The process of naming the Oscar nominees is long, complicated, and doesn’t make much sense. Every year there is a difference in opinion between the public and the Academy on what should have made the most coveted film list of the year. Let’s take a look back over the last 25 years at some of the most undeserving Best Picture nominees based on Flickchart user rankings.

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10 – Ray (2004)

Directed by Taylor Hackford. Ray is a 2004 biographical film about the life of blues musician Ray Charles. Nominated for 6 Academy Awards, winning 2 including Best Actor for Jamie Foxx. It’s not that Ray was a horrible film; there were just a few movies more deserving of a nomination in 2004.

• Currently ranked #2650 of all-time
• Currently ranked #62 of films released in 2004
• Ranked 87,569 times by 12,592 users
• Wins 36% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 2004 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Shaun of the Dead – #160 of all-time, #1 of 2004
• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind – #168 of all-time, #2 of 2004
• Kill Bill Vol. 2 – #270 of all-time, #3 of 2004
• The Incredibles – #288 of all-time, #4 of 2004

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9 – Babe (1995)

Directed by Chris Noonan. Babe is an adaptation of Dick King-Smith’s 1983 novel “The Sheep-Pig”,  which tells the story of a pig who wants to be a sheepdog. Nominated for 7 Academy Awards, winning one for Best Visual Effects. Babe is beautifully shot with a great performance from James Cromwell, but looking at the movies not nominated in 1995 it’s obvious this should have been pushed aside.

• Currently ranked #2757 of all-time
• Currently ranked #63 of films released in 1995
• Ranked 230,689 times by 36,233 users
• Wins 29% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 1995 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Se7en – #32 of all-time, #1 of 1995
• The Usual Suspects – #43 of all-time, #2 of 1995
• Toy Story – #75 of all-time, #3 of 1995
• 12 Monkeys – #174 of all-time, #4 of 1995

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8 – Erin Brockovich (2000)

Directed by Steven Soderbergh. Erin Brockovich is the true story of an unskilled single mother who fought against the energy corporation Pacific Gas and Electric. Nominated for 5 Academy Awards, winning one for Best Actress – Julia Roberts. Soderbergh was nominated twice in 2000, but his other film – Traffic – was much more deserving.

• Currently ranked #2859 of all-time
• Currently ranked #47 of films released in 2000
• Ranked 212,292 times by 31,478 users
• Wins 32% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 2000 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Memento – #73 of all-time, #1 of 2000
• Snatch – #230 of all-time, #3 of 2000
• In the Mood for Love – #246 of all-time, #4 of 2000
• O Brother, Where Art Thou? – #262 of all-time, #5 of 2000

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7 – The English Patient (1996)

Directed by Anthony Minghella. The English Patient is based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Michael Ondaatje. A badly-burned plane crash victim’s past is shown in a series of flashbacks as a nurse tends to him. Nominated for 12 Academy Awards, winning 9 including Best Picture and Best Director. How often will you see a movie with that number of accolades on a worst of list? The English Patient is a long and challenging watch that could double as a remedy for insomnia.

• Currently ranked #2879 of all-time
• Currently ranked #53 of films released in 1996
• Ranked 94,353 times by 13,020 users
• Wins 31% of matchups

The highest ranked movies of 1996 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Trainspotting – #215 of all-time, #2 of 1996
• Independence Day – #580 of all-time, #3 of 1996
• From Dusk Till Dawn – #592 of all-time, #4 of 1996
• Waiting for Guffman – #639 of all-time, #5 of 1996

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6 – The Cider House Rules (1999)

Directed by Lasse Hallström. The Cider House Rules is based on the 1985 novel of the same name by John Irving.  The story follows a young man raised in an orphanage and trained to be a doctor who yearns to see the world. Nominated for 7 Academy Awards, winning 2 including Best Supporting Actor – Michael Caine.

• Currently ranked #2919 of all-time
• Currently ranked #58 of films released in 1999
• Ranked 54,274 times by 7,781 users
• Wins 31% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 1999 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Fight Club – #11 of all-time, #1 of 1999
• The Matrix – #39 of all-time, #2 of 1999
• Office Space – #134 of all-time, #3 of 1999
• Toy Story 2 – #301 of all-time, #7 of 1999

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5 – Precious (2009)

Directed by Lee Daniels. Precious is based on of the 1996 novel Push by Sapphire. The story follows an abused teen who is pregnant with her second child that is invited to join an alternative school in hopes that her life can head in a new direction. Nominated for 6 Academy Awards, winning 2 including Best Supporting Actress – Mo’Nique. The best part of the flick is one scene that won Mo’Nique her Oscar, the rest of the movie was mediocre by Oscar standards.

