Greatest Best Pictures in Oscars History (and How Much They Earned)

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Greatest Best Pictures in Oscars History

Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca

The Academy Awards are the highest honor in filmmaking. Each year, more than 8,400 members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences vote on the best artists and technicians in the film industry. The winners are revealed on live television in a star-studded awards ceremony.

Since the first Oscars show in 1929, when a wartime drama called "Wings" won Best Picture, over 90 golden statues have been handed out for Best Picture. Any movie released in the previous year is eligible, and winning the Academy Award for Best Picture can be a huge career boost. It also can increase fees to broadcast a winning movie on TV or online. So, it’s quite a valuable prize.

These are the most popular Best Picture winners in Academy Award history, based on Rotten Tomatoes audience scores combined with staff opinion. Plus, we included the budget and box office numbers for each film — one of which earned a whopping 15 times its budget.

30. My Fair Lady

Year movie won: 1965

Director: George Cukor

Starring: Rex Harrison, Audrey Hepburn, Stanley Holloway, Wilfrid Hyde-White

Film studio: Warner Brothers

Budget: $17 million

Box office: $72.7 million

Bottom Line: My Fair Lady

Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison dancing in My Fair Lady

"My Fair Lady" is based on a Lerner and Loewe musical, which was based on George Bernard Shaw’s play, "Pygmalion."

The story is about a phonetics professor, Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison), who accepts a challenge to transform a working-class girl, Eliza Doolittle (Audrey Hepburn), into someone whose speech and deportment would allow her to pass as a member of high society. Eliza agrees so she can find herself a better job, but becomes overwhelmed with the changes in her life.

The film also won Oscars for Best Actor (Harrison), Best Director (George Cukor), Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design and Best Sound Mixing.

29. In the Heat of the Night

Sidney Poitier in In the Heat of the Night

Year movie won: 1967

Director: Norman Jewison

Starring: Rod Stieger, Sidney Poitier, Warren Oates, Lee Grant

Film studio: United Artists

Budget: $2 million

Box office: $24.4 million

Bottom Line: In the Heat of the Night

Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, and Jester Hairston in In the Heat of the Night

"In the Heat of the Night" is a crime drama set in the Deep South. The story is about a black police detective from Philadelphia, Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier), who finds himself accused of murder while traveling through Sparta, Mississippi. He must work with the town’s racist police chief, Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger), to clear his name and then help Gillespie track down the real killer.

Critic Wanda Hale wrote in the New York Daily News: "It’s a pleasure, all too rare, to watch two splendid actors pitted against each other with equal force."

The film also won Oscars for Best Actor (Steiger) and Best Director (Norman Jewison) and Best Screenplay.

28. Hamlet

Laurence Olivier and Eileen Herlie in Hamlet

Year movie won: 1949

Director: Laurence Olivier

Starring: Laurence Olivier, Jean Simmons, Eileen Herlie, Basil Sydney

Film studio: Pilgrim Pictures

Budget: About $700,000

Box office: $3.25 million

Bottom Line: Hamlet

Laurence Olivier, Jean Simmons, Eileen Herlie, and Basil Sydney in Hamlet

Laurence Olivier’s "Hamlet" represented the first time that a Shakespeare play had been adapted for the silver screen.

Despite being criticized for removing sections of speech for the movie version, director and star Laurence Olivier created a stirring, classic film that has still been the only Shakespeare adaptation to win an Oscar for Best Picture. Olivier is also the only actor who has won an Oscar for Best Actor for a role in a Shakespeare adaptation.

Critic Kate Cameron, in the New York Daily News, wrote that "the Olivier production … may stand for all time as THE Hamlet."

27. The Bridge on the River Kwai

Alec Guinness, William Holden, and Jack Hawkins in The Bridge on the River Kwai

Year movie won: 1958

Director: David Lean

Starring: Alec Guinness, William Holden, Sessue Hayakawa Jack Hawkins

Film studio: Columbia Pictures

Budget: $2.8million

Box office: $30.6 million

Bottom Line: The Bridge on the River Kwai

Alec Guinness and Sessue Hayakawa in The Bridge on the River Kwai

"The Bridge on the River Kwai" is a classic film that was adapted from the best-selling novel by Pierre Bouelle.

The story is set in a Japanese prisoner of war camp in Burma in 1943. The prisoners — American, Australian and British — are forced to build a bridge across the Kwai River by their captors. An American Navy commander manages to escape and lead a team of British commandos back to blow up the bridge.

