The Year in Review- 1970

It was the year a patriotic George C. Scott saluted the flag and Jack Nicholson put in the most famous breakfast order in movie history. Gene Hackman hated his father, Ryan O'Neal followed his heart, and Jack Lemmon fouled up his trip to New York. Robert Altman broke the rules, Dustin Hoffman was an old fool, and Planet of the Apes entered the franchise space. Here are the ten best films in order for 1970.

1. "Patton"(1970) George C. Scott seized the big screen as if the audience was his own personal army in the first great film of the 1970s. General George Patton was a flashy, aggressive, headstrong WWII hero, and Frances Ford Coppola's Oscar-winning screenplay doesn't hide the flaws that comprise his complex legacy. Much more than a straight history lesson, "Planet of the Apes" director Franklin J. Schaffner's two hour and 50 minute epic explores his Third Army triumphs over the Germans in France with an uncommon grandeur. "Patton" predictably picked up the Academy Awards for Best Picture, Director, and Actor, which the non-competitive Scott famously refused to accept.

2. "Five Easy Pieces"(1970) A 32 year old Jack Nicholson, one year removed from his scene-stealing breakout in "Easy Rider", took his second step toward artistic immortality as Robert Dupea, a bitter oil rigger and edgy epicurist in Bob Rafelson's slow-burning blue collar drama. A late bloomer in the acting game, age and experience turned Jack into one of those performers that you can't take your eyes off of, because there's no telling what he'll do from one scene to the next. That started here. Character actress Karen Black matches the grinning movie god's authenticity as his long-suffering girlfriend. The retired Rafelson never quite lived up to the promise of "Pieces", despite working with his iconic star four more times("The King of Marvin Gardens", "The Postman Always Rings Twice", "Man Trouble", "Blood and Wine").

3. "I Never Sang For My Father"(1970) The 1970s saw some transcendant talent come to the forefront. For further proof, I give you Gene Hackman. The two-time Oscar winner once called this intimate, moving drama, based on a 1968 play, his personal favorite of his many films. Maintaining a healthy relationship with your parents can prove difficult when you become a full-fledged adult. Especially when one of them is as stern, stubborn, opinionated, and uncompromising as Melvyn Douglas, in a marvelous award-worthy performance. Estelle Parsons(Gene's beau in "Bonnie and Clyde") reenters his life to break-up this suburban stand-off as his strong-willed sister. "Father" is a small film, somewhat lost in time, that's periodically available on the free streamer Tubi, as of this writing.

4. "Love Story"(1970) Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw set the standard for doomed young lovers in director Arthur Hiller's huge hit drama. Oliver Barrett is a Harvard stud and budding lawyer whose old moneyed family disapproves of his passion for working-class cutie Jenny Cavilleri. His pretentious pop(Ray Milland) is rendered powerless by this crackling courtship. So were we. "Love Story" became the prototypical tearjerker, that earned $106 million and seven Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture(winning one for Francis Lai's tender score). O'Neal may not be up there with Mozart and Bach, but his effective emoting made him a Movie Star for the entire decade.

5. "The Out-of Towners"(1970) Arthur Hiller had a big year. Jack Lemmon and super-screenwriter Neil Simon were a match made in heaven for this movie lover, two years after 1968's joyous "The Odd Couple". Jack's Ohio business executive is going to sue everybody on a tiring and tortured trip to the Big Apple, in the kind of clean, crisp comedy that Hollywood gave up trying to make a long time ago. That could be because I don't see many female comic talents on par with Sandy Dennis, an equal partner in his NYC-set plight. Watch out for that manhole cover, and the inferior 1999 remake with Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn.

6. "MASH"(1970) The legend of Robert Altman began with this 'New Hollywood' mission statement masquarading as a movie. You see, the director was the ultimate authority in this brave new world, and few filmmakers benefitted more from the freedom that came with it. Fun fact- the word 'fuck' had never been uttered in a mainstream product until Altman snuck it in. Donald Sutherland and Elliot Gould were reportedly baffled by the looseness of his shooting style and lack of fidelity to Ring Lardner Jr.'s script(Gould later apologized for his lack of faith and got to be in four more of his films). While the ensuing sitcom of the same name that ran for 11 seasons may have left a larger pop culture footprint, Altman's crude Korean War crew was absolutely one of the Nixon era's most impactful films.

7. "Little Big Man"(1970) Dustin Hoffman helped get the '70s started out right in this highly ambitious and aptly-titled comedy-drama from "Bonnie and Clyde" director Arthur Penn. As if Ben Braddock and Ratso Rizzo left anyone unconvinced of Hoffman's almost-peerless ability to create a compelling characterization, his 121 year old Jack Crabb("the oldest man in the world") left no doubt. Based on the 1964 novel of the same name, Crabb recalls, in "Forrest Gump"-like flashback fashion, his wild Western adventures in the late 1800s, which included captivity by the Cheyenne tribe and the Battle of Little Big Horn. Faye Dunaway, Chief Dan George, Martin Balsam, and Richard Mulligan make up the notable supporting cast.

8. "Joe"(1970) One of the decade's most underrated films was this mildly-controversial holdover from the hippie era, a micro-budgeted breakthrough for future "Rocky" director John G. Avildsen. A 23 year old Susan Sarandon landed her first significant role as the wayward, drugged-out daughter of a NYC executive(Dennis Patrick) that takes it upon himself to remedy her predicament. Peter Boyle memorably plays the acid-tongued title character, a crass cross between Archie Bunker and Paul Kersey, that hints at the kind of actor he might have been in an alternate universe. The underappreciated Avildsen effectively launced the careers of Sarandon and Boyle, while Norman Wexler's Oscar-nominated screenplay is a microcosm of an America that's sadly still all too familiar.

9. "Beneath the Planet of the Apes"(1970) The second chapter in the "Apes" saga is better than it's reputation suggests, despite a rushed production and the reduced presence of original star Charlton Heston. TV actor James Franciscus is our new protagonist, but the expansion of Linda Harrison's role as mute babe Nova was surely appreciated by the core young male demographic. A subterranean city, a gang of telepathic humans, and a nuclear bomb brought an unexpected degree of darkness to this revisit. In the pre-"Jaws"/"Star Wars" period, this Ted Post-directed sequel was summer fun that got the job done just fine.

10. "The Aristocats"(1970) The most successful animated film of the '70s was a holiday hit just before the Disney dry spell, which lasted from 1971-1986(approximately, from the death of Roy Disney to the industry-altering installation of Michael Eisner as CEO). It's hard to believe there was ever a time when Mouse House cartoons weren't a license to print money. That was the reality, but the last film that Walt had a hand in, has cute London cats(voiced by Eva Gabor and Phil "Baloo" Harris) that deserve an introduction to your kids on Disney+.

Honorable Mentions- "Airport"(1970) Welcome to the disaster era. "Catch-22"(1970) Mike Nichols made this ensemble military comedy. "Kelly's Heroes"(1970) We're in Clint Eastwood's world now. "They Call Me Mister Tibbs!"(1970) More policing from Sidney Poitier. "Two Mules For Sister Sara"(1970) Clint cares for Shirley MacLaine. "The Conformist"(1970) Bernardo Bertolucci's best? "Violent City"(1970) Charles Bronson begins his stoic leading man run. "Ryan's Daughter"(1970) David Lean directs 195 minutes in Ireland. "The Owl and the Pussycat"(1970) Barbra Streisand won't let George Segal sleep. "Rio Lobo"(1970) John Wayne's third act. "There's a Girl in My Soup"(1970) Peter Sellers puts up with Goldie Hawn.