Thanks Pandemic!
Ranking Every Oscar Best Picture Winner & Nominee Ever
I am not a “movie guy” by any measure. There are years in my adult life during which I’ve never watched any movies. I am the guy who quietly slinks away when conversations turn to The Godfather or Casablanca, because I know nothing about either. (Or, really, 99.9% of movies ever made.)
Then the pandemic hit in 2020 and my wife and I started watching the Best Picture winners almost by accident. When the virus didn’t “just disappear,” I added a decade’s worth of nominees as well. When it became apparent that the pandemic’s response was non-existent at the federal level, I added every nominee ever. Ridiculous, of course, but we live in a time of streaming services and interlibrary loans. Oh, and a time when we don’t have much else to do on Friday and Saturday nights. Hoang loves movies and I love lists. Let’s do this.
There is no point in listing all 600 nominees here. Just those I’ve watched since March 2020 and how they rank in my dumb brain. These will likely change over time and upon reflection.
Jump to my Ranking of Best Picture Winners Only
Jump to my Rankings per Year
My Ranking of all the Best Picture Nominees I’ve Seen Since March 2020
Bold = Best Picture Winner
No Country for Old Men, 2008
Schindler’s List, 1994
Sunset Blvd, 1951
The Pianist, 2003
All About Eve, 1951
Judgment at Nuremberg, 1962
The Emigrants, 1973
Lawrence of Arabia, 1963
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, 1976
1917, 2020
Inception, 2011
The Longest Day, 1963
Mrs. Miniver, 1943
All Quiet on the Western Front, 1930
The Power of the Dog, 2022
Gandhi, 1983
The Last Emperor, 1988
Jojo Rabbit, 2020
In the Bedroom, 2002
The Best Years of Our Lives, 1947
Parasite , 2020
The King’s Speech, 2011
The Godfather, 1973
Traffic, 2001
The Big Short, 2016
In the Heat of the Night, 1968
Dog Day Afternoon, 1976
Dallas Buyers Club, 2014
Spotlight, 2016
The French Connection, 1972
The Revenant, 2016
The Shape of Water, 2018
Deliverance, 1973
Dunkirk, 2018
Lost in Translation, 2004
Selma, 2015
Inglourious Basterds, 2010
To Kill a Mockingbird, 1963
The Martian, 2016
The Yearling, 1947
The Artist, 2012
Auntie Mame, 1959
Gladiator, 2001
Birdman, 2015
Mutiny on the Bounty, 1936
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, MO, 2018
Winter’s Bone, 2011
Silver Linings Playbook, 2013
The Theory of Everything, 2015
The Favourite, 2019
Moonstruck, 1988
Mutiny on the Bounty, 1963
Born Yesterday, 1951
Cabaret, 1973
A Beautiful Mind, 2002
Boyhood, 2015
CODA, 2022
Moonlight, 2017
Lincoln, 2013
Argo, 2013
The Hustler, 1962
LoTR: The Return of the King, 2004
Mystic River, 2004
BlacKkKlansman, 2019
Gravity, 2014
Amour, 2013
Dangerous Liaisons, 1989
Django Unchained, 2013
Guns of Navarone, 1962
Good Will Hunting, 1998
Five Star Final , 1933
Life of Pi, 2013
The Talk of the Town, 1943
The Hurt Locker, 2010
Fiddler on the Roof, 1972
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, 1959
Fences, 2017
Brooklyn, 2016
LoTR: The Fellowship of the Ring, 2002
Hope and Glory, 1988
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, 1968
The Social Network, 2011
The Last Picture Show, 1972
12 Years a Slave, 2014
The Champ, 1933
The Sound of Music, 1966
Minari, 2021
Titanic, 1998
Gangs of New York, 2003
The Big House, 1931
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 2001
Zero Dark Thirty, 2013
Master and Commander, 2004
Sounder, 1973
The Defiant Ones, 1959
Lion, 2017
Her, 2014
127 Hours, 2011
The Trial of the Chicago 7, 2021
Roma, 2019
Moneyball, 2012
Hidden Figures, 2017
Erin Brockovich, 2001
LoTR: The Two Towers, 2003
Belfast, 2022
Drive My Car, 2022
The Invaders (49th Parallel), 1943
A Clockwork Orange, 1972
Annie Hall, 1978
Random Harvest, 1943
The Graduate, 1968
Barry Lyndon, 1976
The Father, 2021
Get Out, 2018
Imitation of Life, 1935
Broadcast News, 1988
Nashville, 1976
Promising Young Woman, 2021
Bridge of Spies, 2016
King Richard, 2022
Whiplash, 2015
Vice, 2019
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, 2020
Nomadland, 2021
Great Expectations, 1948
As Good As It Gets, 1998
Separate Tables, 1959
Silence of the Lambs, 1992
It’s a Wonderful Life, 1947
The Kids are All Right, 2011
Green Book, 2019
