# Best movie to not win an Oscar in any category? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 19, 2018, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231 "2018-10-19T23:32:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![zoog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7ea924/32.png) [@zoog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoog)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/1 "2018-10-19T23:32:43Z")
I was thinking on my way to work today about movies that got snubbed for Best Picture, and I started to wonder - what is the best movie that got completely blanked on Oscar night? I took a look at a few lists of top all time movies, and the one that jumped off the page for me was **The Shawshank Redemption**. Great flick, widely loved, won exactly zero Oscars despite seven nominations. Anybody got a better example? ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/2 "2018-10-19T23:40:23Z")
I was shocked when one of my favorite movies, Kenneth Branagh’s _Much Ado About Nothing_, which was a critical and box office success, received no Oscar nominations. I had thought that it would be nominated for Best Picture, and even had a chance of winning. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/3 "2018-10-19T23:49:29Z")
A Clockwork Orange. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/4 "2018-10-19T23:52:02Z")
_Three Kings_. An excellent movie (certainly the definitive Gulf War movie) that was nominated and won many awards that year – but it wasn’t even nominated for an Oscar, which seems inexplicable. It certainly should have been up for Best Screenplay, Best Direction, Best Actor, and/or Best Picture. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/5 "2018-10-19T23:56:06Z")
Movies that deserved something, maybe even Best Picture: King Kong The Martian Psycho Shawshank Redemption ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/6 "2018-10-20T00:44:12Z")
Maybe not the very best, but \*The Martian \*had [seven nominations](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3659388/awards?ref_=tt_awd)and no wins. edit - didn’t see Mahaloth’s post. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/7 "2018-10-20T00:51:42Z")
“The Sixth Sense” was, appropriately, nominated for six Oscars and won none. It’s probably the best movie I’ve ever seen to get shut out like that. The Color Purple and The Turning Point were both nominated for eleven Oscars and went 0-for-11. The latter isn’t all that highly regarded anymore so far as I can tell, though. Gangs of New York went 0-for-10, and it was pretty good. True Grit, the remake, was also 0-for-10, and was brilliant. Also 0 for 10 was American Hustle, including someone in all four acting categories - Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, and Jennifer Lawrence. The Elephant Man and The Remains of the Day both went 0 for 8. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/8 "2018-10-20T01:02:11Z")
Singin’ in the Rain is at number five on AFI’s list of the 100 best movies and is on various other lists of the best movies, or best musicals. And yet it only had two nominations and no wins. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/9 "2018-10-20T01:35:57Z")
For what it’s shooting for, **12 Angry Men** is basically perfect. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/10 "2018-10-20T04:23:16Z")
_The Big Lebowski_ didn’t even get a single nomination. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/11 "2018-10-20T06:07:28Z")
The Green Mile. 4 nominations, no wins. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/12 "2018-10-20T07:28:30Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > _The Big Lebowski_ didn’t even get a single nomination. That’s got to be a contender, ditto for the Coen’s “True Grit” remake also mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/13 "2018-10-20T07:44:50Z")
M (1931), understandable because foreign language films didn’t have their own category until 1947, and they were only rarely nominated in other categories. Kill Bill, Vol. 2 (2004). In my opinion, the second-best action/adventure film I’ve ever seen (behind only _The Empire Strikes Back_), and one of my top ten or fifteen films of any type. I thought it was slightly better than Vol. 1. Action/adventure tends not to get much love from the Academy except in technical categories (special effects, costumes, etc.). Neither Vol. 1 nor Vol. 2 got any Oscar nominations at all. ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/14 "2018-10-20T12:29:06Z")
Casablanca, It’s a Wonderful Life, North By Northwest, Dr. Strangelove. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/15 "2018-10-20T13:14:32Z")
> [@F.U.Shakespeare](#): > > Casablanca, It’s a Wonderful Life, North By Northwest, Dr. Strangelove. Casablanca won for Best Picture (and Director), and It’s A Wonderful Life picked up a Technical Achievement Oscar for the ‘snow’ effects. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/16 "2018-10-20T17:48:18Z")
All of Me, starring Steve Martin and Lily Tomlin. The first time I watched it, I actually wondered how they got Lily Tomlin into Steve Martin’s body. His performance was Oscar worthy all the way. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/17 "2018-10-20T18:21:25Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > _The Big Lebowski_ didn’t even get a single nomination. I couldn’t help wondering about the question “What’s the best movie to not even get any Oscar nominations in any category?” even though that’s not what the OP asked. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/18 "2018-10-20T18:44:41Z")
[The Connection](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Connection_(2014_action_film)) - 0 nominations, 0 wins [My Life Without Me](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Life_Without_Me) - 0 nominations, 0 wins [Cobb](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cobb_(film)) - 0 nominations, 0 wins [Princess Mononoke](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Mononoke) - 0 nominations, 0 wins ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/19 "2018-10-20T18:52:43Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > [Princess Mononoke](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Mononoke) - 0 nominations, 0 wins There was no animated movie award until Spirited Away, which I think won the very first one and was clearly a combination of “it’s a great movie” and “Miyazaki should have 10 oscars at this point”. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231/20 "2018-10-20T19:01:00Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > There was no animated movie award until Spirited Away, which I think won the very first one and was clearly a combination of “it’s a great movie” and “Miyazaki should have 10 oscars at this point”. The entire movie is a special effect, it has music, it has actors, it has a director, and there’s no reason an animated film can’t be best film if the year. It looks like it would have been up against Titanic, so…pretty easy win really. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-movie-to-not-win-an-oscar-in-any-category/823231.md?page=2)