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27 Great Movies Completely Rejected by the Oscars in 2020

From "The Farewell" to "Uncut Gems," it's hard to believe these great 2019 films have zero Oscar nominations among them.

By Zack Sharf

27 Great Movies Snubbed by the Oscars in 2020 — Indiewire

Zack Sharf

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January 13, 2020 10:25 am

"Midsommar," "Uncut Gems," "The Farewell" — "Midsommar," "Uncut Gems," "The Farewell"

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The nominations for the 92nd Academy Awards have been announced, and movies such as Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman,” Sam Mendes’ “1917,” Todd Phillips’ “Joker,” Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” and Noah Baumbach’s “Marriage Story” all walked away with multiple nominations as expected. As is the case every Oscar season, a handful of the year’s best movies were left snubbed by Academy voters.

While many of these films were long shots, it’s still disappointing when movies as amazing as “Midsommar,” “The Farewell,” “Her Smell,” “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Booksmart,” and “Uncut Gems” have zero Oscar nominations among them. Fortunately, the Oscars are just the Oscars and dozens of great films get snubbed every year.

Below is IndieWire’s annual list of great movies completed rejected by Academy voters. Only films that qualified for Best Picture have been considered.

“Uncut Gems”

Image Credit: A24

“Uncut Gems” has become one of the best reviewed and most commercially successful indies of 2019 (the film has managed to break the $40 million mark at the U.S. box office), but the Academy still overlooked it in favor of the season’s more dominant contenders like “The Irishman” and “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.” Perhaps the film’s Christmas release date came too late, given the shorter awards season with the Oscar date so much earlier in 2020. Regardless, “Uncut Gems” star Adam Sandler should’ve been a Best Actor threat (he won the National Board of Review prize) and the Safdie Brothers should have found themselves in the running for Best Director (which they won from the New York Film Critics Circle) and Best Screenplay (which they won from the National Board of Review). Awards consideration was also deserved for Darius Khondji’s anxiety-ridden cinematography.
“The Farewell”

Image Credit: A24

Lulu Wang has been a staple of the 2019-20 awards season with “The Farewell.” Wang was a favorite to land an Oscar nomination in the same category but was snubbed in favor of scripts from Quentin Tarantino, Noah Baumbach, Rian Johnson, Bong Joon Ho and Han Jin Won, and Sam Mendes and Krysty Wilson-Cairns. Golden Globe winner Awkwafina was also shut out of the Best Actress race, while Best Supporting Actress underdog Zhao Shuzhen didn’t make the cut either.
“Honey Boy”

Image Credit: Amazon Studios

“Honey Boy” director Alma Har’el earned a Directors Guild of America nomination for Best First Feature, but she was considered a long shot all season for the Best Director race. If only the Academy honored first-time feature filmmakers. Har’el’s film, “Honey Boy,” is written by Shia LaBeouf and finds the actor confronting his traumatic past as both a child actor and the son of an alcoholic. LaBeouf’s fearless screenplay never had the Oscar buzz it deserved, nor did his supporting performance as a character based on his own father. At least LaBeouf and Noah Jupe managed Best Supporting Actor nominations from the Indie Spirit Awards, where Har’el is thankfully in the Best Director race.
“The Last Black Man in San Francisco”

Image Credit: A24

Joe Talbot’s feature directorial debut “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” started its run as an award winner at the Sundance Film Festival (U.S. Dramatic Directing Award), and it should have ended its run with a strong showing at the Oscars. From Talbot’s vibrant direction to Jonathan Majors’ soulful supporting performance and Adam Newport-Berra’s imaginative cinematography, it wasn’t asking much for “Last Black Man” to receive at least one Oscar nomination. Prior to being snubbed by the Academy, the film earned three Gotham Award nominations (Breakthrough Director, Best Screenplay, and Breakthrough Actor) and three Indie Spirit Award nominations (Best First Film, Best Supporting Male, Someone to Watch Award).
“Diane”

