1970-1979

Biggest Mistakes
1. 1977 Rocky vs. Taxi Driver
2. 1978 Annie Hall vs. Star Wars
2. 1972 The French Connection vs. A Clockwork Orange
4. 1970 Midnight Cowboy vs. Z

Worst Winners
1. 1977 Rocky 7.8
1. 1972 The French Connection 7.8
3. 1970 Midnight Cowboy 7.8
4. 1971 Patton 8.1
4. 1979 The Deer Hunter 8.1

Best Non-Winners
1. 1978 Star Wars 8.8
2. 1977 Taxi Driver 8.5
3. 1972 A Clockwork Orange 8.4
4. 1970 Z 8.2

Worst Nominees
1. 1971 Love Story 6.3
1. 1974 A Touch Of Class 6.3
3. 1971 Airport 6.4
4. 1970 Hello, Dolly 6.5
5. 1975 The Towering Inferno 6.6

Worst Years
1. 1971 7.20
2. 1979 7.34
3. 1970 7.62
4. 1974 7.64
5. 1978 7.66

1970

Z 8.2
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid 8.1
MIDNIGHT COWBOY 7.9
Anne of the Thousand Days 7.4
Hello, Dolly 6.5

Unable to go for either the serious foreign film or the fun Hollywood film, they split the difference and went for the depressing/serious Hollywood film which wasn't as good as either.

1971

PATTON 8.1
M*A*S*H 7.8
Five Easy Pieces 7.4
Airport 6.4
Love Story 6.3

My god, they really had trouble making up the numbers.

1972

A Clockwork Orange 8.4
The Last Picture Show 7.9
THE FRENCH CONNECTION 7.8
Fiddler on the Roof 7.6
Nicholas and Alexander 6.9

If you put a gun to my head I would have to say that The French Connection is my favourite film of the bunch, but I still admire the guts of the Academy for at least picking the incendiary piece of filmmaking that is A Clockwork Orange. It would never happen today.

1973

THE GODFATHER 9.1
Utvandrama 8.1
Sounder 7.9
Deliverance 7.8
Cararet 7.7

The best film may have won, but look at the next two picks and ask youself if they would get nominations in this day and age.

1974

THE STING 8.3
Cries & Whispers 8.1
The Exorcist 8.0
American Graffiti 7.5
A Touch of Class 6.3

The popularity of The Sting has always been something of a mystery to me. Don't get me wring, I do love the movie, although I have always considered that it fell into the category of Guilty Pleasure, not one of the greatest movies of all time. Then again, what are the movies if not pure entertainment and it is hard to think of many films that are as unashamedly entertaining and crowd pleasing as The Sting.

1975

THE GODFATHER, PART II 8.9
Chinatown 8.5
The Conversation 8.1
Lenny 7.5
The Towering Inferno 6.6

How did Francis Ford Coppola manage to fall so far from grace? Two Oscar nominated movies in one year. Nowadays I bet he can't even get an invite to the ceremony.

1976

ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST 8.8
Jaws 8.3
Dog Day Afternoon 8.0
Barry Lyndon 7.9
Nashville 7.6

Hell of a year for movies, although anyone who does not think the Jaws is the greatest film of all time should be fed to Bruce.

1977

Taxi Driver 8.5
All The President's Men 7.9
Network 7.9
ROCKY 7.8
Bound for Glory 7.1

I think the numbers speak for themselves. But I am going to say that even though Rocky is apparently the 4th best film on the list, it is still grossly overrated.

1978

Star Wars 8.8
ANNIE HALL 8.2
Julia 7.4
The Goodbye Girl 7.0
The Turning Point 6.9

To be honest I was surprised to see that Star Wars got the recogntion it did. But I'm not sure that I altogether disagree with the Academy.

1979

THE DEER HUNTER 8.1
Midnight Express 7.4
Coming Home 7.3
An Unmarried Woman 7.1
Heaven Can Wait 6.7

Maybe the best film of the year got the award, but it was a pretty poor year.

