We all know that Oscar Best Picture choices are not perfect,they actually suck most of the time.The most important reason for this “fantasy list” is discovering anything else great in the nomination list regardless of politics,PR,box office results etc.
Below is my choice of the past 83 Oscar Best Pictures,and it is biased and totally my taste.So if I haven’t seen any nomination films that year,I will go with the official one.And in some occasions,I have only seen the ones that didn’t win,I will just made my personal choices.Anyway,when my choices don’t match the official ones,I will show you my reasons.
(The first film in the nomination list of every year is the official Best Picture,and the films in bold font are my choices)
1927/28[A](1st) Film Wings The Racket Seventh Heaven 1928/29(2nd) Film The Broadway Melody Alibi The Hollywood Revue of 1929 In Old Arizona The Patriot [edit]1930s 1929/30[B](3rd) Film All Quiet on the Western Front The Big House Disraeli The Divorcee The Love Parade
1930/31(4th) Film Cimarron East Lynne The Front Page Skippy Trader Horn 1931/32(5th) Film Grand Hotel Arrowsmith Bad Girl The Champ Five Star Final One Hour with You Shanghai Express The Smiling Lieutenant
Why it:This is the the film I love the most in the Lubitsch Musicals in
Eclipse Series,so,Garbo,I'm sorry.
1932/33(6th) Film Cavalcade[H] A Farewell to Arms[H] 42nd Street I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang Lady for a Day Little Women[H] The Private Life of Henry VIII She Done Him Wrong Smilin' Through State Fair 1934(7th) Film It Happened One Night[I] The Barretts of Wimpole Street[I] Cleopatra Flirtation Walk The Gay Divorcee Here Comes the Navy The House of Rothschild[I] Imitation of Life One Night of Love The Thin Man Viva Villa! The White Parade 1935(8th) Film Mutiny on the Bounty[J] Alice Adams Broadway Melody of 1936 Captain Blood[J] David Copperfield The Informer[J] The Lives of a Bengal Lancer A Midsummer Night's Dream Les Misérables Naughty Marietta Ruggles of Red Gap Top Hat 1936(9th) Film The Great Ziegfeld Anthony Adverse Dodsworth Libeled Lady Mr. Deeds Goes to Town Romeo and Juliet San Francisco The Story of Louis Pasteur A Tale of Two Cities Three Smart Girls 1937(10th) Film The Life of Emile Zola The Awful Truth Captains Courageous Dead End The Good Earth In Old Chicago Lost Horizon One Hundred Men and a Girl Stage Door A Star Is Born 1938(11th) Film You Can't Take It With You The Adventures of Robin Hood Alexander's Ragtime Band Boys Town The Citadel Four Daughters Grand Illusion Jezebel Pygmalion Test Pilot
Why it: Rean Renior is the greatest humanist in the movie business,and
you know what else? It's spine #1 in Criterion!!
1939(12th) Film Gone with the Wind Dark Victory "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" Love Affair Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Ninotchka Of Mice and Men Stagecoach The Wizard of Oz Wuthering Heights [edit]1940s 1940(13th) Film Rebecca "All This, and Heaven Too" Foreign Correspondent The Grapes of Wrath The Great Dictator Kitty Foyle The Letter The Long Voyage Home Our Town The Philadelphia Story
Why it:Rebecca is far from Hitch's best,and The Great Dictator is one
of the most powerful films of all time.
1941[C](14th) Film How Green Was My Valley Blossoms in the Dust Citizen Kane Here Comes Mr. Jordan Hold Back the Dawn The Little Foxes The Maltese Falcon One Foot in Heaven Sergeant York Suspicion
Why it:just a no-brainer.
1942(15th) Film Mrs. Miniver 49th Parallel Kings Row The Magnificent Ambersons The Pied Piper The Pride of the Yankees Random Harvest The Talk of the Town Wake Island Yankee Doodle Dandy 1943(16th) Film Casablanca For Whom the Bell Tolls Heaven Can Wait The Human Comedy In Which We Serve Madame Curie The More the Merrier The Ox-Bow Incident The Song of Bernadette Watch on the Rhine 1944[D](17th) Film Going My Way Double Indemnity Gaslight Since You Went Away Wilson
Why it:Billy Wilder gets many,but he deserves even more. 1945(18th) Film The Lost Weekend Anchors Aweigh The Bells of St. Mary's Mildred Pierce Spellbound 1946(19th) Film The Best Years of Our Lives Henry V It's a Wonderful Life The Razor's Edge The Yearling
Why it:How many Americans still watch The Best Years of Our Lives every year? 1947(20th) Film Gentleman's Agreement The Bishop's Wife Crossfire Great Expectations Miracle on 34th Street 1948(21st) Film Hamlet Johnny Belinda The Red Shoes The Snake Pit The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
Why it:Many people only consider it as a visual marvel,but for me,it is
truly great in every department and definitely worth this title.
