Several experts defend their choices.
1974 was a foolish choice. It was such a bad year for films that they couldn’t come up with five respectable Oscar nominees. The Towering Inferno was nominated as Best Picture. People remember the year fondly because three of the iconic films in history appeared then: Godfather II, Blazing Saddles and Chinatown. Those were genuine stars, but there was no supporting cast.
1939 is indeed a watershed year. The fact that it was almost 80 years ago and the films live on says a lot. You can put down GWTW, but it remains the box office champ adjusted for inflation. But also:
Stagecoach
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
The Hound of the Baskervilles
Mr Smith Goes to Washington
The Wizard of Oz
Dark Victory
Wuthering Heights
Destry Rides Again
Ninotchka
Beau Geste
Young Mr Lincoln
Only Angels Have Wings
Drums Along The Mohawk
Goodbye Mr. Chips
Gunga Din
Babes in Arms
Love Affair
The Women
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Another Thin Man
Dodge City
Of Mice and Men
Son of Frankenstein
The Roaring Twenties
The Four Feathers
Stanley and Livingstone
The Little Princess
At The Circus
Each Dawn I Die
Rules of the Game
The Flying Deuces
The Man in the Iron Mask
Union Pacific
Gulliver’s Travels
Idiot’s Delight
Jesse James
In Name Only
Allegheny Uprising
The Gorilla
They Made Me a Criminal
The Cat and the Canary
Confessions of a Nazi Spy
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Made For Each Other
The Three Musketeers
It’s a Wonderful World
Golden Boy
Jamaica Inn
Five Came Back
The Oklahoma Kid
Believe it or not, there are many more. This was the height of the studio system era.
I agree there are much more clear cut great years, but ’74 is still pretty good. I love “The Parallax View” and “The Conversation.” Two great, beautifully-shot paranoid thrillers. “The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” is as entertaining a crime thriller as any I’ve seen. And all three have memorable scores. I like “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” and would’ve given it the “Towering Inferno” Best Picture nomination.
The next year has such a ridiculously great five Best Picture nominees. Its easily my favorite year in that regard.