17th Academy Awards: choose your alternate nominees (1944)
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Classic Film
sheetsadam1 — 2 weeks ago(March 16, 2026 07:15 PM)
The idea is this: what if the nominees for Best Picture each year weren't nominated? Which films should have taken their place in that scenario? Pick your alternate selections for Best Picture and, if you wish, mention anybody who you feel was overlooked in any other category. No need to confine yourself to the types of films which typically get nominated or to English-language cinema. If you missed the previous years, they can be found on the classic film board.
All films released in 1944 are eligible. The nominees were:
Going My Way- Leo McCarey
Double Indemnity - Billy Wilder
Gaslight - George Cukor
Since You Went Away - John Cromwell
Wilson - Henry King
The Academy reduced the number of nominees this year, which in theory should give us more overlooked films to mention. The first three are all very strong contenders. I can't speak to the other two. But as much as I like
Going My Way
, I'd have gone with
Double Indemnity
.
My alternate nominees:
Laura - Otto Preminger
Arsenic and Old Lace - Frank Capra
To Have and Have Not - Howard Hawks
The Lodger - John Brahm
Lifeboat - Alfred Hitchcock
The Miracle of Morgan's Creek - Preston Sturges
The Uninvited - Lewis Allen
I'll Be Seeing You - William Dieterle
I feel like at least a few of those would have gotten a nomination if they'd not reduced the number of nominees. Nevertheless, I would still go with
Double Indemnity
.
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026
- Leo McCarey
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PygmyLion — 2 weeks ago(March 16, 2026 09:34 PM)
I'm not much of a
Double Indemnity
fan.
Going My Way
is nice with Bing Crosby.
Gaslight
is a nice movie.
Since You Went Away
is a nice movie of the home front.
From your list:
Laura
is pretty good.
Arsenic and Old Lace
and
To Have and Have Not
are nice movies.
Lifeboat
is very good.
I'll be Seeing You
is another of those nice Ginger Roger's dramas with Joseph Cotton.
While it is a musical, it seems a little remiss not to at least mention
Meet Me in St.Louis
.
The Woman in the Window
is fairly good.
A Canterbury Tale
is a nice Powell and Pressburger movie. Of course, you have
National Velvet
for a top animal flick.
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo
to remind us of the Doolittle raid.
This Happy Breed
is an interesting movie from David Lean.
The Seventh Cross
is one of my favorites. I've enjoyed
The Very Thought of You
. I have probably seen 40-50 different movies from 1944.
The Seventh Cross
is my top picture of the year.