Your Favourite Performances from 1929 to present are...

[kingrat]

As much as I hate to go against the Bogester, I have to put Patricia Neal in the supporting category, especially in comparison with the screen time of all the other lead actress candidates except Rachel Roberts. It's been a long time since I saw All the Way Home, but I remember being impressed with Jean Simmons' performance as a grieving widow. The supporting actor category seems weak this year.

 

Best Actor for 1963:

 

Tom Courtenay, BILLY LIAR****

Dirk Bogarde, THE SERVANT

Richard Harris, THIS SPORTING LIFE

Marcello Mastroianni, THE ORGANIZER

Paul Newman, HUD

 

Honorable mention: Albert Finney, TOM JONES; James Fox, THE SERVANT; Sidney Poitier, LILIES OF THE FIELD; Maurice Ronet, THE FIRE WITHIN

 

Best Actress for 1963:

 

Jean Simmons, ALL THE WAY HOME****

Julie Harris, THE HAUNTING

Rachel Roberts, THIS SPORTING LIFE

Jean Seberg, IN THE FRENCH STYLE

Jeanne Moreau, BAY OF ANGELS

 

Honorable mention: Audrey Hepburn, CHARADE; Ingrid Thulin, THE SILENCE; Natalie Wood, LOVE WITH THE PROPER STRANGER

 

Best Supporting Actor for 1963:

 

Donald Pleasence, THE GREAT ESCAPE****

Richard Attenborough, THE GREAT ESCAPE

Gregory Rozakis, AMERICA AMERICA

Hari Rhodes, SHOCK CORRIDOR

Walter Matthau, CHARADE

 

Best Supporting Actress for 1963:

 

Patricia Neal, HUD****

Claire Bloom, THE HAUNTING

Julie Christie, BILLY LIAR

Lilia Skala, LILIES OF THE FIELD

Gunnel Lindblom, THE SILENCE

 

Honorable mention: Anouk Aimee, 8 1/2; Wendy Hiller, TOYS IN THE ATTIC; Joyce Redman, TOM JONES; Margaret Rutherford, THE VIPS

 

Best Attempt at a Brando Clone, Right Down to the Haircut: Richard Harris, THIS SPORTING LIFE

 

Best Performance by an Actor I Usually Dislike: Richard Harris, THIS SPORTING LIFE

 

Romantic Couples We're Supposed to Cheer For But I'm Singing "Run, better run, all the other kids are saying run, better run, faster than a bullet" Award (tie): Richard Harris and Rachel Roberts, THIS SPORTING LIFE; Jeanne Moreau and Claude Mann, BAY OF ANGELS

 

Best Performance in a Bad Movie: Last year it was Claire Bloom in THE CHAPMAN REPORT. This year it's Hari Rhodes in SHOCK CORRIDOR.

 

Least Likely Siblings: Dean Martin and Wendy Hiller, TOYS IN THE ATTIC

 

Guilty Pleasure Award: Watching Wendy Hiller mop the floor with Geraldine Page in their scenes together in TOYS IN THE ATTIC. British training 1, Method twitterings 0.

[Swithin]

1963 Favorites

Three ladies from Tom Jones, one of my favorite films, were nominated for Oscars in the supporting actress category. None won. I have included five ladies from Tom Jones in the category — all brilliant performances. If I had to pick a winner from the group (which I don’t like to do), it would probably be Joyce Redman.

 

Best Actor

 

Dirk Bogarde (The Servant)

Tom Courtenay (Billy Liar)

Albert Finney (Tom Jones)

Marcello Mastroianni (Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow) — (trumps 8 1/2 for me)

Sidney Poitier (Lilies of the Field)

 

Best Actress

 

Sophia Loren (Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow)

Shirley MacLaine (Irma la Douce)

Patricia Neal (Hud)

Rachel Roberts (This Sporting Life)

Ingrid Thulin (The Silence) — one of Bergman’s most complex films. I had to do a presentation on it in college.

 

Best Supporting Actor

(George Devine — pronounced de-VEEN) played Squire Allworthy in Tom Jones. Although he was an actor, he was better known as the theatrical manager of the English Stage Company at the Royal Court Theatre. He initiated a revolution in British drama in 1956, when he produced John Osborne’s Look Bank in Anger.)

 

George Devine (Tom Jones)

Melvyn Douglas (Hud)

Hugh Griffith (Tom Jones)

Lou Jacobi (Irma la Douce)

Eiji Okada (The Ugly American)

 

Best Supporting Actress

 

Diane Cilento (Tom Jones)

Edith Evans (Tom Jones)

Joan Greenwood (Tom Jones)

Joyce Redman (Tom Jones)

Susannah York (Tom Jones)

 

Best Musical Scenes

 

John Addison’s score (Tom Jones)

Armando Trovajoli’s score (Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow)

 

Best question that should not have been answered:

 

“Have you ever had… an EGYPTIAN FEAST?…” (Blood Feast)

[LawrenceA]

I like that we have 3 posted lists, each with Marcello Mastroianni nominated for Best Actor, but each for a different film! He had a great year.

