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'Crash' Joins Short List of Oscar Upsets
2006-03-06
The previous 77 Academy Awards ceremonies have had their share of unexpected twists, though the best-picture win by underdog "Crash" over "Brokeback Mountain" ranks as one of the biggest in Oscar history. Some other instances where underdogs have triumphed: • For best picture of 1948, the poignant drama "Johnny Belinda," a homegrown Hollywood production, seemed to have the edge, only to lose to a British upstart, Laurence Olivier's "Hamlet." • Three years later, the song-and-dance romance "An American in Paris" pulled off a best-picture stunner over dramatic heavyweights "A Place in the Sun" and "A Streetcar Named Desire." • The next year, Gary Cooper's Western "High Noon" looked as though it would ride into the winner's circle, but the splashy circus tale "The Greatest Show on Earth" came out on top. • The 1968 best-picture award went the musical route again as "Oliver!" became an upset winner over the more popular musical "Funny Girl" and the palace-intrigue saga "The Lion in Winter." • One of Oscar's biggest underdogs, the Olympics tale "Chariots of Fire," ran off with best picture for 1981 over the historical drama "Reds" and the family story "On Golden Pond." • For the 1998 Oscars, "Saving Private Ryan" had been viewed as a best-picture shoo-in until "Shakespeare in Love" showed up at the last minute in December, the latter film ultimately winning the showdown.
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