Lady Bird, 2018
Missing, 1983
Gentleman’s Agreement, 1948
American Hustle, 2013
The Bishop’s Wife, 1948
Joker, 2020
Bugsy, 1992
It Happened One Night, 1935
The Thin Man, 1935
The Fighter, 2011
The Imitation Game, 2015
Up in the Air, 2010
The Gay Divorcee, 1935
The Wolf of Wall Street, 2014
Wings, 1929
Judas and the Black Messiah, 2021
L.A. Confidential, 1998
The Verdict, 1983
Here Comes the Navy, 1935
Beauty and the Beast, 1992
Hell or High Water, 2017
Cleopatra, 1935
Beasts of the Southern Wild, 2013
District 9, 2010
Arrival, 2017
Crossfire, 1948
La La Land, 2017
Nightmare Alley, 2022
Hugo, 2012
The Pied Piper, 1943
The Magnificent Ambersons, 1943
The Goodbye Girl, 1978
Fatal Attraction, 1988
Million Dollar Baby, 2005
Rain Main, 1989
Grand Hotel, 1933
Mississippi Burning, 1989
The Irishman, 2020
E.T. The Extra Terrestrial, 1983
Ford vs. Ferrari, 2020
King’s Row, 1943
Tootsie, 1983
The Razor’s Edge, 1947
American Sniper, 2015
The Pride of the Yankees, 1943
Bonnie and Clyde, 1968
Black Swan, 2011
Mank, 2021
Chocolat, 2001
True Grit, 2011
Black Panther, 2019
Don’t Look Up, 2022
Up, 2010
The Divorcee, 1930
Working Girl, 1989
The Grand Budapest Hotel, 2015
The Hours, 2003
The Post, 2018
Little Women, 2020
Marriage Story, 2020
Moulin Rouge, 2002
Phantom Thread, 2018
Accidental Tourist, 1989
King Solomon’s Mines, 1951
Julia, 1978
Star Wars, 1978
Disraeli, 1930
Licorice Pizza, 2022
The Blind Side, 2010
Seabiscuit, 2004
Toy Story 3, 2011
Gosford Park, 2002
The Sound of Metal, 2021
Jaws, 1976
The Prince of Tides, 1992
Miracle on 34th Street, 1948
Dr. Dolittle, 1968
An Education, 2010
Room, 2016
Manchester by the Sea, 2017
Call Me By Your Name, 2018
Shanghai Express, 1933
JFK, 1992
The Barretts of Wimpole Street, 1935
Oliver!, 1969
Bad Girl, 1933
Viva Villa, 1935
The Full Monty, 1998
Yankee Doodle Dandy, 1943
West Side Story, 2022
The Turning Point, 1978
The Smiling Lieutenant, 1933
Les Miserables, 2013
Arrowsmith, 1933
Nicholas and Alexandra, 1972
Father of the Bride, 1951
Fanny, 1962
Mad Max: Fury Road, 2016
Precious, 2010
A Star is Born , 2019
Darkest Hour, 2018
Bohemian Rhapsody, 2019
One Hour With You, 1933
Music Man, 1963
Wake Island, 1943
The Broadway Melody, 1930
Chicago, 2003
Crash, 2006
Avatar, 2010
A Serious Man, 2010
GiGi, 1959
West Side Story, 1962
Hacksaw Ridge, 2017
Dune, 2022
The Love Parade, 1930
Henry V, 1947
My Ranking of the Best Picture Winners I’ve Seen Since March 2020
No Country for Old Men, 2008
Schindler’s List, 1994
All About Eve, 1951
Lawrence of Arabia, 1963
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, 1976
Mrs. Miniver, 1943
All Quiet on the Western Front, 1930
Gandhi, 1983
The Last Emperor, 1988
The Best Years of Our Lives, 1947
Parasite, 2020
The King’s Speech, 2011
The Godfather, 1973
In the Heat of the Night, 1967
Spotlight, 2016
The French Connection, 1972
The Shape of Water, 2018
The Artist, 2012
Gladiator, 2001
Birdman, 2015
Mutiny on the Bounty, 1936
A Beautiful Mind, 2002
CODA, 2022
Moonlight, 2017
Argo, 2013
LoTR: The Return of the King, 2004
The Hurt Locker, 2010
12 Years a Slave, 2014
The Sound of Music, 1966
Titanic, 1998
Annie Hall, 1978
Nomadland, 2021
Silence of the Lambs, 1992
Green Book, 2019
Gentleman’s Agreement, 1948
It Happened One Night, 1935
Wings, 1929
Million Dollar Baby, 2005
Rain Main, 1989
Grand Hotel, 1933
Oliver!, 1969
The Broadway Melody, 1930
Chicago, 2003
Crash, 2006
GiGi, 1959
West Side Story, 1962
My Ranking of Best Picture Nominees I’ve Seen By Year
Listing “completed” years only
Bold = Best Picture Winner
HF = Hoang’s Favorite, HL = Hoang’s Least Favorite
1931
All Quiet on the Western Front
The Big House
The Divorcee
Disraeli (HF)
The Love Parade (HL)
1933
Five Star Final
The Champ (HF)
Grand Hotel
Shanghai Express
Bad Girl
Smiling Lieutenant
Arrowsmith
One Hour With You (HL)
1943
Mrs. Miniver
The Talk of the Town
The Invaders (49th Parallel)
Random Harvest (HF)
The Pied Piper
The Magnificent Ambersons
Kings Row
The Pride of the Yankees
Yankee Doodle Dandy
Wake Island (HL)
1947
The Best Years of our Lives
The Yearling
It’s a Wonderful Life (HF)
The Razor’s Edge
Henry V (HL)
1948
Great Expectations
Gentleman’s Agreement (HF)
The Bishop’s Wife
Crossfire
Miracle on 34th Street (HL)
1951
Sunset Blvd.
