The 1990 Academy Awards recognized the best films and performances released in the previous year, 1989. That year brought movie-goers films like Batman, License to Kill, Weekend at Bernie's, and Say Anything. But none of these films were nominated for any Academy Awards this year.
The films that were nominated for the Best Picture category this year were: Driving Miss Daisy, which won the coveted award, Born On the Fourth of July, Dead Poets Society, Field of Dreams, and My Left Foot. A few of these movies on this list have gone down in history as some of the best movies of the generation, but a couple of others maybe didn't deserve the nomination. There are even a few others that the Academy may have overlooked.
Should Have Been Nominated: Glory
This war drama stars Denzel Washington and Morgan Freeman. Directed by Ed Zwick, it tells the story of the Union Army's first Black regiment in the Civil War, the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment.
The performances in this film are incredible and Denzel Washington was nominated for and won in the Best Supporting Actor category, but the film as a whole was not nominated for Best Picture, though many believe it should have been.
Was Nominated: Field Of Dreams
This 1989 sports drama stars Kevin Costner as Ray Kinsella, who lives and works on a cornfield, when, after hearing a whisper say "If you build it, they will come," he decides to build a baseball field.
This film was a big commercial success upon its release and got mixed reviews by critics. It was nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Picture, despite none of the cast being nominated for their individual performances.
Should Have Been Nominated: When Harry Met Sally
When Harry Met Sally falls into the romantic comedy category, and it's rare that a rom-com gets nominated for the esteemed Best Picture award, but if any romantic comedy deserved a nomination, it's this one.
This film, starring Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal as two friends who eventually fall for each other, is a classic and has aged perfectly in the last 30 years, proving that this film is so much more than just your average boy-meets-girl story.
Should Have Been Nominated: Drugstore Cowboy
This crime drama was Gus Van Sant's second film as a director. The film is based on an autobiographical novel by James Fogel, but the novel actually wasn't published until after the film's release, when Fogel was released from prison.
The film stars Matt Dillon and Kelly Lynch and tells the story of a group of drug addicts traveling through the Pacific Northwest and robbing pharmacies and hospitals to support their habit.
Was Nominated: Born On The Fourth Of July
This film is a great biographical war drama about Ron Kovic, who served and was paralyzed in the Vietnam War and later became an anti-war activist.
The story itself is incredible and Oliver Stone's adaptation of Kovic's story is both entertaining and inspiring and received numerous award nominations, including a Best Actor nomination for Cruise's performance in the film, but not everyone agrees with the Academy on this one. Some critics found Cruise's performance to be too surface level to tell such an important story.
Should Have Been Nominated: Sex, Lies, And Videotape
This indie film paved the way for others like it to be recognized on bigger platforms and in bigger festivals during the years to come. Sex, Lies, and Videotape is about a man who records women talking about their lives and primarily, their sexuality.
It was the film that put Steven Soderbergh on the map and it won the Palme d'Or at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival, but it was barely recognized by the Academy in the year of its release.
Should Have Been Nominated: Always
Always, directed by Steven Spielberg, was Audrey Hepburn's last film role and also stars Richard Dreyfuss, Holly Hunter, and John Goodman. The film is a remake of the 1943 romance drama, A Guy Named Joe.
This film has been credited with paving the way for other supernatural storytelling dramas like, Ghost, which was nominated for Best Picture at the 1991 Academy Awards, but this film received very little praise upon its release in 1989.
Should Have Been Nominated: Do The Right Thing
Do the Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee, who also stars in the film alongside Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, and Samuel L. Jackson, has been regarded as one of the greatest films ever made, but it was not nominated for the Best Picture Academy Award in 1990, which shocked critics and movie-goers.
It was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for Danny Aiello and Best Screenplay. Some critics blame the controversy surrounding the film as the reason it wasn't nominated, while others consider this to be one of the biggest snubs in Oscar history.
Should Have Been Nominated: Lean On Me
Lean on Me is a biographical drama starring Morgan Freeman as Joe Louis Clark, who was an inner city high school principal in New Jersey. The school Joe oversees is at risk of being taken over by the state if the students can't raise their test scores on state testing.
The film received some critical praise, but was ultimately overlooked by the Academy, despite its pivotal storyline and great performance by Morgan Freeman.
Should Have Been Nominated: Steel Magnolias
This female-led drama was snubbed the year it was released by most award ceremonies. The film stars Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Olympia Dukakis, Shirley MacLaine, and a young Julia Roberts, as a group of southern women who stick by each other's sides through all of life's ups and downs.
The film as a whole received little praise, despite the brilliant storytelling.