1949(22nd) Film All the King's Men Battleground The Heiress A Letter to Three Wives Twelve O'Clock High [edit]1950s 1950(23rd) Film All About Eve Born Yesterday Father of the Bride King Solomon's Mines Sunset Boulevard 1951(24th) Film An American in Paris Decision Before Dawn A Place in the Sun Quo Vadis A Streetcar Named Desire 1952(25th) Film The Greatest Show on Earth High Noon Ivanhoe Moulin Rouge The Quiet Man 1953(26th) Film From Here to Eternity Julius Caesar The Robe Roman Holiday Shane 1954(27th) Film On the Waterfront The Caine Mutiny The Country Girl Seven Brides for Seven Brothers Three Coins in the Fountain 1955(28th) Film Marty Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing Mister Roberts Picnic The Rose Tattoo 1956(29th) Film Around the World in 80 Days Friendly Persuasion Giant The King and I The Ten Commandments 1957(30th) Film The Bridge on the River Kwai Peyton Place Sayonara 12 Angry Men Witness for the Prosecution 1958(31st) Film Gigi Auntie Mame Cat on a Hot Tin Roof The Defiant Ones Separate Tables
Why it:One of Tennessee Williams's best screenplay,and the performances are really great. 1959(32nd) Film Ben-Hur Anatomy of a Murder The Diary of Anne Frank The Nun's Story Room at the Top [edit]1960s 1960(33rd) Film The Apartment The Alamo Elmer Gantry Sons and Lovers The Sundowners 1961(34th) Film West Side Story Fanny The Guns of Navarone The Hustler Judgment at Nuremberg 1962[E](35th) Film Lawrence of Arabia The Longest Day The Music Man Mutiny on the Bounty To Kill a Mockingbird 1963(36th) Film Tom Jones "America, America" Cleopatra How the West Was Won Lilies of the Field
Why it:It's a pity that "Once Upon in West" is never nominated,but this
epic gets so many great directors and stars,so it's fair to give it a title
1964(37th) Film My Fair Lady Becket Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb Mary Poppins Zorba the Greek
Why it:It is destined that Kubrick's films don't fit Oscar style,but this
genius deserves every one that gets nominated.
1965(38th) Film The Sound of Music Darling Doctor Zhivago Ship of Fools A Thousand Clowns
Why it:Since Lawrence of Arabia gets one,I can't figure out why this
equally heavy weight epic does not win.
1966(39th) Film A Man for All Seasons Alfie "The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming" The Sand Pebbles Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf
Why it:This is the only film in Oscar history that gets nominations in
every category,so maybe this should sum up to a title?
1967(40th) Film In the Heat of the Night Bonnie and Clyde Doctor Dolittle The Graduate Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Why it:This is the monumental year of American New Film Movement,and one
of them should win. 1968(41st) Film Oliver! Funny Girl The Lion in Winter "Rachel, Rachel" Romeo and Juliet 1969(42nd) Film Midnight Cowboy Anne of the Thousand Days Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid "Hello, Dolly!" Z[K]
Why it:YES,you have found out that I'm a die-hard Western fan and fancy star power. [edit]1970s 1970(43rd) Film Patton Airport Five Easy Pieces Love Story MASH
Why it:The most unique war film ever made,I'm gonna crown it for that. 1971(44th) Film The French Connection A Clockwork Orange Fiddler on the Roof The Last Picture Show Nicholas and Alexandra
Why it:I know it causes many troubles,but that's why it's so influential. 1972(45th) Film The Godfather Cabaret Deliverance The Emigrants[K] Sounder 1973(46th) Film The Sting American Graffiti Cries and Whispers[K] The Exorcist A Touch of Class 1974(47th) Film The Godfather Part II[O] Chinatown The Conversation Lenny The Towering Inferno 1975(48th) Film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Barry Lyndon Dog Day Afternoon Jaws Nashville 1976(49th) Film Rocky All the President's Men Bound for Glory Network Taxi Driver
Why it:From this one,Martin Scorsese starts his "bad-luck Oscar tour". 1977(50th) Film Annie Hall The Goodbye Girl Julia Star Wars The Turning Point 1978(51st) Film The Deer Hunter Coming Home Heaven Can Wait Midnight Express An Unmarried Woman 1979(52nd) Film Kramer vs. Kramer All That Jazz Apocalypse Now Breaking Away Norma Rae
