The Oscar Movies

I've found this to be an invaluable reference when I'm looking to catch up on my film education. I like to watch modern films, but just as often I like to pause in front of the classics section at the video store and pick something out I feel I should have seen. This book is the one I usually take with me, and it has paid off handsomely. I'd have never seen the wonderful "Touch of Class" (Glenda Jackson/George Segal) without this book, or "Lilies of the Field", or many others. The book has useful lists of all Academy Award winners, and I like the way he keeps separate lists for the "big four" (director, picture, actor, actress) and all the other awards. A movie that wins one of the big four awards is almost always worth seeing; a movie that wins one of the others is a bit more of a risk, especially after forty or fifty years have passed. The book is useful for reference, but less valuable as a source of information about the quality of the films. It seems clear Pickard hasn't actually seen every one of these movies. He does give clear and (I've found) reliable opinions about many films, but quite a few of the descriptions just give the facts and some background information. Recommended, as a reference at least, and for the comments on some of the films.