The 65th annual Academy Awards, hosted in 1993, honored some of the best feature films of the previous year while also overlooking several that deserved recognition. That year gave moviegoers a lot of great movies, many of which could’ve easily been contenders for the distinction of best film of 1992.
There were five films to receive the coveted Best Picture nomination at that year’s ceremony— A Few Good Men, Unforgiven, The Crying Game, Howards End, and Scent of a Woman. Some of these films were no surprise to critics and movie-goers, while others didn’t deserve to be considered for Hollywood’s highest honor, and could have been replaced by a few other more-deserving entries.
Snub: A River Runs Through It
This dramatic feature film stars Brad Pitt and is based on the novel of the same name by Norman Maclean. It tells the story of two brothers, sons of a minister, as they grow up in Montana during the time of World War I and the Great Depression. The film received a handful of nominations for things like score and screenplay, but was snubbed out of the major awards, including Best Picture.
Undeserved Nomination: Howards End
This romantic drama was based on the early 1900’s novel by the same name and stars Anthony Hopkins, Helena Bonham Carter, Emma Thompson, and Vanessa Redgrave. For her work in the film, Emma Thompson won the Best Actress category at the awards that year and the film was nominated for eight additional awards. The film received much praise, but like a lot of films nominated in this category, lacked diversity and felt more like cliched “Oscar bait” than a legitimately great film.
Snub: My Cousin Vinny
Marisa Tomei won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her work in this comedic feature film, praised by critics and audiences alike and one of the most successful films of the year.
This crowd-pleasing film should have been nominated in every major category at the Academy Awards in 1993, but Oscar voters are notorious for not taking comedies seriously, so it was largely snubbed across the board. At least Tomei was recognized for her excellent performance.
Snub: Malcolm X
Malcolm X tell the story of real life activist Malcolm X. Denzel Washington plays the title character in this film and received a nomination in the Best Actor category that year, but lost to Al Pacino for Scent of a Woman. Many consider Washington’s loss and Malcolm X‘s lack of a best picture nomination as hug snubs, and were seen as indicative of the Academy’s bias against both actors of color and movies about people of color.
Snub: Chaplin
Before its release, this biographical feature film about the life of one of Hollywood’s first major movie stars seemed like a shoe-in for nominations in every Oscar category. Much to moviegoers’ surprise, the film received only a handful of nominations from the Academy, lacking a much-deserved Best Picture nomination.
Robert Downey Jr. was nominated for Best Actor for his work portraying the title character, but the film was left out of the other major categories, which was definitely an oversight on the Academy’s part.
Undeserved Nomination: Unforgiven
This Clint Eastwood Western was the director’s final film in the genre, and it paid off. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards and won both Best Picture and Best Director. Eastwood has always been a favorite among the Academy voters, so his nominations were no surprise, but to win two of the biggest awards was a little shocking given the stiff competition that year.
Snub: Reservoir Dogs
Quentin Tarantino’s feature film debut received an incredible amount of praise considering it was an indie film with little marketing and publicity. In recent years, this film has gone on to be considered one of the greatest indie films of all time and is still a favorite among Tarantino’s directorial efforts.
The lack of Oscar recognition for the film would prove to be an oversight the Academy wouldn’t repeat, as most of Tarantino’s subsequent films tend to automatically rack up Oscar nominations.
Snub: Single White Female
Single White Female, starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh, has gone on to become a classic and is referenced in pop culture to this day. The female-led psychological thriller was not as well received by critics at the time, but Leigh’s and Fonda’s performances in the film are undeniably good, and they should’ve at least gotten Oscar nominations even if the movie didn’t.
Undeserved Nomination: The Crying Game
This thriller was nominated for a handful of awards, including a few in the major categories, the year it was released. It stars Stephen Rea, Miranda Richardson, and Forest Whitaker, and this cast alone made the film very appealing to members of the Academy voting in the awards that year. The film is a great example of the majority of Academy members’ taste in movies, but it’s another example of that taste not always lining up with moviegoers at large
Snub: A League Of Their Own
A League of their Own was not nominated in a single category for any awards the year it was eligible for award season and given that this film has gone on to be a classic, this complete shutout was one of the most undeserved in Academy Award history. The film boasts an incredible ensemble cast and tells the real life story of women’s baseball during World War II. The film also had female representation behind the camera, being directed by Penny Marshall. The Academy missed a great opportunity to honor and female-led stories and female directors with this mistake.
