Movies that Shouldn't Have Won the Best Picture Oscar

How could a movie with that snob Gwyneth Paltrow win over what I consider a fantastic and very realistic movie called Saving Private Ryan!

They chose this over Saving Private Ryan, really?

It has no story just only random war scenes. Worst movie of all time

"Crash" and "Brokeback Mountain" both deal with discrimination, it is just a different kind of it. Apart from both being heartbreaking pleas, they also both are excellent storytellers. "Crash" uses an excellent anthology structure and manages to craft some truly heartbreaking moments, and give all of its many characters believable traits, no matter what origin they are, everyone can be "good" or "bad", and everyone has prejudices and cultural differences. Some characters do fulfill the stereotypes because society made them do, others simply don't. Coincidence makes all these different people stumble across each other, and the results are unpredictable but always significant. No, "Crash" deserves its Oscar as much as "Brokeback Mountain" would have deserved it.

We had three other, way more phenomenal, nominees that year, but the one that definitely should've won was Secrets & Lies. That movie was a gripping, subtle, and straightforward drama, and all this had was... what, 2, 3 great actors certainly not at their career bests. EVERYONE in Secrets & Lies are at their best. The director, Mike Leigh, his bea-utiful actors, Brenda Blethyn, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Timothy Spall... that was way better equipped to be the best picture of 1996.

I really don't think that it was 'boring'..Just a little bit predictable when it came to the aftermath of the crash. It DESERVED the oscar it got..It just requires a particular type of a viewer to appreciate it's plot.

It is okay, but not exactly one of the most memorable musicals out there, neither story-wise nor musically.
Also this was a strong year where each other nominee would have deserved the award much more.
"Gangs of New York" is a brilliant epic with storylines involving around basic emotions and complex characters, and an unexpectedly great performance by all three main actors (yes, Diaz can act very well if she wants). "The Hours" is a sensitive and imaginative anthology film with three of the greatest actresses of today, that mixes reality with fiction.
I don't think I have to say anything about the second installment of the "Lord of the Rings" saga, enough has to be said about this epic. It rightfully has its place in film and pop culture history. And well, I may not personally think that "The Pianist" is one of the greatest movies of all time (there have been more intense, sadder and also more stunningly directed and written movies about the horrors of the holocaust), but I know that many regard it as one of the best. And I can see why: it is emotional, has a strong and important message, and an astounding performance by the leading actor.
"Chicago" is by far the least outstanding picture of the five nominees. And actually, it's nothing more than an okay movie in general and shouldn't have been nominatee in first place.

I never really got the praise for this movie. It sure has an interesting premise and also something to say, but in the end it just didn't get me. On the one hand, it's about the serious topics of ghettos in India, on the other hand it's also built up like a fairy tale about love and destiny. While this could go well together - Titanic works as both a big Hollywood picture and as a realistic depiction of the horrible disaster, and ends up being one of the saddest and most gripping movies I know - in "Slumdog Millionaire" it just doesn't go far enough in both aspects. I don't feel the strong emotion both storylines have to offer.

Back then, no one could foresee the impact of Citizen Kane and The Maltese Falcon. Since Citizen Kane was critically panned back then, it was a wonder it was even nominated in the first place and on top won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. And as for The Maltese Falcon... no one could foresee it would start a whole new genre that is among the most acclaimed ones and be constantly referenced in pop culture to an extent where lines and scenes of it became part of everyday language.
I have not seen How Green Was My Valley, but most modern reviews are great and the premise sounds good, so I assume it is not on here because it isn't a great movie but because of the influence of the other two nominees I just wrote about.

While I think "Argo" is a really good movie and the nomination was justified, the year was so strong that it just feel right this got the best picture Oscar. When you have a movie like "Life of Pi", which is rich in philosophy and metaphorical meanings as well as being an audiovisual experience one has never seen before, then a realistic movie about an elderly couple having to go through the painful experience of the woman slowly withering away, a Tarantino movie about slavery which is among his most praised works (I don't agree but it still is better than most other movies by other directors), a movie about the methods of the CIA raiding moral questions, the tale of an unlikely relationship of a man with bipolar disorder and a woman with borderline personality, and a hand crafted epic musical based on a literature classic,... this win seems extremely unjustified.

Inception should have decimated this, but nooo. This one had to win, even though the plot and storyline weren't interesting. Inception still won the most oscars of the year though so it doesn't really matter

Black Swan should've decimated The King's Speech and this category in general.

Textbook example of the Academy going for the crowdpleaser instead of the two REAL best pictures of '94: Pulp Fiction and The Shawshank Redemption.

Extremely overrated! I don't get it. Is it a comedy?

A clear-cut example of politics overshadowing actual filmmaking for the academy. There is nothing special about Spotlight, especially in regards to the technical aspects. Somehow it still managed to beat The Revenant for Best Picture. Even Mad Max: Fury Road would've been a better choice than Spotlight, and that's not getting into movies that weren't nominated like Anomalisa, Sicario, Son of Saul, etc.

Yes this movie didn't deserve best picture its just a talking fish and a girl. It isn't that great

Great movie that definitely deserved to win.