1996 was a rather lackluster year for movies. The year’s releases, as a whole, didn’t come close to matching the couple years before it or what would follow in 1997.
The Oscars for ’96 reflected that. The big winner for the evening: the late Anthony Minghella’s The English Patient, starring Ralph Fiennes, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Juliette Binoche. A good film, yes, but one of the less memorable Best Picture winners of the last two decades.
Patient would win over Fargo, the Coen Brothers quirky crime comedy/drama masterpiece. My vote certainly would’ve gone to that.
Jerry Maguire, Cameron Crowe’s sports drama/comedy, would also earn a nomination, along with indie titles Secrets&Lies (from director Mike Leigh) and Shine (from director Scott Hicks).
Other pictures that should have merited consideration in my view: Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting and Stanley Tucci and Campbell Scott’s Big Night.
Minghella would win Best Director for Patient, beating out Joel Coen, Mike Leigh, Scott Hicks, and Milos Forman for The People Vs. Larry Flynt. Crowe was the only director not nominated whose film was.
In the Best Actor race, Geoffrey Rush would be honored for Shine over Tom Cruise in Maguire, Ralph Fiennes in Patient, Woody Harrelson for Flynt, and Billy Bob Thornton for his very memorable performance in Sling Blade.
The Best Actor category gave a perfect opportunity for the Academy to honor comedy, which they rarely do. Eddie Murphy deserved a nod for his brilliant work in The Nutty Professor. The Academy, as usual, didn’t take the bait.
Frances McDormand would deservedly take the Best Actress prize for her terrific performance in Fargo. She beat out Brenda Blethyn in Secrets&Lies, Diane Keaton in Marvin’s Room, Kristin Scott Thomas for Patient, and Emily Watson in Breaking the Waves. Other deserving nominees not to make the list: Courtney Love for People Vs. Larry Flynt and Laura Dern for Citizen Ruth.
In the Best Supporting Actor race, Cuba Gooding Jr. inexplicably won for his part in Jerry Maguire over a much better choice, William H. Macy’s fabulous work in Fargo. Other nominees: Edward Norton in Primal Fear, Armin Mueller-Stahl for Shine, and James Woods in Ghosts of Mississippi.
Once again, the Academy could have honored comedy here. An obvious choice would have been Nathan Lane in The Birdcage. For me, personally, I would’ve gone way outside the box and honored Bill Murray’s scene-stealing turn in Kingpin. Watch this compilation and tell me I’m wrong.
Juliette Binoche was a surprise winner for Best Supporting Actress for Patient, beating the odds-on favorite Lauren Bacall for The Mirror Has Two Faces. Other nominees: Joan Allen for The Crucible, Barbara Hershey for Portrait of a Lady, and Marianne Jean-Baptiste for Secrets&Lies.
Finally, while Fargo won Original Screenplay (as it should have), they should have made room to nominate the excellent screenplay for Doug Liman’s Swingers with Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn.
All in all, the 1996 Oscars reflected the lackluster year that it was. I shall return soon with a recap of the 1997 ceremony.
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