Cineliteracy: What You Need to Know about 2002 as Move Year
My Pioneering Oscar Book (first published, 1986)
Highest-grossing films of 2002
Rank Title Distributor Worldwide gross
1 The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers New Line $936,689,735
2 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Warner Bros. $878,979,634
3 Spider-Man Sony Pictures $821,708,551
4 Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones 20th Century Fox $653,741,940
5 Men in Black II Sony Pictures $441,818,803
6 Die Another Day MGM / 20th Century Fox $431,971,116
7 Signs Buena Vista $408,247,917
8 Ice Age 20th Century Fox $383,257,136
9 My Big Fat Greek Wedding IFC $368,744,044
10 Minority Report 20th Century Fox / DreamWorks $358,372,926
It was the first year to see 3 films cross the 800 million milestone, surpassing the previous year’s record of two such films. It also surpasses the previous year’s record of having the most ticket sales in a single year (fueled by success of sequels and first Spider-Man movie).
Events
March 1 —
Paramount reveals new-on screen logo, used until December 2011 to celebrate its 90th anniversary.
May – The Pianist directed by Polanski wins “Palme d’Or” at Cannes Film Fest.
May 3–5 –
Spider-Man becomes the first film to earn $100 million in one weekend. This surpassed the previous all-time opening weekend record held by Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, as well as the previous May opening weekend record held by The Lost World: Jurassic Park. The film earned over $800 million worldwide, surpassing Batman to become the highest-grossing superhero film of all time and Men in Black as Sony’s most successful film.
May 16 –
Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, though huge success, the first Star Wars film not to be the highest-grossing of the year.
Amélie by Jean-Pierre Jeunet wins the 2002 César Award for Best Film, Best Director, Best Music, and Best Art Direction. Amélie also became the highest-grossing French-language film in the US.
Another French film Brotherhood of the Wolf became the second-highest-grossing French-language film in the US in the last two decades.
Awards
Category/Organization 8th Critics’ Choice Awards
February 23, 2003 Producers, Directors, Screen Actors, and Writers Guild
Oscars: 75th Academy Awards, March 23, 2003
Best Film: Chicago
Best Director: Polanski, The Pianist
Best Actor: Adrien Brody, The Pianist
Best Actress: Nicole Kidman, The Hours
Best Supporting Actor: Chris Cooper, Adaptation
Best Supporting Actress: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Chicago
Best Screenplay, Adapted, The Pianist, Ronald Harwood
Best Screenplay, Original Talk to Her, Pedro Almodóvar
Best Animated Film Spirited Away
Best Original Song
Best Original Score
Best Foreign Language Film: Nowhere in Africa
Festival Awards
Palme d’Or (Cannes Film Fest): The Pianist, Polanski, Poland
Golden Lion (Venice Film Fest): Magdalene Sisters, Peter Mullan, U.K. Ireland
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Fest): Tie Spirited Away, Hayao Miyazaki, Japan
Bloody Sunday, directed by Paul Greengrass, U.K. / Ireland
Deaths
Month Date Name Age Country Profession Notable films
January 1
Jan 1 Julia Phillips 57 US Producer, Taxi Driver, The Sting
6 Mario Nascimbene 88 Italy Composer
The VikingsRoom at the Top
7 Avery Schreiber 66 US Actor
Robin Hood: Men in TightsCaveman
9 Bill McCutcheon 77 US Actor
Steel MagnoliasFamily Business
11 Henri Verneuil 81 Turkey Director, Screenwriter
I as in IcarusThe Sheep Has Five Legs
12 Stanley Unwin 90 UK Actor
Chitty Chitty Bang BangCarry On Regardless
13 Ted Demme 38 US Director, Producer
BlowRounders
15 Jeremy Hawk 83 UK Actor
ElizabethStealing Heaven
17 Queenie Leonard 96 UK Actress
And Then There Were NoneAlice in Wonderland
19 Roy Conrad 61 US Actor
Patch AdamsCasino
20 Harold Kasket 75 UK Actor
The Man Who Knew Too MuchThe 7th Voyage of Sinbad
21 Peggy Lee 81 US Singer, Actress
Lady and the TrampPete Kelly’s Blues
23 Howard A. Smith 89 US Film Editor
Breakfast at Tiffany’sThe Delicate Delinquent
29 Stratford Johns 76 UK Actor
CromwellWild Geese II
Jan 29
Harold Russell 88 Canada Actor, The Best Years of Our Lives, Inside Moves
February
Feb 1 Hildegard Knef 76 Germany Actress
The Snows of KilimanjaroFedora
4 George Nader 80 US Actor
Congo CrossingFour Girls in Town
6 Guy Stockwell 68 US Actor
The War LordTobruk
7 Diane Hart 75 UK Actress
The Wicked LadyHappy Go Lovely
11 Barry Foster 74 UK Actor
FrenzyRyan’s Daughter
13 Waylon Jennings 64 US Singer, Actor
Nashville RebelMoonrunners
15 Lucille Lund 88 US Actress
Prison ShadowsThe Black Cat
18 Giustino Durano 78 Italy Actor
Life Is BeautifulLucky to Be a Woman
18 Jack Lambert 81 US Actor
How the West Was WonKiss Me Deadly
18 Byrne Piven 72 US Actor
Being John MalkovichMiracle on 34th Street
19 Gene Ruggiero 91 US Film Editor
Around the World in 80 DaysThe Shop Around the Corner
20 Fredric Steinkamp 73 US Film Editor
TootsieOut of Africa
21 John Thaw 60 UK Actor
ChaplinSweeney!
