ABOUT THE EPISODE:

The final film in the 1950 Best Picture nominees, Born Yesterday start Judy Holliday giving an incredible performance as a ditzy chorus girl whose mobster boyfriend, played by Broderick Crawford, regrets forcing her to get smart. In any other year, Holliday’s performance would have still made this otherwise weirdly paced romantic comedy, with William Holden as the love interest, a serious contender for Best Picture, but the 1950 nominees were dominated by women in uniquely memorable roles. In the last episode for these nominees, will All About Eve stand the Screen Test of Time against Sunset Boulevard?

SHOW NOTES

Year Eligible: 1950 (Nominated)

Additional audio from Born Yesterday (1950)

(Explicit language, as always)

ABOUT THE EPISODE:

David refers to King Solomon’s Mines as the movie that dares to ask, “What if Trader Horn was in color?” but what it really answers is why the character of Allan Quatermain, who was as popular and well known at the turn of the 20th century as James Bond is today, and played here by Stewart Granger, disappeared entirely from the popular imagination.

SHOW NOTES

Year Eligible: 1950 (Nominated)

Additional audio from King Solomon’s Mines (1950)

(Explicit language, as always)

ABOUT THE EPISODE:

The Best Picture winner of the 1950 awards, All About Eve is so good that it made David do a complete reevaluation of Bette Davis, his long standing Screen Test of Time nemesis. Suzan isn’t sure that film historians are right about certain readings of this film, but doesn’t really care, because it’s absolutely fabulous. Oh, and Marilyn Monroe is in it and is both too hot and too funny for words.

SHOW NOTES

Year Eligible: 1950 (Won)

Additional audio from All About Eve (1950)

(Explicit language, as always)

ABOUT THE EPISODE:

Good news, Screen Testers! Suzan did not, in fact, hate Sunset Boulevard, so David will not, as he threatened last week, have to stop being her friend. It seems like 1950 is shaping up to be an extraordinary year already, and Sunset Boulevard is an early lead for our hosts’ choice for Best Picture.

SHOW NOTES

Year Eligible: 1950 (Nominated)

Additional audio from Sunset Boulevard (1950)

(Explicit language, as always)

ABOUT THE EPISODE:

The original Father of the Bride starring Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor may suffer a bit in light of the Steve Martin remake... even if it's maybe a better movie. As the first of the 1950 nominees, Father of the Bride has some stiff competition on its heels, and likely won't survive to be the best of the year, but it's still an enjoyable cupcake of a film, nonetheless.

SHOW NOTES

Year Eligible: 1950 (Nominated)

Additional audio from Father of the Bride (1949)

(Explicit language, as always)