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Every Best Picture Oscar Winner Ranked Best To Worst

The Playlist Staff
By The Playlist Staff
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30. “Marty” (1955)
Even now, “Marty” feels like an unlikely Best Picture winner—it’s a low-key romance between people who don’t look like movie stars, adapted from a TV drama that aired only two years earlier. But the film—one of only two to win both Best Picture and the Palme d’Or—was deserving. Sure, director Delbert Mann was a bit of a journeyman, but Paddy Chayefsky‘s magnificent script, and the performances by Ernest Borgnine and Betsy Blair, more than make up for it. Here’s producer Burt Lancaster to tell you about it:

29. “My Fair Lady” (1964)
A frothy, totally irresistible George Cukor musical with a never lovelier Audrey Hepburn (who admittedly is not hugely convincing as a cockney waif, and had her singing voice dubbed) and the irascible, exasperated Rex Harrison as her svengali, the film still breezes past our radar for the dodgy patriarchalism and classism of its premise with its lavishly costumed, hummable charm.

28. “Unforgiven” (1992)
Fascinating for the grim deconstruction of a myth of the American West that he’d been influential in creating, Clint Eastwood’s “final western” is a flawed film, but even its flaws speak to its ambition. While there are a few too many characters, and a few unexplored avenues that the film even at over two hours doesn’t have time to develop, what’s there is still pretty choice, with Eastwood himself bringing an appropriately broken, end-of-days feel to his role.

27. “Gladiator” (2000)
Relaunching the Hollywood swords ‘n’ sandals genre, Ridley Scott’s Ancient Rome-set epic also provided the defining role for Russell Crowe’s muscular, masculine appeal and brought him his first Best Actor Oscar (he’d been nominated the year before and would be again the year after). It’s a relatively straightforward story of a man’s rise to heroism to avenge his family, but elevated by the sheer scale of the endeavor, and by Crowe’s intense performance.

26. “The Last Emperor” (1987)
The lavish stateliness of this Bernardo Bertolucci film about the end of the last Chinese imperial dynasty may be unfashionable now, and at 2 hours 40 minutes it does require an investment of time, but the spectacle alone often saves the day. Even when the man is lost amid the trappings, the trappings (it was the first film ever permitted to shoot inside the magnificent Forbidden City) are worth it.


Platoon25. “Platoon” (1986)
The second Vietnam movie to win Best Picture (and the first made by an actual vet of the conflict), “Platoon” isn’t the most artful ‘Nam picture to contend for an Oscar (*cough* “Apocalypse Now“), but is one of the most visceral, authentic and deeply felt. Oliver Stone‘s own combat experience feeds into his powerful and elegaic tale of the young infantrymen (Charlie Sheen) torn between two mentors, as powerful an anti-war statement as ever graced the Academy’s stage.

24. “The Hurt Locker” (2009)
80 years into its history, the Academy finally deigned to give Best Picture to a movie directed by a woman, but Kathryn Bigelow‘s war drama about a risk-addicted bomb-defusing expert was no affirmative-action choice. It’s gripping, authentic, wryly funny and brilliantly directed. The narrative occasionally ends up in a cul-de-sac (the sub-plot involving Jeremy Renner‘s young Iraqi friend), but it’s otherwise a top-tier war movie.

23. “The Silence Of The Lambs” (1991)
One of the unlikeliest Oscar phenomena ever, Jonathan Demme‘s adaptation of Thomas Harris‘ serial killer thriller might not be the most nourishing or uplifting of the Best Picture winners, but it’s one of the most thrilling, and certainly the scariest. It’s been a little diminished by its imitators (especially in Anthony Hopkins‘ performance), but if only every studio thriller was this good…

22. “Amadeus” (1984)
A rare example of the Prestige Picture done right, Milos Forman’s retelling of Mozart’s story through the eyes of a rival is inspired precisely because strip away the lavish sets and costumes, and you’re left with a compelling two-hander: a fascinating take on the nature of artistic jealousy between an accomplished journeyman and a genius. It’s an added treat that the genius is played as an insufferable giggling manchild by Tom Hulce.

21. “No Country For Old Men” (2007)
Deeply satisfying and richly textured, this film really saw the Coen brothers, long favorites on the more culty side of things, come into their own in terms of mainstream acceptance and the honing of their uncompromising vision to reach a wider audience. Still the best adaptation of a Cormac McCarthy book, they also get career-best performances from most of the cast, including Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin and an unforgettable Javier Bardem.

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91 COMMENTS

  4. Great job. But these are all very well known films that most people have seen. It\’d be mucj more interestin seeing you tackle the foreign language winners. Not to mention the shorts.

  5. You mention that Ben-Hur is the longest movie to win Best Picture but its not. Lawrence of Arabia and Gone with the Wind are both longer. Hard to take the list seriously when they can\’t get the facts straight.

  6. Great list. Other than "All About Eve" being, IMO, 12 positions too low and "Titanic" about 90 positions too high (ok, 89, as it\’s probably a bit better than "Crash").

  7. Dead wrong about Chariots of Fire. What made it such a brilliant film was how it captured a moment in history. It was the intersection between regular people who were athletic and dedicated athletes. It\’s unfair to call it a sports movie because it\’s so much more.

  8. This list is crap Annie Hall number 5 really? film didn\’t even deserve the oscar that year and the kings speech ahead of Return of the king like Annie Hall didn\’t deserve the Oscar Inception ,The Social Network and Toy Story 3 all had more right

  9. know I\’m responding late but—Chariots of Fire-SUCKED! & I know Out of Africa isn\’t "cool" to love, but I do, specifically for the score and the story of Karen Blixen

  10. Your top 4 is quite right – we could disagree about the exact order, but I can't see how any other Best Picture winner could rival those 4, and Lawrence should indeed be, as you say, an uncontroversial no.1.
    The biggest flaw with this list is how low In The Heat Of The Night is. I have to watch its slap scene to cleanse my mind whenever I have the misfortune of seeing one of those awful 'great white person saves all the black people and solves racism' films, like The Help. In The Heat Of The Night may be almost 50 years old, but it remains the perfect antidote to that trope. Plus it's just a great film with crackling dialogue, fantastic acting, excellent cinematography and a cool song. Should be easily top 10.

  11. Shit list! You guys really sick.. Such an absurd list! A beautiful mind, that far? Really? Russell Crowe didn't.suit? He was terrific. Godfather deserves to be at the top, along with The Silence Of the Lambs in the top 5!

  12. I love how 'My Fair Lady' is 29 on this list – such a bad film. I guess everyone has an opinion but I would have thought a 'critical list' would have been more, well, informed and insightful

  14. Overall, a solid job with the list. But to put Grand Hotel as #67 is such a miss, its like ranking Michael Jordan the 67th best basketball player ever.
    Plus, personally Lawrence of Arabia has great scenery / camera work, but the movie is too long and boring for the development of the plot. Shouldn't be in the top 20.

  15. I don't agree with a lot of this, but that is the point. Lists can be a conversational version of a drinking game, and should be taken no more seriously.
    The only real piece of ignorance I found was having Bridge Over the River Kwai described as a "…near-definitive look at Japanese POW camps." Maybe it is for PC reasons, or economic ones (big Japanese market), but there has never been a movie that has come close to depicting the inhumanity and degradation faced by Japanese POW's. This movie is the Holocaust as musical.

  18. For the love of humanity, it's a list….all of this is subjective geeze!! I could see if FF Coppola or Woody read this and were "outraged" about their place….all you other over emoting trolls chill the F out and/or make your own F'in list.

  19. All these "lists" suck big time. I just skipped to the last page to see the first five. Let me guess… Playlist staff all dudes who loved the Godfather movies, boy was I right. Now let's make another list: Stupid articles that want to drive internet traffic, ranked worst to the best…

  20. Let's be honest here, folks. This has zero to do with discussing movies. This is all about driving traffic to the website and getting people to click away. Godfather II as the second greatest movie? Seriously? The "staff" offers no criteria for ranking their picks. It's just "let's make up a list and see what kind of comments we can get going because we need more advertising." Final point: Schindler's LIst is woefully overrated at No. 6. Spielberg sanitized that story so dramatically–the shower scene with the women was unconscionable. Billy Wilder tried to make the movie, but Spielberg wouldn't give up the rights. Sad.

  21. I recently purchased your 2014 Movie Guide, and have the following comments to make:
    Of the first twenty films I searched for, half of them were nowhere to be found, and the others were dismissed by your "expert" editors as being too long.
    Obviously, what is needed are some women on your staff in order to get some fair and just opinions. I paid eleven dollars for this diarrhea of stilted words from all those constipated male minds. Needless to say, I am grossly disappointed.

    Kindly return the cost of this overrated illegitimacy to Dr. Jane Foxx, PhD. 416 Alberta Drive,
    Commercial Point, OH 43116.

    Thank you, JF

  22. What's the point of making a list of harsh subjective ratings? For any film, there's soneone who loves them, someone who hates them, and opinions by posers. A better list would be of categories of general public perception, e.g. "forgotten", "controversial", "average Oscar bait", "love/hate", "generally enjoyed", "influential", and "classics". That tells a better story.

  25. Ah yes, the Rulers Of All Highness have imparted definitive wisdom regarding MMMOOOOOVIEEESSS, the singular business endeavor where they have absolutely no legitimate input.

    God Bless America.

  26. Correction. The first year of the Academy Awards there was no best picture award category. According to IMDB Wings won for Best Production for its special effects. Sunrise by Murneau won three Oscars including Unique and Artistic Picture and Best Cinematography. Murneau was gay and so unliked that the only person from Hollywood that attended his funeral in 1931 was Greta Garbo, so the fact that some straight men decided a year after the awards to claim Wings actually won best picture and for you to go along with that is ignorant and or revisionist. Sunrise is a masterpiece, and Murneau was the mentor to many of the greatest filmmakers that came after him including Borzage, John Ford, Alan Dwan and Raoul Walsh.

  28. Thanks for putting American Beauty, one of the finest films ever made, so low on your list. You saved me the trouble of having to finish reading it and the trouble of having to take it seriously AT ALL. I still very much remember why I "lost my shit" over it. Its one of the most richly drawn, bittersweet and life affirming movies ever made!

  29. I'm sorry but there is just no way Titanic is a better movie than the Departed. Titanic IMO is up there as one of the most overrated best picture winners of all time. I will say it is a truly awful movie. Let the hate towards me begin 🙂

  30. I disagree with your assessment that "American Beauty" is "by no means bad". It's beyond bad, it's infuriatingly awful. It's a sneering movie that revels in the most facile stereotypes. It makes the most sophomoric points possible with the subtlety of a sledgehammer to the face. It's beyond pretentious, it's patronizing. It's the kind of eyerollingly awful movie an annoying, privileged undergraduate would make in their first term at Bard while Mommy and Daddy back at home in Winnetka are footing the bills.

  31. This list took a lot of guts so I commend you, and everyone's always going to have their own opinions…but seriously, GLADIATOR #27???! That is a travesty. It's odd, because your Top 10 are well picked…so it's unlikely you suffer from head trauma or a substance abuse problem that would lead you to make such a fumble as Gladiator's 27th ranking. So I'm stumped. 🙂

    When Gladiator won best picture it was also tragic — beating out "Traffic" and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." I have no words.

  33. This is a particularly inane article (or list). Context is everything, and as wrong headed as some choices may seem today (and seemed then), denigrating films for "aging" poorly is ridiculous.

  34. Chicago ahead of American Beauty? Hahahaha! One of the worst movies ever even nominated for Best Picture ahead of an instant classic that is still relevant over 14 years later!? This list is garbage. I'm going to print it out and burn it.

  37. All I cared about on your list was number one and you hit it perfectly. Lawrence of Arabia was simply the best of the Best Pictures. The cinematography by Fred Young was classic, the screenplay by Robert Bolt is one the best ever and the music score by Maurice Jarre is my favorite of all-time. The technical aspects were all world-class, but the most incredible achievement was the acting, especially by Peter O'Toole–the greatest performance ever in cinema. When the reconstructed version engineered by David Lean was released in 1989, several film critics picked it as the best film of the year–19 years after its release. Steven Spielberg wanted to be a neurosurgeon, until he saw Lawrence and found his passion. Great film, great pick–thank you!

  39. How Green Was My Valley and The Best Years Of Our Lives are both amazing movies that should be higher ranked than Gladiator, Chariots Of Fire, Dances With Wolves, Gandhi, Slumdog Millionaire and all the other pieces of middle-brow mediocrity you placed between the former pair and their deserved spots in the top twenty.

  43. One of the worst rankings or list I've ever seen on any site. There is no rhyme or reason to it and the dartboard analogy is accurate. Just awful film taste happening here. Platoon is absolutely godawful btw.

  45. I'm not sure what the five best Best Movies are but here are the five worst: (1) "Terms of Endearment," a bad afternoon soap opera that wastes its stars (2) "The English Patient," two hrs. of bad soap opera and 40 min. of WWII spy clichés, (3) "Slumdog Millionaire," the overwhelming stench of poverty porn, (4) "The Godfather, Part II," so obviously just an excuse to squeeze more $ from the original, (5) "The Deer Hunter," demeaning to our Vietnam experience and offensive to lovers of truly great war movies!

  47. Considering the excellent "No Country For Old Men" was up against the equally excellent "There Will Be Blood" (one of the great American films about America, ever), and in a year when Fincher's "Zodiac" was (gasp!) not nominated over more trite fare, is saying a LOT about the Coen's (arguable) masterpiece. It's only going to grow in stature over time.

  48. Any list that doesn't have "How Green Was My Valley" as #85 and "An American In Paris" as #84 can't be taken seriously. Also, punishing Forrest Gump for beating Shawshank is cathartic, but #77, really? It wasn't the best movie the year it won, but it's not THAT bad.

  49. Can't agree with the placement of several of the movies at all. My Fair Lady is placed much too high. Though I did agree Crash belongs at the bottom of the heap.

  50. I liked the Top Ten immensely–very glad West Side Story made the cut. My only change would be All About Eve being included in the Ten as well, and maaaaybe The Apartment being left off.

  51. Quite possibly the worst movie related list I have ever seen. And trust me, I have seen countless. LOL the opinion of the playlist staff will not hold much credit with me. I mean An American in Paris over … well anything really, and the rest: hahahahaha

  53. Possibly the WORST -Worst to Best Best Picture List I'ver ever seen! Whoever wrote this article knows nothing about Oscar Winners. Any and all Oscar voters would disown this critic..LOL 🙂

  54. This list sucks. Seriously. Titanic better than The Departed? Is that a joke? Slumdog Millionaire better than The Sting? Gladiator better than Patton? What in gods name, who is the idiot who devised this? My 12 year old cousin, wasn't it?

    Also, it seems like the only reason you put Hurt Locker at #25 is because Kathryn was the first woman to win. That is beyond stupid. That movie is extremely forgettable, bland, and cliche, and to rank it better than Unforgiven is… wait for it…. unforgivable.

    I'm here all day, thank you.

  55. Wow, how is Network not in the top 5? Are you crazy??

    OHHHH!! Yeah. I forgot, Network didn't win best picture. It somehow lost to the completely inferior film that is ROCKY! Dope! Of course. Silly me.

  58. I find myself agreeing with most of the assessments made in your list and I while the exact order is of course debatable, I think you nailed the top 22 films in the list. I might order them slightly differently, but I think they are the best 22 films in the list. I get kind of depressed looking at #'s 23-100 and thinking that those were called the best films of their given years.

  59. Great list! However one nitpick – only the bloated Italian TV version of The Last Emperor (which was briefly marketed, incorrectly as "The Director's Cut" in the 1990s) lasts 3:45:00. The theatrical version, which is also the director's cut, per Bertolucci's comments on the Criterion DVD, lasts 2:40:00.

  61. I'll have to rewatch Lawrence of Arabia. I remember being head over heels for the first half and then finding the second half anti-climactic. My same reaction to Dr Zhivago.

  63. The idea that "Titanic" and "Terms of Endearment" are better than "The Departed" is absurd. All are good films but "The Departed" is so loaded with unseen quality and meaning that can get lost underneath the action and profanity. It's one of the most underrated Best Picture Winners. Also, "The French Connection" is way too high on this list. While it was new for the time, the 1971 film was ultimately lazy and basic, bringing no real substance with it, thus not deserving of the prize or a high place on this list. There, I'll leave now.

  65. I was going along with most of your choices, but then you dissed THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES which is among the best Hollywood movies ever made. There goes your credibility. I'm guessing you did not re-watch it before doing this list.

  68. I like the list, although I do not agree with a lot of things, especially the place attributed to "Out of Africa". Despite the colonial ambiance and the somewhat paternalist tone, the film is a masterpiece. Beautifully directed by Sydney Pollack, "Out of Africa" is lavishly romantic and moving. Nearly every scene is unforgettable and story never lapses into pretentiousness and sentimentality. The soundtrack is haunting; it remains in your ears for a very long time. If this is not enough, Meryl Streep gives one of her best performances; she is mesmerizing as Karen Blixen.

    I always thought of "Out of Africa" as a true and instant classic. In my opinion, "Out of Africa" is not worse than "A Beautiful Mind", "The Sound of Music", "Chicago", "Braveheart", "Kramer versus Kramer", "The King's Speech", "Chariots of Fire" (for me, the worst Oscar winner ever!), "Shakespeare in Love", "Slumdog Millionaire", "Argo" (comprehensive, intelligent and uncontroversial American propaganda with a leftish tone), "The Departed", "The Artist", "Rain Man", and "Titanic".

    P.S. Why is "Forrest Gump" so down on the list? Why are you considering of "Chariots of Fire"? Gosh, is "Gandhi", one best biopics ever made, really worse than "Argo" or, more shockingly, "Titanic" and "Rain Man"? Why is "Ben Hur" in the middle of the list?

  69. Good list – entertaining read. Don't agree with all of them (personally I rate Forrest Gump – it maybe occasionally cloying but it works well on that gutpunch emotional level that cinema should always aim for) – but anyone who gets personally offended by these journalists' subjective opinions needs to find a more constructive way to channel their anger. Good work Playlist, thanks.

  70. I agree with this list a lot more than I've agreed with other ones like this. While I would never put Rocky so high, I also wouldn't put Driving Miss Daisy so low (especially below Crash). I'm happy with the placing of Forrest Gump. A film I never liked, so happy to see it wasn't ranked so high. I feel like the Sting, Ben-Hur and Titanic could've been a lot higher (a few of my personal favourites) but it's not bad placements overall. Same with Argo and the Artist

  71. Chariots of Fire, Return of the King, The King's Speech, Titanic, Gandhi, Slumdog Millionaire, Shakespeare in Love and Argo are all better than Braveheart?

    Nope.

  72. People have already expressed their disagreement about The Return of the King, but I'm curious as to how you find less emotional and focused than its predecessors. There are dozens of scenes that are deeply moving.

  74. The Artist is way too high. Belongs in the bottom ten. I watched Mrs. Miniver for the first time recently and thought it was very bland and generic work – a dumbed down look at how Americans viewed British life complete with some inexplicable American accents. Also watched Wyler's The Best Years of Our Lives again just yesterday and I'm happy to report it holds up very well.

  77. Why do y'all read lists if you hate them? Do I agree with all the choices here? Of course not. Is it fun to read and have a think about? Yes. That's why I clicked on it. Everyone needs to calm down. Nice work Indiewire, I found this entertaining.

  78. Luckily these picks are personal opinions selected by the author of this post. My selection would be very different from this list. Liking or disliking any film will always be based on one's personal preference and opinions.

    /THF

  83. How on Earth isn't Shakespeare in Love the last one on the list? Is it better than The Return of the King or American Beauty? Even a blind man could see that's not the case.

  84. This list is nonsense. Sorry you don't understand classic films – choosing these films with a dartboard would have been better than this analysis.

  85. Without Titanic in at least the top 10, I know I'm in the hands of people who don't understand cinema. Looking forward to how the rest of the schlock will be arranged. Indeed, you guys have arrived at "something close to definitive"

  90. god, i'm so sick of all the criticism to The return of the king, people who actually read the book know that it doesn't end after the ring is destroyed, there's a lot more after that and Jackson did a good job with the ending

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