The Popcorn Diet's 3rd Annual Hindsight Awards
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20 years ago, the 72nd Annual Academy Awards celebrated the year of 1999 in film. American Beauty took top prizes in Picture, Director, Actor, and a handful of other categories, winning five total awards off of eight nominations. Now, with the power of hindsight, we go back to that time to look at the films and performances that have genuinely stood up. The Popcorn Diet takes a look back, in hindsight, to see what truly were the best from the year of 1999.
As you might expect, looking back 20 years into the past proves some challenges. Unfortunately, in 1999, Hollywood and the Oscars weren’t really very close to catching up on inclusiveness. As a result, there are just not many meaningful women directors, directors of color, or performers of color, although there are still some, and some really great ones at that.
Note: All of the nominees in our Hindsight Awards categories were selected by a wide group of peers, friends, coworkers, and others based off of the included long lists in each category.
Best Picture
American Beauty *Previous Winner*
The Cider House Rules
The Green Mile
The Sixth Sense
The Insider
1999 Best Picture Contenders, in Hindsight: 10 Things I Hate About You, American Beauty, American Pie, Analyze This, Any Given Sunday, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, Being John Malkovich, Beyond the Mat, Big Daddy, Blast from the Past, Bowfinger, Boys Don't Cry, Bringing Out the Dead, Brokedown Palace, Cruel Intentions, Deep Blue Sea, Dick, Dogma, Drop Dead Gorgeous, Election, Entrapment, Eyes Wide Shut, Fantasia 2000, Fight Club, For Love of the Game, Galaxy Quest, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, Girl, Interrupted, Go, Lake Placid, Life, Magnolia, Man on the Moon, Mystery Men, Mystery, Alaska, Never Been Kissed, Notting Hill, October Sky, Office Space, Payback, Ravenous, Runaway Bride, She's All That, Sleepy Hollow, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Stigmata, Stir of Echoes, Stuart Little, Summer of Sam, Superstar, Sweet and Lowdown, Tarzan, The Blair Witch Project, The Boondock Saints, The Cider House Rules, The Green Mile, The Hurricane, The Insider, The Iron Giant, The Limey, The Matrix, The Mummy, The Sixth Sense, The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Thomas Crown Affair, The Virgin Suicides, Three Kings, Toy Story 2, Varsity Blues
1999 was a seemingly poppin’ year for Oscar-bait dramas and movies that start with the word “The”. Of the Best Picture nominees, four start with “The” and the only one not to start with the word was the film that won. I don’t know why I find that so amusing, but I do.
Regardless, the value of hindsight dictates that some of these films stay, such as the winner American Beauty, the emotionally resonant The Green Mile, and the blockbuster debut of M. Night Shyamalan, The Sixth Sense. Conversely, hindsight dictates that great films like The Insider and The Cider House Rules get left behind. When was the last time you talked to anyone about The Cider House Rules? After careful consideration, the follow ten films have been selected as films that hold a cultural significance, films that are still talked about with love and respect today, and films that are considered not only the best of the year they were released, but in the history of film in general.
The Popcorn Diet’s 1999 Hindsight Best Picture Nominees
American Beauty
The Sixth Sense
Office Space
The Matrix
The Iron Giant
Fight Club
Toy Story 2
Galaxy Quest
The Green Mile
Vote for the 1999 Hindsight Best Picture Below
Best Director
Sam Mendes - American Beauty *Previous Winner*
Spike Jonez - Being John Malkovich
Lasse Hallstrom - The Cider House Rules
Michael Mann - The Insider
M. Night Shyamalan - The Sixth Sense
1999 Best Director Nominees, in Hindsight: Sam Mendes – American Beauty, M. Night Shyamalan – The Sixth Sense, The Wachowskis – The Matrix, David Fincher – Fight Club, Frank Darabont – The Green Mile, James Mangold – Girl, Interrupted, Oliver Stone – Any Given Sunday, Milos Forman – Man on the Moon, Dean Parisot – Galaxy Quest, Paul Thomas Anderson – Magnolia, Anthony Minghella – The Talented Mr. Ripley, Norman Jewison – The Hurricane, Pedro Almodovar – All About My Mother, Joe Johnston – October Sky, Mike Judge – Office Space, Guy Ritchie – Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Alexander Payne – Election, Stephen Sommers – The Mummy, Stanley Kubrick – Eyes Wide Shut, Brad Bird – The Iron Giant, David O. Russell – Three Kings, Kimberly Peirce – Boys Don’t Cry, Spike Jonze – Being John Malkovich, Michael Mann – The Insider, Tim Burton – Sleepy Hollow, John Lasseter – Toy Story 2
Sam Mendes was a celebrated theater director before taking on his debut feature film, American Beauty. His win marked him as one of only four directors to win for his directorial debut (Robert Redford, James L. Brooks, and Kevin Costner were the others).
