Shea Cinema: The Best Picture Project
TLDR; Father/Daughter team watch and review all movies nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, starting back in 1927.
Welcome to Shea Cinema, The Best Picture Project!
Join host Sara Shea and her father, William Shea, as they watch and explore every film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Sara and Dad are recreating a project Sara assigned to her high school Film Studies students, which includes contextual historical research, discussing their personal responses to each film, what makes these films important, why these films need to be understood in context, and, finally, did the winner deserve the Oscar?
So grab your popcorn, pull up a chair, sit back and relax, and let's begin Shea Cinema.
Episodes
56 episodes
S6E9: She Done Him Wrong, 1933
(Episode recorded October 25, 2024)It's our eighth review of the season, but only our fifth nominee for Outstanding Production at the Sixth Academy Awards. In fact, She Done Him Wrong is the shortest film nominated for ...
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Season 6
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Episode 9
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1:47:53
S6E8: Cavalcade, 1933
(Episode recorded October 19, 2024)It's been three months since our last episode, but it's been even longer since we recorded this one!In our seventh review of the season, we are exploring the actual winner of the Oscar f...
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Season 6
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Episode 8
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2:03:59
S6E7: A Farewell to Arms, 1932
WE ARE BACK!In our sixth review of the season, we are back on track with an actual Outstanding Production nomination. We dive into A Farewell to Arms, based on Ernest Hemingway's 1929 novel (which supposedly had 47 different en...
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Season 6
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Episode 7
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2:00:16
S6E6: The Sign of the Cross, 1932 BONUS EPISODE!
This is our third bonus episode and our fifth review of the season! We are covering one of Dad's childhood favorites: Cecil B. DeMille's notorious tale of forbidden love and Roman Empire decadence, The Sign of the Cross. With...
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Season 6
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Episode 6
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2:10:27
S6E5: I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang, 1932 (feat. Kieran B)
For our second regular nomination review of the season, we are excited to welcome Kieran B. from Best Picture Cast as our first official guest host! Kieran, Dad and Sara take a deep dive into this classic Warner Brothers prison flick, making co...
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Season 6
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Episode 5
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2:45:05
S6E4: Smilin' Through, 1932
We are finally diving into our standard nomination reviews! This time we are covering Smilin' Through, starring Norma Shearer and Fredric March. This fascinating film has love triangles, murder, intrigue, tragedy, revenge...and GHOSTS....
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Season 6
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Episode 4
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1:53:32
S6E3: The Most Dangerous Game, 1932 BONUS EPISODE!
This is our 50th episode!For our second review of the season, we have another bonus episode! We are covering The Most Dangerous Game, based on a 1924 short story by Richard Connell. This film was made by the same crew who made&...
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Season 6
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Episode 3
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1:26:09
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S6E2: White Zombie, 1932 BONUS EPISODE!
Welcome to our first film review of the season! We are kicking off with a special BONUS EPISODE! And what better super surprise than the very first zombie story ever told on celluloid! This obscure movie stars Bela Lugosi fresh off his success ...
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Season 6
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Episode 2
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1:40:37
S6E1: 6th Academy Awards, 1934
Welcome to our Season 6 Premiere! We took a two-month break, and we never want to be away for that long again! (Please scroll to the bottom for chapter timestamps.)Sara and Dad cover the 6th Academy Awards ceremony. This is the longest e...
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Season 6
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Episode 1
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1:38:44
S5E11: Season 5 Finale
In this episode we wrap up the 5th Academy Awards, giving a quick rundown of all 8 films nominated for the top award, Outstanding Production.Walt Disney's Parade of the Award Nominees short:
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Season 5
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Episode 11
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2:08:00
S5E10: Grand Hotel, 1932
This is our last film review of the season, and we cover Outstanding Production winner, Grand Hotel. This movie is unique in that, while it did win the top prize at the 5th Academy Awards, it did not receive a nomination in any other c...
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Season 5
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Episode 10
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2:34:05
S5E9: One Hour With You, 1932
Welcome to our episode on One Hour With You, our fourth Ernst Lubitsch film for the project, and our THIRD Lubitsch musical...which also means our third Maurice Chevalier vehicle. Chevalier is joined once again by Jeanette MacDon...
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Season 5
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Episode 9
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1:45:49
S5E8: Shanghai Express, 1932
Today we go over director Josef von Sternberg's Shanghai Express, starring Marlene Dietrich, Clive Brook, Anna May Wong, and Werner Oland. Based on a real-life incident of train passengers taken hostage in China, the story vacillates b...
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Season 5
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Episode 8
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1:58:05
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S5E7: Arrowsmith, 1931
In our fifth regular film review of the season, we cover director John Ford's Arrowsmith, adapted from Sinclair Lewis's Pulitzer Prize winning novel. No, this is not the origin story of a 20th Century rock band, but it is the story of ...
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Season 6
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Episode 7
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1:51:06
S5E6: Frankenstein, 1931 BONUS EPISODE!
That's right! It's a BONUS EPISODE, and today we are covering 1931's Frankenstein. Everyone thinks they know this classic monster movie whether they've seen it or not, and we take a deep dive as it falls right on our regular...
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Season 5
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Episode 6
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1:58:09
S5E4: Five Star Final, 1931
THIS IS OUR FORTIETH EPISODE!!This third film review of the season covers Five Star Final, starring Edward G. Robinson in a non-gangster role. This tale of yellow journalism gone horribly wrong showcases the horrifying conseque...
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Season 5
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Episode 4
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2:32:36
S5E3: Bad Girl, 1931
Here is our second film review for the season! Frank Borzage, who won Best Director at the first Academy Awards for Seventh Heaven, is back, with ANOTHER win for Best Director of this film, Bad Girl. Newcomer James Dunn domina...
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Season 5
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Episode 3
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2:48:33
S5E2: The Smiling Lieutenant, 1931
In our first film review for the season, we cover The Smiling Lieutenant, another Ernst Lubitsch musical comedy. Starring Maurice Chevalier, Claudette Colbert, and newcomer Miriam Hopkins, this jaunty, suggestive film focuses on a love...
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Season 5
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Episode 2
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1:50:27
S5E1: 5th Academy Awards, 1932
Welcome to our Season 5 Premiere! Sara and Dad cover the 5th Academy Awards ceremony (honoring the best in films - screened in Los Angeles - between August 1, 1931 and July 31, 1932). We discuss (again) the context of these films be...
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Season 5
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Episode 1
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1:19:35
S4E9: Season 4 Finale
In this episode we wrap up the 4th Academy Awards, giving a quick rundown of all 5 films nominated for the top award, Outstanding Production. Including our two bonus films, we give our personal favorites and personal worsts. An...
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Season 4
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Episode 9
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1:25:19
S4 E8: Trader Horn, 1931
After a quick one week hiatus, we are back with our final review of the season, covering the controversial film Trader Horn.The first non-documentary movie filmed on location in Africa, Trader Horn is based on the memoi...
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Season 4
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Episode 8
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2:13:47
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S4E7: The Public Enemy, 1931 BONUS EPISODE!
That’s right! Today we have ANOTHER special BONUS episode, covering William Wellman's The Public Enemy. This "gangster" classic was released on April 23, 1931, so it fits right in with our regular Oscar timeline, but this movie w...
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Season 4
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Episode 7
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2:27:05
