1995

Best Picture Nominees:

Apollo 13
Babe
Braveheart *
Il Postino (The Postman)
Sense and Sensibility

***

Apollo 13 - Excellent dramatization of the Apollo 13 debacle, where the US almost lost their space crew to a major failure.  Also, for the most part, I always enjoy stuff Ron Howard does.

Babe - A fairly annoying movie about a talking pig.  Reminded me of Charlotte's Web or Animal Farm, but I liked those better.

Braveheart - An inspirational story of William Wallace and the battle for Scottish independence; however, this became a real contender because the Academy wanted to reward actor/director Mel Gibson for his epic (a la Dances with Wolves).

Il Postino (The Postman) - A very quaint story about a postman who develops a friendship with his favorite poet.  Massimo Troisi (The Postman) died shortly after completing filming.  Due to Academy rules, this wasn't nominated for Foreign Film, though recently made a comeback as an opera (based on the film).  I enjoyed the movie, but think the death of the lead actor was why it was nominated more than the quality of the film.

Sense and Sensibility - An awesome adaptation of a Jane Austen novel with Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, and Kate Winslet turning in great performances.  This marked Emma Thompson's 4th acting nomination in 4 years (she doubled up in 1993), and she won an Oscar for writing the screenplay.  I love the original music in this movie and it's another film that I can tune into and watch on a moment's notice.

***

My rankings of the Best Picture nominees:

1.  Sense and Sensibility
2.  Apollo 13
3.  Braveheart
4.  Il Postino (The Postman)
5.  Babe