United Artists
Oscar Nominations: 9
Picture, produced by Saul Zaentz and Michael Douglas
Director: Milos Forman
Screenplay (Adapted): Laurence Hauben and Bo Goldman
Actor: Jack Nicholson
Actress: Louise Fletcher
Supporting Actor: Brad Douriff
Cinematography: Haskell Wexler and Bill Butler
Film Editing: Richard Chew, Lynzee Klingman, and Sheldon Kahn
Original Score: Jack Nitzche
Oscar Awards: 5
Picture
Director
Screenplay
Actor
Actress
Oscar Context:
In 1975, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest,” the most nominated (9) film, swept most of the important awards, including Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actor and Actress. It was the second film in the Academy's history, after Capra's comedy “It Happened One Night,” in 1934, to achieve that.
The Best Picture competition in 1975 was rather strong. “One Flew” competed with Kubrick's masterful adaptation, “Barry Lyndon”; Sidnely Lumet's excellent New York streets drama “Dog Day Afternoon;” Spielberg's first blockbuster that was also extremely well-acted “Jaws”; and Robert Altman's cynical epic Americana “Nashville,” considered by many critics to be his best work, which won only one Oscar (for Best Song). The technical Oscars were split between “Barry Lyndon” and “Jaws.”