 10 Worst Oscar Best Pictures of All TimePOSTED BY Fred Topel | TUESDAY FEBRUARY 16 AT 9:15 PST
As awards season heats up, I want to remind you not to take things so seriously. No matter what wins Best Picture, all the other nominees, and even the snubbed favorites, continue to exist. You’ll always be able to enjoy whatever movies you liked. In fact, years from now people might laugh at the Best Picture winner. I looked back over Oscar’s history and picked out some of the more dubious winners, certainly movies that wouldn’t be on any “Best of Anything” lists today. 10) Ordinary People
Robert Redford has directed some great movies. Besides his other nominated films like Quiz Show, I also like The Horse Whisperer. Maybe we have this Best Picture winner to thank for giving him the confidence to keep stepping behind the camera, but it couldn’t have been for its own merits. I mean, a family death drama is so obvious. In the year of Raging Bull, The Elephant Man and the unnominated The Empire Strikes Back, we say no. Even though Donald Sutherland always rules. 9) Shakespeare In Love
I always thought this just got the generic costume drama award. It’s cute, and a tiny bit literate (though it’s not that highbrow to make Romeo and Juliet references), but it's still just your standard romance. If you still have fond memories of it, just remember that it beat Saving Private Ryan and Life is Beautiful, and that Joseph Fiennes is now on a failing TV show. 8) Around The World In 80 Days
This movie makes everyone’s list of the worst Best Picture winners, so it would be irresponsible to leave it off mine. The overlong three hour Jules Verne adaptation seems an unusual choice at all. Guess it’s the costumes and the literary cred. I actually like the Jackie Chan version that came out in 2004. Sammo Hung as Wong Fei-Hung and a fight on the Statue of Liberty’s head, that’s some good stuff. 7) How Green Was My Valley
In 1941, this sprawling coal miner epic must have seemed like solid Oscar bait. Back then, they might have thought that competing nominee Citizen Kane was just a technical gimmick that wouldn’t be remembered as technique moved on. They couldn’t have known that it would become the go-to study in film schools for generations. And I don’t think Citizen Kane is the most moving or emotional movie of all time either, but history and the A.F.I. have definitely spoken on this one. 6) Rebecca
I know, it’s blasphemy to say anything negative about the master, Alfred Hitchcock, but his one Best Picture winner is the one that never worked for me. It’s such a slow, boring marital drama where nothing happens. When Olivier finally reveals the big twist, it’s less of an “ah-ha!” and more of a “Why didn’t you just say so to begin with?” 5) Crash
I actually think Crash was a perfectly good story about ensembles intersecting and ironic things happening. I just think the idea that it “tackled” racism was preposterous. Its idea that L.A. is racist because we drive cars is childish. Also, making every story have racism in it is as unrealistic as telling a story with no racism in it. They should have just told entertaining dramatic stories and not been so proud of themselves. 4) Chariots Of Fire
Yes, I’m putting the “classic” sports movie with the landmark score on this list. Maybe I’m a product of the modern age (I’m no fan of MTV editing though), but this movie is boring. I’ll pretend that watching people run is exciting if that’s the "gripping" subject material, but it’s mainly about talking about running. Shin splints are more exciting. 3) Forrest Gump
I actually liked Forrest Gump when it first came out. It was never better than Pulp Fiction, Shawshank Redemption or Quiz Show, which it beat (man, 1994 was a great year for movies), but it certainly seemed like a fine mainstream choice. Well, watch it again and from today’s perspective it doesn’t hold up at all. In a post 9/11 world, some not-full-retard telling strangers about how his childhood girlfriend got molested just seems creepy. Now that the presidential visual effects are nothing special, the movie’s not really about anything. 2) The English Patient
This one always pissed me off. Just make it long and put it in the desert and it’s a Best Picture, right? I resent that. I also resent that people rave about this film’s cinematography. What, they pointed the camera at the desert and it was pretty? This was probably the beginning of the end for Best Picture credibility, as most of this list was inspired by recent winners. We had to struggle to go back before the ‘90s. 1) A Beautiful Mind
This is just the most blatant case of let’s do a movie about somebody with a disease and win awards for it. Now, the real John Nash triumphed over amazing adversity and his wife was a warrior. Just don’t get all smug about how likeable his imaginary friends are and how magical the visual connections he sees in newspapers are. FYI: That’s not an enlightening perspective on schizophrenia. It’s just Oscar bait. Today's Marquee LinksTeam China Stretches Sexually (Video)
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February 16th, 2010 at 03:31 pm Forrest Gump was better than all those movies you listed. pulp Fiction has got to be the most over rated film i have ever seen.