The film also won Oscars for Best Director (David Lean), Best Actor (Alec Guinness), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography and Best Original Score.

26. The Artist

Jean Dujardin and Missi Pyle performing in The Artist

Year movie won: 2012

Director: Michel Hazanavicius

Starring: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, John Goodman, James Cromwell

Film studio: France 3 Cinema

Budget: $15 million

Box office: $133.4 million

Bottom Line: The Artist

John Goodman and Bob Glouberman smiling in The Artist

"The Artist" is a tribute to the golden age of silent films. The entire picture has no dialogue, only a dramatic score, just as silent films did.

The film tells the story of a popular silent movie actor, George Valentin (Jean Dujardin), who is a much-loved matinee idol. He meets a young rising star, Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo), and falls in love with her. However, while Peppy’s career is taking off with the new talkie films, Valentin is a relic of the past, and his career is ending.

The film also won Oscars for Best Actor (Dujardin), Best Director (Michel Hazanavicius) Best Original Score and Best Costume Design.

25. All the King’s Men

John Derek, Broderick Crawford, John Ireland, H.C. Miller, Anne Seymour in All the King's Men

Year movie won: 1950

Director: Robert Rossen

Starring: Broderick Crawford, Mercedes McCambridge, John Derek, Joanne Dru

Film studio: Columbia Pictures

Budget: $2 million

Box office: $4.2 million

Bottom Line: All the King’s Men

Broderick Crawford, Walter Burke, Ralph Dumke, Richard Hale, John Ireland, Anne Seymour in All the King's Men

"All the King’s Men'' is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Robert Penn Warren.

The story follows the rise and fall of Willie Stark, a corrupt Southern governor. He brings about his own downfall through his vanity and lust for power. The film was remade in 2006, with Sean Penn in the role of Stark.

Critic Kate Cameron wrote in the New York Daily News that the film "is one of the most vital and honest films to come out of Hollywood in a long time." The film also won Oscars for Best Actor (Broderick Crawford) and Best Actress (Mercedes McCambridge).

24. 12 Years a Slave

Lupita Nyong'o speaking to Michael Fassbender with Chiwetel Ejiofor looking on in 12 Years a Slave

Year movie won: 2014

Director: Steve McQueen

Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberpatch, Paul Giamatti

Film studio: Fox Searchlight Pictures

Budget: $20-22 million

Box office: $187.7 million

Bottom Line: 12 Years A Slave

Benedict Cumberbatch offering violin to Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years a Slave

"12 Years A Slave" is based on the true memoir of a free black man, Soloman Northrup, who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1853. He spent 12 years as a slave in Louisiana before finally being rescued by friends.

The film also won Oscars for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress (Lupita Nyong’o).

Critic Candice Frederick, of Reel Talk Online, said it was "ambitious, honest and horrifying. '12 Years a Slave' may not be the easiest film to watch more than once, but it will stay with you forever once you see it."

23. An American in Paris

Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron dancing in An American in Paris

Year movie won: 1952

Director: Vincente Minnelli

Starring: Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, Oscar Levant

Film studio: Metro Goldwyn Mayer

Budget: $2.7 million

Box office: $7 million

Bottom Line: An American in Paris

Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron interacting in An American in Paris

"An American in Paris" tells the story of a former GI, Jerry Mulligan (Gene Kelly), who settles in Paris after the war, as he wants to become a painter. Jerry and his art attract the attention of a lonely, rich American socialite. However, Jerry falls in love with the girlfriend, Lise (Leslie Caron), of his friend, Henri (Georges Guetary).

The film brought together the talents of Gene Kelly’s dancing and George Gershwin’s music and is famous for the dance sequences with Kelly and Caron.

The film also won Oscars for Best Original Musical, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Story and Screenplay and Best Production Design.

22. Argo

Year movie won: 2013

Director: Ben Affleck

Starring: Ben Affleck, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Bryan Cranston

Film studio: Warner Brothers

Budget: $44.5 million

Box office: $232.3 million

Bottom Line: Argo

Ben Affleck, Tate Donovan, Rory Cochrane, Clea DuVall, Scoot McNairy, Kerry Bishé in Argo

"Argo" is based on a true story. When Iranian militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in 1979 and held the staff hostage, six Americans were able to escape and hid in the Canadian ambassador’s residence.

The U.S. government hired a professional extractor, Tony Mendez, to rescue them. Mendez came up with a plan to pretend he was a Hollywood producer, scouting shooting locations in Iran, and hide the six escapees among his production crew.

The film also won Oscars for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Film Editing.