 

8 1/2

 

 

The Organizer

 

 

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

 

[Bogie56]

Here are my choices of the 104 films I've seen from 1963 for…

 

Best Supporting Actress of 1963

 

1.  JOYCE REDMAN (Jenny Jones/Mrs. Waters), Tom Jones

2.  MARGARET RUTHERFORD (the Duchess of Brighton), The V.I.P.'s

3.  EDITH EVANS (Miss Western), Tom Jones

4.  LOTTE LENYA (Colonel Rosa Klebb/"Number Three"), From Russia With Love

5.  DIANE CILENTO (Molly Seagrim), Tom Jones

 

6.  LILIA SKALA (Mother Maria), Lilies of the Field  

7.  JOAN GREENWOOD (Lady Bellaston), Tom Jones

8.  SANDRA MILO (Carla, the Mistress),  8 1/2

9.  CLAIRE BLOOM (Theodora/“Theo”), The Haunting

10. MONA WASHBOURNE (Alice Fisher), Billy Liar

 

and ...

 

ANOUK AIMEE (Luisa Anselmi), 8 1/2

KATHARINE BALFOUR (Mrs. Sophia Kebabian), America, America

JOAN CRAWFORD (Nurse Lucritia Terry), The Caretakers

EDIE ADAMS (Barbie/”Barbara of Seville”), Love With the Proper Stranger

ETHEL MERMAN (Mrs. Marcus), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

VERONICA CARTWRIGHT (Cathy Brenner), The Birds

HELEN FRASER (Barbara), Billy Liar

LINDA MARSH (Thomna Sinnikoglou), America, America

SARAH MILES (Vera Barrett), The Servant

GINA ROWLANDS (Sophie Whittacomb Benham), A Child Is Waiting

GWENDOLYN WATTS (Rita) Billy Liar

JESSICA TANDY (Lydia Brenner), The Birds

VANDA GODSELL (Anne Weaver), This Sporting Life

ETHEL GRIFFIES (Grandma Florence), Billy Liar

HUGUETTE OLIGNY (Louise Martin), Amanita Pestilens

JULIE CHRISTIE (Liz), Billy Liar

[Bogie56]

Here are my choices of the 104 films I've seen from 1963 for…

 

Best Supporting Actor of 1963

 

1.  MELVYN DOUGLAS ("Wild Horse" Homer Bannon), Hud

2.  DONALD PLEASENCE (Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe, RAF/ "the Forger"), The Great Escape

3.  HUGH GRIFFITH (Squire Western), Tom Jones

4.  DAVID WARNER (Master Blifil), Tom Jones

5.  PAUL MANN (Aleko Sinnikoglou), America, America

 

6.  ROBERT SHAW (Donald "Red" Grant/"Capt. Nash"), From Russia With Love

7.  JONATHAN WINTERS (Lennie Pike), It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World

8.  JOHN MARLEY (Garabet), America, America

9.  CHARLES BRONSON (Flight Lieutenant Danny Velinski, DSC DFC RAF/"the Tunnel King"), The Great                     Escape

10. NICK ADAMS (Ben Brown), Twilight of Honor

 

and ...

 

SALEM LUDWIG (Odysseus Topouzoglou), America, America

LOU ANTONIO (Abdul), America, America

HANNES MESSEMER (Oberst “Col.” Von Luger/"the Kommandant"), The Great Escape

GORDON JACKSON (Flight Lieutenant Andrew MacDonald, RAF/ “Intelligence”/"Mac"), The Great Escape

JOHN HUSTON (Cardinal Glennon), The Cardinal

FOLCO LULLI (Pautasso), The Organizer

ERIC SYKES (Harry Smith), Heavens Above

STEVEN HILL (Ted Whittacomb), A Child Is Waiting

COLIN BLAKELY (Maurice Braithwaite), This Sporting Life

ORSON WELLES (Max Buda), The V.I.P.'s

TERRY-THOMAS (Lt. Col. J. Algernon Hawthorne), It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World

JACK PALANCE (Jeremy “Jerry” Prokosh), Contempt

PAOLO STOPPA (Don Calogero Sedara), The Leopard

MAX VON SYDOW (Jonas Persson), Winter Light

WILFRED PICKLES (Geoffrey Fisher), Billy Liar

ROBERT GRAF (Werner, "the Ferret"), The Great Escape

PATRICK TROUGHTON (Phineas), Jason and the Argonauts

MARIO PISU (Mario Mezzabotta), 8 1/2

[TomJH]

1963 is a disappointing year for films and performances, particularly when compared to the remarkable previous year. Here are my acting picks for the year:

 

BEST ACTOR

 

Albert Finney, TOM JONES

Paul Newman, HUD

Peter Sellers, PINK PANTHER

Marcello Mastroianni, YESTERDAY TODAY AND TOMORROW

Sidney Poitier, LILIES OF THE FIELD

 

Honourable Mention: Rex Harrison in Cleopatra, Richard Johnson in The Haunting.

