Oscar Revisionism: 1954

Having mistakenly thought that 1955 was a fluke with oddities in major races, 1954 presented yet another year where the Best Picture contenders were not fixtures in the directing and screenplay categories.  On the Waterfront likely beat The Country Girl for the top honor.  However, what were the five likeliest films The Caine Mutiny, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and Three Coins in the Fountain muscled out of Best Picture nominations?

Sabrina
Two brothers compete for the heart of the chauffeur's daughter.  Director: AMPAS favorite Billy Wilder.  Screenplay: Wilder, Ernest Lehman, and Samuel A. Taylor adapted the latter's play.  Stars: Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn, William Holden.  Nominations: Director, Actress, Screenplay, Black and White Cinematography, Art Direction, Costume Design (winner).  Box Office: $4M.  NBR, WGA (winner), DGA (quarterly winner).  [IMDb: 7.7; RT: 65%]

A Star Is Born
Two performers fall in love, one on the rise, the other in decline.  Director: George Cukor (not nominated for this film, but recognized by the AMPAS in four separate decades).  Screenplay: Moss Hart adapted the 1937 screenplay.  Stars: Judy Garland, James Mason.  Nominations: Actor, Actress, Musical Score, Song, Color Art Direction, Costume Design.  Box Office: $6.9M.  NBR, WGA, DGA.  [IMDb: 7.7; RT: 96%]

The High and the Mighty
This disaster ensemble set aboard a plane was a box office hit.  At the time, the movie received mostly positive reviews.  Director: William A. Wellman (A Star Is Born (1937), Battleground).  Screenplay: Ernest K. Gann adapted his own novel.  Stars: John Wayne, Claire Trevor, Laraine Day, Robert Stack, Jan Sterling.  Nominations: Director, two Supporting Actress nods, Non-musical Score (winner), Song, Film Editing.  Box Office: $6.9.  DGA (quarterly winner).  [IMDb: 6.8; RT: 25%]

Rear Window
In one of Alfred Hitchcock's best, most famous, and enduring thrillers, a physically impaired Jimmy Stewart watches a mystery unfold outside his window with a set of binoculars.  Director: Hitchcock.  Screenplay: John Michael Hayes adapted Cornell Woolrich's short story.  Stars: Stewart, Grace Kelly.  Nominations: Director, Screenplay, Sound Recording, Color Cinematography.  Box Office: $9.9M.  WGA, DGA (quarterly winner).  [IMDb: 8.7; RT: 100%]

Executive Suite
Boardroom romance drama.  Director: the one and only Robert Wise hadn't been nominated for director yet.  Screenplay: Ernest Lehman (first nomination) adapted Cameron Hawley's novel.  Stars: William Holden, June Allyson, Barbara Stanwyck, Fredric March.  Nominations: Supporting Actress, Black and White Cinematography, Art Direction, Costume Design.  Box Office: $2.8M.  NBR, WGA, DGA.  [IMDb: 7.3]

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Action-adventure about a sea crew investigating the mysterious sinking of an assortment of ships.  Director: Richard Fleischer.  Screenplay: Earl Felton adapted the Jules Verne novel.  Stars: Kirk Douglas, James Mason, Paul Lukas, Peter Lorre.  Nominations: Film Editing, Color Art Direction (winner), Visual Effects (winner).  Box Office: $12M.  NBR.  [IMDb: 7.2; RT: 89%]

The Glenn Miller Story
Biography of the famous bandleader.  Director: Anthony Mann (El Cid, Men in War).  Screenplay: Valentine Davies (Miracle on 34th Street, It Happens Every Spring) and Oscar Brodney.  Stars: James Stewart, June Allyson.  Nominations: Story/Screenplay, Musical Score, Sound Recording (winner).  Box Office: $7M.  WGA, DGA.  [IMDb: 7.1]


Carmen Jones
Musical romance about a woman between jobs who seduces a taken man.  The film features an African-American cast, directed by Otto Preminger, who would go on to make the film version of Porgy & Bess.  Director: Preminger.  Screenplay: Harry Kleiner used the Hammerstein and Bizet musical based on the novella by Prosper Mérimée.  Stars: Dorothy Dandridge, Harry Belafonte, Pearl Bailey.  Nominations: Actress, Musical Score.  Box Office: $9.8M.  WGA, GG Comedy/Musical (winner).  [IMDb: 6.8; RT: 72%]

The Barefoot Contessa
Real-life sex symbol Maria Vargas lures the hearts of men while becoming the center of a film production.  Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz (directed Julius Caesar the year before, and Guys and Dolls the year after).  Screenplay: Mankiewicz.  Stars: Ava Gardner, Humphrey Bogart, Warren Stevens.  Nominations: Supporting Actor (winner), Story/Screenplay.  Box Office: $7.3M.  WGA.  [IMDb: 7.0]