1972 — Year in Review
Fritz Golden Superlatives
The Godfather (dir: Francis Ford Coppola)
What's Up, Doc? (dir: Peter Bogdanovich)
Wake in Fright (dir: Ted Kotcheff; US Release Date)
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (dir: Luis Buñuel)
Le Cercle Rouge (dir: Jean-Pierre Melville; UK Release Date)
Deliverance (dir: John Boorman)
Across 110th Street (dir: Barry Shear)
The Heartbreak Kid (dir: Elaine May)
Love in the Afternoon (dir: Eric Rohmer)
Images (dir: Robert Altman)
Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order): Bay of Blood (dir: Mario Bava), Cabaret (dir: Bob Fosse), Cries and Whispers (dir: Ingmar Bergman), Fat City (dir: John Huston), Frenzy (dir: Alfred Hitchcock), The Getaway (dir: Sam Peckinpah), Last House on the Left (dir: Wes Craven), The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (dir: Paul Newman), Marjoe (dir: Sarah Kernochan and Howard Smith), Murmur of the Heart (dir: Louis Malle), The Ruling Class (dir: Peter Medak) and Sounder (dir: Martin Ritt)
Best Picture: The Godfather
Director: Francis Ford Coppola Producers: Al Ruddy
US Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Luis Buñuel directs Delphine Seyrig in The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Best Director:
Luis Buñuel, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
2. Francis Ford Coppola, The Godfather
3. Peter Bogdanovich, What's Up, Doc?
4. Ted Kotcheff, Wake in Fright
5. John Boorman, Deliverance
Al Pacino in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather
Best Actor:
Al Pacino, The Godfather
2. Donald Pleasence, Wake in Fright
3. Charles Grodin, The Heartbreak Kid
4. Robert Duvall, Tomorrow
5. Stacy Keach, Fat City
Liza Minnelli in Bob Fosse’s Cabaret
Best Actress:
Liza Minnelli, Cabaret
2. Joanne Woodward, The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds
3. Susannah York, Images
4. Cicely Tyson, Sounder
5. Lea Massari, Murmur of the Heart
Robert Duvall whispers to Marlon Brando in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather
Best Supporting Actor:
Marlon Brando, The Godfather
2. James Caan, The Godfather
3. Paul Benjamin, Across 110th Street
4. Yaphet Kotto, Across 110th Street
5. Ronny Cox, Deliverance
Jeannie Berline and Charles Grodin in Elaine May’s The Heartbreak Kid
Best Supporting Actress:
Jeannie Berlin, The Heartbreak Kid
2. Susan Tyrrell, Fat City
3. Harriet Andersson, Cries and Whispers
4. Shelley Winters, The Poseidon Adventure
5. Madeline Kahn, What’s Up, Doc?
Ryan O’Neal, Austin Pendleton, Barbra Streisand, and Kenneth Mars in Peter Bogdanovich’s What’s Up, Doc?
Best Original Screenplay:
What's Up, Doc? — Robert Benton, Peter Bogdanovich, Buck Henry, David Newman
2. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie — Luis Buñuel and Jean-Claude Carriere
3. Cries and Whispers — Ingmar Bergman
4. Le Cercle Rouge — Jean-Pierre Melville
5. Chloe in the Afternoon — Eric Rohmer
James Caan beats up Gianni Russo in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather
Best Adapted Screenplay:
The Godfather — Francis Ford Coppola and Mario Puzo
2. Across 110th Street — Luther Harris
3. The Heartbreak Kid — Neil Simon
4. Cabaret — Jay Presson Allen
5. Deliverance — James Dickey
Liv Ullman in Ingmar Bergman’s Cries and Whispers
Best Cinematography:
Cries and Whispers — Sven Nykvist
2. Wake in Fright — Brian West
3. The Godfather — Gordon Willis
4. Deliverance — Vilmos Zsigmond
5. A Bay of Blood — Mario Bava
The baptism scene in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather
Best Film Editing:
The Godfather — William Reynolds and Peter Zinner
2. Images — Graeme Clifford
3. What's Up, Doc? — Verna Fields
4. Deliverance — Tom Priestley
5. Le Cercle Rouge — Marie-Sophie Dubus and Jean-Pierre Melville
Susannah York in Robert Altman’s Images
Best Original Score:
Images — John Williams
2. The Godfather — Nino Rota
3. Duck, You Sucker — Ennio Morricone
4. Super Fly — Curtis Mayfield
5. The Poseidon Adventure — John Williams
Liv Ullman, Ingrid Thulin and TK in Ingmar Bergman’s Cries and Whispers
Best Production Design:
Cries & Whispers — Marik Vos-Lundh
2. Cabaret — Rolf Zehetbauer and Hans Jurgen Kiebach
3. The Godfather — Dean Tavoularis and Philip Smith
4. The Poseidon Adventure — William Creber and Raphael Bretton
5. Sleuth — Ken Adam and John Jarvis
Joel Grey and Liza Minelli in Bob Fosse’s Cabaret
Best Costume Design:
Cabaret — Charlotte Flemming
2. Cries & Whispers — Marik Vos-Lundh
3. The Godfather — Anthony Hill Johnson
4. The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds — Anna Hill Johnstone
5. The Poseidon Adventure — Paul Zastupnevich
Best Visual Effects:
Silent Running
Best Sound:
Cabaret
Best Documentary Feature:
Sarah Kernochan and Howard Smith, Marjoe
Best Animated Feature:
Ralph Bakshi, Fritz the Cat
Best Ensemble Cast:
Wake in Fright
Orson Welles’ Best First Feature:
Larry Cohen, Bone
Best Ensemble Cast:
Wake in Fright (dir: Ted Kotcheff; in alphabetical order): Gary Bond, Sylvia Kay, John Meillon, Donald Pleasence, Chips Rafferty, Al Thomas, Jack Thompson, Peter Whittle
Orson Welles' Best First Feature:
Yaphet Kotto in Larry Cohen’s Bone
RECAP
W I N S :
The Godfather — 6,
Cabaret — 3, Cries & Whispers — 2, Bone— 1, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie — 1, Fritz the Cat — 1, Heartbreak Kid — 1, Images – 1, Marjoe — 1, Silent Running — 1, Wake In Fright — 1, What’s Up, Doc? — 1
M U L T I P L E
N O M I N A T I O N S :
The Godfather— 11,
Deliverance — 6, Cabaret — 5, Cries & Whispers – 5, Images — 5, Wake in Fright — 5, What’s Up, Doc? — 5, Across 110th Street — 4, The Poseidon Adventure — 4, Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie — 3, Fat City — 2, Le Cercle Rouge — 3, Heartbreak Kid — 2
the year-end project:
2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1996, 1995, 1994, 1993, 1992, 1991, 1990, 1989, 1988, 1987, 1986, 1985, 1984, 1983, 1982, 1981, 1980, 1979, 1978, 1977, 1976, 1975, 1974, 1973, 1972, 1971, 1970, 1969, 1968, 1967, 1966, 1965, 1964, 1963, 1962, 1961, 1960, 1959, 1958, 1957, 1956, 1955, 1954, 1953, 1952, 1951, 1950, 1940 - 1949, 1930 - 1939, 1920 - 1929 + Superlatives Index