21. The Silence of the Lambs

Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs

Year movie won: 1992

Director: Jonathan Demme

Starring: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Ted Levine

Film studio: Orion Pictures

Budget: $19 million

Box office: $272.7 million

Bottom Line: The Silence of the Lambs

Jodie Foster in The Silence of the Lambs

"The Silence of the Lambs" is based on the best-selling fiction novel by Thomas Harris. Harris wrote a series of books about Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist who is also a serial killer who eats his victims. Lecter has become one of the most memorable cinema villains of all time.

The film also won Oscars for Best Actress (Jodie Foster), Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins), Best Director (Jonathan Demme) and Best Adapted Screenplay.

Critic Jay Carr, writing in The Boston Globe, said the movie is "stylish, intelligent, audacious rather than shocking and stolen by a suave monster you’ll never forget."

20. Unforgiven

Morgan Freeman and Gene Hackman in Unforgiven

Year movie won: 1993

Director: Clint Eastwood

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris

Film studio: Warner Brothers

Budget: $14.4 million

Box office: $159.2 million

Bottom Line: Unforgiven

"Unforgiven" is a Western with a dark, brooding style that doesn't gloss over violence. The story centers around two groups of vigilantes competing to collect a reward for killing two cowboys who cut up a prostitute. The men also must contend with the town’s sheriff, who is determined to stop them.

The film also won Oscars for Best Director (Clint Eastwood), Best Supporting Actor (Gene Hackman) and Best Film Editing.

Critic Stephen Amidon, of the Financial Times, wrote that "Unforgiven" was "brilliant and harrowing, with all the punch of a good Western."

19. The Best Years of Our Lives

Myrna Loy pouring tea for Fredric March in The Best Years of Our Lives

Year movie won: 1947

Director: William Wyler

Starring: Frederic March, Dana Andrews, Harold Russell, Myna Loy

Film studio: Samuel Goldwyn Company

Budget: $2.1 million

Box office: $23.7 million

Bottom Line: The Best Years of Our Lives

Virginia Mayo smiling at Dana Andrews in The Best Years of Our Lives

"The Best Years of Our Lives" tells the story of three World War II veterans, who struggle to adjust to life back in small-town America after their years of fighting overseas. Harold Russell had fought in the war and was given his first acting role to bring a genuine veteran experience to the film.

Critic David Stratton said, in At The Movies, "It’s a masterpiece, a combination of genuinely felt emotional narrative and a microcosm of a country recovering from war."

The film also won Oscars for Best Director (William Wyler), Best Actor (Frederic March), Best Supporting Actor (Russell) and Best Screenplay.

18. The Hurt Locker

Year movie won: 2010

Director: Kathryn Bigelow

Starring: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Guy Pearce

Film studio: Voltage Pictures

Budget: $15 million

Box office: $49.2 million

Bottom Line: The Hurt Locker

Guy Pearce running from explosion in The Hurt Locker

"The Hurt Locker" is based on the wartime experiences of journalist Mark Boal, who was embedded with a bomb disposal unit in Baghdad during the Iraq War. The story follows three American soldiers in the unit in the final weeks of their tour of duty as they daily risk their lives to defuse bombs left by Iraqi insurgents.

Critic Ed Koch wrote in The Atlantic that "'The Hurt Locker' is without a doubt one of the finest war pictures I have ever seen and I have seen most of them."

The film also won Oscars for Best Director (Kathryn Bigelow) and Best Original Screenplay.

17. Lawrence of Arabia

Anthony Quinn, Peter O'Toole, Omar Sharif in Lawrence of Arabia

Year movie won: 1963

Director: David Lean

Starring: Peter O’Toole, Alec Guinness, Omar Sharif, Anthony Quinn

Film studio: Horizon Pictures (UK), Columbia Pictures (USA)

Budget: $15 million

Box office: $70 million

Bottom Line: Lawrence of Arabia

David Lean and Peter O'Toole holding swords in Lawrence of Arabia

"Lawrence of Arabia" is based on the life of T.E. Lawrence, an English classical scholar, diplomat, spy, author and soldier, who united and led native Bedouin tribes to fight on the side of the Allies against the Turks during World War I. Lawrence wrote a classic autobiography called "The Seven Pillars of Wisdom."

This movie launched the career of the young Peter O’Toole and is probably the movie for which he is best remembered.

The film also won Oscars for Best Director (David Lean), Best Cinematography and Best Original Score.

