10 Biggest Oscar Snubs of All Time

The Academy Award Nominations seem to draw more fire than most other awards shows when someone seems purposely left off the list of Nominees. There have been notable cases. This year's 2010 82nd Annual Academy Awards Presentations will be broadcast on Sunday, March 7 beginning at 8pm EST (after all the Red Carpet hoopla of course).

In this year's Oscar nominations, the Best Picture Category has been expanded to recognize a wider field of excellence; however, even critical and popular power houses like "Star Trek", and Michael Jackson's seminal "This is It" were in the Best Picture reject pile. The bright, bouncy, "500 Days of Summer" pic garnered not one nod. And even though "Inglourious Basterds" has won wide recognition so far, did they simply forget Brad Pitt starred in that film? Here are ten others from the past:

#1 - "The Prince of Tides", 1992, starring Jeff Bridges and Barbara Streisand was nominated for 7 Oscars including Best Picture (if the film wins Best Picture it usually has the Best Director). Considered by many as one of the biggest and most obvious Oscar snubs, Streisand, who also directed the film, received no nomination. Host Billy Crystal even took a jab at that glaring omission by the Academy in his opening Oscar show song.

#2 - "Yentl", 1984, starring Barbara Streisand as a Jewish orphan in the early 1900's who disguises herself as a man in order to study the intricacies of Jewish Law. The film received 5 nominations. A beautifully shot film in which Streisand, again, received no nomination for her role as Director. However, the Golden Globes did reward her talent that year as a director.

#3 - "Sideways", 2005, Paul Giamatti, as a sad little man, starred in an ensemble "sleeper" film about a trip through the wine country. Among the five nominations it got from the Academy, the film won for Best Adapted Screenplay. There were actor nominations, but not one for Giamatti - it took some of the critics a little longer to see his talent.

#4 - "America Splendor", 2004, Paul Giamatti - another double snub, and back to back no less. Giamatti as oddball Harvey Pekar was recognized by at least seven other guilds and associations for his spot on portrayal of an eccentric personality. That same year, however, the Academy did not grace him with a nomination.

#5 - "Singing in the Rain", 1953, with Gene Kelly the leading man, Donald O'Connor the sidekick and the lovely Debbie Reynolds. Kelly also co-directed the film. It is one of the most enduring classics in film history. The film did receive a Best Supporting Actress nom and a Music Scoring nom but that's all. It is criminal that Kelly did not receive the recognition he deserved if only based on his amazing all-out performance of the title "Singing in the Rain" splashing merrily in the puddles, his overall athleticism and charm. Drama won out that year with "The Quiet Man" and "The Greatest Show on Earth".

#6 - "A Time to Kill", 1997, a serious lead performance by Matthew McConaughey (with shirt on), and an angry Samuel L. Jackson. While Jackson did receive nominations from several other organizations including the Golden Globes, this film was completely ignored by the Oscars. Perhaps the Academy did not want to address the issues of race that this story, based on a John Grisham novel, raised. And Keifer Sutherland played the baddest Klan member you never want to meet.

#7 - "The Ice Storm", 1998, Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Sigourney Weaver and a host of others starred in this retrospective look at the changing American landscape in the 1970's. There were huge films that captured the attention of audiences and critics alike at the Oscars in 1998 ("As Good As It Gets", "Titanic" and "Good Will Hunting"); however, the subtle yet searing performance of Sigourney Weaver was clearly overlooked for a Best Actress nomination.

#8 - "Some Like it Hot", 1960, with Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon. The film did garner 6 nominations. But with a stellar cast and one of the best comedic directors ever (Billy Wilder), it only won for Costume Design. The film that ran rough-shod over everything that year (1959) was the epic Ben-Hur. Actresses from other films were nominated, but Marilyn Monroe, holding her own in a strong performance against Lemmon and Curtis, definitely deserved a nomination.

#9 - "The Dark Knight", 2009, starring Christian Bale and Heath Ledger. While it did have 8 nominations (seven technical) and won one technical and one for performance - Heath Ledger, this film was so much more than just a comic book brought to life. It was an amazing story brought to the screen by great performances as well as phenomenal technical wizardry. In 2009 the Best Picture Nominees were esoteric for the most part. But if a film like "Titanic" can be nominated and win (in 1998), then "The Dark Knight" should have at least been given a nomination for Best Picture in 2009.

#10 - "Philadelphia", 1994, starring Denzel Washington and Tom Hanks. Hanks befittingly won the Oscar for Best Actor, however, Denzel Washington was overlooked as a Best Supporting Actor. Not so much because Hanks was so much more compelling (he was), but because Washington's character was not a sympathetic one. It is often difficult to realize the depth of talent it takes to play a character that will not be popular with audiences. Washington worked hard to win some level of respect from the audience by the film's end.