Retrospective Film Review

It Happened One Night (1934) • 90 Years Later — witty, charming, classic cinema

A reporter trailing a runaway heiress for a big story joins her on a bus heading from Florida to New York, and they end up stuck with each other….

The Oscars are fast approaching. While many, including myself, have bemoaned the lack of risk and diversity that the Academy has shown, it’s undeniable they’re still one of the most prestigious awards in cinema. However, in the ceremony’s near-century-long history, only three films have ever swept the “Big Five” categories: ‘Best Picture’, ‘Best Director’, ‘Best Adapted’ or ‘Original Screenplay’, ‘Best Actor’, and ‘Best Actress’.

The most recent was The Silence of the Lambs (1991), a tour de force thriller that still holds up to this day. Before that came One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), which captivated audiences with its harrowing drama, shaking audiences to their very core. However, the film that first achieved the remarkable feat of winning all five major Oscars was It Happened One Night at the…