In 2004, the Academy Awards presented their 76th ceremony and honored films released the previous year. Some films released in 2003 that could have been eligible for the awards were, Old School, Holes, Cheaper by the Dozen, and Under the Tuscan Sun. None of those films received any nominations, though.
The films that were nominated for the biggest category of the night, Best Picture, were: Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Seabiscuit, Mystic River, Lost in Translation, and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, which won the award after the previous two movies in the trilogy had lost in years prior. There were more than a few films this year that were overlooked, and although some gained attention with other judges, others received little attention at all, despite their value.
Should Have Been Nominated: Thirteen
Catherine Hardwicke directed this film and co-wrote it with the film’s young star, Nikki Reed. The story is based on Reed’s real-life experiences of being a young teenager. The independent feature also stars Evan Rachel Wood and Holly Hunter, who give brilliant performances.
This independent drama was one of the most talked-about movies in the year it was released, but only received one award nomination in the Best Supporting Actress category.
Should Have Been Nominated: Identity
This psychological thriller draws inspiration for its story structure from Agatha Christie’s 1939 mystery “And Then There Were None.” The Academy’s voters don’t usually vote for a slasher, murder mystery, especially in the year this one was released, so it was no surprise it garnered little praise during award season.
The film’s performances and storyline deserved a lot more recognition than they received in the year this film was eligible for nominations.
Should Have Been Nominated: Shattered Glass
Shattered Glass is a biographical feature film starring Hayden Christensen as real-life journalist, Stephen Glass. The film is based on a Vanity Fair article about Glass’ public downfall when it was discovered he was fabricating his stories. The film was not a box office success, but was very well received by critics, especially the performances in the film.
Had this film been seen by more people, it probably would have considered campaigning during award season, as it definitely deserved a spot in the Best Picture category.
Was Nominated: Master And Commander: The Far Side Of The World
This film is an epic war drama and period piece starring Russell Crowe and co-written, produced, and directed by Peter Weir. The film was a success at the box office after its release and received a lot of critical praise, including 10 nominations from the Academy in the year it was eligible.
Movie-goers and critics assumed this would be the first film in a bigger franchise, but the attempts to make a sequel failed over the years, leaving some fans wondering if this film really was as great as everyone made it out to be in the year of its release.
Should Have Been Nominated: Big Fish
This Tim Burton fantasy drama is based on a novel with the same name and stars Ewen McGregor, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange, and Helena Bonham Carter.
The film’s brilliant performances, beautiful cinematography, incredible storyline, and the magical world all of those elements created, seemed to be a shoo-in for award season, but it was heavily snubbed by the Academy, receiving only one nomination for Best Original Score.
Should Have Been Nominated: Girl With A Pearl Earring
This dramatic period piece was directed by Peter Webber and stars Scarlett Johansson. When approaching this film, Webber knew he didn’t want to make the average period piece and set out to change the structure of films like this, which he did very well.
Despite being a new and different approach and being praised by critics, the film didn’t receive any nominations in the bigger categories at the 2004 Academy Awards. The film was nominated for Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, and Best Costume Design.
Was Nominated: Seabiscuit
This sports film produced, written, and directed by Gary Ross and starring Tobey Maguire is about the real-life racehorse, Seabiscuit, who unexpectedly became the racehorse to beat and thus garnered a lot of media attention.
The film, as a whole, was beautifully executed, with critics and fans praising the cinematography and design, but the performances and story weren’t quite as extraordinary, which makes audiences wonder why it was nominated in the biggest category of the night at the 76th award ceremony.
Should Have Been Nominated: Runaway Jury
This legal drama stars John Cusack, Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, and Rachel Weisz and is based on the John Grisham novel, “The Runaway Jury.”
The film didn’t do very well at the box office in the year it was released, but it got a lot of praise from critics who loved both the performances and the story as a whole. Given the cast was full of actors Academy voters love, it was surprising to see it left out of the awards that year.
Should Have Been Nominated: Love Actually
This romantic holiday film has become a classic over the years and is a film most families watch at least once or twice around the holidays. The performances from this incredible ensemble cast and the story itself make for not only the perfect feel-good love story, but it also appealed to critics and more serious movie-goers because it’s undeniably good.
The film was nominated for a couple of Golden Globes, which is usually a good sign for the Academy Awards, but this film was completely left out of the Academy’s nominations the year it was eligible.
Should Have Been Nominated: Holes
This adventure comedy is based on a novel by the same name and both the movie and the book were written by Louis Sachar. The film, directed by Andrew Davis, stars Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight, Patricia Arquette, Tim Blake Nelson and Shia LaBeouf.
The family feature was a success at the box office and received a lot of praise from the major film critics, but as is the case with a lot of great movies in this genre, this film was snubbed by the major award ceremonies in the year it was eligible.
