1975 DONE! Year #21: 1963

So, we've been on a bit of a 60's/70's run here...1964, 1972, 1967, 1975, 1963. The movies we watched from 1975 were Dog Day Afternoon and Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I would have to agree with our readers, however, that Rocky Horror Picture Show would have also been a fine selection. That being said, let's see how our movies fared against the 1975 Best Picture, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest...

First we watched my selection Dog Day Afternoon, a film neither of us has seen before. Based on a true story, it starred Al Pacino and his Godfather brother John Cazale as bank robbers who run into a comedy of errors when the botched robbery becomes a media circus. It turns out Pacino needed the money to get his "wife" (a man) a sex change operation, but the whole scene eventually ends in tragedy. We thought it was very well made and the acting was great, but Kim felt it dragged on a little at the end. Like Cuckoo's Nest, it did a great job of making a seemingly serious situation very humorous.

Then we watched Monty Python, a film both of us had seen many times. What a funny movie. For anyone who has never seen this film, please go watch it. You will be laughing your socks off. It's basically about Arthur, King of the Britians, and his troop of Knights who are given a quest from God to seek the Holy Grail. Very quotable film...in fact, for your response posts, please post your favorite Monty Python line. Mine would have to be "Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!" Kim's is when they are about to throw the Holy Hand Grenade and King Arthur shouts "One...Two....Five!" But there are so many others!

Looking back, this may be the best set of 3 films we have watched thus far. Every movie was fantastic in its own way. Cuckoo's nest definitely deserved the Best Picture, but Dog Day was no slouch, and Monty Python may be the most re-watchable movie ever. Good times.

We move on to 1963, a year that pales in comparison to 1975. The Best Picture that year was *sigh* Tom Jones. Yikes, this was a strange film. I guess it was a comedy, but that's still up for debate. Kim liked it, but agrees with me that it really had no semblance of plot and just didn't make any sense! I wrote in my original review, "I felt myself shaking my head during most of this movie for one reason or another..." Kim found it "entertaining" and "wacky" I am not even going to try to explain what it's supposed to be about, because that would be a lie. I gave it a 2.5, Kim gave it a 3.4, giving it a lowly 5.9. In retrospect, Kim may have given it too low a score, but I wouldn't have. That all being said, let's see what we picked from this year.

Adam: How the West Was Won (vetoed by Kim, 2/5 used)
Kim: It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

This year was slim pickens. No wonder Tom Jones won Best Picture. My pick, How the West Was Won, was a very shaky pick on my part to begin with, and Kim bailed me out with a veto. She picked Mad World because it's a comedy with many famous comedians from the time, and I was satisfied with that.

In addition to your favorite Monty Python quote, can anyone find a good movie from 1963? Did anyone like Tom Jones, How the West Was Won, or It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World? As you know, we'd love to hear from you!