 

BEST ACTRESS

 

Patricia Neal, HUD

Julie Harris, THE HAUNTING

Sophia Loren, YESTERDAY TODAY AND TOMORROW

Judy Garland, A CHILD IS WAITING

Shirley MacLaine, IRMA LA DOUCE

 

Honourable Mention: Audrey Hepburn in Charade.

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

 

Hugh Griffith, TOM JONES

Melvyn Douglas, HUD

Eddie Albert, CAPTAIN NEWMAN M.D.

Lou Jacoby, IRMA LA DOUCE

Robert Shaw, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

 

Joyce Redman, TOM JONES

Lotte Lenya, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

Edith Evans, TOM JONES

Diane Cilento, TOM JONES

Claire Bloom, THE HAUNTING

 

Moment Enviable Location On The Movie Screen Award

 

 

Marcello Mastroianni in Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

 

Debonair Grace As A Film Is Stolen From You Award

 

 

David Niven in The Pink Panther

[skimpole]

Actor

Burt Lancaster,  The Leopard
Gunnar Bjornstrand, Winter Light
Michel Piccoli, Contempt
Marello Mastroanni, The Organizer
Steve McQueen, The Great Escape


Runner-ups:  Cary Grant (Charade), Toshiro Mifune (High and Low), Paul Newman (Hud), Marcello Mastroianni (8 1/2), Tatsuya Nakadi (High and Low), Jean-Pierre Karien (Muriel), Nino Manfredi (El Verdugo/The Executioner/Not on your Life), Kazuo Hasegawa (An Actor's Revenge), Anil Chatterjee (The Big City), Dirk Bogarde (The Servant), James Fox (The Servant)


Actress

Delphine Seyrig, Muriel
Brigitte Bardot, Contempt
Ingrid Thulin, Winter Light
Jeanne Moreau, Bay of Angels
Madhabi Mukherjee, The Big City
 

Runner-ups:   Audrey Hepburn (Charade), Ingrid Thulin (The Silence), Sophia Loren (Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow), Gunnel Lindblom (The Silence), Maria Ribeiro (Vidas Secas), Elizabeth Taylor (Cleopatra), Julie Harris (The Haunting),

,

Supporting Actor

Alain Delon, The Leopard
Rex Harrison, Cleopatra
Richard Attenborough, The Great Escape
Melvyn Douglas, Hud
Donald Pleasance, The Great Escape


Runner-ups:  James Garner (The Great Escape), Walter Matthau (Charade), David McCallum (The Great Escape), Romolo Valli (The Leopard), George Kennedy (Charade), Jean-Baptise Thierree (Muriel), James Coburn (The Great Escape), Peter Sellers (The Pink Panther), Roddy McDowall (Cleopatra), Max von Sydow (Winter Light), Jack Palance (Contempt), Gordon Jackson (The Great Escape), Robert Shaw (From Russia with Love),

Supporting Actress

Claudia Cardinale, The Leopard

Patrica Neal, Hud
Anouk Aimee, 8 1/2
Suzanne Pleshette, The Birds
Claudia Cardinale, 8 1/2



Runner-ups:  Gunnel Lindblom (Winter Light), Nita Klein (Muriel), Veronica Cartwright (The Birds), Jessica Tandy (The Birds), Ethel Merman (It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World), Martha Wentworth (The Sword in the Stone),


Not seen:  Lilies of the Field, The L-Shaped Room, Irma La Douce, Love with the Proper Stranger, Twilight of Honor, Captain Newman, M.D.

 

 

-------Lancaster's performance is one of the truly great ones in movies, notwithstanding the fact that it's not his actual voice.

 

-------For the first time, none of the Best Actress nominees are from Hollywood, or in English.  The two nominees I've seen, Neal and Roberts, are arguably supporting.  As for the other three, TCM Canada refused to show The L-Shaped Room, Irma may be one of Wilder's least respected movies and Love with the Proper Stranger sounds extremely unpromising, an exploration of unplanned pregnancy with a sentimental ending.

 

-------1963 was not a bad year for movies, but it was not a good year for Hollywood, or for the Academy's judgement.  Danny Peary in his Alternate Oscar refused to give a winner this year. 

 

-------Cleopatra doesn't really have a very good reputation.  Notwithstanding its best picture nomination, people were clearly tired of extravagant epics being forced on them by Hollywood hype.  And one very obvious contrast with Spartacus is that the latter movie has a very good reason why we should care about the title character.  I actually don't think the Mankiewicz is that sympathetic for Cleopatra over Octavian, just as we're not simply to take Lawrence's side in Lawrence of Arabia.  The difference is that Cleopatra desperately needed to make its money back, and so the movie is forced to depend on Taylor's star power.  Nevertheless of the four nominees I've seen, this is the one I prefer.