February 16th, 2010 at 04:26 pm Where the fudge is Titanic? That movie was a titanic turd.
February 16th, 2010 at 04:51 pm Million Dollar Baby; boring and obvious. Slumdog Millionaire: what a crapfest.
February 16th, 2010 at 07:08 pm Yeah Forrest Gump kicks the crap out of Pulp Fiction.
February 16th, 2010 at 10:43 pm
Alright, well what about Forrest vs. Shawshank? C'mon! It's Shawshank, people!
February 17th, 2010 at 03:11 am Can someone tell me why Crash is the number 1 movie on netflix for about 4 years in a row. If you look at the other movies (aside from family films) it is much worse compared to them. I also don't think Forrest Gump belongs on the list.
February 17th, 2010 at 06:53 am How did you not put that piece of crap "Slumdog Millionaire" up here is beyond me. The movie's plot is like an old "What's Happening" episode --only in India instead of the ghetto. The acting is so appallingly bad as to be laughable. Its not even entertaining trifle. It just out and out sucked.
February 17th, 2010 at 07:22 am Yeah, i have tried to watch Slumdog Millionaire two times now and bothe times i have had to turn it off becaus i was so bored with it.
February 17th, 2010 at 08:21 am This list was OK until Forrest Gump. Are you fucking kidding me? It deserved it's Oscar and is one of the best movies of all time.
February 17th, 2010 at 09:22 am If you think Crash is unrealistic, you need to step from the behind the computer and enter the real world.
February 17th, 2010 at 09:28 am Shawshank, Pulp Fiction and Quiz Show are all great films, but I reserve the right to say fuck you sir. Forest Gump kicks ass and does not deserve to be in the company of cinematic diarrhea like Crash and Shakespear in Love.
February 17th, 2010 at 10:46 am ignorant
February 17th, 2010 at 10:51 am This guy is a complete moron and has no idea what he is writing about. I would say Forrest Gump vs. Shawshank is a TOUGH choice. Either one would be perfect... but Pulp Fiction? How ignorant!
February 17th, 2010 at 10:50 am I agree with the rest of the comments on here, are you fucking kidding with the Forrest Gump pick? That movie is one of the best films of the past 25 years let alone best movie of 94. Get your head out of your ass.
February 17th, 2010 at 10:53 am You have some perfect choices and some bad ones. Forrest Gump definitely holds up. The English Patient is a beautiful film. Crash is preachy. The stereotypes it perpetuates make the film just as racist as the characters portrayed. You left off Gladiator however. That was nothing more than a bloody action film. To credit it as more than that is one of the biggest mistakes of the Academy. Good idea, but I think you missed the boat on a lot of stuff.
February 17th, 2010 at 10:55 am If you think Crash is unrealistic and over-dramatic, you've never experience racism.
February 17th, 2010 at 10:54 am Dear Fred Tropel, Ya Blew it! "Now that the presidential visual effects are nothing special, the movie’s not really about anything." Forrest Gump? Are you Fucking Kidding me? so its all avatar or nothing with you huh?
February 17th, 2010 at 10:56 am I think this was written by a college freshman...
February 17th, 2010 at 10:54 am
Let's just clarify, it's not IGNORANT to favor one film over another. It's IGNORANT to think that everyone likes the same movies that you do.
February 17th, 2010 at 10:57 am WTF? How do you put Forrest Gump on that list? That movie is still great, and I have no idea what you mean when you say it doesn't hold up. How you made a connection between post 9/11 and a mentally handicapped person is sort of baffling to me. I though this list was a good idea until I saw that; your credibility tanked as soon as I saw that movie at number three.
