Entertainment

25.0k voters

The Very Best Oscar-Winning Movies For Best Picture

Originally by Ranker Community

Updated November 10, 2020 182.2k votes 25.0k voters 461.2k views92 items

List RulesOnly films that WON the Academy Award for Best Picture

All of the best Oscar winning movies that won the Oscar for Best Picture. Currently, there are 92 movies that have won the highly coveted Best Picture Academy Award, and they are all here for you to vote and rank from best to worst. The annual Academy Awards ceremony brings the world together in celebration of the best films of the year, and this list of all the movies that have won the Best Picture Academy Award is here in celebration of decades of quality filmmaking.

With 92 years of votable film history behind us, there are plenty of classic movies vying for the honor of being called the greatest film that won the Academy Award for Best Picture. From the movies that win critical acclaim across generational divides (The Godfather, Schindler's List), to the feel-good movies with great casts (Forrest Gump, The Artist), to controversial Best Picture Oscar winners (The Hurt Locker, Crash), this list of the films that won a Best Picture Oscar is here to separate the best movies of all time from the ones that were maybe the best of the year they won.

What is the best movie that ever won the Best Picture Oscar? What is the worst movie to win the Academy Award for Best Picture? Vote on these Best Picture winners, and maybe you'll find out! If there's an Oscar winner for Best Picture that you didn't like, vote it down and let other moviegoers know it wasn't worthy of film's top honor.

Photo:

...more

26
1,037
669
Patton
1970
Patton is a 1970 American epic biographical film about U.S. General George S. Patton during... more
More Patton
#17 of 99 The Most Patriotic Movies of All Time#329 of 456 The Most Quotable Movies Of All Time
27
1,432
1,050
Amadeus
1984
Amadeus is a 1984 American period biographical drama film directed by Miloš Forman and adapted... more
More Amadeus
#184 of 206 Musical Movies With the Best Songs#34 of 54 The Best Movies Where the Bad Guy Wins
28
1,400
970
Dances with Wolves
1990
Dances with Wolves is a 1990 American epic western film directed, produced by, and starring... more
More Dances with Wolves
#9 of 28 Civil War Movies List#21 of 400 The Best Western Movies Ever Made
29
5,462
4,814
The Godfather
1972
The Godfather is a 1972 American crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the... more
More The Godfather
20 Fun Facts About the Godfather Trilogy#2 of 123 The Best Mafia Films Of All Time
30
1,301
953
The Deer Hunter
1978
The Deer Hunter is a 1978 American epic drama film co-written and directed by Michael Cimino... more
More The Deer Hunter
Unbelievable Stories From Behind The Scenes Of 'The Deer Hunter'#51 of 375 The 50+ Best War Movies Ever Made, Ranked
31
1,133
841
12 Years a Slave
2013
12 Years a Slave is a 2013 period drama film directed by Steve McQueen, based on the 1853... more
More 12 Years a Slave
#110 of 665 The Best Black Movies Ever Made, Ranked#4 of 85 The Greatest African American Biopics
32
1,480
1,228
American Beauty
1999
American Beauty is a 1999 American drama film directed by Sam Mendes. An advertising executive... more
More American Beauty
#12 of 50 The Best Oscar-Nominated Movies of the '90s#7 of 126 The Greatest Directorial Debuts Of All Time
33
773
662
All About Eve
1950
All About Eve is a 1950 American drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and... more
More All About Eve
#713 of 1,506 The Most Rewatchable Movies#153 of 246 The Best Rainy Day Movies
34
1,133
852
West Side Story
1961
West Side Story is a 1961 American romantic musical drama film directed by Robert Wise and... more
More West Side Story
The Behind-The-Scenes Of 'West Side Story' Was Plagued With More Hatred Than The Movie Itself#77 of 200 The Best Teen Romance Movies
35
828
690
The French Connection
1971
The French Connection is a 1971 American dramatic thriller film directed by William Friedkin... more
More The French Connection
#105 of 370 The Best Movies Based On Books#24 of 552 The Best '70s Movies
36
916
729
My Fair Lady
1964
My Fair Lady is a 1964 American musical film adaptation of the Lerner and Loewe stage musical... more
More My Fair Lady
Every Song in My Fair Lady, Ranked by Singability#159 of 356 The Best Musical Movies Of All Time
37
1,261
1,108
The King's Speech
2010
The King's Speech is a 2010 British historical drama film directed by Tom Hooper and written... more
More The King's Speech
#1 of 14 Pretty Good Movies About Historical Royals#3 of 46 35+ Great Political Movies Based on True Stories
38
1,159
1,091
Slumdog Millionaire
2008
Slumdog Millionaire is a 2009 British drama film directed by Danny Boyle Jamal Malik, a young... more
More Slumdog Millionaire
#88 of 139 The Best Movies You Never Want to Watch Again#91 of 291 The Greatest Soundtracks of All Time

