2013's Top 5 Oscar Snubs

The 85^th Academy Award nominations got so much right (Beasts of the Southern Wild, Amour, etc.) but what about the Academy’s oversights in 2013? Boy, were there some oversights! Here’s a list of the films that were wronged in our top 5 2013 Academy Award snubs…

1. Ben Affleck (Argo)

Award(s): Best Director

Globes victory, BAFTA victory, Oscars N/A? It is really quite unbelievable that Ben Affleck got snubbed a Best Director nomination. At Argo’s helm he dedicatedly brought a pulsating true story to life and worked in thrills, comedy and raw tension. Why on earth was he left off the final list? Affleck’s barnstorming financial and critical success left many boldly predicting Affleck’s Oscar win and many have found it a comical oversight him not even being nominated.

2. Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master)

Award(s): Best Director, Best Film

Yes, The Master got notifications where it counted acting-wise but ignoring the master behind it, director Paul Thomas Anderson, was unforgivable. His precise handling of the intellectually challenging material was masterful (getting tired of the master puns yet?) and, like the film as a whole, big and clever. It really is sad the film didn’t make it into the other two big categories and somewhat confusing.

3. Berberian Sound Studio

Award(s): Best Film, Best Actor, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing

Berberian Sound Studio wan’t just ignored at the Academy Awards but also at the Globes too, then again they are big ceremonies but not being mentioned at the BAFTA’s either? What a Crime! Berberian Sound Studio is a psychologically disturbing and astonishing horror/drama. It is astounding this Giallo homage has been so ignored, especially its lead star Toby Jones who gave one of the finest performances of the last cinematic year. Peter Strickland’s film was precisely made and immaculately used the art of sound to great effect; even a technical category mention would have been nice!

4. The Dark Knight Rises

Award(s): Best Score, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing, Cinematography

As it turns out, despite initial love bordering on death threats, the fallout of Christopher Nolan’s trilogy concluder left many ignoring the spectacle and spouting the plot holes. In an ideal world maybe Best Picture was in view, in reality it was not only out of view but further away than Uranus and likely hidden further by a passing UFO to boot. Still, no mention at all! You may have thought it was average but the cinematography of immersive locations; the bombastic sound work and Hans Zimmer’s deadly serious score surely deserved some recognition. This was the best sounding blockbuster of 2012!

5. The Imposter

Award(s): Best Documentary

Perhaps this year’s biggest snub. Bart Layton’s breathless piece of factual filmmaking had more thrills than the entirety of Snow White and the Huntsman and, heck, even the likes of praised films like The Hunger Games. Why was it left out? There literally was no good reason, it performed well for the genre, critics loved it, audiences loved it and the film was just a better story than most works of fiction. Shameful.