For Your Consideration: The 50 Most Despicable Oscar Snubs of the 2000s

by Peter Knegt (November 12, 2009)
For Your Consideration: The 50 Most Despicable Oscar Snubs of the 2000s
Scenes from "Kill Bill," Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" and "4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days."

Before any of you get all optimistic about this year’s awards race, I decided to utilize this week’s column to remind you of how horribly wrong things can turn out.  As the end of this decade approaches, and you start considering your favorite films and performances, you may or may not be surprised (though I’m guessing “may not”) to find that many of them - if not the majority - failed to receive any recognition from ye ol’ Academy.  From “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” to Uma Thurman’s work in the “Kill Bill,“‘s to a seemingly endless batch of foreign language favorites, it’s a frustratingly long list.  Attempting to narrow it down to 50 was no small feat, and I’d expect there’s going to be some disagreement.  But let me first explain where I was coming from.

Essentially, I focused on only nine of the most often discussed categories: best picture, best director, best actor, best actress, best supporting actor, best supporting actress, best original screenplay, best adapted screenplay, and best foreign language film.  I realize that the remaining categories offer a plethora of angering exclusions - from “Far From Heaven”‘s costume design to “Requiem For A Dream”‘s original score to the truly obscene absence of original song, “America, Fuck Yeah” from “Team America, World Police,” not to mention the list-in-itself that is the best documentary feature category (“Grizzly Man,” “The Gleaners and I,” “The King of Kong,” etc, etc, etc) - but one can only take on so much. 

I also figured there should at least be some theoretical chance that the “snub” could have been nominated. One might argue that including the likes of John Cameron Mitchell’s work in “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” or Christian Bale’s in “American Psycho” goes against this idea, but I beg to differ.  Mitchell - if you can believe it - got a Golden Globe nomination for “Hedwig” (it seems Ricky Gervais ain’t the only thing the HFPA has on the Oscars).  I mean more along the lines of suggesting Michael Haneke’s “The Piano Teacher” as a snub for a best picture nomination or Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung as snubs in the acting categories for “In The Mood For Love.” Ridiculously deserving as they were, those weren’t snubs. They were complete impossibilities.  I can however, bitch about how both those films were shut out of the foreign language film category. And speaking of which, another “rule” - I didn’t include foreign films that weren’t submitted by their countries, as that wasn’t totally the Academy’s fault (though their pesky rules are somewhat to blame).

I’m sure I missed loads, and I encourage thoughtful use of the comments section to offer your own choices, and to make predictions about some potential 2009 non-nominees that might warrant a slot on an updated list some day in the future… Paul Schneider in “Bright Star,” anyone? Or how about Michael Stuhlbarg in “A Serious Man”?

So for what it’s worth, here are my picks for the 50 most despicable Oscar snubs of the 2000s (though it’s actually more like 70 given some of the “grouped” snubs), in descending order for your anticipatory pleasure.  It’s meant mostly as a fun exercise for both myself and (hopefully) you, and as a little reminder as we begin to enter the depths of Oscar season: Only a small percentage of the truly great performances, scripts and films actually end up participating in it.

A scene from Vincent Paronnaud and Marjane Satrapi’s “Persepolis.”

50: Tina Fey for best adapted screenplay (Mean Girls, 2004)

49: Persepolis for best foreign language film (Vincent Paronnaud and Marjane Satrapi, 2007)

48: Hugh Grant and Toni Collette for best actor and supporting actress (About a Boy, 2002)

47: Emily Blunt for best supporting actress (The Devil Wears Prada, 2006)

46: Naomi Watts for best actress (Mulholland Drive and King Kong, 2001 & 2005)

45: Hope Davis for best supporting actress (American Splendor, 2003)

44: Gomorrah for best foreign language film (Matteo Garrone, 2008)

43: Andy Serkis for best supporting actor (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, 2002)

42: Adaptation for best picture (Spike Jonze, 2002)

41: Christian Bale for best actor (American Psycho, 2000)

40: Evan Rachel Wood for best actress (Thirteen, 2003)

39: Woody Allen for best original screenplay (Vicky Cristina Barcelona, 2008)

38: Rosemarie deWitt for best supporting actress (Rachel Getting Married, 2008)

37: Cache and The Piano Teacher for best foreign language film (Michael Haneke, 2001 & 2005)

36: Peter Sarsgaard for best supporting actor (Shattered Glass, 2003)

35: Michelle Williams for best actress (Wendy & Lucy, 2008)

Shareeka Epps in a scene from Ryan Fleck’s “Half Nelson.”

34: Shareeka Epps for best supporting actress (Half Nelson, 2006)

33: Kristin Scott Thomas for best actress (I’ve Loved You So Long, 2008)

32L’Enfant and Le Fils for best foreign language film (Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, 2002 & 2005)

31: Marlon Wayans and Jennifer Connelly for best supporting actor and actress (Requiem For a Dream, 2000)

30: Mulholland Drive for best picture (David Lynch, 2001)

29: Gillian Anderson for best actress (The House of Mirth, 2000)

28: David O. Russell for best original screenplay (I Heart Huckabees, 2004)

27: United 93 for best picture (Paul Greengrass, 2006)

26: Volver for best foreign language film (Pedro Almodovar, 2006)

-This article continues on the next page-

iW

What’s the most despicable best actress Oscar snub of the 2000s?