1980-1989

Biggest Mistakes
1. 1982 Chariots of Fire vs. Raiders of the Lost Ark
2. 1980 Kramer vs. Kramer vs. Apocalypse Now
3. 1986 Out of Africa vs. The Colour Purple
4. 1981 Ordinary People vs. Raging Bull
5. 1984 Terms of Endearment vs. The Right Stuff

Worst Winners
1. 1986 Out of Africa 6.8
2. 1984 Terms of Endearment 7.2
3. 1982 Chariots of Fire 7.3
4. 1980 Kramer vs. Kramer 7.5
5. 1981 Ordinary People 7.7

Best Non-Winners
1. 1981 The Empire Strikes Back 8.8
2. 1982 Raiders of the Lost Ark 8.7
3. 1982 Doro no Kawa 8.6
4. 1980 Apocalypse Now 8.5
4. 1983 Das Boot 8.5

Worst Nominees
1. 1989 Working Girl 6.5
1. 1989 The Accidental Tourist 6.5
3. 1988 Fatal Attraction 6.7
4. 1986 Out of Africa 6.8
5. 1986 Prizzi's Honor 6.8

Worst Years (average score)
1. 1982 7.10
2. 1988 7.18
3. 1986 7.20
4. 1989 7.22
5. 1984 7.40

1980

Apocalypse Now 8.5
Breaking Away 7.6
KRAMER VS. KRAMER 7.5
All That Jazz 7.4
Norma Rae 7.2

Just a small-scale movie about a small-scale police action in South-East Asia. Easy to see how that one managed to slip through the net.

Nominated in other categories:
Alien 8.4
Manhattan 8.0
Being There 7.9
Tin Drum 7.6

Not nominated:
Life of Brian 8.1
Stalker 8.1

1982

Raiders of the Lost Ark 8.7
Atlantic City 7.5
CHARIOTS OF FIRE 7.3
On Golden Pond 7.3
Reds 7.1

One of the biggest all-time failures of the Academy, they did at least nominate the year's best film, but when it came to the vote they were obviously had some difficulty differentiating between the two of them. But then there are so many similarities, both are set in period, both have people with English accents, both feature triumph over adversity and achieving against all the odds. Of course there is one small difference, Chariots of Fire is BORING while Raiders is one of the most exciting films of all time. But heaven forbid that we should honour a film which makes the cardinal sin of being entertaining.

Nominated in other categories:
Man of Iron 7.8
Mephisto 7.7
Excalibur 7.4

1983

GHANDI 8.1
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial 7.8
Missing 7.6
The Verdict 7.6
Tootsie 7.4

The obvious choice because it fits the profile of your average Oscar winner. But look what they missed altogether.

Nominated in other categories:
Das Boot 8.5
Blade Runner 8.3

1984

The Right Stuff 7.8
The Dresser 7.6
Tender Mercies 7.4
TERMS OF ENDEARMENT 7.2
The Big Chill 7.0

What on earth possessed these people to vote for this load of sentimental crap?

Nominated in other categories:
Return of the Jedi 8.2
Fanny and Alexander 8.1
The Return of Martin Guerre 7.5
Zelig 7.5
Trading Places 7.3

Not nominated:
A Christmas Story 8.1
Scarface 8.0

1985

AMADEUS 8.3
The Killing Fields 7.9
Places in the Heart 7.4
A Passage to India 7.3
A Soldier's Story 7.2

Although the right film gets the nod it is worth taking note of the mediocrity of some of the other picks.

1986

The Color Purple 7.6
Witness 7.5
Kiss of the Spider Woman 7.3
OUT OF AFRICA 6.8
Prizzi's Honor 6.8

So the period drama with the famous actress doing an accent gets the prize, ahead of the earnest period drama about racism. Big mistake. Ironically niether of them are a patch on the period drama by one of the greatest filmmakers of all time.