22 Chuck Jones 89 US Animator, Director
The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner MovieGay Purr-ee
25 Claire Davenport 68 UK Actress
Return of the JediThe Elephant Man
26 Lawrence Tierney 82 US Actor, Reservoir Dogs, Dillinger
27 Spike Milligan 83 India Actor
Life of BrianThe Big Freeze
28 Mary Stuart 75 US Actress
Adventures of Don JuanThe Big Punch
March
Mar 4 Eric Flynn 62 China Actor
Empire of the SunSafari 3000
4 Shirley Russell 66 UK Costume Designer
RedsTommy
10 Irene Worth 85 US Actress
DeathtrapLost in Yonkers
16 Carmelo Bene 64 Italy Actor, Director
One Hamlet LessOedipus Rex
17 William Witney 86 US Director
The Crimson GhostAdventures of Captain Marvel
18 Denis Forest 41 Canada Actor
The MaskCliffhanger
23 Richard Sylbert 73 US Production Designer
ChinatownThe Graduate
23 James Culliford 74 UK Actor
The Trygon FactorQuatermass and the Pit
26 Louis M. Heyward 81 US Producer, Screenwriter
The Abominable Dr. PhibesPajama Party
27 Milton Berle 93 US Actor, Comedian
It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad WorldWho’s Minding the Mint?
27 Dudley Moore 66 UK Actor
Arthur10
March 27
Billy Wilder 95 Austria Director, Some Like It Hot. Double Indemnity
April 2 Jack Kruschen 80 Canada Actor
The ApartmentThe War of the Worlds
3 Roy Huggins 87 US Screenwriter
PushoverToo Late for Tears
4 Harry O’Connor 44 US Stuntman
The Perfect StormXXX
6 Nobu McCarthy 67 Canada Actress
The Geisha BoyWake Me When It’s Over
7 John Agar 81 US Actor
Sands of Iwo JimaFort Apache
8 María Félix 88 Mexico Actress
EnamoradaFrench Cancan
15 Dave King 72 UK Actor
RedsThe Long Good Friday
16 Alexander Doré 78 UK Actor
Chitty Chitty Bang BangCasino Royale
16 Robert Urich 55 US Actor
Magnum ForceTurk 182
17 James Copeland 84 UK Actor
Torture GardenThe Private Life of Sherlock Holmes
19 Reginald Rose 81 US Screenwriter
12 Angry MenThe Wild Geese
21 Terry Walsh 62 UK Stuntman, Actor
Who Framed Roger RabbitSuperman
22 Linda Lovelace 53 US Porn Actress
Deep ThroatLinda Lovelace for President
23 Carla Fry 40 US Producer, Executive
The MaskLost in Space
25 Michael Bryant 74 UK Actor
GandhiHamlet
28 John Wilkinson 82 US Sound Engineer
PlatoonBreakfast at Tiffany’s
May 2 Ron Soble 74 US Actor
PapillionTrue Grit
5 George Sidney 85 US Director
Show BoatAnnie Get Your Gun
8 Lou Lombardo 91 US Film Editor
The Wild BunchMoonstruck
10 Linda Francis 62 US Casting Director
SwingersPrince of Darkness
11 Bill Peet 87 US Screenwriter
DumboPeter Pan
14 Ray Stricklyn 73 US Actor
Young Jesse JamesThe Lost World
15 Bryan Pringle 67 UK Actor
BrazilThree Men and a Little Lady
23 Dorothy Spencer 93 US Film Editor
StagecoachCleopatra
25 Pat Coombs 75 UK Actress
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate FactoryCarry On Doctor
June
June 2 Herman Cohen 76 US Producer
I Was a Teenage WerewolfBerserk!
