Earlier this year, “Spotlight” took home the top prize at the Oscars for Best Picture over “The Revenant,” “The Big Short,” and several others. This was great because usually it seems that the rightful winner actually ends up losing. I am going to talk about the ten unlucky films that were most deserving to win the top prize but were snubbed in the end.

#10. “The Shawshank Redemption” over “Forrest Gump” (1994)

#9. “The Exorcist” over “The Sting” (1973)

#8. “Good Will Hunting” over “Titanic” (1997)

#7. “Moneyball” over “The Artist” (2011)

#6. “Field of Dreams” over “Driving Miss Daisy” (1989)

#5. “Raiders of the Lost Ark” over “Chariots of Fire” (1981)

“Raiders of the Lost Ark,” much like other Spielberg classics such as “Jaws” and “Jurassic Park,” have shown that they can hold up and stand the test of time. Not to mention, “Raiders of the Lost Ark” not only started one of the most popular film franchises of all time, but is also widely regarded as one of the greatest movies of all time. Yet somehow, “Chariots of Fire,” a cheesy, overlong, and boring Olympics film which has completely failed the test of time, beat it. Honestly, it’s surprising that “Chariots” even got nominated in the first place. While the film was well liked upon release, its ratings were significantly below the other nominees of 1981 such as “Reds,” “Atlantic City,” “On Golden Pond,” and, of course, “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” The American Film Institute ranked “Raiders of the Lost Ark” as the 60th greatest film of all time. Apparently, that’s not good enough for the Oscars.

#4. “Jaws” over “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (1975)

In 1975, Steven Spielberg created the first film blockbuster with “Jaws,” a fun action romp that had no right to be nearly as good as it was. The film should have been a simple B movie, but instead became on of the finest films of our time. The Oscars, instead, went will Milos Forman’s film adaption of the novel “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” starring Jack Nicholson. The problem with “Cuckoo’s Nest” stems from the fact that Nicholson’s R.W. McMurphy just is not a likeable character. In fact, he is responsible for at least half of the problems that befall the other characters in the film. It’s fairly obvious that the Oscars didn’t want to go with the action thriller, but instead the tour de force as usual. Movies still look to imitate “Jaws,” from its haunting musical score by John Williams to the wonderful performances by the lead actors. “Cuckoo’s Nest,” however, has faded into obscurity for the average film fan.

#3.  “Inception,” “Toy Story 3,” or “The Social Network” over “The King’s Speech” (2010)

2010 was an incredible year for filmmaking, from the final chapter in the Toy Story saga to the bio pick of Mark Zuckerberg. There was Christopher Nolan’s brilliant “Inception,” Ben Affleck’s “The Town,” and the Scorsese/DiCaprio joint “Shutter Island.” There was also “The Fighter,” the film that saw Christian Bale win an Oscar. This is why it comes as a surprise that “The King’s Speech” was the one that was crowned champion. At least “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” deserved to be nominated. “The King’s Speech” is an overly bloated Oscar bait piece of trash. The performances were great, sure, but the writing, directing, and editing were nothing to write home about. There were six far superior films, especially “Inception,” “Toy Story 3,” and “The Social Network.” All three were landmark powerhouses of films that rightfully deserved the immense praise they received as well as their nominations. “The King’s Speech” didn’t.

#2. “The Pianist” over “Chicago” (2002)

In my opinion, “The Pianist” is actually a better movie than “Schindler’s List,” the 1993 Best Picture Winner that is widely considered to be one of the absolute best films of all time. “The Pianist” told a sad yet inspiring movie about love, hope, and hate. Not only did the film lose, but it lost to “Chicago,” a mediocre musical that was incredibly unimpressing. It’s unbelievable that “Chicago” was nominated for a single Oscar. It was boring, the musical numbers were overdone, and the acting was way over the top. “The Pianist,” on the other hand, truly is one of the most perfect films ever put to screen. All of the performances are great, especially Adrien Brody, the music is beautiful and haunting, the production and costumes were top notch, and the film was perfectly edited and directed. Roman Polanski (“Rosemary’s Baby,” “Chinatown”) rightfully deserved the Best Director award that he won, but that was not enough. Not even close. The film should have taken home around ten Oscars, not two.

#1. “Star Wars” over “Annie Hall” (1977)

 
Oh my, where do I even begin here? “Star Wars” is still one of the highest grossing films and is absolutely beloved by nearly everyone. It launched a franchise still going strong and it won six Oscars. One it didn’t win was Best Picture. That went to Woody Allen’s “classic” “Annie Hall.” Look, I get it: the Oscars don’t like blockbusters, but when the difference in quality is that large of a gap they just have to suck up their pride and give it to the film. “Annie Hall” isn’t terrible, but it’s much like watching a golf game: occasionally interesting, but mostly overlong, boring, and puts you to sleep. Objectively, “Star Wars” is one of the top 30 greatest films ever put to the screen. Everything about it just screams greatness. At his best, Woody Allen is overrated, but more than not he’s just subpar. At its best, “Star Wars” is an instant masterpiece that generations upon generations of people watch and then hand it down to the next generation. Seriously, how many people have even seen “Annie Hall?” I’ll save you the trouble: it’s a romance and they don’t end up together because Woody Allen loves to be a hipster.