Nominated in other categories:
Ran 8.3
Back to the Future 8.1
Brazil 8.0
The Trip to Bountiful 7.5
The Purple Rose of Cairo 7.4
Runaway Train 7.1
Silverado 7.0
Mask 6.9
Sweet Dreams 6.9

1987

PLATOON 8.1
Hannah and Her Sisters 7.7
A Room with a View 7.5
The Mission 7.3
Children of a Lesser God 7.0

The only surprise here is that the disability picture did not get the nod. Although I do console myself with the knowledge that it did get an undeserved nominated.

Nominated in other categories:
Aliens 8.3

1988

THE LAST EMPEROR 7.8
Hope and Glory 7.4
Moonstruck 7.0
Broadcast News 7.0
Fatal Attraction 6.7

The winner ticks all the right boxes, ie worthy, period, long, director needs recognition. Not that it had any real competition, yet another poor year, because much better films did not get a nomination.

Nominated in other categries:
The Princess Bride 8.2
Full Metal Jacket 8.2
Au revoir, les enfants 8.1
The Untouchables 7.9

Not nominated:
Wings of Desire 7.9

1989

RAIN MAN 7.9
Dangerous Liasons 7.6
Mississippi Burning 7.6
The Accidental Tourist 6.5
Working Girl 6.5

A very poor year for nominees. In fact it was a very poor year for movies altogether.

Nominated in other categories:
Salaam Bombay 8.1
Die Hard 8.0

Not Nominated:
Graveyard of the Fireflies 8.2
My Neighbour Totoro 8.1

1990-1999

Biggest Mistakes
1. 1998: Titanic vs. L.A.Confidential
2. 1997: The English Patient vs. Fargo
3. 1999: Shakespeare in Love vs. Life is Beautiful
4. 1995: Forrest Gump vs. The Shawshank Redemption
5. 1991: Dances with Wolves vs. Goodfellas

Worst Winners
1. 1998: Titanic 7.0
2. 1997: The English Patient 7.1
3. 1990: Driving Miss Daisy 7.4
4. 1999: Shakespeare in Love 7.5
5. 1991: Dances with Wolves 7.8

Best Non-Winners
1. 1995: The Shawshank Redemption 9.1
2. 1995: Pulp Fiction 8.8
3. 1996: The Usual Suspects 8.7
4. 1991: Goodfellas 8.6
5. 1999: Life is Beautiful 8.4
5. 1998: L.A Confidential 8.4
5. 1993: Reservoir Dogs 8.4
5. 1990: Cinema Paradiso 8.4

Worst Nominees
1. 1992 The Prince of Tides 6.3
2. 1992 Bugsy 6.6
3. 1991 Ghost 6.8
4. 1998 Titanic 7.0
4. 1990 Born on the Fourth of July 7.0

Worst Year for Nominees (based on average score)
1. 1992 7.44
2. 1990 7.46
2. 1993 7.50
4. 1997 7.56
5. 1991 7.60

1990

Dead Poets Society 7.7
Field of Dreams 7.6
My Left Foot 7.6
DRIVING MISS DAISY 7.4
Born on the Fourth of July 7.0

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.

Nominated in other categories
Cinema Paradiso 8.4
Glory 8.1
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 8.1
Henry V 7.9
Crimes and Misdemeanors 7.9
Do the Right Thing 7.7
When Harry Met Sally 7.7
Jesus of Montreal 7.5

Not Nominated:
The Killer 7.9

1991

Goodfellas 8.6
DANCES WITH WOLVES 7.8
Awakenings 7.4
The Godfather: Part III 7.4
Ghost 6.8

One of the all time classic blunders. It's not like it was a particularly good year anyway, so how they managed to miss picking Goodfellas is beyond me. And what makes it worse is that because they didn't give Scorsese an award for his best film they keep picking him for inferior ones that don't deserve recognition. Looks like a lifetime achievement award for him in a few years time.

