20 Essential Movies Winning The Oscar For Best Picture
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards, better known as Oscars, have been celebrated year after year since 1929, (almost) without interruption. Next, we present 20 of the films that have won the statuette for best film and that we consider essential Of course, there are many, many more.
Did you know wings Is (Alas) the only silent film that received the award? Or that the 11 Ben-Hur statuettes were only equaled by Titanicalmost forty years later?
Let’s look at 20 films that swept the Oscars, that won the best film award and that are milestones in the history of cinema.
1. Wings1927
The peculiarity of this film is that it is about the only silent film to win the Oscar for best picture And not because silent films are not good, but because the awards were established in 1929, when talkies had already made an appearance. wings is a war drama set in World War I and is especially famous for its magnificent visual and technical effects.
2. Gone with the wind1939
Undisputed jewel of cinema, this epic film broke all records upon its release and, of course, during the 1940 Oscars: no less than 8 statuettes, including, in addition to best film, best actress (an extraordinary Vivien Leigh in the best role of her career), best director (Victor Fleming) and best adapted screenplay. One of the most important milestones of this film is that, for the first time in history, the work of an African-American actress was awarded (a wonderful Hattie McDaniel in the role of Mammy).
3. Casablanca (1942)
Casablanca faced a tough competitor in the 1944 edition: For whom the Bell Tolls (For Whom the Bell tolls), from director Sam Wood. Finally, the first was chosen, and also won the Oscar for best director and best adapted screenplay.
The film is a war drama that stars a cynical yet charming Humphrey Bogart and a then almost unknown Ingrid Bergman. Curiously, that year Bergman was nominated for best actress, but not for White Housebut for the already mentioned For whom the Bell Tollsin which she played María, a young republican during the Spanish Civil War.
4. Eve naked (All about Eve)1950
Bette Davis is without a doubt one of the best actresses that cinema has ever produced, and in this film she reaches her zenith. The plot revolves around an aspiring actress who does not hesitate to crush anyone who gets in her way to achieve her goals. This is a scathing criticism of the opportunism of the scenarios, which also won awards for best director (Joseph L. Mankiewicz) and best supporting actor (George Sanders). Curiously, Davis’s splendid work was not awarded.
5. From here to eternity1953
Drama set during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, which earned Frank Sinatra the only Oscar of his career. The film won 7 more Oscars, including best director (Fred Zinemann), best supporting actress (Donna Reed) and best adapted screenplay. Famous is the scene in which Deborah Kerr and Burt Lancaster (both nominated for best actress and actor) kiss passionately on the beach, a true scandal for the time.
6. Ben Hur1959
Until the arrival of Titanic, the Ben Hur from 1959 was the most awarded film in Oscar history. This epic by William Wyler, based on the novel of the same name that Colonel William Wallace had written at the end of the 19th century, won 11 statuettes. The unprecedented success of Ben Hur (in part, and no doubt, due to the chemistry between the main actors, Charlton Heston and Stephen Boyd) literally saved Metro from bankruptcy. The memorable chariot race scene has a privileged place in film history; It is practically impossible to find someone who has not seen it.
7. The apartment1960
Billy Wilder is the king of classic Hollywood comedies At the 1961 ceremony he received the Oscar for best director with his excellent comedy Apartment, which has, in addition to an agile and well-crafted script, a tandem of wonderful actors: Jack Lemmon and Shirley McLaine, nominated for their work in the film. It is without a doubt one of the best comedies in cinema.
8. West Side Story(1961)
This version of Romeo and Juliet moved to New York’s West Side, it is among the most performed and valued musicals in history, and is among the most notable works that won the Oscar for best film. At the 1962 ceremony he took home no less than 10 statuettes, almost equaling Ben Hur. Among the awards are best film, best supporting actress (Rita Moreno) and best supporting actor (George Chakiris).