February 17th, 2010 at 10:58 am How about you come up with some real arguments about these movies rather than "I liked the other one better". By admitting that you think Forest Gump was about nothing strips you of any credibility. Just because that year was king's competition of movies doesn't make it a worst best picture. So what if you thought Shawshank was better, you can't just cast aside a classic like Gump.
February 17th, 2010 at 11:02 am This was written by a high school kid
February 17th, 2010 at 11:04 am Pretty lame attempt to generate hits to this site. Oooo, I'll say all these movies aren't worthy of their Oscar and get people to generate hits and I'll finally be able to get some ads posted and make a million. . . don't put a down payment on that Ferarri just yet!
February 17th, 2010 at 11:08 am Sorry, but Forrest Gump is just okay. Pulp Fiction is a far, far superior film and deserved the award that year, while Shawshank was an able runner-up.
February 17th, 2010 at 11:09 am i'm with you all the way. the list is just perfect!!
February 17th, 2010 at 11:16 am Knocking Chariots of Fire doesn't get you cool points. I'll make sure to avoid coming to this site from now on.
February 17th, 2010 at 11:32 am I think Crash was a downright awful movie, and I rarely find someone who agrees with me on this. The situations themselves (involving race issues) are not the problem. It's the completely stupid dialogue and resolution to those situations that makes me just want to scream. Who would say blunt racist comments to someone they just slept with and when would an entire police force just leave some guy alone after a high speed pursuit? It's all so stupid when you aren't trying to convince yourself how great of a movie it is b/c some idiot told you so. On the other hand, I gotta disagree with Forrest Gump being on this list. As much as I like seeing Samuel L. Jackson be a BAMF or the great plotline of Shawshank, Forrest Gump leaves you with an emotional impact through its themes of loyalty, bravery, adventure, adversity, and the pursuit of happiness.
February 17th, 2010 at 11:48 am I've seen all but three best picture winners, and some are much worse than the ones listed here. Truly abysmal best pictures: Oliver, Gigi, Going My Way, The Greatest Show On Earth, and Chicago I agree with The English Patient, Ordinary People, Around the World in 80 Days, and Rebecca. Shakespeare in Love is very clever. How Green Was My Valley is beautiful (just look at that amazing image). Chariots of Fire is a fine film - but yes it's boring. Forrest Gump is fantastic - it's just very conservative. I haven't decided about A Beautiful Mind. I liked it originally. The best Best Pictures are easily Gone With the Wind, Casablanca, The Best Years of Our Lives, All About Eve, The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Apartment, Lawrence of Arabia, The Godfather 1 & 2, Schindler's List, and Lord of the Rings. Sadly missing from the Best Picture list: Citizen Kane and 2001. I haven't seen Crash, Cavalcade, or The Broadway Melody.
February 17th, 2010 at 12:52 pm Ghost is not on this list. The armpit of them all
February 17th, 2010 at 03:11 pm The only film above that should not be on this list is Rebecca - a classic! Everything else I agree with *especially* Gump. That movie was beyond bad - sexist, boring, pointless.
February 17th, 2010 at 07:14 pm I can't believe all the forrest gump love in the comments section, it was an ok movie and certainly not better than quiz show, shawshank and especially pulp fiction. Don't believe me? go back and watch them all again and you'll find forrest gump stands out from the other three as being far below any of them. I agree with a previous poster that gigi would be a better choice for worst best picture than a couple of the films on there. I liked the english patient but it certainly wasn't better than fargo. Crash should have been no. 1 that movie was just awful and was way below Munich, Brokeback Mountain and Good Night and Good luck.
February 17th, 2010 at 07:45 pm Slumdog Millionaire is worse than at least five of these.
February 18th, 2010 at 06:32 am I liked Forrest Gump well enough, but if you sincerely believe it was a better film than Pulp Fiction, then I think you should GO HOME TO GREENBOUGH ALABAMA!