Gillian Anderson, "The House of Mirth"
Bjork, "Dancer in the Dark"
Julie Delpy, "Before Sunset"
Sally Hawkins, "Happy-Go-Lucky"
Scarlett Johansson, "Lost in Translation"
Kristin Scott Thomas, "I've Loved You So Long"
Uma Thurman, "Kill Bill"
Naomi Watts, "Mulholland Drive"
Michelle Williams, "Wendy & Lucy"
Evan Rachel Wood, "Thirteen"
Other
Read & React: For Your Consideration: The 50 Most Despicable Oscar Snubs of the 2000s
 
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posted on November 12, 2009
Comments
1
TimothyVincent says on November 21, 2009 at 10:24pm

Joseph Gordon-Levitt for Mysterious Skin (2004)

2
fatwally says on November 15, 2009 at 4:42pm

i stand corrected thanks

3
Peter Knegt says on November 15, 2009 at 1:38pm

Fatwally: Not true. Brazil submitted it in 2002 and it was not nominated. The following year the Academy made up for it when it was deemed eligible for other categories, nominating it for 4 major awards:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Brazilian_submissions_for_the_Academy_Award_for_Best_Foreign_Language_Film

4
fatwally says on November 15, 2009 at 1:33pm

City of god declined to be in best foreign language film category

5
rberney says on November 15, 2009 at 12:41pm

“Pan’s Labyrinth” for Best Foreign Film. Guillermo should have won and it would have been the best (but possibly totally bleeped) thank you speech.

6
Hazeliiis says on November 15, 2009 at 1:14am

I get ticked off everytime I think of Christian Balegetting snubbed for “American Psycho.”  It was such a BRILLIANT performance.  He gave it his all and itsecured him as one of the best actors of my time.  In retrospect, he should’ve also been nominated for “Empire of the Sun,” which was such a brilliant and serious performance for a boy of his age.  AND…“Rescue Dawn” was brilliant.  I mean, Owen Wilson got nominated for his little war movie that didn’t remotely compare to “Rescue Dawn.” What are these people thinking????  I think it is damn time for Bale to get rewarded for his dedication to his craft.  My hopes are in “The Fighter” for next year.  It all depends on how the movie’s pieced together, but I guarantee you…you will see Dickie Ecklund, and not Christian Bale.  I will buy the most expensive bottle of champagne I can afford and toast his success because I have enjoyed his work over the years tremendously and I just want to see it REWARDED.  Hell..even a nomination, for God’s sakes.  Is that too much to ask for?  He was brilliant in “3:10 to Yuma.”  I mean, he went from hot-to-trot Bruce Wayne, to a dirt-poor rancher, loser, begger, and dirt-covered, desperate man (believably).  What’s he got to do to get an Oscar????  It’s INSANE!!!!!

7
worrywort says on November 14, 2009 at 9:30pm

the Eddie Marsan inclusion is right on.. I’ll add Zeta-Jones for Traffic.

8
PubbyPab says on November 14, 2009 at 7:48am

Wow. Way to pointedly snub Thora Birch by choosing her co-stars.

9
rurban says on November 14, 2009 at 6:59am

There are of course many best foreign language films missing, but basically a full ack.
Burstyn for Requiem? Please read the book first, and then come back. She totally overplayed it.

10
hoeyjeinen says on November 13, 2009 at 4:25pm

oop! I f’ed!! Guess I got to overzealous. But let’s hear it again! Ellen Burstyn!

11
Peter Knegt says on November 13, 2009 at 4:23pm

hoeyjeinen: the list is specifically nomination snubs, which Burstyn is not… otherwise I totally agree she was very deserving over Ms. Roberts.

12
Maryland Clay says on November 13, 2009 at 4:20pm

Saw “Half Nelson” on a SAG DVD sent to my actress wife and loved it.  Also loved that it had redemption and a low-key happy ending.

13
hoeyjeinen says on November 13, 2009 at 3:32pm

This may be my own vendetta, but I was surprised to not see Ellen Burstyn for ‘Requiem’ at the tippy-top of this list. I seem to run into all kinds of people who are also preoccupied with figuring out that one! Maybe it’s also because Julia Roberts may as well have been ribbon-dancing during that awful acceptance speech.

14
tamaraluciano says on November 12, 2009 at 11:20pm

Hm, I’m with you on Lynch and Rosemarie DeWitt, but Woody Allen’s Vicky Christina Barcelona for Best Original Screenplay?  Not so much.  The narrator and Scarlett Johanson ruined it for me.  Penelope deserved that Oscar, though.

15
pr_gmr says on November 12, 2009 at 5:46pm

Totally agree with the vast majority of these. And ‘Kill Bill’ rocks.

16
Maryland Clay says on November 12, 2009 at 4:44pm

Kill Bill was a mindless movie.  Does this make any difference?

17
HollywoodBabylon says on November 12, 2009 at 11:07am

NO


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