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Ranking 1927 Best Picture Nominees

The first year for The Academy Award for Best Picture was very strong and even exceptional. This was an odd year as it had two Best Picture categories: one for regular films and the other one for Best Unique and Artistic Production. It was a wonderful choice to distinguish between audience favorite spectacles and artistic productions and it’s a shame that they did not continue this practice. Some may not count the second category, but I personally do count them among the nominees.

My Ranking of the Nominees:

6. Chang: A Drama of the Wilderness

Chang is basically an early documentary film and thus it remains the only documentary nominated for Best Picture up to this point. It may be too short and sometimes lacking focus, but this is still a wonderful early look into Thai jungles with gorgeous, memorable imagery and terrific direction from its talented directors who would later go on to direct ‘King Kong’. The fact that this very good, strong film ended up last on this list just goes to show how strong this entire nominations slate truly is.

5. The Racket

By far the most underrated film on this list, The Racket is one very good, highly influential early crime flick. It needed a longer runtime for sure just like the above entry, but The Racket still manages to convey what it has to say in such a short time thanks to excellent storytelling and one outstanding, groundbreaking and truly brave ending which is far from happy and is very truthful. The movie is not only clever and realistic, but also stupendously shot with a couple of truly artistic touches and flourishes.

4. The Crowd

Although not as effective upon second viewing, The Crowd still remains a powerful drama filled with relatable characters and themes. It is relevant even to this day thematically speaking and it has a lot of fantastic, very observant and clever quotes and lines. It is also stupendously shot (as is every single movie on this list), so well acted and deftly directed by King Vidor. The Crowd is the best in its emotional moments as it truly can be quite moving while giving us some memorable city imagery and iconic shots as well.

3. Wings

It may not hold as much admiration and classic status as these other films here, but Wings is in my opinion an underrated wonder of a film. Wonderfully acted by its talented and good looking stars, the movie gives us such well developed characters and a beautiful bromance at the heart of the film. Wings is groundbreaking in its aerial battle sequences which are thrilling to this day and it thus succeeds as a sprawling war epic while also being a wonderful romance and a great, resonant drama about friendship. A true, grand crowd-pleaser of a flick.

2. 7th Heaven

Frank Borzage’s Oscar-winning direction on this film is amazing as are the wonderful performances from both Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell. Certainly its maudlin ending hurt it a bit, but not by much as otherwise the film is excellent across the board with particularly effective, fascinatingly constructed sets and terrific cinematography. It is a beautiful melodrama and undoubtedly an incredible, truly moving romance that would be the very best one had it not been for…

1. Sunrise

Yes, Sunrise is the very best Oscar nominee from the Academy’s first year of awards. This is an obvious and cliched, but just right choice as nobody can deny the immense power of this romance. Janet Gaynor and George O’Brien give two terrific performance and their romantic relationship is so well written and highly charming to follow, not to mention moving. The film is tonally diverse as it is also quite dark at times as well as pretty funny. F. W. Murnau’s direction is stellar as is the truly stunning, highly artistic cinematography at display. It is one of the most beautiful films ever made and a big silent masterpiece.

Films That Should Have Been Nominated:

The Passion of Joan of Arc – This Carl Theodor Dreyer masterpiece was shamelessly ignored by the Academy and thus sent the precedent for future awards where the foreign films being honored remains a rare occasion. This heartbreaking, visually arresting and difficult to watch historical drama remains strikingly dark and memorable to this day.

Metropolis – Another precedent was set here – the Academy’s refusal to acknowledge the science fiction genre. This sci-fi tale remains one of the genre’s best a century after its release owing to groundbreaking visuals and effects, a thematically rich and powerful story and many unforgettable scenes. It is a true blockbuster and grand spectacle of its day.

The Unknown – Again the precedent was set when it comes to the Academy’s ignorance toward horror films and thus all these three films should have been nominated, but did not stand a chance and wouldn’t even if they were released today. Lon Chaney’s central performance is simply amazing, but it’s the movie’s crazy, immensely dark story that truly strikes the nerve here.