69th Academy Awards
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| 69th Academy Awards | |
|---|---|
| Date | Monday, March 24, 1997 |
| Site | Shrine Auditorium Los Angeles, California |
| Host | Billy Crystal |
| Producer | Gil Cates |
| Director | Louis J. Horvitz |
| TV in the United States | |
| Network | ABC |
| Duration | 3 hours, 29 minutes |
| Ratings | 40.83 million |
The 69th Academy Awards were dominated by movies produced by independent studios, financed outside of mainstream Hollywood, leading to 1997 being dubbed "The Year of the Independents". All but one of the nominees for Best Picture were low-budget independent movies (the next ceremony dominated by indie fims would be in 2006. 2008 was also dominated by independents).
The big winner at the ceremony was Anthony Minghella's The English Patient, which had received 12 nominations and won 9 awards including Best Picture.
Other notable movies to be honoured at the ceremony included Fargo, which had been nominated for 7 awards and won 2, Shine, which had been nominated for 7 awards and won just one, and Jerry Maguire, which had been nominated for 5 awards and also won just one.
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[edit] News and recap
Shortly before the ceremony, two light aircraft flew over the auditorium streaming banners behind them. The first appeared as Larry Flynt, the subject of the Oscar-nominated film The People vs. Larry Flynt, arrived, which read "Columbia Studios Sucks — Larry Flynt". The second banner read "Disney uses sweatshops — 30 cents an hour in Haiti", criticizing Walt Disney Studios about the conditions under which some of its movie merchandise are allegedly produced.
The Awards marked one of the greatest upsets in Oscar history as most had predicted Lauren Bacall would win Best Supporting Actress for The Mirror Has Two Faces. Instead, the Oscar went to Juliette Binoche for The English Patient.
The ceremony attracted a low 40.83, the lowest audience without dipping below the 40 million mark (later surpassed by the 40.54m who watched in 2002).
[edit] Notable quotes
- "Well, thank heavens there wasn't a song in The English Patient is all I can say." — Andrew Lloyd-Webber, commenting on another film's success, as he collected the Academy Award for Best Song with Tim Rice, for "You Must Love Me" from Evita
- "You know you've entered new territory when your outfit costs more than your film." — Jessica Yu, accepting the Documentary Short Subject Award for Breathing Lessons: the Life and Work of Mark O'Brien
[edit] The Awards
For a complete list of nominees and winners, see: 69th Academy Awards nominees and winners
[edit] Feature Films
- Best motion picture of the year: The English Patient
[edit] Acting
- Performance by an actor in a leading role: Geoffrey Rush in Shine
- Performance by an actress in a leading role: Frances McDormand in Fargo
- Performance by an actor in a supporting role: Cuba Gooding Jr. in Jerry Maguire
- Performance by an actress in a supporting role: Juliette Binoche in The English Patient
[edit] Direction
[edit] Directing
| Category | Winner | Film |
|---|---|---|
| Best Director | Anthony Minghella | The English Patient |
[edit] Writing
- Best Original Screenplay: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for Fargo
- Best Adapted Screenplay: Billy Bob Thornton for Sling Blade
[edit] In Memoriam
Presented by Angela Bassett. A tribute remembering those memorable movie icons that left us in the past year: Jo Van Fleet, Tupac Shakur, Brigitte Helm, Dorothy Lamour, screenwriter Stirling Silliphant, designer Saul Bass, screenwriter Steve Tesich, Juliet Prowse, cinematographer Joseph Biroc, Howard E. Rollins Jr., Jack Weston, director Krzysztof Kieslowski, director Fred Zinnemann, Ben Johnson, Gene Nelson, art director Edward C. Carfagno, Joanne Dru, cinematographer John Alton, Greer Garson, producer Albert R. Broccoli, producer Pandro S. Berman, Lew Ayres, Sheldon Leonard, Claudette Colbert and Marcello Mastroianni.