[JamesStewartFan95]

Best Picture

8 1/2

The Birds

The Great Escape

The Haunting

Charade

Hud

Lilies of the Field

Tom Jones

 

Best Director

Stanley Donen, Charade

Federico Fellini, 81/2

Alfred Hitchcock, The Birds

Martin Ritt, Hud

John Sturges, The Great Escape

 

Best Actor

Albert Finney, Tom Jones

Steve McQueen, The Great Escape

Paul Newman, Hud

Sidney Poitier, Lilies of the Field

Rod Taylor, The Birds

 

Best Actress

Julie Harris ,The Haunting

Tippi Hedren, The Birds

Patricia Neal, Hud

Elizabeth Taylor, Cleopatra

Susannah York, Tom Jones

 

Best Supporting Actor

Richard Attenborough, The Great Escape

James Coburn, The Great Escape

Melvyn Douglas, Hud

Paul Lynde, Bye Bye Birdie

Walter Matthau, Charade

 

Best Supporting Actress

Diane Clilento, Tom Jones

Edith Evans, Tom Jones

Lotte Lenya, From Russia with Love

Suzanne Pleshette, The Birds

Lila Skala, Lilies of the Field

[JamesStewartFan95]

Here's my Special Awards tacked on after my first post

Best Juvenile Award

Veronica Cartwright, The Birds

Ron Howard, The Courtship of Eddie's Father*

Hayley Mills, Summer Magic

 

Best Family Movie

Bye Bye Birdie*

The Incredible Journey

The Nutty Professor

Son of Flubber

Summer Magic

The Sword in the Stone

 

Best Score

Tom Jones (John Addison)

The Great Escape (Elmer Bernstein)*

The Sword in the Stone (George Bruns)

Lilies of the Field (Jerry Goldsmith)

The Pink Panther (Henry Mancini)

 

The What Was I Thinking Award (Actors who should have gotten consideration for nominations)

Sammy Davis Jr. and Frank Sinatra for Ocean's 11

Clark Gable for The Misfits

Patricia Neal and Buddy Ebsen for Breakfast at Tiffany's

Robert Preston for The Music Man

Dick Shawn, Terry-Thomas, Jonathan Winters for It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World

[CoraSmith]

1963 - Danny Peary was wrong. There are plenty of good options in both American and non-American film.

 

ACTOR:

1. Marcello Mastroianni - 8 1/2

2. Sidney Poitier - Lilies of the Field

3. Gunnar Björnstrand - Winter Light

4. Cary Grant - Charade 

5. Jack Lemmon - Irma la Douce

6. Rod Taylor - The Birds

7. Dirk Bogarde - The Servant

8. Peter Sellers - The Pink Panther

9. Albert Finney - Tom Jones

10. Steve McQueen - The Great Escape

 

ACTRESS:

1. Tippi Hedren - The Birds

2. Brigitte Bardot - Contempt

3. Sophia Loren - Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

4. Audrey Hepburn - Charade

5. Shirley MacLaine - Irma la Douce 

6. Elizabeth Taylor - Cleopatra

7. Sarah Miles - The Servant
8. Ingrid Thulin - Winter Light

9. Margaret Rutherford - Murder at the Gallop

10. Natalie Wood - Love with the Proper Stranger

SUPPORTING ACTOR:

1. Walter Matthau - Charade

2. Jack Palance - Contempt

3. Gianni Ridolfi -  Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

4. Robert Morley - Murder at the Gallop

5. Phil Silvers - It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

6. Max von Sydow  - Winter Light

7. Boris Karloff - The Raven

8. Hugh Griffith - Tom Jones

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:

1. Sandra Milo - 8 1/2

2. Suzanne Pleshette - The Birds 

3. Claudia Cardinale - The Leopard
4. Joan Greenwood - Tom Jones

5. Claudia Cardinale - The Pink Panther

6. Lotte Lenya - From Russia with Love

7. Stella Stevens - The Nutty Professor

8. Lilia Skala - Lilies of the Field

BEST JUVENILE PERFORMANCE: Veronica Cartwright - The Birds

BEST ANIMAL PERFORMANCE: Rosy-faced lovebirds in The Birds

BEST EXTRA: Alfred Hitchcock - The Birds

BEST STRIPTEASE: Sophia Loren - Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: 

BEST DIRECTOR PLAYING HIMSELF: Fritz Lang - Contempt

BEST MULTI-STAR CAST: It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

BEST COSTUME DESIGN: Edith Head - The Birds

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: Henry Mancini - The Pink Panther

BEST CONCRETE MUSIC: The Birds

BEST ORIGINAL SONG: Charade (Henry Mancini & His Orchestra in Charade)

BEST NON-ORIGINAL SONG: Amen (Jester Hairston in Lilies of the Field)