February 18th, 2010 at 07:00 am How did Titanic avoid this list? It ain't hard to make a sappy romance amid a historical tragedy. I will forever be baffled as to how this beat LA Confidential and Good Will Hunting. Hell, how did it even beat The Full Monty and As Good As It Gets?
February 18th, 2010 at 07:02 am The English Patient winning Best Picture is a joke, but considering the best film that year, Sling Blade, wasn't even nominated, who really cares?
February 18th, 2010 at 09:14 am Maybe the problem you're seeing isn't with the movies, it's with the viewer.
February 18th, 2010 at 09:17 am Damn - looking back, all the Best Pictures really are kinda crap, aren't they? How about Brokeback Mountain? Point the camera at the scenery, tell a story about two completely unlikeable dudes that don't really love each other but f*** occasionally, and then collect your Oscar. Or The Departed. Lame cop drama with bad acting and unbelievable characters. But we all know this was just to make up for Goodfellas, Casino, Gangs of New York, etc. not winning the Oscars they deseved.
February 18th, 2010 at 09:44 am you're a whiny little bitch, fred.
February 18th, 2010 at 09:47 am Interesting, personal opinions on what is good and what is bad are always so varied. "making every story have racism in it is as unrealistic as telling a story with no racism in it" You can't have it both ways in that statement. Every movie, wether it had racism or wether it didn't, would be unrealistic. so why do you hate this ONE that has it. Interesting
February 18th, 2010 at 09:50 am I totally agree with Shakespeare in Love - I was REALLY angry that Paltrow got best actress for that when she was up against Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth, who I thought deserved the win in a cakewalk. I thought Shakespeare in Love was boring.
February 18th, 2010 at 09:50 am I think he just made the list to piss off the idiots who are easily offended by other opinions. At least that's just my opinion.
February 18th, 2010 at 09:53 am What can you say? Everybody has an opinion. Fred's got his. Move along. Nothing to see here.
February 18th, 2010 at 09:58 am Absolutely spot-on. Where are the Oscars for "Milagro Beanfield War," one of the best pictures ever made - and Ferris Buehler and Harold and Maude and Tortilla Soup and... Oh, sorry, I thought movies were supposed to be entertaining... my bad.
February 18th, 2010 at 09:58 am I was actually enjoying this until Forrest Gump showed up on the list. Sure, you have a point when you put Forrest Gump next to Shawshank Redemption which was a great movie too, but that doesn't mean it's one of the worst best pictures of all time. You can't compare it to the other shit you have on the list (Crash, Shakespeare in Love, The English Patient). Forrest Gump stands pretty well on its own. Shawshank Redemption just had an unlucky year. Had it been any other year it would have gotten its prize.
February 18th, 2010 at 10:08 am I am prejuduced by the fact that "Forrest Gump' is my favorite movie of all time, and I know that, so I won't start screaming "Unfair!". But I don't dissect movies into its individual entities either. I watch them for my own enjoyment, and if I enjoy them, I watch them again. I have to agree with the Colonel, people don't always like the same things. Comparing movies IS like comparing apples and oranges, unless they're really close in subject and timeline... BUT, I also have tried many times to watch my copy of 'Gone With The Wind' in its entirety and have never succeeded. (I know, 'Boooo!...Hissss!') So sue me.... The Corporal
February 18th, 2010 at 10:12 am Has everyone forgotten "Ghandi" beat out "E.T."? Talk about overly long... 3 hours of a guy starving himself... gripping. NOT
February 18th, 2010 at 10:12 am Your opinions are stupid.
February 18th, 2010 at 10:17 am Forest Gump is garbage. All the commenters loving it is just amusing. It had no interesting dialogue, no interesting characters, no interesting situation. In 20 years, if it is watched at all, it would be to bemuse at the past stupidity.
February 18th, 2010 at 10:18 am I personally hate ET. It was the most boring retarded movie of all time. Gandhi may have sucked donkey balls, but imagine the shit the Academy would have been under if it gave the Oscar to Drew Barrymore over Mahatma Gandhi.
February 18th, 2010 at 10:20 am If you knew anything about history it would be interesting, now wouldn't it?