39
713
661
The Apartment
1960
The Apartment is a 1960 American comedy-drama film produced and directed by Billy Wilder,... more
More The Apartment
#25 of 32 30+ Great Movies About Depression in Women#5 of 13 The Best "Christmas Adjacent" Movies That Aren't About Christmas
40
695
598
All Quiet on the Western Front
1930
All Quiet on the Western Front is a 1930 American epic film based on the Erich Maria Remarque... more
More All Quiet on the Western Front
#5 of 75 The Best Movies About Historical Battles#17 of 46 Every Single Movie On Rotten Tomatoes With 100% Approval, Ranked
41
956
898
Gandhi
1982
Gandhi is a 1982 epic biographical film which dramatises the life of Mohandas Karamchand... more
More Gandhi
#33 of 50 The Best Oscar-Nominated Movies of the '80s#130 of 152 Movies That Should Never Be Remade
42
646
614
It Happened One Night
1934
It Happened One Night is a 1934 American romantic comedy film with elements of screwball... more
More It Happened One Night
#89 of 126 The Greatest Date Movies Of All Time#13 of 225 The Best Black and White Movies Ever Made
43
1,082
1,047
Million Dollar Baby
2004
Million Dollar Baby is a 2004 American sports drama film directed, co-produced and scored by... more
More Million Dollar Baby
#66 of 1,184 Every Oscar Winning Film Ever#22 of 172 The Most Utterly Depressing Movies Ever Made
44
643
656
Rebecca
1940
Rebecca is a 1940 American psychological thriller-drama film. Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, it... more
More Rebecca
#93 of 230 The Best Psychological Thrillers of All Time#37 of 105 The Best Valentine's Day Movies
45
630
610
From Here to Eternity
1953
From Here to Eternity is a 1953 drama film directed by Fred Zinnemann and based on the novel... more
More From Here to Eternity
#232 of 277 The Top Tearjerker Movies That Make Men Cry#38 of 222 The Greatest World War II Movies of All Time
46
848
753
Driving Miss Daisy
1989
Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy-drama film directed by Bruce Beresford and... more
More Driving Miss Daisy
#30 of 46 Movies That Won Best Picture at the Oscars and Golden Globes#211 of 512 The Greatest Movies Of The 1980s, Ranked
47
684
680
Midnight Cowboy
1969
Midnight Cowboy is a 1969 American drama film based on the 1965 novel of the same name by... more
More Midnight Cowboy
#18 of 175 The Best Movies Of The '60s#98 of 306 The Greatest Movie Themes
48
562
534
Spotlight
2015
Spotlight is a 2015 American biographical drama film directed by Tom McCarthy. The true story... more
More Spotlight
All The Things 'Spotlight' Gets Wrong (And Right) About The Pulitzer Prize-Winning True Story#188 of 309 The Best Movies Based On True Stories

49
589
576
In the Heat of the Night
1967
In the Heat of the Night is a 1967 American mystery drama film directed by Norman Jewison. It... more
More In the Heat of the Night
#5 of 52 The Most Woke Movies of All Time#19 of 50 The Best Oscar-Nominated Movies of the 1960s
50
728
884
Annie Hall
1977
Annie Hall is a 1977 American romantic comedy film directed by Woody Allen. Neurotic New York... more
More Annie Hall
#2 of 63 Movies Set in Brooklyn#361 of 922 The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films