# Most Ripped Off at Oscar Time **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 8, 2000, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505 "2000-09-08T15:51:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![nashiitashii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7c8e57/32.png) [@nashiitashii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nashiitashii)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2000, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/41 "2000-09-10T05:31:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by hypergirl \* > \*\*OK, someone (most likely Tasha) is going to hurt me for this bit of regression, but I think that Leonardo DiCaprio was amazing in Titanic and he deserved at least a nomination if not a win. \*\* Um, I thought that Titanic was a trite plot with a change of scenery. Blah, ick, I’m outta here. ---
**Author:** ![Commander\_Fortune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Commander\_Fortune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Commander_Fortune)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2000, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/42 "2000-09-10T11:39:29Z")
I think **Bladerunner** should have taken at least a cinematography oscar. Not to mention Ridley Scott for best director. IMHO: It’s one of the very best sci-fi movies ever made. ---
**Author:** ![nadin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/46a35a/32.png) [@nadin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nadin)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2000, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/43 "2000-09-10T11:49:22Z")
I can’t believe no-one has mentioned this, although it could just be me being patriotic - Dame Judi Dench in Mrs Brown. I mean that was criminal, even the woman) who won it (forgotten who it was) said in her speech that she thought Judi Dench should have got it. I suppose they made up for it with the best supporting actress for Shakespeare in Love but hmmmmmmmmm… NOT GOOD ENOUGH!!! Ok, I’m calm now. I completely agree about Jim Carrey for The Truman Show and Ed Norton is just magic to watch. They were robbed. ---
**Author:** ![Atreyu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5e9695/32.png) [@Atreyu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atreyu)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2000, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/44 "2000-09-10T17:01:55Z")
I concur with the others who say **Three Kings** got the shaft. A couple of other recent missteps has been Michael Caine getting the Best Supporting Actor award for **The Cider House Rules** , when I felt that Haley Joel Osment from **The Sixth Sense** should have been a no-brainer choice. **Titanic** getting the best picture award instead of **L.A. Confidential** didn’t sit well with me either. Don’t get me wrong, **Titanic** is an OK movie, but I was more blown away by the writing and acting (two things I’m more impressed by than special effects) in **L.A. Confidential.** **Out of Africa** was given the best picture award in 1985. I can’t find a list of the other nominees for that year, but I _know_ somebody got screwed here. Ditto for the year **The English Patient** won. Watching a burned up man have flashbacks for three hours about people that I couldn’t care about was one of the most boring movie experiences in my life. **Annie Hall** (another one of Woody Allen’s angst-ridden flicks, where Allen plays essentially the same character that he plays in most of his other movies) got the best picture award instead of **Star Wars**. Idiotic. Anybody gonna be flocking to see an **Annie Hall** re-release twenty years from now? Dame Judi Dench ( **Mrs. Brown** ) gets passed over for Kim Basinger ( **L.A. Confidential** ) in the Best Actress award? Stupid, stupid, stupid. I loved **L.A. Confidential** , but I didn’t think Basinger did anything special in that movie. I’m still annoyed that Samuel L. Jackson didn’t get the Best Supporting Actor in **Pulp Fiction**. I think it was Kevin Spacey who got it that year for **The Usual Suspects** , which is a fine movie, but nothing about Spacey’s performance really stood out for me. ---
**Author:** ![Crunchy\_Frog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ebca7d/32.png) [@Crunchy\_Frog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crunchy_Frog)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2000, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/45 "2000-09-10T17:15:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by spooje \* > \*\*One of the most heinous hosings was Carl Reiner not being nominated for Best Director for ‘A Few Good Men’. \*\* I thought that was Rob Reiner. ---
**Author:** ![hypergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/49beb7/32.png) [@hypergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hypergirl)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2000, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/46 "2000-09-10T21:05:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ssskuggiii \* > \*\*Um, I thought that Titanic was a trite plot with a change of scenery. Blah, ick, I’m outta here. \*\* Eh, love you too Tasha. But I’m not in the mood to argue. It’s just that every other person in that movie was nominated except for him. Granted none of them won, but that’s besides the point. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/47 "2000-09-11T00:22:23Z")
**hypergirl:** The screenplay for _Titanic_ wasn’t nominated either, for what it’s worth. If I remember my Oscar history, it’s the only time a film has ever won Best Picture when its screenplay wasn’t nominated. I concur with many of the foregoing choices: **lissener’s** acknowledgement of John Malkovich and Crissy Rock, **Jack Batty’s** nod to Vincent Gallo, **xizor** and others for Carrey’s Andy Kaufman, **JosephFinn’s** recognition of Philip Seymour Hoffman, **Gadarene’s** comments regarding Andre Braugher and the best damn police series in television history, and many others. I’ll also point out a couple of Atom Egoyan films that were seriously overlooked: _The Sweet Hereafter_ should have been nominated for Best Picture. From that film, Bruce Greenwood and Sarah Polley should have been nominated for supporting acting awards, and Ian Holm absolutely should have been recognized for his lead performance – the best male performance that year, by far. Also, Bob Hoskins should have been nominated for best actor from Egoyan’s _Felicia’s Journey_, and of course Terence Stamp should have been nominated for Soderbergh’s _The Limey._ Going back a few years, John Wayne should have gotten his Oscar for _The Searchers_ instead of _True Grit._ Note that these are all acting awards. A few from the other artistic categories: David Holmes’s score for _Out of Sight._ (The editor, Anne V. Coates, was at least nominated, but also should have been chosen before the winner, the overly obvious _Saving Private Ryan_.) The Wachowski Brothers should have gotten a screenplay nomination for _Bound._ The film also deserved a cinematography nod for Bill Pope’s sinuous camerawork. (Hmmm. I think it’s time to watch this movie again.) In 1989, _Do the Right Thing_ should have been nominated for Best Picture. Kathleen Turner, as presenter, said as much before she opened the envelope to announce the “official” winner. _Hoop Dreams_ should have been nominated for Best Picture, but wasn’t even given a nod in the documentary category. You can fill in the same comments for just about any Errol Morris documentary, as well. _Excalibur_ was nominated for its cinematography (and lost to _Reds_, which is fine), but was not nominated for art direction or costumes. _Brazil_ was nominated for Art Direction and for Screenplay, but won neither. It deserved a lot more recognition. Tim Robbins should have been nominated for writing _Bob Roberts._ And there were a bunch of songs in that film, too, that deserved recognition. Peter Jackson’s _Heavenly Creatures_ was worthy of a whole slew of nominations. It got exactly one, for its screenplay, and lost to _Pulp Fiction._ Foreign films rarely cross over into U.S. awards (though this has been happening somewhat more frequently lately), but the films of Almodovar, Woo, Von Trier, and others have been sorely overlooked. _Hard-Boiled_, for example, should have been recognized for its editing. Tim Roth’s _The War Zone_ should have been nominated for every goddamn award they could think of. Michael Apted’s _Thunderheart_ is an underappreciated gem that died at the box office and got no award recognition. In addition to Graham Greene’s warm and funny performance, it could have earned cinematographic and writing nominations. John Carpenter’s _The Thing_ should have been nominated for its editing. Oh, and one more acting nomination: Eric Bogosian in _Talk Radio._ I could do this all day, so I’ll stop for now. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/48 "2000-09-11T06:03:09Z")
I concur with most of Cervaise’s mentions, and add these comments: Even though Leonardo DiCaprio in Titanic was that movie’s best performance, I don’t think it was Oscar material. No one in that movie deserved an acting Oscar, but DiCaprio was the only one who made any effort to find some dimension in his character; everyone else just played their cardboard cutouts as written. And the glaring omission of the screenplay from the nominations was the Academy’s way of saying, “Okay, we’re all prostitutes, but we’re not _whores!_” And _Out of Sight_ should have won every conceivable Oscar. A nearly flawless film. And what about Nicole Kidman, in _To Die For_? I don’t usually like her, but that performance was just astounding. That movie also should have won for screenplay. Carl Franklin’s _Devil in a Blue Dress_ should have won for adapted screenplay, cinematography, and directing, and should at least have been nominated for best picture. And yes, Cervaise, _Bob Roberts_ should have swept the awards. Likewise Charles Burnett’s _To Sleep with Anger_ and Kasi Lemmons’ _Eve’s Bayou._ And ShyGhost, Kim Basinger didn’t win over Judi Dench; Helen Hunt did, and as has been mentioned elsewhere here, she acknowledged Dench’s deserving the award. Basinger won for supporting. And here’s the thing: her performance in LAConfindential deserved it, but otherwise she’s an abominable actress. I really don’t get it. It’s a rare example of the Oscar actually going for a single performance: it usually goes for a career, or box office, or politics. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/49 "2000-09-11T06:19:16Z")