His other nominees are no spring chickens either, although Mendes was joined by Spike Jonez and M. Night Shyamalan as first time feature directors who were also nominated. Despite some amazing work, this field is being almost entirely rewritten, with only Mendes and Shyamalan as holdovers.
The Popcorn Diet’s 1999 Hindsight Best Director Nominees
Sam Mendes - American Beauty
M. Night Shyamalan - The Sixth Sense
The Wachowskis - The Matrix
David Fincher - Fight Club
Frank Darabont - The Green Mile
Vote for the 1999 Hindsight Best Director Below
Best Actor
Kevin Spacey - American Beauty *Previous Winner*
Russell Crowe - The Insider
Richard Farnsworth - The Straight Story
Sean Penn - Sweet and Lowdown
Denzel Washington - The Hurricane
1999 Best Actor Nominees, in Hindsight: Kevin Spacey - American Beauty, Russell Crowe - The Insider, Richard Farnsworth - The Straight Story, Sean Penn - Sweet and Lowdown, Denzel Washington - The Hurricane, Jim Carrey – Man on the Moon, Heath Ledger – 10 Things I Hate About You, Matthew Broderick – Election, Brendan Fraser – The Mummy, Hugh Grant – Notting Hill, Tom Cruise – Eyes Wide Shut, Bruce Willis – The Sixth Sense, Kevin Costner – For Love of the Game, George Clooney – Three Kings, Edward Norton – Fight Club, Keanu Reeves – The Matrix, John Cusack - Being John Malkovich, Johnny Depp – Sleepy Hollow, Tom Hanks – The Green Mile, Al Pacino – Any Given Sunday, Matt Damon – The Talented Mr. Ripley, Mel Gibson – Payback, Jake Gyllenhaal – October Sky, Eddie Murphy – Life, Martin Lawrence – Life, Adam Sandler – Big Daddy
Yes, we have to talk about the Spacey problem. At the time, he was a shoe-in to win, and it’s still considered to be a great performance in a fairly problematic film. According to our voters, it’s enough to earn him a spot with the hindsight nominees. We often times try to separate the art from the person, and this is just another example of that.
For better or for worse, Spacey is the only holdover. Perhaps it’s the win itself that keeps Spacey in the race, in hindsight. Tom Hanks and Bruce Willis got nods for their criminally underrated and understated work, Edward Norton finally gets some recognition, and Jim Carrey, for the second Hindsight Awards in a row, is recognized for practically becoming Andy Kaufman in a role that essentially broke him.
The Popcorn Diet’s 1999 Hindsight Best Actor Nominees
Kevin Spacey - American Beauty
Jim Carrey - Man on the Moon
Bruce Willis - The Sixth Sense
Edward Norton - Fight Club
Tom Hanks - The Green Mile
Vote for the 1999 Hindsight Best Actor Below
Best Actress
Hilary Swank - Boys Don't Cry *Previous Winner*
Annette Bening - American Beauty
Janet McTeer - Tumbleweeds
Julianne Moore - The End of the Affair
Meryl Streep - Music of the Heart
1999 Best Actress Nominees, in Hindsight: Hilary Swank - Boys Don't Cry, Annette Bening - American Beauty, Janet McTeer - Tumbleweeds, Julianne Moore - The End of the Affair, Meryl Streep - Music of the Heart, Sarah Michelle Gellar - Cruel Intentions, Julia Stiles - 10 Things I Hate About You, Drew Barrymore - Never Been Kissed, Reese Witherspoon - Election, Julia Roberts - Notting Hill, Nicole Kidman - Eyes Wide Shut, Rose McGowan - Jawbreaker, Meryl Streep - Music of the Heart, Winona Ryder – Girl, Interrupted, Juliette Lewis - The Other Sister, Heather Donahue - The Blair Witch Project, Sigourney Weaver - Galaxy Quest, Gwyneth Paltrow - The Talented Mr. Ripley
Best Actress wound up being, what I remember at least, to be a bit of an upset. Looking at the stats, however, it seems that it was an evenly contested race between Swank and Bening, with Bening taking the BAFTA and SAG and Swank taking the Golden Globe, Critics, and eventually the Oscar.
They’ll battle it out again for the Hindsight award as the only two holdovers. Bening has famously never won an Oscar, and Swanks performance is perhaps one of the most important maybe ever. Joining them are a duo of romcom leads in a couple of the formative films of the genre, and the beloved Winona Ryder who anchored Girl, Interrupted.