BEST QUOTE: "He may be a servant, but he's still a human being." (The Servant) 

[Bogie56]

The New York Film Critics Circle Awards for 1963 were:

 

Best Actor

Albert Finney, Tom Jones*

Sidney Poitier, Lilies of the Field

Richard Harris, This Sporting Life

Paul Newman, Hud

 

Best Actress

Patricia Neal, Hud*

Leslie Caron, The L-Shaped Room (62)

 

—————————————————————————————————

 

The National Board of Review Awards for 1963 were…

 

Best Actor

Rex Harrison, Cleopatra* 

 

Best Actress

Patricia Neal, Hud*

 

Best Supporting Actor

Melvyn Douglas, Hud*

 

Best Supporting Actress

Margaret Rutherford, The V.I.P.’s*

[Bogie56]

Here are my choices of the 104 films I've seen from 1963 for…

 

Best Actress of 1963

 

1.  SOPHIA LOREN (Adelina Sbaratti/Anna Molteni/Mara), Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

2.  PATRICIA NEAL (Alma Brown), Hud

3.  JULIE HARRIS (Eleanor “Nell” Vance), The Haunting

4.  NATALIE WOOD (Angelina Rossini/”Angie”/”Angela”), Love With the Proper Stranger

5.  JEANNE MOREAU (Jackie Demaistre), Bay of Angels

 

6.  RACHEL ROBERTS (Margaret Hammond), This Sporting Life

7.  SHIRLEY MACLAINE (Irma la Douce), Irma la Douce

8.  SUSANNAH YORK (Sophie Western), Tom Jones

9.  INGRID THULIN (Marta Lundberg), Winter Light

10. MARGARET RUTHERFORD (Miss Jane Marple), Murder at the Gallop

 

and...

 

SARAH MILES (Catherine), The Ceremony

AUDREY HEPBURN (Regina “Reggie” Lambert), Charade

TIPPI HEDREN (Melanie Daniels), The Birds

DELPHINE SEYRIG (Helene Aughain), Muriel

[Bogie56]

Here are my choices of the 104 films I've seen from 1963 for…

 

Best Actor of 1963

 

1.  RICHARD HARRIS (Frank Machin), This Sporting Life

2.  ALBERT FINNEY (Tom Jones), Tom Jones

3.  SIDNEY POITIER (Homer Smith), Lilies of the Field

4.  MARCELLO MASTROIANNI (Carmine Sbaratti/Renzo/Augusto Rusconi), Yesterday, Today and                                  Tomorrow

5.  DIRK BOGARDE (Hugo Barrett), The Servant

 

6.  REX HARRISON (Julius Caesar), Cleopatra

7.  PAUL NEWMAN (Hud Bannon), Hud

8.  JAMES GARNER (Flight Lieutenant Robert ‘Bob’ Hendley, DFC RAF/"the Scrounger"), The Great Escape

9.  STEVE MCQUEEN (Rocky Papasano), Love With the Proper Stranger

10. RICHARD ATTENBOROUGH (Squadron Leader Roger Bartlett, DFC RAF/"Big  X"), The Great Escape

 

and...

 

TOSHIRO MIFUNE (Kingo Gondo), High and Low

JAMES FOX (Tony), The Servant

SEAN CONNERY (James Bond/"007"/"David Sommerset"), From Russia With Love

GUNNAR BJORNSTRAND (Pastor Tomas Ericsson), Winter Light

MARCELLO MASTROIANNI (G uido Anselmi) 8 1/2

STEVE MCQUEEN (Capt. Virgil Hilts, USAAF/"the Cooler King"), The Great Escape

MARCELLO MASTROIANNI (Professor Sinigaglia), The Organizer

RICHARD JOHNSON (Dr. John Markway), The Haunting

STATHIS GIALLELIS (Stavros Topouzoglou), America, America

BRANDON DE WILDE (Lon "Lonny" Bannon), Hud

TOM COURTENAY (William “Billy” Terrence Fisher), Billy Liar

ROD TAYLOR (Mitch Brenner), The Birds

[TomJH]

Here are my choices of the 104 films I've seen from 1963 for…

 

Best Actress of 1963

 

1.  SOPHIA LOREN (Adelina Sbaratti/Anna Molteni/Mara), Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

 

I have long regarded Sophia as being at the zenith of her career as the free wheeling, spontaneous spirit she plays in the Mara episode in Yesterday Today and Tomorrow. She exudes an earthy sensuality, warmth and fiery spirit. Did any actress ever have a more infectious, lilting laughter than Sophia? She exudes a playfulness in this role that seems an honest reflection of the actress herself (or am I just fantasizing?).

 

It seems to me that her Italian films, those with de Sica in particular, brought out the best in Loren as a performer. She's admirable in many of her American films, too, but seems constrained in them compared to her comedies, in particular, of her home country.