16. Schindler’s List

Ralph Fiennes surveying the group in Schindler's List

Year movie won: 1994

Director: Steven Spielberg

Starring: Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes, Caroline Goodall

Film studio: Universal Pictures

Budget: $22 million

Box office: $322.2 million

Bottom Line: Schindler’s List

"Schindler’s List" is a true story, based on the wartime exploits of businessman Oskar Schindler. After the Nazis invaded Poland, Schindler went to Krakow to make his fortune. He joined the Nazi Party and used Jewish slave labor in his factory.

As the war progressed, Schindler became more and more sickened by what the Germans were doing. He used his factory and his business as a cover to save as many Jews as he could from the death camps.

The film also won Oscars for Best Director (Steven Spielberg), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography and Best Original Score.

15. Spotlight

Michael Keaton, Brian d'Arcy James, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams conversing in Spotlight

Year movie won: 2016

Director: Tom McCarthy

Starring: Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schrieber

Film studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment

Budget: $20 million

Box office: $98.7 million

Bottom Line: Spotlight

Stanley Tucci and Mark Ruffalo walking and conversing in Spotlight

"Spotlight" is based on a true story. In 2001, a team of investigative journalists at The Boston Globe were assigned to investigate a story about a former priest who was accused of molesting over 80 children.

The movie follows the Globe’s Spotlight team and their editors as they interview witnesses, try to get access to confidential documents and put together an explosive story about a massive cover-up by the Catholic Church of child sexual abuse that would win the Pulitzer Prize.

The film also won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

14. All Quiet on the Western Front

Year movie won: 1930

Director: Lewis Milestone

Starring: Lew Ayres, Louis Wolheim, George Summerville, Ben Alexander

Film studio: Universal Pictures

Budget: $1.2 million

Box office: $3 million

Bottom Line: All Quiet on the Western Front

"All Quiet on the Western Front" is based on the classic anti-war novel by Erich Maria Remarque, a German novelist who served in the German Army during World War I as a young man.

The story is set on the Western Front and describes the experiences of young German soldiers in the trenches. Many of them were 18, or younger, and enlisted in the early years of the war in a wave of patriotism, but became disillusioned and scarred by the reality of trench warfare.

Critic Neil Norman, writing in The Evening Standard, hailed the movie as a "groundbreaking war film."

13. Annie Hall

Woody Allen and Diane Keaton conversing in Annie Hall

Year movie won: 1978

Director: Woody Allen

Starring: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts, Paul Simon

Film studio: United Artists

Budget: $4 million

Box office: $38.3 million

Bottom Line: Annie Hall

Woodie Allen sitting in cell in Annie Hall

"Annie Hall" is the classic film by director and actor Woody Allen, about a neurotic New Yorker comedian, Alvy Singer, and his relationship with a struggling nightclub singer, Annie Hall (Diane Keaton). The movie tells the story of Singer’s childhood and early adult years, and his attempts at romantic relationships, before he met Hall.

The movie also won Oscars for Best Director (Allen), Best Actress (Keaton) and Best Original Screenplay. Critic Richard Roeper called the film "Woody Allen’s signature film, arguably his best and certainly his most popular."

Annie Hall’s wardrobe sparked a real-life female fashion craze for oversized men’s clothing.

12. The French Connection

Gene Hackman, William Friedkin, Roy Scheider, Eddie Egan, Bill Hickman in The French Connection

Year movie won: 1972

Director: William Friedkin

Starring: Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey, Roy Scheider, Marcel Boxxuffi

Film studio: Twentieth Century Fox

Budget: $1.8 million

Box office: $75 million

Bottom Line: The French Connection

Eddie Egan and Bill Hickman in The French Connection

"The French Connection" is a gritty police drama about two cops, Popeye Doyle (Gene Hackman), and his partner, who are tracking down a mysterious French heroin smuggler. The film is based on a true story.

The movie also won Oscars for Best DIiector (William Friedkin), Best Actor (Hackman) and Best Adapted Screenplay. The film set the "gold standard" for police movie elements, such as the car chase, buddy cops and a realistic, docudrama portrayal of police procedures.

Critic Kevin Maher wrote in The Times (UK), "It’s hard to imagine it now, but there are only two types of cop movies: pre and post-French Connection."

11. It Happened One Night

Claudette Colbert sleeping on top of Clark Gable in It Happened One Night

Year movie won: 1935

Director: Frank Capra

Starring: Claudette Colbert, Clark Gable, Walter Connolly, Jason Thomas

Film studio: Columbia Pictures

Budget: $325,000

Box office: $2.5 million

Bottom Line: It Happened One Night

Claudette Colbert smiling at Clark Gable in It Happened One Night

Director Frank Capra is known for making some of Hollywood’s classics: "It’s a Wonderful Life," "Arsenic and Old Lace" and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."

