Apocalypse Now vs. Kramer vs. Kramer (1982)

No one's going to say that "Kramer vs. Kramer" isn't a good film. This divorce drama took a chance with its bad mother character, played by Meryl Streep, who leaves her family to go off and find herself. But then it redeemed her when she withdrew her custody battle because she saw her son was happier living with his dad, an adorably heroic Dustin Hoffman. Contrast this scrambled eggs comfort food with "Apocalypse Now," Francis Ford Coppolla's nihilistic Vietnam bloodbath which launched the catchphrase, "I love the smell of napalm in the morning." Vomiting was the preferred response to the gore and devastation in this film. No wonder it lost Best Picture while the makers of "Kramer vs. Kramer" hugged it out at the podium.