GLADIATOR (2000)

WINNER OF THE ACADEMY AWARD FOR BEST PICTURE

Directed by Ridley Scott

A Roman general is betrayed and his family murdered by a corrupt prince, he comes back to Rome as a gladiator to seek revenge

The film that brought back the Greco/Roman toga epic

Nominated for 12 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Sound, Best Special Effects, Best Costume Design, Best Art and Set Decoration, Best Editing, Best Original Score and Best Original Screenplay.

Won 5 including Best Picture, Best Actor, Costume Design, Special Effects and Best Sound

Was honoured in a highly competitive year. Other contenders/winners included CROUCHING TIGER,HIDDEN DRAGON,ERIN BROCKOVICH AND TRAFFIC - each came away with major wins apart from Best Picture

DVD special Features

Feature length Making of the film documentary with interviews with the director,Ridley Scott, Russell Crowe,among others

Also contains the Making of the Music for the film
Production diary by Spencer Treat Clark who plays the little boy, Lucius

THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH (1952)

WINNER OF THE ACADEMY AWARD FOR BEST PICTURE

Directed by Cecil B. DeMille

Nominated for 5 Academy Awards
Won 2 - Best Picture and Best Writing, Motion Picture Story

In my opinion,this is one of those times when the Academy's choice for the year does not hold up.
How SHOW could have picked up Best Picture over HIGH NOON (nominated in 7 categories including Best Picture) is anyone's guess

It is possible that the Studio System (was coming into it's climax in the early 1950s) helped Cecil B. DeMille's pet project prevail over the others

My opinion is that it was a safe family movie about art and work that touched a 1950s nerve. It was certainly less controversial than HIGH NOON which had the McCarthysim subtext and was had it's screenplay adapted by Carl Foreman (one of the blacklisted members of the Hollywood community)

Special Features - None

THE RED SHOES (1948)

Directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressbuger

Under the authoritarian rule of charismatic ballet impressario Boris Lermontov, his proteges realize the full promise of their talents, but at a price - utter devotion to their art and complete loyalty to Lermontov himself

Nominated for 5 Academy Awards including Best picture and (then described as) Best Writing (Motion Picture)
Won 2, Best Art - Set Decoration, Color and Best Music Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture

A Powell and Pressburger Classic. described as one of the most innovative and beautiful works of the cinema.

DVD Special Features:

Documentary profile of the Red Shoes including interviews with renowned Cinematographer, Jack Cardiff - Recipient of the Honorary Academy Award(2000)

Considered a daring lift for the Post WW2 cinema era.

Innovative technic used has often been cited by contemporary filmmakers such as Spielberg,Coppola and Scorcese as having a strong on their work

Was not well received at first due to it's dark content. Ballet was regarded at an aspirational art form
not suited to be dealt with in such a shocking and tragic way as shown by TRS. Even the tragic accident at the end of the film - the vivid imagery of the bloodied stockings by our heroine was considered too shocking for young viewers.

GRAND HOTEL (1932)

WINNER OF THE ACADEMY AWARD FOR BEST PICTURE

Directed by Edmund Goulding

One of the first starry cast ensemble films set in Berlin's plushest, most expensive hotel where in the words of Dr. Otternschlag "People come, people go. Nothing ever happens."

The cast includes Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Wallace Berry, Joan Crawford amongst others

Nominated/Won the Academy Award for Best Picture
The first and only film to have a sole nomination and only win in this category

DVD Special features:

The Making of Documentary
Checking out : Grand Hotel
Brief Notes - A brief informative narrative on the transfer to broadway and then to film of the Vicki Baum novel - Menschem in Hotel financed by MGM under the production of Irving Thalberg.

OF HUMAN BONDAGE (1934)

Directed by John Cromwell

Abandoning artistic ambitions, sensitive and club-footed Philip Carey(Leslie Howard) enrolls in medical school and falls in love with illiterate waitress Mildred Rogers(Bette Davis)

Nominated for 1 (write-in) Academy Award Best Actress

Word is that she won her first Academy Award the following year (DANGEROUS) due to this oversight

DVD Special Features:

None