Best movie = sad movie?

The theme of this post is movies. This past weekend I was sick and had only enough energy to let my brain ooze from my ears by watching movies. I rented 3 movies, in the order that I watched them:

1) Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants
Ok, I don't know what I was thinking either. This movie got great reviews but it was clearly intended for 13 year old girls. And those of you who know me, know that girly movies of this sort really don't interest me. We'll chalk this particular selection up to the alcohol in Nyquil and the lightheadedness of fever. Anyway, it was marginally interesting. But I wouldn't really recommend it.

2) Thirteen Days
This movie was excellent! It was about the Cuban Missile Crisis. It's hard to believe that all this stuff actually happened and that war was so narrowly averted. Anyway, good movie. As historically accurate as possible - including some footage from the time. The DVD extras are also quite interesting. I found the commentary by Sergei Kruschev, Nikita's son, to be most interesting since it was coming from the Soviet perspective.

3) Finding Neverland
Another excellent film! I had heard this movie was good but it was really quite wonderful. I had hoped the DVD extras would have some sequence about the rest of J. M. Barrie's life but alas, it did not.

Anyway, the title of this post really refers to the Oscar Best Picture winners. It seems to me that the only way a movie has a chance of winning is if it is depressing. What is it with all "good movies" being incredibly sad? Let's look at the Best Picture winners from the last few years, shall we?

2004 - Million Dollar Baby - Didn't see it but she dies, so SAD
2003 - The Return of the King - uplifting, HAPPY
2002 - Chicago - neither sad, nor uplifting, just entertaining
2001 - A Beautiful Mind - that is crushed by the end! SAD!
2000 - Gladiator - Dude dies. SAD
1999 - American Beauty - Gay guy commits suicide. Marriage falls apart. SAD!
1998 - Shakespeare in Love - yes yes, love love, blah blah barf, but HAPPY
1997 - Titantic - Boat sinks. Lots of poor people die including hot Leo, REALLY SAD
1996 - The English Patient - Guy sells out unit, girl dies SAD
1995 - Braveheart - Guy marries girl. Other dude rapes girl. Girl is killed. Guy is killed. DOUBLE SAD!!
1994 - Forrest Gump - I thought this movie was dumb. But others found it uplifting so HAPPY
1993 - Schindler's List - Holocaust is SAD
1992 - Unforgiven - I don't know what this movie is about.
1991 - The Silence of the Lambs - This movie is terrible and disturbing and gross. SAD!
1990 - Dances with Wolves - Indians killed. Soldiers killed. Indians put on reservations. SAD!
(You can check out the rest of the list at http://listsofbests.com/list/10/)

Ok so to summarize:

• Total Movies: 14 (excluding Unforgiven)
• Number of SADs: 10
• Number of HAPPYs: 3

That means that an astonishing 71% of Best Pictures have been SAD movies in the last 15 years! If Brokeback Mountain wins this year, it will be 73%! It's just ridiculous really. Where are the movies about the triumph of the human spirit? How come they don't win squat? I'm just saying that we should perhaps re-evaluate why a movie is good. Anyone can write a really depressing movie; it is much harder to write an uplifting movie that is neither silly nor laughable. So that's my two cents.