All About Eve (HF)
Born Yesterday
King Solomon’s Mines
Father of the Bride (HL)
1959
Auntie Mame (HF)
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
The Defiant Ones
Separate Tables
GiGi (HL)
1962
Judgment at Nuremberg (HF)
The Hustler
Guns of Navarone
Fanny
West Side Story (HL)
1963
Lawrence of Arabia
The Longest Day
To Kill a Mockingbird (HF)
Mutiny on the Bounty
Meredith Willson’s The Music Man (HL)
1968
In the Heat of the Night
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (HF)
The Graduate
Bonnie and Clyde
Doctor Dolittle (HL)
1972
The French Connection
Fiddler on the Roof (HF-tie)
The Last Picture Show (HF-tie)
A Clockwork Orange
Nicholas and Alexandra (HL, but liked it a lot)
1973
The Emigrants (HF)
The Godfather
Deliverance
Cabaret
Sounder (HL)
1976
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (HF)
Dog Day Afternoon
Barry Lyndon
Nashville
Jaws (HL)
1978
Annie Hall
The Goodbye Girl (HF)
Julia
Star Wars
The Turning Point (HL)
1983
Gandhi
Missing (HL)
The Verdict
ET, the Extra Terrestrial (HF)
Tootsie
1988
The Last Emperor (HF)
Moonstruck
Hope and Glory
Broadcast News
Fatal Attraction (HL)
1989
Dangerous Liaisons
Rain Main (HF)
Mississippi Burning
Working Girl
The Accidental Tourist (HL)
1992
The Silence of the Lambs (HF)
Bugsy
Beauty and the Beast
The Prince of Tides (HL)
JFK
1998
Good Will Hunting (HF)
Titanic
As Good as it Gets
L.A. Confidential
The Full Monty (HL)
2001
Traffic
Gladiator
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (HL)
Erin Brockovich (HF)
Chocolat
2002
In the Bedroom (HF)
A Beautiful Mind
LoTR: The Fellowship of the Ring
Moulin Rouge
Gosford Park (HL)
2003
The Pianist (HF)
Gangs of New York
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
The Hours
Chicago (HL)
2004
Lost in Translation
LoTR: Return of the King
Mystic River (HF)
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (HL)
Seabiscuit
2010
Inglourious Basterds
The Hurt Locker (HF)
Up in the Air
District 9
Up
The Blindside
An Education
Precious
Avatar
A Serious Man(HL)
2011
Inception
The King’s Speech
Winter’s Bone (HF)
The Social Network
127 Hours
The Kids are All Right
The Fighter
Black Swan
True Grit
Toy Story 3 (HL)
2013
Silver Linings Playbook
Lincoln
Argo
Amour
Django Unchained
Life of Pi (HF)
Zero Dark Thirty
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Les Misérables (HL)
2015
Selma
Birdman
The Theory of Everything (HF)
Boyhood
Whiplash (HL)
The Imitation Game
American Sniper
The Grand Budapest Hotel
2016
The Big Short
Spotlight (HF)
The Revenant
The Martian
Brooklyn
Bridge of Spies
Room
Max Max: Fury Road (HL)
2017
Moonlight
Fences
Lion
Hidden Figures
Hell or High Water
Arrival
La La Land
Manchester by the Sea (HF)
Hacksaw Ridge (HL)
2018
The Shape of Water
Dunkirk
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Get Out (HF)
Lady Bird
The Post
Phantom Thread (HL)
Call Me by Your Name
Darkest Hour
2019
The Favourite (HF)
BlacKkKlansman
Roma
Vice (HL)
Green Book
Black Panther
A Star Is Born
Bohemian Rhapsody
2020
1917
Jojo Rabbit (HF-Tie)
Parasite (HF-Tie)
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Joker
The Irishman
Ford v Ferrari (HL)
Little Women
Marriage Story
2021
Minari (HF)
The Trial of the Chicago 7
The Father
Promising Young Woman
Nomadland
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
The Sound of Metal (HL)
2022
The Power of the Dog
CODA
Belfast
Drive My Car (HF)
King Richard
Don’t Look Up
Nightmare Alley
Licorice Pizza
West Side Story
Dune (HL)
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