• Currently ranked #2993 of all-time
• Currently ranked #59 of films released in 2009
• Ranked 27,321 times by 1,747 users
• Wins 47% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 2009 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Star Trek – #318 of all-time, #2 of 2009
• Moon – #361 of all-time, #4 of 2009
• The Hangover – #481 of all-time, #5 of 2009
• (500) Days of Summer – #487 of all-time, #6 of 2009

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4 – Seabiscuit (2003)

Directed by Gary Ross. Seabiscuit is loosely based on the true story of an undersized thoroughbred racehorse, whose unexpected successes made him famous during the Great Depression. Nominated for 7 Academy Awards, it’s appearance as a Best Picture Nominee baffled a lot of people. 2003 was a weak year for film and Seabiscuit was a safe choice for the Academy but there were clearly some better options.

• Currently ranked #3226 of all-time
• Currently ranked #58 of films released in 1995
• Ranked 55,356 times by 7,752 users
• Wins 31% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 2003 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Kill Bill Vol.1 – #164 of all-time, #2 of 2003
• OldBoy – #253 of all-time, #3 of 2003
• Finding Nemo – #258 of all-time, #4 of 2003
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl – #465 of all-time, #5 of 2003

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3 – The Hours (2002)

Directed by Stephen Daldry. The Hours is based on of the 1999 novel of the same name by Michael Cunningham. The story focuses on three women of different generations who are connected by the novel “Mrs. Dalloway” by Virginia Woolf.  Nominated for 9 Academy Awards, winning 1 for Best Actress – Nicole Kidman. It was a drama with Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman which means it was destined to be nominated. Even if it was just a movie about Meryl Streep throwing banana cream pies at Kidman for 90 minutes it would have still been nominated.

• Currently ranked #3244 of all-time
• Currently ranked #68 of films released in 1995
• Ranked 50,311 times by 6,511 users
• Wins 31% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 2002 not nominated for Best Picture:

• City of God – #199 of all-time, #2 of 2002
• The Bourne Identity – #224 of all-time, #3 of 2002
• Catch Me If You Can – #328 of all-time, #4 of 2002
• 28 Days Later… – #342 of all-time, #5 of 2002

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2 – The Prince of Tides (1991)

Directed by Barbra Streisand. The Prince of Tides is based on of the 1986 novel of the same name by Pat Conroy. The story follows a man attempting to overcome the emotional damage caused by his dysfunctional childhood as he falls in love with to his suicidal sister’s psychiatrist. The Prince of Tides is a 132-minute disaster, so I doubt it shocked anyone when it lost to The Silence of the Lambs.

• Currently ranked #4925 of all-time
• currently ranked #82 of films released in 1991
• Ranked 6,470 times by 547 users
• Wins 28% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 1991 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Terminator 2: Judgment Day– #49 of all-time, #2 of 1991
• Barton Fink – #322 of all-time, #3 of 1991
• Delicatessen– #537 of all-time, #4 of 1991
• The Double Life of Veronique– #743 of all-time, #6 of 1991

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1 – Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011)

Directed by Stephen Daldry– his second flick on this list. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is based on of the 2005 novel of the same name by Jonathan Safran Foer. The story follows a little boy who attempts to find the lock that matches a key left behind by his father, who died in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.  Nominated for 2 Academy Awards, the delicate subject matter is what got this nominated.  Overall it was a forgettable flick that most people avoided watching, either from the mixed reviews or the sensitive backstory.

• Currently ranked #6722 of all-time
• Currently ranked #132 of films released in 2011
• Ranked 11,649 times by 800 users
• Wins 38% of match-ups

The highest ranked movies of 2011 not nominated for Best Picture:

• Drive – #299 of all-time, #1 of 2011
• Warrior – #568 of all-time, #2 of 2011
• 50/50 – #588 of all-time, #3 of 2011
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 – #686 of all-time, #5 of 2011

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One interesting thing that stands out from the list above is that seven of the films were adapted from novels. Does that mean the Academy is partial to book-based flicks? Or is it just a long-standing aversion to awarding genre filmmaking?

Click here to check out the Flickchart list of all Best Picture nominees. Don’t agree with one of your favorites being on this list? Then get to rating and move it off, Flickchart rankings are based solely on the opinion of our users!

What’s your opinion on the worst Best Picture nominees? Feel like something else should be on the list? Sound off in the comments below, and thanks for reading!