With the Oscars fast approaching, this seems like the perfect time to review all the horrible mistakes the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has made in the past. The Academy Awards have long been a hotbed for controversial decisions both during and surrounding the ceremonies. Some winners have been swept up in a tidal wave of hype and emotion. Other wins were head-scratchers from the start. People have to understand that often these decisions have sometimes have little to do with the actual performances, people, or films that are nominated and much more to do with the politics, campaigning, and voter biases that happen behind the scenes. That is an unfortunate reality of the awards process. We, the film viewing community, have a much easier task: we are able to judge films with the benefit of hindsight. In that sense, perhaps we can forgive the choices in certain categories that were close races or which had many viable candidates. But there are some Oscar blunders so severe that retrospection only inflames the initial outrage. So, without further ado, these are the Oscar battles that totally perplex, flummox, and mystify the mind. These are the worst of the worst. This is the sour cream of the crop, so to speak.
10. Gwyneth Paltrow Robs The Queen (1998)
Gwyneth Paltrows turn as Viola de Lesseps in Shakespeare in Love opposite Joseph Fiennes as Shakespeare was perfectly acceptable, much like the film itself. It just wasnt the best performance of the year by a leading actress. That honour belongs to Cate Blanchett, who completely owned the role of Elizabeth I, the Virgin Queen, in Shekar Kapurs underrated biographical film Elizabeth. Blanchett was totally captivating as the young queen of England who matures throughout the film into a force to be reckoned. It is arguably the best performance of her career, although her role in Blue Jasmine, which has her firmly in frontrunner status for this years Oscar, may challenge that notion. This was the first instance of Shakespeare in Love stealing an Oscar, but it wasnt the last.