1978 Best Picture

The recent death of Diane Keaton made me sad. She was a wonderful actor especially in the Godfather movies.

It also reminded me of the 1978 Academy Awards. Those were the 50th annual Academy Awards. But that's not what I remembered.

Diane Keaton won the best actress in a leading role Oscar for the movie Annie Hall, a movie directed by Woody Allen and for which he won Best Director (probably didn't show up).

But it was the best picture Oscar that really upset me. The nominees were:

• Annie Hall (it was funny in that understated, Woody Allen way)
• Julia (I don't remember anything about it)
• The Turning Point (ditto)
• The Goodbye Girl (a funny comedy)
• Star Wars 

And the winner was.... Annie Hall.

Now, let me ask you: which movie of those five had the biggest impact on the movie industry. It wasn't Annie Hall, a barely remembered comedy. It was, of course, Star Wars. It launched a whole science fiction franchise that is still going on. If it weren't for Star Wars, there would have been no Star Trek: The Motion Picture which revived that science fiction franchise that is still going on. Without Star Wars there would be no Star Trek series such as The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine.

But the Academy hates popular movies and Star Wars was the biggest grossing movie of 1977. But I was so mad I refused to watch Annie Hall for decades. I kind of regretted that when I finally watched it because it is an enjoyable film.

Do you think Star Wars should have won the 1978 Best Picture Oscar? Let me know in the comments below.

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