And the biggest losers are...

These films should have won the Oscars for Best Picture by country miles, but were usurped by the Academy's usual schizoid malarkey, handing the awards to much less deserved flicks. Here's who won (below) and who should have, according to Rohit Nair.

 
1. Citizen Kane (1941)
 
Starring: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotton, Dorothy Comingore
 
The first rule of Citizen Kane is that you don't say anything bad about Citizen Kane. ever. Widely regarded as one of the greatest movies of all time (if not the greatest), Orson Welles's movie based on William randolph Hearst radically changed filmmaking. apparently, William didn't like the movie too much and used his influence in Hollywood to ensure the movie didn't get the accolades it deserved. 
 
2. Goodfellas (1990)
 
Starring: Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci
 
This wouldn't be the first time - or the last - that Martin Scorsese would be denied an Oscar for his undeniable talent (Raging Bull and Taxi Driver come to mind). but Goodfellas, an adaptation of Nicolas Pileggi's book on gangster culture, was so profound and raw that its story and directorial narrative inspired many more films and series for years to come, from Boogie Nights, to The Sopranos and, of course, The Departed. 
 
3. L.A. Confidential (1997)
 
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Kim Bassinger, Russell Crowe
 
And Guy Pearce, Danny DeVito, James Cromwell, and so many more great performances in this brilliant ensemble cast got shunned in favour of mass appeal. arguably one of the best movies of the 90s, L.A. Confidential was director Curtis Hanson's sort-of Birdman - a look at Hollywood's obsession with its unreal superficiality and sycophantism, without alejandro Iñárritu's style, of course. 
 
4. Life is Beautiful (1998)
Starring: Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, Giorgio Cantarini
Who can forget roberto benigni's acceptance speech for his Oscar for best actor in Life is Beautiful. That alone should have made you want to watch the movie. and it should have deservedly won. but also spare a thought for the other contenders, like Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan. Some great movies didn't even get nominated. remember The Truman Show? That was an entertainer! 
 
5. The Pianist (2002)
Starring: Adrien Brody, Emilia Fox, Thomas Kretshmann
Brody picked up the Oscar for best actor and roman Polanski got best Director, but this brilliantly unabashed tale of a Jewish musician's struggle to survive in the Warsaw ghetto was so much more than Chicago. but Gangs of New York, starring the impeccable Daniel Day-Lewis, and delightful movies like Catch Me If You Can and Road to Perdition (both starring Tom Hanks) were snubbed entirely. 
 
6. Frost/Nixon (2008)
Starring: Frank Langella, Michael Sheen, Kevin Bacon
Our opinions are divided between this one and The Reader, but even The Curious Case of Benjamin Button could have won over Slumdog Millionaire for us. Frost/Nixon was a staggeringly well-made and written re-telling of the post-Watergate TV interviews between David Frost and the disgraced former president richard Nixon. Some of us also think The Dark Knight should have been up there in the nominations. 
 
7. Inception (2010)
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page
This was a tough decision, but who can argue with what Christopher Nolan achieved with this masterpiece of a mind-bending, dream-altering heist thriller? It was a true entertainer and one that had audiences talking about it much after they left the cinemas. Now if that reaction isn't Oscar-worthy, we don't know what is!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1. How Green Was My Valley (1941)
Starring: Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O'Hara, Anna Lee
This story of a close-knit, hard-working Welsh mining family living in the heart of the South Wales Valleys in the 19th century took home five Oscars, including a best Director award for John Ford. It's a working class drama that ticks all the usual Oscar boxes, but it's got nothing on the movie that should have won, and what a movie it was. 
2. Dances with Wolves (1990)
Starring: Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene
We've got nothing against this movie. The cinematic presence was top notch, and rightly awarded for (best Cinematography and best adapted Screenplay), not to mention a dashingly good-looking Kevin Costner as Lieutenant Dunbar (best actor). but it was up against GoodFellas, and we just like that movie a lot more! 
3. Titanic (1997)
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane
Consider the nominations for the award: As Good as It Gets, L.A. Confidential and Good Will Hunting. We couldn't make it more obvious why Titanic won (hint: it had something to do with the crowd favourite), while original movies, like Good Will Hunting didn't. Movies like Wag the Dog didn't even make it to the list. 
4. Shakespeare in Love (1998)
Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush
This was a fun and fictitious tale of how Romeo and Juliet came to fruition in the mind of William Shakespeare. Good for a weekend watch, but to put it on the list for best Picture, alongside other films that were better weekend watches, with award-winning casts and directors, was a bit far-fetched. 
5. Chicago (2002)
Starring: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renée Zellweger, Richard Gere
It was probably some mix-up, at least that's what we put it down to. This comedy disguised as a crime flick, disguised as a musical was average, at best, with good, but not Oscar-worthy perfor-mances (except, maybe Catherine Zeta-Jones). but of all the movies nomi-nated - and not nomi-nated - that year, Chicago was definitely not our first choice. 
6. Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
Starring: Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Anil Kapoor
The academy, it seems, loves pandering to ethnic groups, even at the cost of blatant stereotypes and shameless tropes. and no more significantly is this penchant displayed as in the 81st academy awards where they handed eight Oscars to this Danny boyle bollywood-esque story of rags-to-riches. a r rahman got the best Original Score award - that one we'll keep. 
7. The King's Speech (2010)
Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter
Once again, this was a great movie with stunning performances, but it was up against not four or five, but nine other films for best Picture - all equally great in their own rights. The mind-blowing (even after watching it) Inception, the noir thriller Black Swan, the brilliant The Social Network and the visceral True Grit and 127 Hours could have easily usurped the king.

P11

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February 13, 2016

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