Why it:Great war film ever made,and probably one of the best pictures of all time. [edit]1980s 1980(53rd) Film Ordinary People Coal Miner's Daughter The Elephant Man Raging Bull Tess
Why it:How come Martin is beaten by competitors so "weak" everytime? 1981(54th) Film Chariots of Fire Atlantic City On Golden Pond Raiders of the Lost Ark Reds
Why it:I think any one else in the nomination is good enough to beat
Chariots of Fire. 1982(55th) Film Gandhi E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial Missing Tootsie The Verdict 1983(56th) Film Terms of Endearment The Big Chill The Dresser The Right Stuff Tender Mercies 1984(57th) Film Amadeus The Killing Fields A Passage to India Places in the Heart A Soldier's Story 1985(58th) Film Out of Africa The Color Purple Kiss of the Spider Woman Prizzi's Honor Witness 1986(59th) Film Platoon Children of a Lesser God Hannah and Her Sisters The Mission A Room with a View 1987(60th) Film The Last Emperor[O] Broadcast News Fatal Attraction Hope and Glory Moonstruck 1988(61st) Film Rain Man The Accidental Tourist Dangerous Liaisons Mississippi Burning Working Girl 1989(62nd) Film Driving Miss Daisy Born on the Fourth of July Dead Poets Society Field of Dreams My Left Foot
Why it:"Carpe diem,seize the day!!" [edit]1990s 1990(63rd) Film Dances with Wolves Awakenings Ghost The Godfather Part III Goodfellas 1991(64th) Film The Silence of the Lambs Beauty and the Beast Bugsy JFK The Prince of Tides 1992(65th) Film Unforgiven The Crying Game A Few Good Men Howards End Scent of a Woman 1993(66th) Film Schindler's List The Fugitive In the Name of the Father The Piano The Remains of the Day 1994(67th) Film Forrest Gump Four Weddings and a Funeral Pulp Fiction Quiz Show The Shawshank Redemption
Why it:This one totally depends on your gender.If you are a girl,you
choose FG.Man would choose TSR.Cinephile's choice:PF.
1995(68th) Film Braveheart Apollo 13 Babe The Postman (Il Postino)[K] Sense and Sensibility 1996(69th) Film The English Patient Fargo Jerry Maguire Secrets & Lies Shine 1997(70th) Film Titanic As Good as It Gets The Full Monty Good Will Hunting L.A. Confidential 1998(71st) Film Shakespeare in Love Elizabeth Life Is Beautiful[K] Saving Private Ryan The Thin Red Line
Why it:This one should go with Best Director. 1999(72nd) Film American Beauty The Cider House Rules The Green Mile The Insider The Sixth Sense [edit]2000s 2000(73rd) Film Gladiator Chocolat "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon[K]" Erin Brockovich Traffic 2001(74th) Film A Beautiful Mind Gosford Park In the Bedroom The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Moulin Rouge! 2002(75th) Film Chicago Gangs of New York The Hours The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers The Pianist
Why it:I think I am just like those judges who lose to Nicole Kidman's
fake nose. 2003(76th) Film The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Lost in Translation Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World Mystic River Seabiscuit 2004(77th) Film Million Dollar Baby The Aviator Finding Neverland Ray Sideways
Why it:I just really think only one boxing film can win any Oscar title,
that's Raging Bull. 2005(78th) Film Crash Brokeback Mountain Capote "Good Night, and Good Luck" Munich
Why it:Typical "Best Picture" lose to "The Most Correct Picture".
2006(79th) Film The Departed Babel Letters from Iwo Jima[K] Little Miss Sunshine The Queen 2007(80th) Film No Country for Old Men Atonement Juno Michael Clayton There Will Be Blood 2008(81st) Film Slumdog Millionaire[O] The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Frost/Nixon Milk The Reader
Why it:SM is one of the few beneficiaries of economic crisis. 2009(82nd) Film The Hurt Locker Avatar The Blind Side District 9 An Education Inglourious Basterds Precious A Serious Man Up Up in the Air
Why it:Quentin is back!! [edit]2010s 2010(83rd) Film The King's Speech Black Swan The Fighter Inception The Kids Are All Right 127 Hours The Social Network Toy Story 3 True Grit Winter's Bone
Why it:This film teaches the younger generation how simple yet powerful
a film can be.
Now it's your turn,what are the nominated films you want to
give justice to in Oscar history?