 

[speedracer5]

1963

 

A much shorter list than years past.  This year also features the most films that I straight out disliked, despite liking the cast.  There are a couple entries (Shirley MacLaine and Debbie Reynolds, where I didn't care for their film, but I liked them).  

 

BEST PICTURE

 

4 for Texas

Beach Party

The Birds

Bye Bye Birdie

Charade

The Courtship of Eddie's Father

Love With the Proper Stranger

Move Over Darling

Summer Magic

The Sword in the Stone

Take Her, She's Mine

Spencer's Mountain

 

BEST ACTOR

 

Dean Martin, 4 for Texas

Frank Sintara, 4 for Texas

Robert Cummings, Beach Party

Frankie Avalon, Beach Party

The Birds, The Birds

Rod Taylor, The Birds

Dick Van Dyke, Bye Bye Birdie

Cary Grant, Charade

Glenn Ford, The Courtship of Eddie's Father

Steve McQueen, Love With the Proper Stranger

James Garner, Move Over Darling

James Stewart, Take Her, She's Mine

Henry Fonda, Spencer's Mountain

 

BEST ACTRESS

 

Annette Funicello, Beach Party

Tippi Hedren, The Birds

Ann-Margret, Bye Bye Birdie

Audrey Hepburn, Charade

Shirley Jones, The Courtship of Eddie's Father

Shirley MacLaine, Irma La Douce

Natalie Wood, Love With the Proper Stranger

Debbie Reynolds, Mary, Mary

Doris Day, Move Over Darling

Polly Bergen, Move Over Darling

Hayley Mills, Summer Magic

Sandra Dee, Take Her, She's Mine

Maureen O'Hara, Spencer's Mountain

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

 

Paul Lynde, Bye Bye Birdie

Walter Matthau, Charade

Ron Howard, The Courtship of Eddie's Father

Don Knotts, Move Over Darling

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

 

Jessica Tandy, The Birds

Veronica Cartwright, The Birds

Suzanne Pleshette, The Birds

Janet Leigh, Bye Bye Birdie

Maureen Stapleton, Bye Bye Birdie

Edie Adams, Love With the Proper Stranger

Thelma Ritter, Move Over Darling

Audrey Meadows, Take Her, She's Mine

 

MOST DISAPPOINTING FILM

 

Irma La Douce.  This film should have been good.  But it wasn't.  I like Jack Lemmon.  I like Shirley MacLaine.  I like Billy Wilder.  They all struck gold in The Apartment, but they didn't here.  I find this film too long and boring.

 

FILMS FROM 1963 THAT I DISLIKED:

 

Aside from Irma La Douce...

 

Under the Yum Yum Tree.  This is probably the absolute worst Jack Lemmon movie I have ever seen.  

 

The Thrill of It All.  This James Garner/Doris Day film started out promising, but I was so disappointed by the ending and Garner's character was so obnoxious.  I wanted Day to leave him and move on with her lucrative commercial career.  

 

Mary, Mary.  I liked Debbie Reynolds. However, this film didn't make much sense and much of it was just over the top.  

 

Critic's Choice.  I love Lucy.  Bob Hope is tolerable (at times), but this film was disappointing.  I think it could have been good: Bob Hope is a film critic.  Lucille Ball plays his wife who writes a play.  Hope has to review her play.  There's a lot of potential there, but unfortunately, it didn't work for me. 

 

FUNNIEST SCENE

 

In The Birds when the woman in the diner, after the latest attack, screams at Tippi Hedren telling her that she's the cause of the bird attacks and that she's evil.

 

MOST GRUESOME SCENE

 

When Rod Taylor and Jessica Tandy go to the feed man's home and discover his body.  He is the latest victim of the attacks.  The most gruesome part of this scene is that the man's eyes have been pecked out by the birds.

 

BEST NON SCORE "SCORE"

 

The noise of The Birds in The Birds.  This film has no score, it is just filled with the noise of The Birds--giving the film an eerie quality. 

 

BEST SONG

 

"Kids" performed by Paul Lynde, Dick Van Dyke and Maureen Stapleton.  I love this song, it cracks me up. 

 

BEST OPENING/CLOSING SEQUENCE

 

Ann-Margret against the blue screen singing "Bye Bye Birdie" in Bye Bye Birdie

 

WORST MISCASTING

 

Jesse Pearson as Conrad Birdie in Bye Bye Birdie.  Obviously he's supposed to be like Elvis (and I believe that they wanted Elvis for the film originally), but he's too old to be believable as a teen idol.  Despite this, I really like this film.

 

FUNNIEST KID SCENE

 

Ron Howard coaching Glenn Ford on how to call Shirley Jones up for a date in The Courtship of Eddie's Father. 