Nobody mentioned “Saving Private Ryan” I’m sorry, but how does a film sweep Oscar night, and then not win Best Picture? I mean honestly. I enjoyed “Shakespeare in Love” but it was not even CLOSE to Saving Private Ryan. And I would like to make a stipulation that Helen Hunt and that Paltrow chick should not win for anything, ever. They shouldn’t even be allowed to make movies. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/50 "2000-09-11T12:00:04Z")
The worst Oscar vote I’ve ever seen was _The Right Stuff_ (best movie I’ve ever seen) losing Best Picture to _Terms of Endearment_. Criminal. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/51 "2000-09-11T12:15:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BratMan007 \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by spooje \* > > \*\*One of the most heinous hosings was Carl Reiner not being nominated for Best Director for ‘A Few Good Men’. \*\* > > I thought that was Rob Reiner. \*\* D’OH! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/52 "2000-09-11T12:29:10Z")
> [@](#): > > The worst Oscar vote I’ve ever seen was The Right Stuff (best movie I’ve ever seen) losing Best Picture to Terms of Endearment. Criminal. I agree. (Of course I worked at Edwards at the time, and as an extra on the film.) **Really ripped off at the Oscars®** Roddy McDowell in _Cleopatra_. I’ve never seen the movie, but McDowell was the odds-on favourite for Best Supporting Actor. Unfortunately, a clerical error listed him in the wrong category and he was disqualified. The studio made a public apology. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/53 "2000-09-11T14:46:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Shy Ghost \* > …I think it was Kevin Spacey who got it that year for **The Usual Suspects** , which is a fine movie, but nothing about Spacey’s performance really stood out for me. > > \*\* Er…what?!? ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/54 "2000-09-11T15:44:28Z")
First off, let me back up a couple of earlier posters: I agree wholeheartedly with **astorian** ’s rant. Subtle performances are not rewarded, and Hollywood loves disabilities. I’ll add _Sling Blade_, _Shine_, and _Mask_ to his list of disability movies. I also agree with **Cervaise** that **The Sweet Hereafter** should have received a nomination. Also, from that film, the actor who played the bereaved father (the one who had been following the bus) should have received a nomination for Best Supporting Actor. (Don’t know the actor’s name or the character’s name, unfortunately.) (I think it’s **Bruce Greenwood** in the role of Billy Ansel.) I’m a big fan of the movie **Lone Star** , and its director, **John Sayles**. Although Lone Star got a nomination for Best Screenplay, it _should_ have been nominated for (and _won_) Best Picture in 1996. Sayles should at least have gotten a nomination for Best Director. Also, from that film, I would have nominated **Miriam Colon** for Best Supporting Actress in the role of Mercedes Cruz, and **Joe Morton** in the role of Colonel Payne. Like **astorian** said, subtlety is not rewarded. I agree that **Johnny Depp** is one of the best actors of his generation. (Perhaps _the_ best.) Did he get a nomination for **Donnie Brasco**? If not, he should have. Incidentally, he also turned in one of the best fake Southern accents on record in **The Astronaut’s Wife** I agree with **needs2know** that **Kevin Bacon** turned in a great performance in **Murder in the First**. He is an underappreciated actor, generally. Lastly, this seems the appropriate place to express my opinion that **Robin Williams** should have won Best Actor for **Awakenings** , but _not_ for **Good Morning Viet Nam**. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/55 "2000-09-11T15:52:24Z")
**Cervaise** wrote: > [@](#): > > Going back a few years, John Wayne should have gotten his Oscar for The Searchers instead of True Grit. Heck, **John Wayne** should have won, or at least been nominated, for his role in **The Cowboys** (which, come to think of it, should have been nominated for Best Picture). I agree that True Grit, while a hugely entertaining movie, was not Wayne’s best performance. He was also better in **The Shootist**. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/56 "2000-09-11T17:07:24Z")
Ooo, oo, _Lone Star_! How could I forget that? Or Sayles’s earlier films, _Eight Men Out_, _Matewan_, _Passion Fish_… Subtlety is not rewarded, indeed. Any one of those films should have provided front-runners for any given acting category, at minimum. Check out Mary Elizabeth Mastrontonio’s career-best (so far) performance in _Limbo_, for example. And thanks, **lissener** , for reminding us of _Eve’s Bayou_, _Devil in a Blue Dress_, and others. Definitely deserving, and definitely overlooked. Re the latter, Carl Franklin is one of those underrated directors who should get more notice. And as long as we’re talking Johnny Depp, what about his incredible Hunter S. Thompson riff in _Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas_? And one last thing: **Connor** , I’m with you on Kevin Spacey in _The Usual Suspects._ **ShyGhost** (and anyone else who’s wondering), Spacey got the Oscar for finding the very delicate balance required to make not just his role, but the entire movie, work correctly. He was smart enough to realize that Verbal Kint is the fulcrum on which the whole movie hinges; if he played the obvious beats for the first 90%, the ending would be an unsupported and unbelievable bolt from the blue, but if he went the other way, and showed too much, he’d spoil the climax. What he had to do was show **just enough** so that the ending would be an “A-ha!” moment, instead of a “Huh?” thing. Not only that, he had to provide enough modulations and hints that, in retrospect, it would be obvious to the second-time viewer what he’s doing. If his performance were off in the slightest degree, the whole movie falls apart. That’s why he deserved to win. ---
