Films of 1971

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Last Updated: 4/23/25
Total Films: 49
Note: The year of each film is according to IMDb. It sometimes changes without my knowledge. When I become aware, I will make adjustments. Like the Oscars, I select the best for each category: picture, actor, actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, director, cinematography, editing, original screenplay, adapted screenplay, and documentary. This is based on the movies I've actually seen, and miniseries and telefilms are fair game. Each winner is named along with the next four ordered runner-ups (which may be less) and honorable mentions (if any). Any of these categories may be left blank if I feel there's no deserving winner. A ranked list of films is presented afterwards.



Best Picture
The Last Picture Show

2. Brian's Song LastPicShow
3. Dirty Harry
4. Get Carter
5. Play Misty for Me
Honorable Mentions: The Hospital, The French Connection, and Sunday Bloody Sunday


Best Actor
Michael Caine (Get Carter)

2. George C. Scott (The Hospital)
3. Clint Eastwood (Dirty Harry)
4. Peter Finch (Sunday Bloody Sunday)
5. James Caan and Billy Dee Williams (Brian's Song)
Honorable Mentions: Dirk Bogarde (Morte a Venezia), Timothy Bottoms (The Last Picture Show), Clint Eastwood (Play Misty for Me), Gene Hackman (The French Connection), George Hamilton (Evel Knievel), Al Pacino (The Panic in Needle Park), Oliver Reed (The Hunting Party), and Richard Roundtree (Shaft)


Best Actress
Ruth Gordon (Harold and Maude)

2. Jessica Walter (Play Misty for Me)
3. Kitty Winn (The Panic in Needle Park)
4.
5.
Honorable Mentions: None


Best Supporting Actor
Andrew Robinson (Dirty Harry)

2. Michael Gothard (The Devils)
3. Dudley Sutton (The Devils)
4. Ben Johnson (The Last Picture Show)
5. Murray Head (Sunday Bloody Sunday)
Honorable Mentions: Marlon Brando (The Nightcomers), Timothy Dalton (Mary, Queen of Scots), Gene Hackman (The Hunting Party), and Jack Warden (Brian's Song)


Best Supporting Actress
Diana Rigg (The Hospital)

2. Cloris Leachman (The Last Picture Show)
3. Cybill Shepherd (The Last Picture Show)
4. Ellen Burstyn (The Last Picture Show)
5. Eileen Brennan (The Last Picture Show)
Honorable Mentions: None


Best Director
Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show)

2. Mike Hodges (Get Carter)
3. Buzz Kulik (Brian's Song)
4. Melvin Van Peebles (Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song)
5. William Friedkin (The French Connection)
Honorable Mentions: Clint Eastwood (Play Misty for Me), Arthur Hiller (The Hospital), Don Medford (The Hunting Party), John Schlesinger (Sunday Bloody Sunday), and Don Siegel (Dirty Harry)


Best Cinematography
Robert Surtees (The Last Picture Show)

2. Pasqualino De Santis (Morte a Venezia)
3. David Watkin (The Devils)
4. Owen Roizman (The French Connection)
5. Michael Reed (Von Richthofen and Brown)
Honorable Mentions: John Coquillon (Straw Dogs), Urs Furrer (Shaft), Robert Maxwell (Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song), Robert Paynter (The Nightcomers), Bruce Surtees (Dirty Harry), Bruce Surtees (Play Misty for Me), and Wolfgang Suschitzky (Get Carter)


Best Editing
Gerald B. Greenberg (The French Connection)
OwenFC

2. John Trumper (Get Carter)
3. Carl Pingitore (Play Misty for Me)
4. Paul Davies, Tony Lawson, and Roger Spottiswoode (Straw Dogs)
5. Carl Pingitore (Dirty Harry)
Honorable Mentions: Alan Collins (Von Richthofen and Brown), Tom Rolf (The Hunting Party), and Melvin Van Peebles (Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song)


Best Original Screenplay
Paddy Chayefsky (The Hospital)

2. Harry Julian Fink, Rita M. Fink, and Dean Riesner (Dirty Harry)
3. Penelope Gilliatt (Sunday Bloody Sunday)
4. Jo Heims and Dean Riesner (Play Misty for Me)
5.
Honorable Mentions: None


Best Adapted Screenplay
Mike Hodges (Get Carter)

2. Larry McMurtry and Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show)
3. William Blinn (Brian's Song)
4. Ernest Tidyman and John D.F. Black (Shaft)
5.
Honorable Mentions: None


Best Documentary
On Any Sunday

2.
3.
4.
5.
Honorable Mentions: None


Films Rated '10'
  1. The Last Picture Show

  2. Brian's Song

  3. Dirty Harry

  4. Get Carter

  5. Play Misty for Me

  6. The Hospital

Films Rated '9'
  1. The French Connection

  2. Sunday Bloody Sunday

  3. The Hunting Party

  4. Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song

  5. Straw Dogs

Films Rated '8'
  1. Shaft

  2. Harold and Maude

  3. The Panic in Needle Park

  4. Von Richthofen and Brown

Films Rated '7'
    GetCart
  1. The Devils

  2. Valdez Is Coming

  3. Carnal Knowledge

  4. Evel Knievel

  5. The Andromeda Strain

  6. McCabe & Mrs. Miller

  7. 10 Rillington Place

  8. The Beguiled

  9. Countess Dracula

  10. Mary, Queen of Scots

Films Rated '6'
  1. Vanishing Point

  2. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

  3. The House That Dripped Blood

Films Rated '5'
  1. A Clockwork Orange

  2. The Last Valley

  3. J.W. Coop

  4. Le Mans

Films Rated '4'
  1. The Organization

  2. Morte a Venezia

Films Rated '3'
  1. Billy Jack

  2. The Nightcomers

  3. The Anderson Tapes

  4. Fright

  5. THX 1138

  6. Duel

  7. Let's Scare Jessica to Death

  8. Under Milk Wood

Films Rated '2'
  1. Klute

  2. Chandler

  3. The Omega Man

  4. Diamonds Are Forever

  5. Villain

  6. Duck, You Sucker

Films Rated '1'
  1. Who Is Harry Kellerman and Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me?