Mayhem, Music, Murder: The 1971 Retro Hollmann Awards, Part One

After so much waiting, here it finally is -- the Retro Hollmann Awards of 1971! Seventy (70) films were screened for 1971, and as always, some desirables were missed, some surprises were discovered, and some duds, unfortunately, slipped through the cracks. But here's the full list:

 The Abominable Dr. Phibes

The Anderson Tapes

The Andromeda Strain

Bananas

Bedknobs and Broomsticks

Billy Jack

Black Jesus

Bless the Beasts & Children

Blood Mania

The Boy Friend

Brewster McCloud

Carnal Knowledge

Cat O’Nine Tails

A Clockwork Orange

Cold Turkey

The Conformist

Death in Venice

The Devils

Diamonds Are Forever

Dirty Harry

Dodes’Ka-Den

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Drive, He Said

Escape from the Planet of the Apes

Fiddler on the Roof

The French Connection

The Garden of the Finzi Continis

Get Carter

The Go-Between

Harold and Maude

Honky

The Hospital

The House That Dripped Blood

Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion

Jennifer on My Mind

Johnny Got His Gun

Klute

Kotch

The Last Picture Show

The Lickerish Quartet

The Love Machine

Making It

Le Mans

Mary, Queen of Scots

McCabe & Mrs. Miller

The Music Lovers

Nicholas and Alexandra

Play Misty for Me

Pretty Maids All in a Row

Shaft

Simon, King of the Witches

Sometimes a Great Notion

Straw Dogs

Summer of ’42

Sunday Bloody Sunday

Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song

Taking Off

Tchaikovsky

They Might Be Giants

El Topo

The Trojan Women

Two-Lane Blacktop

Wake in Fright

Werewolves on Wheels

What’s the Matter with Helen?

When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth

Who Is Harry Kellerman, and Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me?

Willard

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Zachariah

For the next three days, I will be naming my perceived best in all 18 categories, two of which (Makeup, Ensemble) did not have an Oscar equivalent that year. Some nominees match the Academy's, while some categories have been completely overhauled. They are all, however, unmistakably Me.

And we start with the Editors!  

BEST EDITING

2. The Anderson Tapes
Joanne Burke
Standout scene: the entire heist that takes up the final third of the film, cutting back and forth between the tenants of each floor as they are rounded up by Anderson's crew; the crew itself gathering the objects of desire; the several areas of surveillance; and the slowly mobilized law enforcement.

5. The Devils
Michael Bradsell
Standout scene: If this was purely the director's cut, I'd say the sequence where the nuns rape a towering, crucified Jesus statue, intercut with Frather Grandier holding a quiet, personal Mass in nature, is legendary for a reason. But let us not forget the final sequence, as the village of Loudon watches an execution with varying degreess of satisfaction and horror.

1. Fiddler on the Roof
Antony Gibbs/Robert Lawrence
No standout scene -- for it is all so perfectly edited, from "Tradition" through to the finale -- the Bottle Dance, the pogrom, the Chava ballet, "Anatevka", the dream sequence....perfection.

4. Get Carter
John Trumper
Standout scene: Carter beats the shit out of some thugs, using their car. It's great.

3. Klute
Carl Lerner
Standout scene: Any of the therapy sessions, cut back and forth between Bree and the doctor at the perfect moments. Bree's final encounter with a deranged murderer, including listening to a recording of her deceased friend, is a gutting, terrifying scene as well.

Makeup, Cinematography, Score, and more -- below the jump.

A Fine Vintage: Best Actress, 1971

One of my favorite categories -- after Supporting Actress, of course, and right ahead of Adapted Screenplay. And I have to commend both 2014 and 1971 for the strength of their lineup. Even if not everybody made it to my personal ballot, I still find the overall list to be well above-average. Both years.

Here's to the ladies who...

...go back and forth between determination and humiliation. They're capable, haunted, and don't want to have to beg and plead to maintain their existence. 

(Marion Cotillard in Two Days, One Night / Glenda Jackson in Sunday Bloody Sunday)

...doggedly pursue a fresh start, as they sometimes face, sometimes escape their past. Too many strangers have seen them naked; they're getting their self-control, self-worth, and confidence back!

(Reese Witherspoon in Wild / Jane Fonda in Klute)

...live every moment with the threat of disease destroying their family, their household, and their legacy -- and refuse to let it defeat them.

(Julianne Moore in Still Alice / Janet Suzman in Nicholas and Alexandra)

...stick to their guns, even as the world around them gives them every reason and opportunity to abandon their cause. It's not about stubbornness; it's about love.

(Felicity Jones in The Theory of Everything / Vanessa Redgrave in Mary, Queen of Scots)

...are in control of every situation, even if the man in their life thinks otherwise.

(Rosamund Pike in Gone Girl / Julie Christie in McCabe & Mrs. Miller)

More thoughts on the 70s gals, after the jump....

Odd Pairings: Best Original Screenplay, 1971

Double feature time again -- only this time, instead of just throwing on a DVD or Blu-Ray or whatever the kids use (holograms? what were those little discs in Minority Report?), why not pick up a manuscript? Specifically, any published copies of the nominees for Best Original Screenplay, be they from 2014 or 1971. And allow me to suggest some travel companions to suit the mood...

You down for broad dramedy zeroing in on a male protagonist undergoing a personal crisis while performing his duties within a particular industry? Double the pleasure with 1971's medical satire The Hospital and 2014's showbiz satire Birdman! (Yes, I know I already made that comparison yesterday, but if the shoe fits...)

In the mood for a bizarre crime flick with a sick sense of humor and an unstoppable protagonist that you kind of wish would, just once, get punched in the face? Double-tap that sucker with 1971's cop-focused Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion and 2014's late-night news-focused Nightcrawler.

Perhaps you like crime just fine, but would rather trade in the humor for something that takes a closer look at gender and America. Learn about the ladies from 1971's Klute, and learn about the lads from 2014's Foxcatcher.

Or maybe you're highly specific and could really go for a coming-of-age story focusing on the influence certain adults have over children's lives, and the melancholic nostalgia that comes from looking back? Get out the tissues, because I'm talking about 1971 drama Summer of '42 and 2014 comedy The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Nah, you're the type of person that wants to see the reverse -- the effect a younger person has on the older people in his life -- and you want it spiced up with realizations of how everyone always hopes that they're almost on the brink of Getting It Right, but rarely do. They just thought there'd be more! Yes, yes -- double the fun with 1971's bisexual menage a trois at the center of Sunday Bloody Sunday and 2014's saga of parents and children Boyhood.

For a further look at the films of 1971, please do jump after the jump...