"It Happened One Night" is a romantic comedy in which a cynical newspaper reporter, Peter Warne (Clark Gable), helps a spoiled heiress, Ellie Andrews (Claudette Colbert), get away from her controlling father and reunite with her new husband in return for an exclusive story. As he helps her, the reporter finds himself falling in love with the heiress.

The film also won Best Actor (Gable), Best Actress (Colbert), Best Director (Capra) and Best Screenplay.

10. The Lost Weekend

Jane Wyman speaking to Ray Milland in The Lost Weekend

Year movie won: 1946

Director: Billy Wilder

Starring: Ray Milland, Jane Wyman, Howard Da Silva, Philip Terry

Film studio: Paramount Pictures

Budget: $1.25 million

Box office: $11 million

Bottom Line: The Lost Weekend

Ray Milland with cigarette and drink in The Lost Weekend

"The Lost Weekend" is a sobering look at the devastating effects of alcoholism. The movie tells the story of novelist Don Birnham, who is trying to quit drinking, and is meant to spend a weekend with his brother, but instead goes on a five-day drinking binge that could prove fatal.

The film is based on a best-selling first novel by Charles R. Jackson, based on his own struggle with the disease.

Critic Edwin Schallert wrote in the Los Angeles Times, "The 'curse of the drink' was never more vividly dealt with than in 'The Lost Weekend.'"

9. Marty

Esther Minciotti, Jerry Paris, and Karen Steele conversing in Marty

Year movie won: 1956

Director: Delbert Mann

Starring: Ernest Borgnine, Betsy Blair, Joe Mantell, Esther Minciotti

Film studio: United Artists

Budget: $350,000

Box office: $2 million

Bottom Line: Marty

Esther Minciotti embracing Ernest Borgnine in Marty

"Marty" was based on a successful TV teleplay and is a "simple, character-based romance."

The movie tells the story of a shy, sensitive bachelor, Marty (Ernest Borgnine), who lives with his mother in New York City. When Marty finally meets a woman he likes, his family and friends disapprove as she is not good-looking. He must choose between love and his family’s approval.

Critic James Berardinelli, on ReelViews, said that the author himself, Paddy Chayefsky, "called it the 'most ordinary love story in the world.' Therein lies its appeal."

8. Moonlight

Mahershala Ali carrying Alex R. Hibbert in ocean in Moonlight

Year movie won: 2017

Director: Barry Jenkins

Starring: Naomie Harris, Andre Holland, Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monae

Film studio: Plan B Entertainment

Budget: $1.5 million

Box office: $65.3 million

Bottom Line: Moonlight

Janelle Monáe looking pensive in Moonlight

"Moonlight" follows the story of Chiron, a gay black man, growing up in Miami, Florida, across three decades of his life.

Chiron is born to a drug-addicted mother, but finds a strong father figure in a local drug dealer. The movie depicts homophobia in the Africa-American community, but also the strong sense of support and love that the main character feels.

The movie is based on a play ("Black Boys Look Blue in Moonlight'") by Tarell Alvin McCraney. Film critic Mark Kermode, writing in The Observer, said that the movie was "an astonishingly accomplished work … heartbreaking and uplifting."

7. Parasite

Kang-ho Song, Jang Hye-Jin, Choi Woo-sik, and Park So-dam in Parasite

Year movie won: 2020

Director: Bong Joon Ho

Starring: Song Hang Ho, Lee Sun Kyun, Yeo-Jeong Jo, Choi Woo-sik

Film studio: CJ Entertainment

Budget: $15.5 million

Box office: $259 million

Bottom Line: Parasite

Choi Woo-sik and Park So-dam looking at screen in Parasite

A biting social commentary on class in modern-day Korea, "Parasite" tells the story of two families, one wealthy and one poor.

Members of the poor family work their way into jobs working for the rich family through deception. Forbes Magazine said "Parasite" deserved to win the Best Picture Oscar with its stark depiction of "poverty, desperation and inequality" as the film highlighted one of the most topical issues of modern times — inequality.

"Parasite" also shows how the wealth of the upper classes rests on the exploitation of the lower classes.