Not nominated:
Miller's Crossing 7.9

1992

THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS 8.6
JFK 7.9
Beauty and the Beast 7.8
Bugsy 6.6
The Prince of Tides 6.3

No arguments here, but how on earth did Bugsy and Prince of Tides manage to get nominated in the first place?

1993

UNFORGIVEN 8.1
A Few Good Men 7.5
Scent of a Woman 7.4
Howards End 7.3
The Crying Game 7.2

No arguments here, Unforgiven is certainly the best of the bunch although it really isn't up against much competition. But the best film of the year didn't even get nominated in the first place.

Not nominated:
Reservoir Dogs 8.4

1994

SCHINDLER'S LIST 8.8
In the Name of the Father 7.8
The Remains of the Day 7.8
The Fugitive 7.7
The Piano 7.3

You can hardly criticise this choice, after all no one was going to vote against it. Mind you, Schindler didn't really have much in the way of competition.

1995

The Shawshank Redemption 9.1
Pulp Fiction 8.8
FORREST GUMP 8.3
Quiz Show 7.4
Four Weddings and a Funeral 7.1

Once again you have to ask, what were they thinking? Personally, and I know I'm in a minority here, I am not the rabid fan of Shawshank that everyone else seems to be, I would go for Pulp Fiction every time. Even then I am of the opinion that Forrest Gump is a grossly overrated piece of sentimental, flag waving trash.

Not nominated:
Leon 8.5

1996

BRAVEHEART 8.3
Sense and Sensibility 7.7
Apollo 13 7.5
Il Postino 7.5
Babe 7.4

Looks like they got it right, but they didn't. They were wrong. In fact everyone's wrong about Braveheart, it's a piece of crap. One thing is for sure, no way was it the best of the year.

Nominated in other categories:
The Usual Suspects 8.7
Se7en 8.4

1997

Fargo 8.2
Secrets & Lies 7.8
Shine 7.5
Jerry Maguire 7.2
THE ENGLISH PATIENT 7.1

Once again the academy could not be more wrong. Another example of the power of the Weinsteins bullying their way to an award with a film which is a period drama, long, worthy and boring.

Nominated in other categories:
Sling Blade 8.0
Trainspotting 8.0
Lone Star 7.6
Breaking the Waves 7.6
Hamlet 7.6
Primal Fear 7.5
Ridicule 7.4
The People vs. Larry Flynt 7.2

1998

L.A. Confidential 8.4
Good Will Hunting 7.8
As Good as It Gets 7.7
The Full Monty 7.3
TITANIC 7.0

Could this be the biggest Oscar blunder of all time? What on earth possessed the Academy to vote for this damn film? Was it just that the industry was so pleased with itself for producing something which made so much money? Did they feel obliged to vote for it just because of it's box office? We will never know, but what is for certain is that Titanic did not deserve the award and that perhaps this is evidence enough to suggest that the whole process is a waste of time. It proves my point, but also begs the question, why am I bothering?

Nominated in other categories:
The Sweet Hereafter 7.8
Gattaca 7.6
Donnie Brasco 7.6
Boogie Nights 7.6
Jackie Brown 7.5
Contact 7.3
Mrs. Brown 7.3
The Fifth Element 7.2
Ulee's Gold 7.1
Face/Off 7.1
Deconstructing Harry 7.1
The Apostle 7.1

Not Nominated:
Princess Mononoke 8.3

1999

Life is Beautiful 8.4
Saving Private Ryan 8.3
Elizabeth 7.6
SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE 7.5
The Thin Red Line 7.2

Not even close, Shakespeare in Love is just an inconsequential piece of fluff which was fortunate enough to have the weight of Miramax behind it to buy the win.

Nominated in other categories:
American History X 8.5
The Truman Show 7.7
A Simple Plan 7.6

Not nominated:
Lola rennt 8.1
The Big Lebowski 8.0