A few weeks back, we had a lot of fun choosing the worst of Hollywood’s major releases in conjunction with their annual orgy of self-congratulations, the Oscars.  When I posted that poll, many Hot Air readers criticized the Academy Awards as politically driven in both national politics and industry politics, and that the awards in recent years honor the wrong films for the wrong reasons.  To me, that sounds like a great topic for a poll, especially since I’ll be attending the Little Scribe’s baptism and celebrations today.

What was the worst movie to win Best Picture in the last 40 years?  The list below contains some real snoozers, movies that have definitely not stood the test of time.  Some of them had pretty disappointing competition; after all, picking Platoon from as opposed to The Mission, Hannah and Her Sisters, Children of a Lesser God, and A Room with a View could almost be justified as having been the only nominated movie that kept audiences awake.  Others, like Kramer vs Kramer, are practically footnotes to artistic masterpieces it beat like All That Jazz and Apocalypse Now. Who loves the smell of custody hearings in the morning, after all?

I’ve listed a few nominees myself, but unlike our earlier polls, you can add your own suggestions from the list below.  Be sure to copy and paste to get the title exact:

To be fair, this list contains masterpieces of its own. The Lord of the Rings is one of my favorite movies of all time, and I know Braveheart is favored by many Hot Air readers. Patton may be the best war movie of all time, and one of the best depictions of the thin line between genius and madness. Unforgiven haunts, as does Schindler’s List, for very different reasons.

Again, you’re not just stuck with my Magnificent Seven. If you like another on the list, add it and it will become part of the poll. Be sure to cut and paste the title from below in order to make sure it gets counted properly.

On Thursday, Betty Jo Tucker of Movie Addict Headquarters and Jazz Shaw will appear on The Ed Morrissey Show to discuss the results of both polls. Have fun!

The Academy Award database lists these as the nominees:

• 1968 – Oliver!
• 1969 – Midnight Cowboy
• 1970 – Patton
• 1971 – The French Connection
• 1972 – The Godfather
• 1973 – The Sting
• 1974 – The Godfather Part II
• 1975 – One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest
• 1976 – Rocky
• 1977 – Annie Hall
• 1978 – The Deer Hunter
• 1979 – Kramer vs. Kramer
• 1980 – Ordinary People
• 1981 – Chariots of Fire
• 1982 – Gandhi
• 1983 – Terms of Endearment
• 1984 – Amadeus
• 1985 – Out of Africa
• 1986 – Platoon
• 1987 – The Last Emperor
• 1988 – Rain Man
• 1989 – Driving Miss Daisy
• 1990 – Dances With Wolves
• 1991 – The Silence of the Lambs
• 1992 – Unforgiven
• 1993 – Schindler’s List
• 1994 – Forrest Gump
• 1995 – Braveheart
• 1996 – The English Patient
• 1997 – Titanic
• 1998 – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – American Beauty
• 2000 – Gladiator
• 2001 – A Beautiful Mind
• 2002 – Chicago
• 2003 – The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
• 2004 – Million Dollar Baby
• 2005 – Crash
• 2006 – The Departed
• 2007 – No Country for Old Men
• 2008 – Slumdog Millionaire