A SCARY LACK OF RECOGNITION
FIVE CLASSIC HORROR FILMS THAT DIDN’T GET MUCH OSCARS ACCLAIM
When it comes to horror films, the response from the Academy Awards has generally been: Get out!
But there have been rare exceptions. The Silence of the Lambs swept the major categories, winning best picture, best director, best actor and best actress in 1992. Guillermo del Toro’s 2006 dark fantasy Pan’s Labyrinth emerged triumphant for best cinematography, art direction and makeup. Otherwise, the Oscars have mostly given chillers the cold shoulder.
That could change this year with Get Out, which is nominated for best picture. It also garnered best director and original screenplay nods for Jordan Peele, and a best actor nomination for Daniel Kaluuya. Of course, it’s much more than a horror movie — it’s also a trenchant satire of America’s racial dynamics.
Still, you can’t help but fear that Get Out might end up in “the sunken place” on Oscar night, given the lack of Academy appreciation for other terrifying classics. Here are some examples.
Frankenstein ( 1931):
No nominations
The odds were stacked against this adaptation of Mary Shelley’s gothic classic in more ways than one. At that time, there were only three nominees in most of t he Academy ’ s major categories, except for best picture, which had eight contenders. Yet director James Whale’s stark depiction of the diabolical doctor played by Colin Clive and his stitched- together monster, played by Boris Karloff, failed to make the cut.
Best actor went to the lead in another scary movie, Fredric March in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde ( who tied with Wallace Beery for The Champ), perhaps because he showed greater range in his dual role than Clive did in his single part. There were no supporting actor categories, but Karloff would have been a long shot anyway, since he was billed in the opening credits only as a question mark. That’s pretty much the opposite of a “for your consideration” ad.
Belated recognition came when Mel Brooks was nomi nated f or best adapted screenplay for his 1974 spoof Young Frankenstein, and Ian McKellen competed for best actor for his sly performance as Whale in the 1998 biopic Gods and Monsters.
Psycho ( 1960):
Four nominations, no wins
Shockingly, Alfred Hitchcock never won a best director award. Although he was awarded an honorary Oscar in 1968, he was nominated for this mother of a creepfest. He lost to Billy Wilder for The Apartment, which also beat Psycho for best black and white art direction.
Janet Leigh was in the hunt for best supporting actress, but perhaps because her part was cut so short, she was passed over in favour of Shirley Jones in Elmer Gantry. That film’s l ead, Burt Lancaster, took home the best actor prize for his portrayal of the titular charlatan. Despite his daring, gender- fluid turn as Norman Bates, Anthony Perkins wasn’t among the finalists.
John L. Russell’s brilliant cinematography was recognized but judged inferior to Freddie Francis’ work in Sons and Lovers. Most horrifying: Bernard Herrmann’s slashing score wasn’t considered sharp enough to earn a nomination.
Rosemary’s Baby ( 1968):
Two nominations, one win
Maybe the devil made them do it? The Academy snubbed this satanic satire from Roman Polanski, choosing not to nominate it for best picture or director, both of which were won by Carol Reed’s more upbeat Oliver!
Mia Farrow’s affecting, tremulous work as the mother of the devil’s spawn was left out of the best actress race, which ended in a tie between Barbra Streisand for Funny Girl and Katharine Hepburn for The Lion in Winter. That royal saga’s screenplay, by James Goldman, bested Polanski’s adaptation of Ira Levin’s novel.
Rosemary’s Baby found favour only in the best supporting actress category, where Ruth Gordon — a 72- year- old acting neophyte better known as a screenwriter — snagged the prize for her hysterical portrayal of a buttinsky neighbour who leads a coven of Upper West Side witches. The opening line of Gordon’s acceptance speech, “I can’t tell you how encouraging a thing like this is,” brought down the house.
The Exorcist ( 1973):
10 nominations, two wins
It’s enough to make your head spin. What could have possessed t he Academy to spurn director William Friedkin’s terrifying tale of a pea soup- spewing little girl played by Linda Blair in favour of George Roy Hill’s con-men comedy, The Sting, for best picture, director, art direction and editing?
William Peter Blatty did win for adapting his own novel into a screenplay, but he didn’t have to compete with The Sting, which fell into the original screenplay category. Blair lost best supporting actress to a less demonic youngster, Tatum O’Neal, for Paper Moon, while Ellen Burstyn, who played Blair’s mother, was defeated for best actress by Glenda Jackson for A Touch of Class.
The Exorcist did win for best sound, and I can offer personal testimony as to its effectiveness. I was too young to see the movie while it was in theatres, but when I was in junior high school, I tried to watch it on HBO — except my family didn’t subscribe to the channel, so I could see only scrambled images. Still, the sound alone scared the bejesus out of me — to the point where I never watched the film until I was assigned this story. The horror, the horror!
The Shining ( 1980):
No nominations
Where was Johnny — er, Jack — on Oscar night when Stanley Kubrick’s loose interpretation of Stephen King’s haunted-hotel novel was eligible? Nowhere to be seen.
The ceremony was dominated by Ordinary People, which won best picture, a best director award for Robert Redford, best adapted screenplay and best supporting actor for Timothy Hutton. Robert De Niro knocked out voters for best actor in Raging Bull and Thelma Schoonmaker won for best editing. The Academy dug Sissy Spacek’s take on Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner’s Daughter for best actress. Polanski’s version of Thomas Hardy ’ s Tess cleaned up in the categories of cinematography, art direction and costume design.
The Shining did earn the dubious distinction of garnering two Razzie nominations: Shelley Duvall for worst actress and Kubrick for worst director. It’s almost enough to make you want to commit redrum.