**Author:** ![JosephFinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3bc359/32.png) [@JosephFinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JosephFinn)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/57 "2000-09-11T17:20:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cervaise \* > \*\*Not only that, he had to provide enough modulations and hints that, in retrospect, it would be obvious to the second-time viewer what he’s doing. If his performance were off in the slightest degree, the whole movie falls apart. That’s why he deserved to win. \*\* And those hints are supported by the brilliant cinematography and editing. For instance, the blink and you’d miss it clue of Kint lighting a Zippo lighter with his left hand, which had previously been useless. Especially, consider how earlier in the movie he had needed Agent Cunyan (Chaz Palminterri) to light a cigarette for him since he couldn’t get the Zippo to work. It’s probably a 2-second shot, and I consider it a very small mistake by Kint, illustrative of just how hard it is to maintain that disguise for that long. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/58 "2000-09-11T19:20:13Z")
> [@](#): > > Leslie Ann Warren…as James Garner’s gun moll in “Victor/Victoria”. She may have been nominated that year can’t remember. Yes, she was nominated but lost to Jessica Lange for _Tootsie_ > [@](#): > > I almost forgot the biggest ripoff in Oscar history…Steven Spielberg…to give that man a “liftime achievement” award because they knew he had deserved it so many other times before. Assholes! Spielberg has never won a Lifetime Achievement Oscar. He did win the Irving Thalberg award (which is not the same) in addition to his 3 regular Oscars. > [@](#): > > I think they’ve changed the categories now, and have added an “instrumental” score catergory. But for years, the “best score” category would include any style of music - pop, rock, classical, whatever. And if a pop/rock score was up the same year as a Classical score, the Classical score (almost without exception) would lose. This is so incredibly wrong, I don’t even know where to begin. Film score Oscars have **always** been for the instrumental underscore. Period. There was, for a while, an Oscar for musical score or adaptation, but this was a separate category and only counted for musicals with a single set of songwriters; this was the Oscar Prince won for. However, there has never been a score Oscar that went to “rock” music–only in the Song category, which is a completely different subject entirely. There was some controversy because for a while, Disney films kept winning the score Oscar, and many suspected that though the nomination was technically for the underscore **only** , voters were choosing the films because they liked the songs. Even then, though, these were still musicals and not scores with assorted “pop” songs as the post implies. > [@](#): > > So, my point is, I used to see, year after year, excellent film scores get robbed of the Oscar. Maybe the hardest was Jerry Goldsmith (he’s my favorite) for “Under Fire” - in 1985, I think. The LA Times even said the score was a shoe-in, but for some reason, it didn’t win. _Under Fire_ lost to _The Right Stuff_ in 1983. Though a far superior score, I think it’s safe to say nobody could’ve realistically thought Goldsmith had a chance against the more popular, more widely heard (and more hummable) Bill Conti score. > [@](#): > > I’m still annoyed that Samuel L. Jackson didn’t get the Best Supporting Actor in Pulp Fiction. I think it was Kevin Spacey who got it that year for The Usual Suspects, Jackson lost to Martin Landau for _Ed Wood_ > [@](#): > > The screenplay for Titanic wasn’t nominated either, for what it’s worth. If I remember my Oscar history, it’s the only time a film has ever won Best Picture when its screenplay wasn’t nominated. Nope. _The Sound of Music, Hamlet, Grand Hotel, Broadway Melody_, and _Wings_ were also Best Picture winners with no nominations in the writing categories. > [@](#): > > I’ll add Sling Blade, Shine, and Mask to his list of disability movies. _Mask_ received no major Oscar nominations ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/59 "2000-09-11T22:07:56Z")
Hey, what about **Paul Dooley** as the Dad in **Breaking Away**? The father-son chat in that movie is a classic scene, carried by Dooley. (Not to mention Dooley giving us one of the all-time classic double-takes at the end of the movie.) Dooley didn’t get even a _nomination_ for Best Supporting Actor. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505/60 "2000-09-11T22:42:44Z")
Turns out **Johnny Depp** is from Kentucky. So maybe I shouldn’t have been so impressed by his “fake” Southern accent. 😉 Also, upon further review, Edward Norton may beat out Depp as the best actor in this generation of actors. Close call, though… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-ripped-off-at-oscar-time/32505.md?page=4)