Image Credit: IFC

Kent Jones’ “Diane” was the big winner of the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and has since gone on to earn two Film Independent Spirit Award nominations (Best First Film and Best Actress for Mary Kay Place) and two Gotham Awards (Breakthrough Director, Best Actress). Leading performer Mary Kay Place was named the Best Actress of the year by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and in a perfect world would have factored more strongly in the Best Actress race.
“Hustlers”

Image Credit: STX

Easily one of the biggest Oscar snubs in 2020 is the omission of Jennifer Lopez in the Best Supporting Actress category for her acclaimed performance in Lorene Scafaria’s “Hustlers.” Lopez picked up nominations from the Golden Globes, Critics Choice Awards, and Screen Actors Guild Awards. The SAG nomination led many Oscar pundits to believe Lopez was a lock for an Oscar nomination, as SAG voters cross over with the Academy’s Oscar branch, but that was not the case. Lopez is still seeking her first Oscar nomination.
“Waves”

Image Credit: A24

Trey Edward Schults’s “Waves” was perhaps too in-your-face and exhausting to earn widespread recognition from the Academy, but Kelvin Harrison Jr.’s brutal and wounded lead performance was some of the year’s most impressive acting. Schults’ direction and Drew Daniels’ cinematography could have also been singled out more by awards bodies. The camera in “Waves” moves with such freewheeling precision that it creates a whiplash effect to match the characters’ freefalls.
“Booksmart”

Image Credit: Annapurna

Even after some of the year’s best reviews, a Golden Globe nomination for Beanie Feldstein (Best Actress in a Motion Picture Comedy or Musical), and a Writers Guild of America nod for Best Original Screenplay, Olivia Wilde’s instant-classic comedy “Booksmart” was still completely sidelined by the Academy (which is especially painful considering Billie Lourd truly was one of 2019’s best supporting actresses). Fortunately, Wilde’s fresh spin on the coming-of-age genre and Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever’s star-making performances should make “Booksmart” endure far longer than some of this year’s Oscar nominees.
“Midsommar”

Image Credit: A24

It seemed doubtful that “Midsommar” would be embraced by the Academy considering Ari Aster’s last movie, “Hereditary,” had even more Oscar buzz thanks to Toni Collette’s Best Actress campaign and still managed to be snubbed. Florence Pugh, rightfully praised for bringing a sterling humanity to Amy in Greta Gerwig’s “Little Women,” is arguably better in “Midsommar,” giving a nerve-shattering performance as a woman coming to terms with her own power in the midst of a psychological downfall. Pugh was nominated for the Gotham Awards but was similarly snubbed by the Indie Spirit Awards.
“Clemency”

Image Credit: Neon

Neon’s “Parasite” is one of the year’s biggest Oscar contenders. If only the distributor’s “Clemency” made as much noise in this year’s acting races. Chinonye Chukwu’s prison drama won the Sundance Grand Jury Prize and should’ve had Alfre Woodard at the front of this year’s Oscar race for Best Actress. Woodard earned nominations at the Gotham Awards and the Indie Spirit Awards, where “Clemency” is also a Best Feature nominee. Aldis Hodge’s heartbreaking supporting performance was also worthy of a lot more Oscar buzz this season.
“Portrait of a Lady on Fire”

Image Credit: Neon

Celine Sciamma’s Cannes winner “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” was one of the best reviewed movies of the year, but it unfortunately was never going to land a Best International Film nomination since France chose “Les Miserables” as its official selection. But even without a Best International Film bid, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” was strong enough to be a contender for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography, and Best Actress. Alas, the Academy is still hesitant to nominate an abundance of foreign films across categories. At least we can take comfort in knowing “Parasite” is a multiple nominee this year.
“The Nightingale”

