Getting nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars is a great achievement, a feat that will help preserve a movie in film history. They get to slap the “Best Picture” sticker on the Blu-ray/DVD cover, giving the average consumer a hint that the film is truly worth watching. And yet, there are many cases of films striking the fancy of the average Oscar voter that don’t exactly hold up, even a few years later. While Oscar voters have done a decent job in diversifying the Best Picture lineup compared to previous decades, not all of them are worthy of filmmaking’s highest honor.
At the same time, as a huge fan of the Oscars, I cannot help but come to the defense of their often maligned taste, in how they also recognize truly innovative art. It would be easy for me to dismiss the Oscars as a popularity contest or as the limited opinions of white men over the age of 60, but sometimes they do “get it right.” Art may be subjective, but with some of the films recognized as of late, there’s no denying their brilliance.
As of this month I have finally seen every Best Picture nominee from 2010 onward, and suffice to say it has been a long and winding road. Divorced of the context of the year in which they were released, I have been truly baffled by Academy members’ picks in some cases. In others, I see voters acknowledging true masterpieces that will stand the test of time and influence future generations of filmmakers.
Here is my official ranking of the 62 films nominated for Best Picture from 2010-2016: