Worst2First: My Top Ten Best Picture Oscar Winners

Worst2First: 

My Top Ten Best Picture Oscar Winners

 

These are the best of the best, the films that earned the highest honor of Best Picture.  This is what all directors aspire to, and only a few have achieved this ultimate goal.

Here are my personal top ten Best Picture Oscar winners, worst2first...

**THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS**

#10

No Country for Old Men

Brother Joel and Ethan Coen have churned out some of the most thought-provoking and powerful pieces of cinema in recent history, and "No Country for Old Men" is definitely one of them.  The film won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Adapted Screenplay, and made a household name out of Javier Bardem. 

#9

Braveheart

Known as Mel Gibson's best work, "Braveheart" told the story of William Wallace, a Scottish warrior who led the Scots in the first war of Scottish independence against the British.  Besides starring in the lead role, Gibson also directed the war epic, winning an Oscar for Best Director, while the film also won three other technical awards - Cinematography, Makeup, and Sound Editing.

#8

The Departed

While this wasn't Martin Scorsese's best, it still stood head and shoulders above any of the other nominated films that year, earning the Best Picture Oscar (as well as Scorsese's first Best Director Oscar, and Adapted Screenplay and Editing).  The film featured a stellar cast including Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson, Alec Baldwin, and Mark Wahlberg, and centered around a mob boss in Boston and the police force trying to take him down, while having a mole on both sides. 

#7

Ben-Hur

Winning a record of eleven Academy Awards, the Biblical epic "Ben-Hur" still holds as one of cinema's crowning achievements in epic historical action.  The film starred Charlton Heston as a man confined to slavery, who gained redemption by facing his enemy and participating in a how-historic chariot race.

#6

Forrest Gump

The story of Forrest Gump - a simple man who had a hand in pretty much every historical event - resonated with audiences and critics alike, earning six Academy Awards and touching the hearts of millions. 

#5

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Being one of only three films to win the Big Five Oscars (Picture, Actor, Actress, Director and Screenplay), "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" is a powerful piece of cinema that's withstood the test of time.  Featuring standout performances by Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher, the film centers around a man in a mental hospital dealing with a ruthless head nurse and resulted in a historic win at the Academy Awards.

#4

Schindler's List

The true story of Oskar Schindler - a German businessman who saved countless Jewish lives during the Holocaust - touched the hearts of millions of moviegoers and critics, earning the film seven Academy Awards including Picture and Best Director for Steven Spielberg. 

#3

The Godfather

One of those classic films that remains as one of the most powerful pictures in history, "The Godfather" was also the highest grossing film of 1972, and was the highest grossing film ever made for many years following.  The film also won three Oscars, including one for Best Actor for Marlon Brando.

#2

The Godfather Part II

For a sequel to surpass the original is a rarity in itself, but for a sequel to win Best Picture was unprecedented - until "The Godfather Part II."  The film won Best Picture along with five other Academy Awards, becoming the first sequel to achieve that feat.

#1

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

"The Godfather Part II" became the first sequel to win Best Picture, and "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" was the second film sequel to win Best Picture, and there's no surprise why.  The film was a visual masterpiece from start to finish, one that critics decades from now will look back on and say it's the defining films of our generation.  Not only that, but the film also swept the Oscars that year, winning all eleven Oscars it was nominated for - a record that still hasn't been broken.