Image Credit: IFC

Jennifer Kent’s “The Nightingale” was always going to be too viscerally brutal for Academy voters, but leading actress Aisling Franciosi deserved Best Actress consideration this year. Playing a woman who seeks revenge after her husband and child are horrifically taken away from her, Franciosi digs into heart-wrenching depths to give one of the year’s most broken and bruised leading performances. Franciosi rightfully earned a Gotham Award nomination for Breakthrough Actor for her galvanizing performance.
“A Hidden Life”

Image Credit: Fox Searchlight

Terrence Malick’s “The Tree of Life” earned Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography, but his most recent effort “A Hidden Life” was not afforded a similar fate despite many critics believing the religious historical drama was the filmmaker’s strongest achievement since “Tree of Life.” Fox Searchlight paid in the $14 million range for Malick’s movie at Cannes with every intention of the movie becoming a serious Oscar player. That price tag was a big miscalculation as “A Hidden Life” never sparked much Oscar buzz or box office interest with general audiences and voters.
“Luce”

Image Credit: Neon

The Academy snubbed Kelvin Harrison Jr. for “Waves” and they snubbed him again for “Luce,” Julius Onah’s searing character thriller about a star high school student who may or may not harbor violent fantasies, much to the escalating worry of his teacher (Octavia Spencer, riveting) and his parents (Naomi Watts and Tim Roth). For many film critics, Kelvin Harrison Jr. was one of the top performers of 2019 and it would have been nice for the rising star to have the same Oscar buzz afforded the likes of Christian Bale, Adam Sandler, and Antonio Banderas.
“Her Smell”

Image Credit: Gunpowder and Sky

Elisabeth Moss should have been the biggest no-brainer Best Actress nomination at the Oscars in 2020. As destructive punk rocker Becky Something in Alex Ross Perry’s “Her Smell,” the Emmy-winning actress turns in career-defining work that landed her Gotham Award and Indie Spirit Award nominations for Best Actress. An Oscar nomination should have followed suit. Moss appears in close-up for nearly the entire movie and her lived-in pain and soul searching carry the film to heights of profound human drama.
“The Beach Bum”

Image Credit: Neon

Harmony Korine and Oscar voters don’t exactly have overlapping tastes, but every awards race during the 2019-2020 season for Best Cinematography was lessened by overlooking Benoît Debie. Korine reunited with his “Spring Breakers” DP for “The Beach Bum,” and it’s Debie’s neon-soaked visuals that create a vibrant palette for Korine’s madness to feel limitless and defined. Throw in performances from Matthew McConaughey and Martin Lawrence that are gonzo perfection and “The Beach Bum” deserved to be shaking up awards races.
“Greener Grass”

Image Credit: IFC

Of course Jocelyn DeBoer and Dawn Luebbe’s suburban satire “Greener Grass” was too wacky and too inexplicably surreal for Oscar voters, but that doesn’t excuse the fact the Academy overlooked some of the season’s most eye-popping production design. “Greener Grass” looked like a comedic riff on the hallucinatory style of David Lynch, and that the film pulled off such striking artistic design on an indie budget is all the more of an achievement.
“High Flying Bird”

Image Credit: Netflix

You can’t blame Netflix for prioritizing Scorsese’s “The Irishman” and Baumbach’s “Marriage Story” as its major Oscar contenders this season, but Steven Soderbergh’s skillful corporate sports drama “High Flying” deserved the same kind of Oscar push afforded to “The Two Popes” and “Dolemite Is My Name.” The Gotham Awards were smart enough to give two nominations to the movie: Best Screenplay for “Moonlight” Oscar winner Tarell Alvin McCraney and Best Actor for Andre Holland. McCraney will compete for Best Screenplay at the Film Independent Spirit Awards.
“Queen and Slim”

Image Credit: Universal

Melina Matsoukas’ “Queen and Slim” is such a boldly stylish film that it’s surprising Tat Radcliffe’s cinematography never got an ounce of Oscar buzz. Ditto the breakthrough performance from Jodie Turner-Smith, who created one of Hollywood’s most dimensional original characters on the big screen in some time.
“Monos”

