Two film critics say past 鈥淏est Picture鈥� Oscar winners like 鈥淐rash鈥� and 鈥淎merican Beauty鈥� might not have been the most deserving movies to win 鈥淏est Picture鈥� at Hollywood鈥檚 most prestigious awards show.

Film critic Radheyan Simonpillai told CTV鈥檚 Your Morning that the wrong movie can end up winning the top prize for a number of reasons.

 

2006: 'Brokeback Mountain' should have beaten 'Crash'

In the case of Ang Lee鈥檚 鈥淏rokeback Mountain,鈥� he said it appears the Academy鈥檚 voting members weren鈥檛 yet comfortable with a gay love story.

In 2006, several at argued Lee鈥檚 groundbreaking film of a love story between two cowboys should have won 鈥淏est Picture鈥� at the 78th Academy Awards.

Simonpillai says it is a seminal movie that he believes lost out due to a 鈥渉omophobic response from the Academy.鈥� Richard Crouse, 麻豆影视 film critic and host of Pop Life, agrees.

鈥淚t was a little edgier and was a subject that [the Academy] weren鈥檛 maybe completely comfortable with -- even though the subject is just love,鈥� Crouse told CTVNews.ca, praising the 鈥渕eaningful work鈥� and performances of Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal.

The film lost to 鈥淐rash鈥� -- directed by Paul Haggis -- which some at the time called out for its character鈥檚 simplistic views on race in Los Angeles, Simonpillai said. Even when it won, at least some people at the Oscars ceremony were visibly caught off guard.

鈥淭he backlash to 鈥楥rash鈥� was immediate,鈥� Simonpillai said, referring to presenter . 鈥淥nce [he] opened that envelope and said 鈥楥rash,鈥� you saw his face and he turned around and was like 鈥榃hoa.鈥欌��

 

1991: 'Goodfellas' should have beat 'Dances with Wolves'

The basic themes of some 鈥淏est Picture鈥� films don鈥檛 always hold up over time -- including Oscar winner 鈥淒ances with Wolves,鈥� which Simonpillai describes as having a 鈥渨hite saviour鈥� storyline.

The film follows Kevin Costner鈥檚 character as he interacts with the Lakota Indigenous people during the American Civil War. But Simonpillai argued the story pales in comparison to Martin Scorsese鈥檚 鈥淕oodfellas.鈥�

He said the crime drama is 鈥渙ne of the greatest gangster movies of all time鈥� and deserved to have won.

Looking back, Crouse said the Academy鈥檚 choice showed the voting members 鈥渄on鈥檛 have crystal balls. They look at what鈥檚 in front of them. Often, you like something in the moment.鈥�

 

2000: 'American Beauty' should have lost to 'The Insider'

In 鈥淎merican Beauty,鈥� Kevin Spacey鈥檚 character was suffering from a mid-life crisis and became infatuated with his daughter鈥檚 teenage friend. While audiences may have been OK with the film鈥檚 premise at the time, Simonpillai called the movie 鈥済arbage鈥� because of its story line.

The film ended up winning the Oscar for 鈥淏est Picture,鈥� but Simonpillai says other films were more deserving, particularly 鈥淏est Picture鈥� nominee 鈥淭he Insider,鈥� starring Al Pacino and Russell Crowe.

Simonpillai also pointed out that this was the same awards year when movie-goers were treated to 鈥淓yes Wide Shut,鈥� 鈥淭he Matrix,鈥� 鈥淢agnolia鈥� and 鈥淔ight Club鈥� 鈥� all iconic movies which weren鈥檛 nominated for 鈥淏est Picture.鈥� The calibre of films was so good the Toronto International Film Festival is currently holding a retrospective of all the groundbreaking films of that year.
 

In this Jan. 17, 2010 file photo, Robert De Niro, left, and Martin Scorsese, winner of the Cecil B. Demille Lifetime Achievement award backstage at the 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif.

1980: 'Raging Bull' should鈥檝e beat 'Ordinary People'

Crouse argued that 鈥淩aging Bull鈥� was 鈥渙ne of those films that Martin Scorsese probably should have won an Academy Award for, but didn鈥檛.鈥�

Throughout his career, the director has been nominated for 12 Academy Awards but has only won 鈥淏est Director鈥� once, for The Departed in 2006.

Crouse said 鈥淩aging Bull鈥� was overshadowed by 鈥淥rdinary People鈥� starring Donald Sutherland, which Crouse called 鈥渢imely at the time but it鈥檚 not part of the conversation in the same way 鈥楻aging Bull鈥� is [today].鈥�

 

1990: 'Do the Right Thing' deserved to win over 'Driving Miss Daisy'

鈥淒riving Miss Daisy鈥� starred Morgan Freeman as a driver for a white wealthy woman. Simonpillai described it a 鈥渃omfort film about racism.鈥�

He argued Spike Lee鈥檚 iconic racial drama 鈥淒o the Right Thing鈥� deserved the 鈥淏est Picture鈥� win instead. Actress Kim Basinger said as much when she called out the Academy -- on the Oscar stage as a presenter.

鈥淭here is one film missing from this list that deserves to be on it because, ironically, it might tell the biggest truth of all. And that鈥檚 鈥楧o The Right Thing,鈥欌�� Basinger .

This year, Crouse said there鈥檚 a similar competition between Spike Lee鈥檚 provocative 鈥淏lacKkKlansman and the arguably more palatable movie examining race, 鈥淕reen Book.鈥�

鈥淚n the last number of years, we鈥檝e seen the Academy change a great deal 鈥� with a thousand new members ... who are more diverse and arguably more interesting,鈥� he said, adding they鈥檙e nominating different types of film. 鈥漈hat鈥檚 why BlacKkKlansman鈥� is there.鈥