 

BEST TWIST WHEN I SAW THE FILM FOR THE FIRST TIME

 

The ending of Charade

 

CREEPIEST PUPPETS

 

The puppet show that Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant visit in Charade

 

MAY-DECEMBER ROMANCE THAT DIDN'T SEEM THAT AWKWARD

 

Unlike Audrey Hepburn and Gary Cooper in Love in the Afternoon, her pairing with the 25 years older Cary Grant in Charade, didn't seem weird.  It worked for me.

 

SPEEDRACER'S TAKEAWAY FROM "THE BIRDS"

 

Why did Suzanne Pleshette and Tippi Hedren have the children leave the school when they spotted The Birds on the jungle gym? They would have been safer staying inside! 

[Swithin]

MOST DISAPPOINTING FILM

Irma La Douce.  This film should have been good.  But it wasn't.  I like Jack Lemmon.  I like Shirley MacLaine.  I like Billy Wilder.  They all struck gold in The Apartment, but they didn't here.  I find this film too long and boring.

 

BEST SONG

"Kids" performed by Paul Lynde, Dick Van Dyke and Maureen Stapleton.  I love this song, it cracks me up. 

 

It's funny -- taste, that is. I saw Irma la Douce as a kid, and I loved it. I was sorry they didn't use the songs, but they did a nice job of using the music from the show as background music, for the most part.

 

Regarding "Kids" from Bye Bye Birdie, I was all set to list it as a favorite musical scene of the year, then I looked at it again. Thought it was awful. My fondness for it derives from the original cast album of the show. In the movie, they added a lot of shtick and different lyrics, which I didn't like. I saw the film of Bye Bye Birdie at Radio City Music Hall. Liked the new title number, but missed a few of the cut Broadway songs.

[skimpole]

1963

 

A much shorter list than years past.  This year also features the most films that I straight out disliked, despite liking the cast.  There are a couple entries (Shirley MacLaine and Debbie Reynolds, where I didn't care for their film, but I liked them).  

 

 

Well it's good that somebody remembered Cary Grant.

[LawrenceA]

I was never a fan of Irma La Douce, either. For some reason, I've found the majority of Billy Wilder's comedies grating, which I'm aware puts me in a minority, and Jack Lemmon is an actor that if he isn't reigned in comes across to me as too broad and overly mannered. He's good in many films, and great in a couple, but often he irritates me. But many people love his work, and swear by his talent, especially among his peers.

 

Charade is a film I watched only once about 30 years ago, and it didn't make much of an impression. I've noticed several people on these boards love the movie, so maybe I should re-watch it and reassess it. 

[speedracer5]

I was never a fan of Irma La Douce, either. For some reason, I've found the majority of Billy Wilder's comedies grating, which I'm aware puts me in a minority, and Jack Lemmon is an actor that if he isn't reigned in comes across to me as too broad and overly mannered. He's good in many films, and great in a couple, but often he irritates me. But many people love his work, and swear by his talent, especially among his peers.

 

Charade is a film I watched only once about 30 years ago, and it didn't make much of an impression. I've noticed several people on these boards love the movie, so maybe I should re-watch it and reassess it. 

 

I like Jack Lemmon, but I agree--sometimes in his comedic roles, he can be over the top.  I thought he was great in Some Like it Hot.  However, The Great Race isn't all that great and much of why I don't like the film is Lemmon's character is annoying.  He's also annoying in Irma La Douce, especially when he's playing the Lord X character.  Under the Yum Yum Tree where Lemmon plays the lecherous landlord, is practically unwatchable (at least by me) and much of the reason I don't like the film is because of his character.

 

It seems that he went through a period in the mid-60s where he was taking on all sorts of comedic roles, with varying degrees of success.  Maybe after The Apartment and Days of Wine and Roses, he felt like he needed some more lighthearted fare.  Other than this little period in the mid-60s, I really enjoy watching his performances.  

[kingrat]

I have read that Irma la Douce was Wilder's biggest commercial success, and that this is the reason he concentrated on comedies for the rest of his career. If you've seen Irma on stage or heard the cast album, you know that the songs are delightful. Too bad they weren't included. Shirley could have sung hers, and Jack Lemmon could have have been dubbed by the male equivalent of Marni Nixon. Like Lawrence, I'll agree that Lemmon is best with some guidance and editing, when he can be wonderful.

 

Two Italian films would be the top contenders for best set design. One, obviously, is The Leopard, which has some gorgeously designed interiors. The other is The Organizer, which works the other end of the economic scale. It's easy to believe that we are looking at a genuine nineteenth-century factory.

 

Thanks to all who mentioned Winter Light, for I had forgotten to include Max von Sydow in my supporting actor list. He's a strong contender for the top award. I don't really care for the film, but had vividly remembered his performance as the simple fisherman who's terrified that the Chinese now have the nuclear bomb. When I saw the film again (it was one of Bergman's favorites among his films, and others agree), I was surprised to discover how little screen time Max von Sydow actually has. (The same thing was true of Zohra Lampert in Splendor in the Grass.)

[TomJH]

I was never a fan of Irma La Douce, either. For some reason, I've found the majority of Billy Wilder's comedies grating, which I'm aware puts me in a minority, and Jack Lemmon is an actor that if he isn't reigned in comes across to me as too broad and overly mannered. He's good in many films, and great in a couple, but often he irritates me. But many people love his work, and swear by his talent, especially among his peers.

 

 

 

For years I was a great admirer of Jack Lemmon. Having seen him in Some Like It Hot and The Apartment, I found him quite brilliant and regarded him as one of the greats of his era.

 

As time passed, however, I saw him in other films, and found him grating on my nerves at times with his broad overplaying. Look at his Professor Fate in The Great Race, for example. He was often so manic and those Grumpy Old Men films later on did not endear me to his comic technique any more. On the other hand, I thought him just fine with a subdued dramatic performance in The China Syndrome.

 

Bottom line: Lemmon is hit and miss for me but his best work (those first two Billy Wilder films) is sublime.

[TomJH]

I have read that Irma la Douce was Wilder's biggest commercial success, and that this is the reason he concentrated on comedies for the rest of his career. If you've seen Irma on stage or heard the cast album, you know that the songs are delightful. Too bad they weren't included. Shirley could have sung hers, and Jack Lemmon could have have been dubbed by the male equivalent of Marni Nixon. Like Lawrence, I'll agree that Lemmon is best with some guidance and editing, when he can be wonderful.

 

 

When Charles Laughton was dying of cancer, Billy Wilder told him that the role of Moustache in Irma La Douce was waiting for him once he got better (the role that would go to Lou Jacoby). That must have brought some pleasure to an acting war horse like Laughton to know that a good role awaited him. Wilder was very fond of Laughton after their Witness for the Prosecution experience together, and did it as a good will gesture. He was, I believe, aware of the fact that the actor was in his final days.

 

By the way, I recall my parents taking me to the show in Toronto to see a double bill of Tom Jones and Irma La Douce. I guess they were considered to be "naughty" films, to a degree. I enjoyed them at the time but would have been happier if they had been shorter films, particularly the Wilder comedy, which just seemed to go on forever.

[Bogie56]

The BAFTA winners for 1963 were ….

 

Best Actor (British)

Dirk Bogarde, The Servant*

Tom Courtenay, Billy Liar

Richard Harris, This Sporting Life

Albert Finney, Tom Jones

Hugh Griffith, Tom Jones

 

Best Actor (Foreign)

Marcello Mastroianni, Divorce Italian-Style* (61)

Howard Da Silva, David and Lisa (62)

Jack Lemmon, Days of Wine and Roses (62)

Paul Newman, Hud

Gregory Peck, To Kill a Mockingbird (62)

 

Best Actress (British)

Rachel Roberts, This Sporting Life*

Sarah Miles, The Servant

Barbara Windsor, Sparrows Can’t Sing

Edith Evans, Tom Jones

Julie Christie, Billy Liar

 

Best Actress (Foreign)

Patricia Neal, Hud*

Lee Remick, Days of Wine and Roses (62)

Daniela Rocca, Divorce Italian-Style (61)

Joan Crawford, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (62)

Bette Davis, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (62)

[Bogie56]

The Great Escape quickly became my favourite film of all time when I was a kid and Steve McQueen my favourite actor.  In the school playground I and my other war-crazy friends, those that were weaned on a steady diet of Combat used to die like David McCallum and say in a German accent to one another things like "Good .. luck", "We put all the rotten eggs into one basket" and "Bartlett."

Director, John Sturges lived up to his Magnificent Seven with a terrific adventure film with an all-star male cast.  Charles Bronson was never better as Polish flier, Danny Velinski.  His "Yes, no, I don't know" panic attack moment rings so true of someone who cannot think straight enough to answer a simple question.

Donald Pleasence who plays Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe, 'the forger' showed up on several of our supporting lists.  Number two on my own and number one of that of Lawrence and kingrat.

 

Best Supporting Actor of 1963

2.  DONALD PLEASENCE (Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe, RAF/ "the Forger"), The Great Escape

 

It is a great characterization of a gentle man who because of incredible circumstances finds himself a prisoner of war.  It may have been a case of art imitating life as Pleasence started the war as a conscientious objector but later joined the RAF only to have his Lancaster shot down over Germany where he ended up in a POW camp.

[TomJH]

The Great Escape quickly became my favourite film of all time when I was a kid and Steve McQueen my favourite actor.

 

I find that the majority of films that were favourites of mine in childhood remain, at the least, sentimental favourites with me today. It's always a thrill, though, when you think that a few of them have stood the test of time well as solid, maybe even great, entertainments, continuing to give you a thrill as an adult.

 

I'm sure that The Great Escape will always be a special film to you, Bogie.

 

 

While you were fantasizing about being on that motocycle just like McQueen, I was a swashbuckling pirate like Captain Blood.