1935--The Year in Review

Easily the most entertaining film of a nondescript year, Hitchcock's The 39 Steps is a constant surprise. It begins and ends in stunning fashion, and even though Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will is clearly the most influential movie of its time, Hitchcock's finest British production is obviously the narrative movie of the year--it's just as exciting now as it was when it was made. But James Whale's The Bride of Frankenstein came close to eclipsing it with the sheer force of its performances and design (it's at the top as one of the greatest sequels produced). With animation, Disney continues to contribute beautiful work with The Band Concert, which would prove to be among Mickey Mouse's finest moments. Still, in the end, it is Riefenstahl's images that will live forever, even if they live in infamy. NOTE: These are MY choices for each category, and they are in no way reflective of the choices made by the Oscars.

PICTURE: THE 39 STEPS (US, Alfred Hitchcock)
(2nd: The Bride of Frankenstein (US, James Whale), followed by: 
Triumph of the Will (Germany, Leni Refenstahl)
Top Hat (US, Mark Sandrich)
Captain Blood (US, Michael Curtiz)
Mutiny on the Bounty (US, Frank Lloyd)
A Night at the Opera (US, Sam Wood)
Ruggles of Red Gap (US, Leo McCarey)
Sylvia Scarlett (US, George Cukor)
David Copperfield (US, George Cukor)
The Man on the Flying Trapeze (US, Clyde Bruckman)
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (US, William Dieterle and Max Reinhardt)
A Tale of Two Cities (US, Jack Conway))

ACTOR: Charles Laughton, RUGGLES OF RED GAP (2nd: Ronald Colman, A Tale of Two Cities, followed by: Boris Karloff, The Bride of Frankenstein; Peter Lorre, Mad Love; Victor McLaglen,  The Informer; W.C. Fields, The Man on the Flying Trapeze; Groucho Marx, A Night at the Opera; Clark Gable, Mutiny on the Bounty; Charles Laughton, Mutiny on the Bounty; Paul Muni, The Story of Louis Pasteur; Will Rogers, Steamboat Round the Bend)

ACTRESS: Katharine Hepburn, SYLVIA SCARLETT (2nd: Jean Arthur, The Whole Town‘s Talking, followed by: Bette Davis, Dangerous; Ginger Rogers, Top Hat; Katharine Hepburn, Alice Adams; Greta Garbo, Anna Karenina; Miriam Hopkins, Becky Sharp)

SUPPORTING ACTOR: Ernest Thesiger, THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (2nd: Mickey Rooney, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, followed by: W.C. Fields, David Copperfield; Franchot Tone, Mutiny on the Bounty; Basil Rathbone, Captain Blood; Edward Everett Horton, Top Hat)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Elsa Lanchester. THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (2nd: Edna May Oliver, David Copperfield, followed by: Mary Boland, Ruggles of Red Gap; Florence Eldridge, Les Misérables; Zasu Pitts, Ruggles of Red Gap; Jessie Ralph, David Copperfield)

DIRECTOR: Leni Riefenstahl, TRIUMPH OF THE WILL (2nd: James Whale, The Bride of Frankenstein, followed by: Alfred Hitchcock, The 39 Steps; Michael Curtiz, Captain Blood; George Cukor, Sylvia Scarlett; John Ford, The Informer)

SCREENPLAY: Charles Bennett and Ian Hay, THE 39 STEPS (2nd: William Hurlbut and John L. Balderson, The Bride of Frankenstein; W.P. Lipscomb and S.N. Behrman, A Tale of Two Cities; George S. Kaufman, Morrie Ryskind, James Kevin McGuinness, A Night at the Opera; Dudley Nichols, The Informer; Gladys Unger, John Collier, and Mortimer Offner, Sylvia Scarlett)



LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM: CAB CALLOWAY'S JITTERBUG PARTY (Fred Waller) (2nd: Tit for Tat (Laurel and Hardy; Charles Rogers); Uncivil Warriors (Three Stooges; Del Lord); Three Little Beers (Three Stooges; Del Lord)




ANIMATED SHORT FILM: THE BAND CONCERT (Wilfred Jackson and Walt Disney) (2nd:  Colour Box (Lenny Lye), followed by: Three Orphan Kittens (David Hand and Walt Disney)



CINEMATOGRAPHY: Hal Mohr, A MIDSUMMER'S NIGHT DREAM (2nd: Sepp Allinger, Triumph of the Will, followed by Bernard Knowles, The 39 Steps)

ART DIRECTION: TOP HAT, The Dark Angel, Anna Karenina, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Bride of Frankenstein

COSTUME DESIGN: CAPTAIN BLOOD, Top Hat, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Anna Karenina, David Copperfield