Red Line.

Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing: Armageddon, The Mask of Zorro, Saving Private Ryan.

Best Effects, Visual Effects: Armageddon, Mighty Joe Young, What Dreams May Come.

Best Makeup: Elizabeth, Saving Private Ryan, Shakespeare in Love.

Best Documentary, Features: Dancemaker, The Farm: Angola, USA, The Last Days, Lenny Bruce: Swear to Tell the Truth, Regret to Inform.

Best Foreign Language Film: Argentina: Tango, Brazil: Central Station, Iran: Children of Heaven, Italy: Life Is Beautiful, Spain: The Grandfather.

As usual, we left the music nominations for the end. Here are the nominees for Best Music, Original Dramatic Score:

For Elizabeth, David Hirschfelder:

For Life Is Beautiful, Nicola Piovani:

For Pleasantville, Randy Newman:

For Saving Private Ryan, John Williams:

For The Thin Red Line, Hans Zimmer:

... And here's Best Music, Original Musical or Comedy Score:

For A Bug's Life, Randy Newman:

For Mulan, Matthew Wilder (music), David Zippel (lyrics), Jerry Goldsmith (orchestral score):

For Patch Adams, Marc Shaiman:

For The Prince of Egypt, Stephen Schwartz (music/lyrics), Hans Zimmer (orchestral score):

For Shakespeare in Love, Stephen Warbeck:

How about the songs? Here they are. Best Music, Original Song:

I Don't Want To Miss A Thing from Armageddon • Music & Lyrics: Diane Warren. Sung by Aerosmith:

That'll Do from Babe: Pig in the City • Music & Lyrics: Randy Newman. Sung by Peter Gabriel:

A Soft Place To Fall from The Horse Whisperer • Music & Lyrics:  Allison Moorer & Gwil Owen. Sung by Allison Moorer:

The Prayer from Quest for Camelot – Music: David Foster & Carole Bayer Sager • Lyrics: David Foster, Tony Renis, Carole Bayer Sager, & Alberto Testa. Sung by Celine Dion & Andrea Bocelli:

When You Believe from The Prince of Egypt • Music & Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz. Sung by Michelle Pfeiffer and Sally Dworsky:

And here's the hit version by Whitney Houston & Mariah Carey:

Here are a few songs that, although eligible, didn't make the final five.

The Flame Still Burns from Still Crazy • Music & Lyrics: Mick Jones, Marti Frederiksen & Chris Difford. Sung by Strange Fruit:

The Mighty from The Mighty • Music: Sting • Lyrics: Sting & Trevor Jones. Sung by Sting:

Uninvited from City of Angels • Music & Lyrics: Alanis Morissette. Sung by Alanis Morissette:

Reflection from Mulan • Music: Matthew Wilder • Lyrics: David Zippel. Sung by Lea Salonga:

... And here's the pop version sung by Christina Aguilera:

The Ballad of Maxwell Demon from Velvet Goldmine • Music & Lyrics: Craig Wedren & Shudder to Think. Sung by Shudder to Think featuring Jonathan Rhys Meyers:

Happiness from Happiness • Music & Lyrics: Eytan Mirsky. Sung by Michael Stipe & Rain Phoenix:

Leading the pack was Shakespeare in Love with 13 nominations and it was followed by Saving Private Ryan with 11. Then came The Thin Red Line, Life Is Beautiful, and Elizabeth, with 7 nominations each. Armageddon collected 4 nominations, while The Truman Show, Gods And Monsters, and Pleasantville had three. All the rest had one or two nominations each.

This was the only year that two actresses were nominated for Academy Awards for playing the same character in two different films in the same year. Dame Judi Dench was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, for playing Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love and Cate Blanchett was nominated for Best Actress for portraying Elizabeth I in Elizabeth. It is also worth noting that Joseph Fiennes portrayed the love interest in both of these films and that Geoffrey Rush was nominated for a BAFTA Award for his performance in each, winning for Elizabeth.

You may also notice that Randy Newman was nominated in all three musical categories. Although rare, this is by no means unique. In fact, a few years earlier, a musician actually won in all three musical categories in a single year. If you know his name, mention it in the comments' section. If you don't, ask and I will tell you.

The favorite to win Best Picture was Saving Private Ryan; it was unanimously loved by the critics, it was the second biggest commercial hit of the year and it had gravitas.

The Winners

Before the announcement of the Best Picture winner, the tally was as following: Shakespeare in Love had 6 wins (Best Actress for Gwyneth Paltrow over the more deserving Cate Blanchett, Best Supporting Actress for Judi Dench for the second shortest performance ever to win the Supporting Actress Oscar, and four deserving wins for Musical Score (Comedy), Original Screenplay, Art Direction, and Costume Design) while Saving Private Ryan had 5 deserving wins (Sound, Film Editing, Sound Effects Editing, Cinematography, and mainly Best Director for Spielberg - his second). If Saving Private Ryan would win Best Picture they would tie with 6 wins each. But it wasn't to be. Harvey Weinstein worked his magic and Shakespeare in Love was crowned Best Picture, setting the record of the movie with most Oscars (7) without having won the Best Director Oscar.

The other Oscars went to Elizabeth (Makeup), What Dreams May Come (Visual Effects), the veteran James Coburn got the Best Supporting Actor award with his only nomination, Gods And Monsters had a surprise win for Adapted Screenplay, while The Last Days was crowned Best Documentary. Life Is Beautiful, beyond anyone's expectations, scored 3 wins (Best Musical Score (Drama), Best Foreign Film (that was expected), and most surprisingly of all, Best Actor for Benigni).

A great deal of controversy surrounded the presentation of the honorary life-achievement award to Elia Kazan, as there was still lingering resentment over his appearances before the House of Un-American Activities Committee 47 years earlier. In addition to a handful of protesters outside the theater, many attendees (i.e. Nick Nolte) remained seated when he received his award, even refusing to applaud. 

Finally, the Best Song award went to the obvious choice, the Battle of the Divas, When You Believe from The Prince of Egypt. It definitely wasn't a bad song, but it was too predictable. Typical Oscar bait. I would rather the Randy Newman / Peter Gabriel collaboration win, or even I Don't Want To Miss A Thing, despite its cheesiness. From the non-nominated ones, I think that The Ballad of Maxwell Demon from Velvet Goldmine was the more worthy. Its visual presentation was the best and it managed to emulate the Bowie style (since David would not allow his songs to be used for the film) while escaping the pitfall of sounding like a cheap copy. I suppose there aren't a lot of glam rock fans among the Academy members...