the hitTitanic(1997) heightened interest, and when
the Oscar gala was finally telecast, 87 million Ameri-
cans viewed it, earning the show a 34.9 rating and a
55 share of the audience.
The Oscars are designed to be inspiring, not least
to filmmakers who aspire to create work that will im-
press voting members of the Academy of Motion Pic-
ture Arts and Sciences. However, during the 1990’s,
the awards also shaped the movie calendar. Because
voters are less likely to remember contenders seen
earlier in the year, studios released their best pros-
pects during the crowded final months. The result
was that better films were competing for attention
from September through December and absent
from theaters during other months. However, the
advent of digital video discs (DVDs), inexpensive
video cameras, and, later, technologies for down-
loading suggested that the 1990’s might have repre-
sented the peak of the Oscars’ power. The democra-
tization of film production and distribution would
undercut the authority of the official industry
awards, weakening the Oscars’ influence over which
films are seen and when.
The Winners Nominations for the
Oscars during the 1990’s reflected
a general trend toward globaliza-
tion. The category of Best Foreign
Language Film has always provided
recognition for imported work, but
in 1996 four of the five nominees for
Best Picture—Babe (1995), Brave-
heart(1995),Il Postino(1994), and
Sense and Sensibility (1995)—were
made outside the United States, as
were all five—Elizabeth,Life Is Beauti-
ful,Saving Private Ryan,Shakespeare
in Love, andThe Thin Red Line(all
released in 1998)—in 1999. Holly-
wood has always been a magnet
for ambitious outsiders, but foreign-
ers who won Oscars in general cate-
gories during the decade include
Roberto Benigni, Juliette Binoche,
Judi Dench, Anthony Hopkins, Jer-
emy Irons, Sam Mendes, Anthony
Minghella, Anna Paquin, Geoffrey
Rush, and Emma Thompson.
Steven Spielberg had attained
commercial success with blockbust-
ers includingJaws(1975),Close En-
counters of the Third Kind(1977),Raiders of the Lost Ark
(1981), andE.T.(1982). However, an Oscar in 1994
for directingSchindler’s List(1993), which also won
for Best Picture, promoted him to the ranks of distin-
guished filmmakers, and an Oscar in 1999 for direct-
ingSaving Private Ryanconfirmed his elevated stat-
ure. Similarly, although Clint Eastwood had been
directing films sincePlay Misty for Mein 1971, an Os-
car in 1993 for directingUnforgiven(1992), which
also won for Best Picture, garnered him respect as
more than just a popular actor in Westerns and po-
lice procedurals. Winning the award for Best Actor
in two consecutive years, 1994 (Philadelphia, 1993)
and 1995 (Forrest Gump, 1994), confirmed the pre-
eminence of Tom Hanks. In 1998, Jack Nicholson’s
Oscar forAs Good as It Gets(1997) was his third—
afterOne Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nestin 1976 andTe r m s
of Endearmentin 1984. Kevin Spacey won for Best
Supporting Actor in 1996 forThe Usual Suspects
(1995) and Best Actor four years later forAmerican
Beauty(1998). Emma Thompson won an Oscar for
Best Actress in 1993 forHowards End(1992) and,
three years later, for Best Screenplay forSense andThe Nineties in America Academy Awards 3
Oscar host Billy Crystal, left, dons a Hannibal Lecter mask at the 64th Academy
Awards on March 30, 1992. Anthony Hopkins, right, won an Oscar for Best Actor
for his portrayal of Hannibal inThe Silence of the Lambs, which won a total of
five awards.(AP/Wide World Photos)