Image Credit: Neon

Alejandro Landes’ “Monos” was the official Colombian entry for this year’s Best International Feature Film Oscar, but somehow it was left off the shortlist. “Monos,” named one of the best films of 2019 by IndieWire chief critic Eric Kohn, should have easily been one of the five foreign nominees this year. Even more, Jasper Wolf’s guerrilla-style cinematography and another sonically rich Mica Levi original score should have had Oscar buzz all season long.
“The Report”

Image Credit: Amazon Studios

Scott Z. Burns’ political drama “The Report” earned some of the biggest Oscar buzz of the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, notably for the performances by Adam Driver and Annette Bening. Amazon had a rocky year with its big Sundance buys tanking at the box office, prompting the studio to release “The Report” in theaters for just two weeks before making it widely available on its streaming platform. Annette Bening managed to break through with a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress, but one awards shootout wasn’t enough to give “The Report” the Oscar momentum it deserved.
“Wild Rose”

Image Credit: Neon

Star-making performances don’t shine brighter than Jessie Buckley in “Wild Rose.” The rising actress is unbelievably great as a Scottish woman who dreams of becoming a country singer. Performing all of her own songs, Buckley proves she’s got acting and musical chops to spare. The BAFTAs didn’t exactly have the best film nominations in 2020, but one thing the group did that was actually smart was nominating Buckley for Best Actress.
“Gloria Bell”

Image Credit: A24

How quickly many forgot about Julianne Moore’s marvelous leading performance in Sebastian Lelio’s English-language “Gloria” remake. At the very least, a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Comedy should have been a no-brainer (even if the film has considerable dramatic undertones). “Moore’s compassionate performance confirms the strength of the original and its beloved heroine’s universal appeal,” IndieWire’s Eric Kohn wrote in his A- review of the movie. “More than that, ‘Gloria Bell’ proves that the best stories can be told endlessly, so long as they’re told well.”
“Apollo 11”

Image Credit: Neon

Neon managed to get the excellent “Honeyland” nominated for both Best Documentary and Best International Feature Film (a history-making feat), but the studio’s other extraordinary documentary “Apollo 11” was shut out. Filmmaker Todd Douglas Miller assembled hours of never-before-seen archival footage from NASA’s moon landing mission to create one of the most intimate historical documentaries ever made. The movie might have lacked the directorial pizzaz of other documentaries this year since it relied entirely on archival footage, but the effect of seeing that footage restored on the big screen made “Apollo 11” a true cinematic experience.
“One Child Nation”

Image Credit: Amazon Studios

Nanfu Wang’s documentary “One Child Nation” takes a devastating look at China’s one-child policy that lasted from 1979 to 2015. The movie premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to widespread critical acclaim and many Oscar pundits had it as a no-brainer to land a Best Documentary nomination at the Academy Awards after it landed a nomination from the Directors Guild of America. Alas, the Amazon Studios-backed non-fiction feature was snubbed.
“Dolemite Is My Name”

Image Credit: Netflix

Eddie Murphy’s film career came roaring back to life thanks to “Dolemite Is My Name,” an uproarious biographical drama about musician, stand-up comedian, and blaxploitation icon Rudy Ray Moore. Murphy was nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Comedy or Musical” and was always viewed as an underdog to land an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Murphy got close to winning an Oscar for “Dreamgirls” but was shockingly beat in the Supporting Actor race by Alan Arkin of “Little Miss Sunshine.” “Dolemite” could have been the comedian’s return to the big show.
“Atlantics”

Image Credit: Netflix

Mati Diop’s “Atlantics” made history at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival by being the first competition entry directed by a black woman. The movie ended up winning the Grand Prix award, jump starting its award chances that were then bolstered with the support of Netflix. “Atlantics” was named the best debut feature of the year by the New York Film Critics Circle, but it was shut out of this year’s race for Best International Feature Film. Had “Atlantics” made the cut, it would have been the first movie from Senegal to compete at the Oscars.

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