The famous saga of the Corleone family, based on the homonymous novels by Mario Puzo, was one of the winners of the 1973 ceremony The other, his great rival, was the musical Cabaretby Bob Fosse, winner of 8 Oscars. The Godfather It only won 3, but among them were best film, best actor (Marlon Brando) and best adapted screenplay.
10. The Sting1973
Two monsters of the screen, Paul Newman and Robert Redford, come together in this film set in Chicago in the 1930s. The actors play a pair of con artists who decide to avenge the death of a third party, murdered by a gangster. The film won 7 Oscars; Redford was nominated for best actor, but the award went to Jack Lemmon that year for Save the Tiger. As a candidate for best film was The exorcistwhich did win the Oscar for best adapted screenplay.
eleven. Amadeus(1984)
The story of the fictitious feud between the composers Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri, masterfully brought to the big screen by Milos Forman. The film won no less than 8 statuettes, including best costume design and best makeup for its exquisite setting in 18th century Vienna. As a curious fact, both F. Murray Abraham, who plays Salieri, and Tom Hulce, who plays Mozart, were nominated for best actor. Finally, the prize went to Abraham.
12. Gandhi(1982)
An excellent biopic of Gandhi, played by a no less excellent Ben Kinsgley, who won the Oscar for best actor for his work in the film. In addition, the film won 7 more statuettes, including best director (Richard Attenborough), best original screenplay and best soundtrack.
13. The silence of the lambs1991
Jodie Foster rose to fame for her role in this film, where she plays a psychopathy expert who tries to unravel a series of mysterious murders. To do this, she has the help of Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), a psychoanalyst who remains in prison for murder and who exhibits psychopathic behavior. Lecter’s privileged mind will help her solve the cases. Foster and Hopkins won best actress and best actor.
14. Schindler’s List1993
One of Steven Spielberg’s masterpieces, who won an Oscar for best director for this film about Oskar Schindler, the German businessman who saved thousands of Jews from the Holocaust. Liam Neeson, who played Schindler, and his co-star, Ralph Fiennes (in the role of the chilling Amon Goeth), were nominated respectively for best lead and supporting actor for their excellent work, but ultimately did not win the statuette.
Almost forty years after Ben Hur swept the Oscars, winning 11 awards, Titanic It equaled the record at the 1998 ceremony. The film, which tells a love story set in the shipwreck of the famous ocean liner, is a true myth in the history of cinema. Among the awards it won are best director (James Cameron), best costume design and best original song, the unforgettable My heart will go onplayed by Céline Dion.
16. The Lord of the rings. The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings. The Return of the King)2003
The third installment of the saga became the first fantasy film to win the best picture award The film, which with its 11 Academy Awards equaled Ben Hur and Titanic, is based on Tolkien’s book of the same name and closes the story that began in 2001 with The Lord of the rings. The Fellowship of the Ring.
17. million dollar Baby2004
Clint Eastwood was praised by critics for his million dollar Baby, with which, in addition to the statuette for best director, he also won the award for best actor. Starring with him is a young Hilary Swank, who plays the protagonist boxer and who also received the Oscar for best actress. The film is a painful portrait of euthanasia.
18. I want to be a millionaire (Slumdog millionaire)2008
The story of the Indian boy from the suburbs of Bombay, who invariably wins all the questions in a famous television quiz, conquered millions of viewers. The film was awarded 8 Oscars, including best director (Danny Boyle) and best adapted screenplay.
19. 12 years a slave2013
A harsh drama set in the United States when the Civil War is about to break out. A free African-American man, living in the northern states, is taken prisoner and turned into a slave. The story is based on real events and masterfully portrays the situation of slaves in the southern United States. Lupita Nyong’o, who plays a young slave and at the time almost unknown, won the Oscar for best supporting actress.
Set in racist America in the 1960s, Green Book It was one of the most praised of the year. Viggo Mortensen plays the chauffeur of an African-American pianist; During their coexistence, both will learn to confront your own prejudices Mahershala Ali, who plays the musician, won the Oscar for best supporting actor for his work in the film.