3 Lew Wasserman 89 US Studio Executive
3 Sam Whipple 41 US Actor
The RockThe Doors
7 Signe Hasso 86 Sweden Actress
Where There’s LifeJohnny Angel
22 Chang Cheh 79 China Director, Screenwriter
The One-Armed SwordsmanVengeance
25 Charles C. Bennett 62 US Production Designer
New Jack CityDrumline
26 Dolores Gray 78 US Actress
The Opposite SexDesigning Woman
28 François Périer 82 France Actor
Nights of CabiriaOrpheus
29 Rosemary Clooney 74 US Singer, Actress
White ChristmasRed Garters
July 4
Ivan Moffat 84 Cuba Screenwriter, Giant, Black Sunday
5 Katy Jurado 78 Mexico Actress
High NoonOne-Eyed Jacks
6 John Frankenheimer 72 US Director, Producer
The Manchurian CandidateRonin
8 Ward Kimball 88 US Animator
Snow White and the Seven DwarfsMary Poppins
9 Gerald Campion 81 UK Actor
Chitty Chitty Bang BangLittle Dorrit
9 Rod Steiger 77 US Actor
On the WaterfrontIn the Heat of the Night
15 Phil Roth 72 US Actor
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s NestHarry and Tonto
17 Harry W. Gerstad 93 US Film Editor
High NoonChampion
23 Leo McKern 82 Australia Actor
A Man for All SeasonsLadyhawke
24 Maurice Denham 92 UK Actor
Animal FarmThe Day of the Jackal
26 Buddy Baker 84 US Composer
The Fox and the HoundNapoleon and Samantha
August
Aug 3 Peter Miles 64 US Actor
Quo VadisPossessed
9 Peter Matz 73 US Composer, Arranger, Conductor
Funny LadyMarlowe
14 Peter R. Hunt 77 UK Film Editor, Director
On Her Majesty’s Secret ServiceDr. No
15 Henry Batista 88 US Film Editor
The Caine MutinyRiders in the Sky
15 Yuriy Yakovlev 71 Bulgaria Actor
The Past-MasterFarsighted for Two Diopters
16 Jeff Corey 88 US Actor
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance KidLittle Big Man
18 Dean Riesner 83 US Screenwriter
Dirty HarryPlay Misty for Me
23 Dennis Fimple 78 US Actor
King KongHouse of 1000 Corpses
25 Stanley R. Greenberg 74 US Screenwriter
Soylent GreenSkyjacked
30 J. Lee Thompson 88 UK Director
The Guns of NavaroneCape Fear
September 3 Ted Ross 68 US Actor
The WizArthur
5 Cliff Gorman 65 US Actor
All That JazzNight and the City
7 Katrin Cartlidge 41 UK Actress
From HellBreaking the Waves
7 Michael Elphick 55 UK Actor
Cry of the BansheeO Lucky Man!
11
Kim Hunter 79 US Actress. A Streetcar Named Desire, Planet of the Apes
16 James Gregory 90 US Actor
The Manchurian CandidateThe Sons of Katie Elder
18 Hazel Brooks 78 South Africa Actress
Body and SoulArch of Triumph
22 Carmen Phillips 65 US Actress
Easy RiderPlease Don’t Eat the Daisies
27 P.A. Lundgren 91 Sweden Art Director, Production Designer
The Seventh SealThrough a Glass Darkly
28 Whitney Blake 76 US Actress
My Gun Is Quick-30-
October
Oct 3 Tad Horino 81 US Actor
Mulholland DriveRed Sonja
4 André Delvaux 76 Belgium Director
The Man Who Had His Hair Cut ShortRendezvous at Bray
4 Buddy Lester 85 US Actor
Ocean’s 11The Nutty Professor
8 Phyllis Calvert 87 UK Actress
IndiscreetOh! What a Lovely War
9 Charles Guggenheim 78 US Documentarian
The Johnstown FloodRobert Kennedy Remembered
12 Hilyard M. Brown 92 US Art Director
CleopatraThe Night of the Hunter
13 Keene Curtis 79 US Actor
MacbethSliver
13 Dennis Patrick 84 US Actor
JoeHouse of Dark Shadows
18 Chuck Domanico 58 US Musician
Midnight RunThe Truth About Cats & Dogs
21 George Hall 85 Canada Actor
Big DaddyMrs Brown
23 Adolph Green 87 US Screenwriter, Lyricist, Actor
Singin’ in the RainMy Favorite Year
23 Nathan Juran 95 Romania Director
The 7th Voyage of Sinbad20 Million Miles to Earth
24 Charmian May 65 UK Actress
Bridget Jones’s DiaryThe Dawning
24 Peggy Moran 84 US Actress
The Mummy’s HandKing of the Cowboys
24 Scott Plank 43 US Actor
HolesMr. Baseball
25 Micheline Cheirel 85 France Actress
Flight to NowhereCornered
25 Richard Harris 72 UK Actor
A Man Called HorseGladiator
27 André de Toth 90 Hungary Director, Screenwriter
House of WaxThe Gunfighter
28 Margaret Booth 104 US Film Editor
Mutiny on the BountyThe Way We Were
28 Lawrence Dobkin 83 US Actor, Director
PattonThe Ten Commandments
29 Marina Berti 78 Italy Actress
Prince of FoxesEager to Live
29 Glenn McQueen 41 Canada Animator
Toy StoryMonsters, Inc.
