The Best Picture Podcast

Director:  Richard Brooks Producer:  Bernard Smith Screenplay:  Richard Brooks Photography:  John Alton Music:  Andre Previn Cast:  Burt Lancaster, Jean Simmons, Arthur Kennedy, Dean Jagger, Shirley Jones Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 94%/Audiences 86%

Director:  Billy Wilder Producer:  Billy Wilder Screenplay:  Billy Wilder, I.A.L. Diamond Photography:  Joseph LaShelle Music:  Adolph Deutsch Cast:  Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurray, Ray Walston, Jack Kruschen Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 93%/Audiences 94%

Director:  John Wayne Producer:  John Wayne Screenplay:  James Edward Grant Photography:  William H. Clothier Music:  Dimitri Tiomkin Cast:  John Wayne, Richard Widmark, Laurence Harvey, Frankie Avalon, Patrick Wayne Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 52%/Audiences 63%

Eric and Sean rank and discuss the ten nominees for the Best Picture of 2009 and bring up some other contenders for the prize that weren't nominated.  Once again, the nominees are: Avatar, The Blind Side, District 9, An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Precious, A Serious Man, Up, and Up in the Air.

Up in the Air (2009) Director:  Jason Reitman Producer:  Jeffrey Clifford, Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman, Jason Reitman Screenplay:  Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner Photography:  Eric Steelberg Music:  Rolfe Kent Cast:  George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman, Amy Morton Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 91%/Audiences 79%

Up (2009) Directors:  Pete Docter, Bob Peterson Producer:  Jonas Rivera Screenplay:  Bob Peterson, Pete Docter Photography:  Jean-Claude Kalache, Patrick Lin Music:  Michael Giacchino Cast:  Edward Asner, Jordan Nagai, John Ratzenberger, Christopher Plummer Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 98%/Audiences 90%

A Serious Man (2009) Director:  Ethan Coen, Joel Coen Producers:  Ethan Coen, Joel Coen Screenplay:  Ethan Coen, Joel Coen Photography:  Roger Deakins Music:  Carter Burwell Cast:  Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fred Melamed, Sari Lennick, Aaron Wolff Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 90%/Audiences 68%

Precious (2009) Director:  Lee Daniels Producers:  Lee Daniels, Gary Magness, Mark G. Mathis, Sarah Siegel-Magness, Screenplay:  Geoffrey Fletcher Photography:  Andrew Dunn Music:  Mario Grigorov Cast:  Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey, Sherri Shepherd Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 91%/Audiences 81%

Inglourious Basterds (2009) Director:  Quentin Tarantino Producers:  Lawrence Bender, Christoph Fisser, Henning Molfenter, Charlie Woebcken Screenplay:  Quentin Tarantino Photography:  Robert Richardson Music:  Mary Ramos Cast:  Brad Pitt, Melanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Eli Roth, Michael Fassbender Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 89%/Audiences 88%

The Hurt Locker (2008) Director:  Kathryn Bigelow Producers:  Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier, Donall McCusker, Greg Shapiro Screenplay:  Mark Boal Photography:  Barry Ackroyd Music:  Marco Beltrami, Buck Sanders Cast:  Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 97%/Audiences 84%

An Education (2009) Director:  Lone Scherfig Producers:  Finola Dwyer, Amanda osey Screenplay:  Nick Hornby Photography:  John de Borman Music:  Paul Englishby Cast:  Carey Mulligan, Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina, Olivia Williams, Cara Seymour Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 94%/Audiences 80%

District 9 (2009) Director:  Neill Blomkamp Producers:  Peter Jackson, Carolynne Cunningham Screenplay:  Neill Blomkamp, Terri Tatchell Photography:  Trent Opaloch Music:  Clinton Shorter Cast:  Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, David James, Eugene Khumbanyiwa, Mandla Gaduka Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 90%/Audiences 82%

The Blind Side (2009) Director:  John Lee Hancock Producers:  Yolanda T. Cochran, K.C. Hodenfield, Broderick Johnson, Andrew A. Kosove, Gil Netter, Steven P. Wegner Screenplay:  John Lee Hancock Photography:  Alar Kivilo Music:  Carter Burwell Cast:  Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Quinton Aaron, Jae Head, Lily Collins Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 66%/Audiences 85%

Avatar (2009) Director:  James Cameron Producers:  Brooke Breton, James Cameron, Laeta Kalogridis, Jon Landau, Josh McLaglen Screenplay:  James Cameron Photography:  Mauro Fiore Music:  James Horner Cast:  Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 82%/Audiences 82%    

Eric and Sean rank and discuss the five nominees for the Best Picture of 1986 and bring up some other contenders for the prize that weren't nominated.  Once again, the nominees are: Children of a Lesser God , Hannah and Her Sisters , The Mission , Platoon , and A Room with a View .

A Room with a View (1985) Director:  James Ivory Producers:  Ismail Merchant Screenplay:  Ruth Prawer Jhabvala Photography:  Tony Pierce-Roberts Music:  Richard Robbins Cast:  Maggie Smith, Helena Bonham Carter, Denholm Elliott, Julian Sands, Simon Callow Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 100%/Audiences 85%

Platoon (1986) Director:  Oliver Stone Producer:  Arnold Kopelson Screenplay:  Oliver Stone Photography:  Robert Richardson Music:  Georges Delerue Cast:  Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Charlie Sheen, Forest Whitaker, Francesco Quinn Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 88%/Audiences 93%

The Mission (1986) Director:  Roland Joffe Producers:  Fernando Ghia and David Puttnam Screenplay:  Robert Bolt Photography:  Chris Menges Music:  Ennio Morricone Cast:  Robert De Niro, Jeremy Irons, Ray McAnally, Aidan Quinn, Cherie Lunghi Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 64%/Audiences 87%

Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) Director:  Woody Allen Producer:  Robert Greenhut Screenplay:  Woody Allen Photography:  Carlo Di Palma Music:  James V. Monaco Cast:  Barbara Hershey, Woody Allen, Michael Caine, Mia Farrow, Dianne Wiest Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 91%/Audience 91%

Children of a Lesser God (1986) Director: Randa Haines Producer: Patrick J. Palmer, Burt Sugarman Screenplay:  Hesper Anderson, from a play by Mark Medoff Photography:  John Seale Music:  Michael Convertino Cast:  William Hurt, Marlee Matlin, Piper Laurie, Philip Bosco, Allison Gompf Rotten Tomatoes:  Critics 81%/Audiences 79%