11 Oscar mistakes in my lifetime

I have been tinkering with this idea for awhile, and decided to just go ahead and publish it. There have been some questionable decisions by the voters in Oscar history, but I am going to highlight the films that have come out in my lifetime, and am only focusing on Best Picture. Some of these are purely Monday Morning Quarterback decisions, while some are validated by how the film has stood the test of time. Either way, these were mistakes that I will stand by and defend, although some may seem controversial. Let's start at my infancy and work toward the present.

1980 - Kramer vs Kramer. A remarkable film that showed a dark side of divorce that audiences hadn't seen before, and was really poignant in the context of where American family values were heading. However, Apocalypse Now is an absolute masterpiece that can't be compared. Perhaps the content was too graphic, and the subject matter too dark to fully appreciate at the time, but Coppola's harrowing vision of the bowels of Vietnam is visceral and frightening.

1981 - Ordinary People. Not to belittle this film about nothing more than a family struggling to cope with an untimely death, it was one of the more banal and uninteresting films to grace this list. This year should have been Scorcese's first Oscar with Raging Bull. To encapsulate the life of an aging boxer from start to finish, with perhaps the greatest physical transformation in cinema history by De Niro was an amazing feat. It was a daring movie, introducing audiences to the brazen violence that would become Scorcese's trademark, it pulled no punches, which is difficult for a boxing film.

1982 - Chariots of Fire. A truly heartwarming story of triumph over adversity. However, Steven Spielberg's Raiders of the Lost Ark came out this year and revolutionized the action film genre forever. We were introduced to a fictional hero of universal intrigue and esteem. A beloved hero worthy of Hollywood lore. For these reasons alone, Raiders should have broken the action film barrier and won the award.

1995 - Forrest Gump. Oscar did a commendable job through the later part of the 80's and the early 90's, but flubbed when it chose Gump. It was an epic dramedy, showcased some state of the art visual effects, and audiences loved it, but was it the best film of the year? No. Was it the second best film of the year? No. Quentin Tarantino hit the scene with his brilliant follow-up to Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction. It broke all of the rules of Hollywood, and incorporated obscure influences that revolutionized the independent film scene forever. The other film? Shawshank Redemption. Nearly 20 years later, it tops many critics list as the greatest film of all time. Outstanding all around, it should have been recognized at the time as the film of the year.

1997 - The English Patient. What is there to say about this film other than that it is terrible? Not a good choice in the slightest, and I'm not the only one who thinks that. Frequently cited as the worst best picture of all time, the Coen Brothers should have taken home thier first Best Picture award that year with Fargo. Quirky and dark, it had the cast and humor to lure audiences, hypnotize them and shock them with an unhappy ending.

1998 - Titanic. I have a hard time accepting that Titanic deserved a Best Picture, and Avatar didn't. This year, both LA Confidential and Good Will Hunting stormed the scene with reckless abandon, showing that writing and passion can make great film. People will argue that Titanic was, well, Titanic, but it was ultimately a disaster flick with good looking leads, and a $200 million budget.

1999 - Shakespeare in Love. My sentiments toward The English Patient can be repeated, although the runner up was much more deserving this year. Saving Private Ryan was a remarkably realistic look at World War II in a way that hadn't been done before, or since. It left the viewer with a flock of butterflies in the pit of his stomach, and was Spielberg at his finest. Shakespeare in Love? Just a decent film.

2002 - A Beautiful Mind. A great film, and a wonderful show of Crowe's acting, and Howard's direction. This is where my choices are a bit controversial. My contention is that for Peter Jackson's epic Lord of the Rings trilogy, the initial installment, the Fellowship of the Ring, was the best of the three. It laid the groundwork for the conclusion that was exceptional, but not the best of the three. Obviously the awards bestowed on Return of the King were mostly for the entire body of work, but without Fellowship, Return of the King would not have been considered the masterpiece it is.

2003 - Chicago. This is perhaps the year that gave me the idea to make this list in the first place. Chicago was cool and clever, but in competition with Gangs of New York and Road to Perdition, it was not worthy of Best Picture. Road to Perdition is one of the most underrated films of the decade. Paul Newman's last feature length live action film portrays an old, conflicted man, and the collage of Tom Hanks, Daniel Craig, and Jude Law beautifully stirred by the magical hand of Sam Mendes is truly one of the most overlooked films around.

2004 - Return of the King. See 2002. Return of the King was emotionally charged, but due more in part to the enormity of the trilogy than the final installment. Mystic River was an exceptional film by Clint Eastwood that crossed the line of revenge and friendship in a haunting way. Sean Penn won his first Oscar for the film, and Tim Robbins one as well, and it was truly the best movie of the year.

2006 - Crash. Contrived and manipulative, Crash was a formulaic mosaic of cliche scenarios that came together in what was critically acclaimed, but in actuality was just an overhyped police drama. Much like Pay it Forward, the film was created with the intention of winning awards, which as we all know, isn't typically the way to win awards. The film that broke barriers in the most beautiful way possible was Brokeback Mountain. Ang Lee tackled a project that no other director would have been brave enough to take on, and Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhall were cinematic magic. It is a shame that Brokeback Mountain wasn't more recognized for the artistic gem that it is.

Well, that's my list. I would love to hear what your thoughts are in response.