The omission of '' Carol '' from Best Picture and Best Director categories prompted speculation from journalists about the perceived indifference of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences toward female - and LGBT-centred films . Nate Scott of '' USA Today '' called it " the standout snub " of the ceremony , " one made all the more ridiculous because of the bloated Best Picture field " . Nico Lang of '' The A.V. Club '' said that despite the film having been considered a " lock " for a Best Picture nomination , the omission " should n't have been a major shock " given the controversy over '' Brokeback Mountain '' loss a decade earlier . Jason Bailey of '' Flavorwire '' said that most Best Picture nominees that include gay themes " put them firmly in the realm of subplots " . " '' Carol '' most transgressive quality " , he declared , " is its refusal to engage in such shenanigans ; this is a film about full-blooded gay lives , not tragic gay deaths . " At '' HitFix '' , Louis Virtel suggested that Academy members ' reception of the film was hurt by its focus on self-determined women . Matthew Jacobs of '' The Huffington Post '' expressed similar sentiments and felt that the Academy 's artistic tastes were " too conventional to recognize its brilliance " . Richard Lawson of '' Vanity Fair '' said that although its " themes of passion and heartache may be universal " the film may be " too gay " , speaking " in a vernacular that , I 'd guess , only queer people are fully fluent in . " He added that the lack of " gushing melodrama " put the film at a disadvantage . Dorothy Snarker of IndieWire attributed the omissions to the Academy 's demographics . Snarker agreed that '' Carol '' may be too gay and too female " for the largely old white male voting base " to connect with . She also considered that the successes of the LGBT rights movement in the U.S. may have partly been responsible for the lack of " political urgency " around the film
categories
88th Academy Awards
Carol (film)