The Popcorn Diet’s 1999 Hindsight Best Actress Nominees
Annette Bening - American Beauty
Hilary Swank - Boys Don’t Cry
Julia Stiles - 10 Things I Hate About You
Drew Barrymore - Never Been Kissed
Winona Ryder - Girl, Interrupted
Vote for the 1999 Hindsight Best Actress Below
Best Supporting Actress
Angelina Jolie - Girl, Interrupted *Previous Winner*
Tony Collette - The Sixth Sense
Catherine Keener - Being John Malkovich
Samantha Morton - Sweet and Lowdown
Chloe Sevigny - Boys Don't Cry
1999 Best Supporting Actress Nominees, in Hindsight: Angelina Jolie - Girl, Interrupted, Tony Collette - The Sixth Sense, Catherine Keener - Being John Malkovich, Samantha Morton - Sweet and Lowdown, Chloe Sevigny - Boys Don't Cry, Carrie-Anne Moss – The Matrix, Helena Bonham Carter – Fight Club, Cameron Diaz – Being John Malkovich, Cate Blanchett – The Talented Mr. Ripley, Julianne Moore – Magnolia, Reese Witherspoon – Cruel Intentions, Kristie Alley – Drop Dead Gorgeous, Laura Dern – October Sky, Maggie Smith – Tea With Mussolini, Alyson Hannigan – American Pie, Thora Birch – American Beauty, Mena Suvari – American Beauty, Rosario Dawson – Light It Up, Christina Ricci – Sleepy Hollow, Charlize Theron – The Cider House Rules, Cameron Diaz – Any Given Sunday
1999 was the coming out party for Angelina Jolie, who was Hollywood royalty and had three high-profile roles launch her into superstardom. The rest of the nominees have enjoyed various levels of success, but none more so than Jolie did.
This was probably the most difficult list to cut from, aside from Morton, who does great work in a forgotten Woody Allen film that no one talks about anymore. Keener and Sevigny were tough cuts to make, but their replacements represent two memorable performances in films that have stood the test of time as well as a nurturing, winning performance from a beloved actress in Laura Dern.
The Popcorn Diet’s 1999 Hindsight Best Supporting Actress Nominees
Angelina Jolie – Girl, Interrupted
Toni Collette – The Sixth Sense
Carrie-Anne Moss – The Matrix
Helena Bonham Carter – Fight Club
Laura Dern – October Sky
Vote for the 1999 Hindsight Best Supporting Actress Below
Best Supporting Actor
Michael Caine - The Cider House Rules *Previous Winner*
Tom Cruise - Magnolia
Michael Clarke Duncan - The Green Mile
Jude Law - The Talented Mr. Ripley
Haley Joel Osment - The Sixth Sense
1999 Best Supporting Actor Nominees, in Hindsight: Michael Caine - The Cider House Rules, Tom Cruise - Magnolia, Michael Clarke Duncan - The Green Mile, Jude Law - The Talented Mr. Ripley, Haley Joel Osment - The Sixth Sense, Jon Voight – Varsity Blues, Gary Cole – Office Space, Eddie Murphy – Bowfinger, Mark Whalberg – Three Kings, Brad Pitt – Fight Club, Laurence Fishburne – The Matrix, John Malkovich – Being John Malkovich, Al Pacino – The Insider, Jamie Foxx – Any Given Sunday, Paul Giamatti – Man on the Moon, Alan Rickman – Galaxy Quest, Hugo Weaving – The Matrix
I’m not gonna mince words here. I like Michael Caine as an actor, he’s very good, but his victory here is perhaps the biggest change that needs to be made. There was such an excellent variety of performances in 1999 that to keep him as the winner would be criminal. He is the only winner for 1999 not to get a repeat nomination for the Hindsight Awards.
Instead, This category is now dominated by almost exclusively genre work that has held up for twenty years. With the exception of Tom Cruise’s incredible take in Magnolia, each one of our nominees comes form horror, fantasy, sci-fi, and Fight Club.
The Popcorn Diet’s 1999 Hindsight Best Supporting Actor Nominees
Tom Cruise - Magnolia
Michael Clarke Duncan - The Green Mile
Hayley Joel Osment - The Sixth Sense
Brad Pitt - Fight Club
Laurence Fishburne - The Matrix
Vote for the 1999 Hindsight Best Supporting Actor Below
Agree? Disagree? Got your own picks in hindsight? Don’t forget to join the discussion with The Popcorn Diet, a podcast for those who live on a steady diet of movie theater popcorn and other movie snacks! Like, rate, & subscribe now on iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, Google Play, TuneIn, or wherever you listen to podcasts and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!