30 Lee H. Katzin 67 US Director
What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?Le Mans
31 Raf Vallone 86 Italy Actor
Bitter RiceThe Godfather Part III
November
Nov 1 Keith A. Wester 62 US Sound Engineer
The RockAir Force One
2 Lo Lieh 63 Indonesia Actor
King BoxerThe 36th Chamber of Shaolin
4 Antonio Margheriti 72 Italy Director, Screenwriter
Code Name: Wild GeeseThe Stranger and the Gunfighter
14 Eddie Bracken 87 US Actor
The Miracle of Morgan’s CreekHome Alone 2: Lost in New York
17 Marvin Mirisch 84 US Producer
Romantic ComedyDracula
18 James Coburn 74 US Actor
The Great EscapeAffliction
22 Parley Baer 88 US Actor
The Young LionsThe Ugly Dachshund
22 Joan Barclay 88 US Actress
The Singing OutlawThe Shanghai Cobra
22 Adele Jergens 84 US Actress
The Dark PastDown to Earth
24 Noel Davis 75 UK Casting Director
RedsRobin Hood: Prince of Thieves
25 Karel Reisz 76 Czech Republic Director, Producer
The French Lieutenant’s WomanIsadora
26 Stanley Black 89 UK Composer, Conductor
The Day the Earth Caught FireThe Trollenberg Terror
27 Billie Bird 94 US Actress
Sixteen CandlesDennis the Menace
27 Wolfgang Preiss 92 Germany Actor
The Longest DayA Bridge Too Far
29 Daniel Gélin 81 France Actor
The Man Who Knew Too MuchMurmur of the Heart
29 John Justin 85 UK Actor
The Thief of BagdadThe Big Sleep
December
Dec 2
Edgar Scherick 78 US Producer
The Stepford WivesThe Taking of Pelham One Two Three
3 Glenn Quinn 32 Ireland Actor
Live Nude GirlsDr. Giggles
10 Peter Tanner 88 UK Film Editor
Kind Hearts and CoronetsHamburger Hill
12 Brad Dexter 85 US Actor
The Magnificent SevenThe Asphalt Jungle
14 Sidney Glazier 86 US Producer
The ProducersTake the Money and Run
14 Ruth Kobart 78 US Actress
Dirty HarrySister Act
15 Arthur Jeph Parker 79 US Set Decorator
SilveradoPrivate Benjamin
17 James Hazeldine 55 UK Actor
Pink Floyd – The WallThe Ruling Class
18 Edward Norris 91 US Actor
Career GirlDecoy
22 Duke Callaghan 88 US Cinematographer
Conan the BarbarianJeremiah Johnson
22 Susan Fleming 94 US Actress
Million Dollar LegsRange Feud
22 Clay Tanner 71 US Actor
Rosemary’s BabyThe Outlaw Josey Wales
22 Kenneth Tobey 85 US Actor
The Thing from Another WorldThe Candidate
27
George Roy Hill 81 US Director The Sting, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Dec 30
Mary Brian 96 US Actress. The Virginian, The Front Page
Film Debuts
Abigail Breslin – Signs
Kristin Chenoweth – Topa Topa Bluffs
Priyanka Chopra – Thamizhan
Martin Compston – Sweet Sixteen
Jean Dujardin – Ah! Si j’étais riche
Jesse Eisenberg – Roger Dodger
Josh Gad – Mary and Joe
Romola Garai – Nicholas Nickleby
Javier Gutiérrez – The Other Side of the Bed
Kevin Hart – Paper Soldiers
Sally Hawkins – All or Nothing
Emile Hirsch – The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys
Kevin James – Pinocchio
Diane Kruger – The Piano Player
Derek Luke – Antwone Fisher
Anthony Mackie – 8 Mile
Joe Manganiello – Spider-Man
Rachel McAdams – My Name Is Tanino
Elliot Page – Marion Bridge
Nathan Phillips – Australian Rules
Rosamund Pike – Die Another Day
Clémence Poésy – Olgas Sommer
Manolo Solo – Everything in Place
Aaron Taylor-Johnson – Tom & Thomas
Natalia Tena – About a Boy
Sofía Vergara – Big Trouble
Katt Williams – Friday After Next