6. The Godfather, Part II

Robert De Niro looking out in The Godfather, Part II

Year movie won: 1975

Director: Francis Ford Coppola

Starring: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton

Film studio: Paramount Pictures

Budget: $13 million

Box office: $48-93 million

Bottom Line: The Godfather, Part II

Al Pacino sitting in The Godfather, Part II

"The Godfather II" continued the saga of the Corleone crime family, and was again adapted from Mario Puzo’s best-selling books.

The second movie focuses on Michael, the younger son, who inherits the mantle of power from his father. Intertwined with Michael’s story is that of his father, Don Vito, as a youth who recently emigrated to New York City.

Most of the same cast members returned for the sequel, which again won the Best Picture Oscar. In addition, the movie won Oscars for Best Supporting Actor (Robert De Niro), Best Director (Francis Ford Coppola) and Best Adapted Screenplay.

5. The Godfather

Salvatore Corsitto speaking to Marlon Brando in The Godfather

Year movie won: 1973

Director: Francis Ford Coppola

Starring: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton

Film studio: Paramount Pictures

Budget: $6-7.2 million

Box office: $246-287 million

Bottom Line: The Godfather

"The Godfather" is based on the best-selling Mario Puzo novel about two generations of an Italian-American crime family, the Corleones. The movie is one of the best American films of all time.

The story centers around Don Vito Corleone, an Italian emigrant, who establishes a powerful crime family in New York, and his younger son, Michael, who wants no part of the family business, but is drawn into it.

Pauline Kael, film critic for The New Yorker, wrote "if ever there was a great example of how the best popular movies come out of the merger of commerce and art, 'The Godfather' is it."

4. All About Eve

Marilyn Monroe, Anne Baxter, George Sanders, Celeste Holm, Gary Merrill, Gregory Ratoff in All About Eve

Year movie won: 1951

Director: Joseph Mankiewicz

Starring: Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, Gary Merrill, George Sanders

Film studio: Twentieth Century Fox

Budget: $1.4 million

Box office: $8.4 million

Bottom Line: All About Eve

Celeste Holm, Bette Davis, Gary Merrill, Hugh Marlowe speaking to one another

"All About Eve" is a story of two women: Margo Channing (Bette Davis), a famous Broadway star, and Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), an aspiring actress. Margo takes Eve under her wing and introduces her to her circle of theater friends.

However, Eve is a schemer who will do anything to become a star, including adultery and blackmail, and even attempts to seduce Margo’s boyfriend. Margo is in a relationship with a younger man, which was a novelty for a Hollywood film of the time.

Many critics agreed that it was Bette Davis’ finest role. Both Davis and Baxter were nominated for Best Actress Oscars.

3. Casablanca

Year movie won: 1944

Director: Michael Curtiz

Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains, Paul Heinreid, Peter Lorre

Film studio: Warner Brothers

Budget: $878,000-$1 million

Box office: $3.7-6.9 million

Bottom Line: Casablanca

Humphrey Bogart and Dooley Wilson performing in Casablanca

One of the all-time classic movies, "Casablanca" is a story of star-crossed lovers during World War II. While filmed almost 80 years ago, the timeless story and the powerful acting from two legendary stars make the film as watchable now as it was when it first won the Best Picture Oscar.

Alan Dent, writing in The Guardian, called the movie "a long and lively film, bulging with acting talent and breathless with its own dramatic momentum."

The movie has given us memorable lines, such as "Play it [again], Sam."

2. On the Waterfront

Marlon Brando, Eva Marie Saint holding drinks in On the Waterfront

Year movie won: 1955

Director: Elia Kazan

Starring: Marlon Brando, Eva Marie Saint, Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger

Film studio: Columbia Pictures

Budget: $910,000

Box office: $9.6 million

Bottom Line: On The Waterfront

Marlon Brando looking out in On the Waterfront

"On the Waterfront" is the story of an aspiring boxer and dockworker, Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando), who teams up with a priest, Father Barry (Karl Malden), and the sister of a murdered dockworker, Edie Doyle (Eva Marie Saint), to testify against a local mob boss who controls the Hoboken, New Jersey, docks.

Critic Penelope Houston, reviewing the film in Sight and Sound, called it "a significant, almost definitive example of Hollywood at its most expert … the journalistic expose of crime and corruption."

The film also won Oscars for Best Actor (Brando), Best Director (Elia Kazan), Best Supporting Actress (Saint) and Best Screenplay.

1. Rebecca

Joan Fontaine in gown looking at painting in Rebecca

Year movie won: 1941

Director: Alfred Hitchcock

Starring: Joan Fontaine, Sir Laurence Olivier, Judith Anderson, George Sanders

Film studio: Selznick International Pictures

Budget: $1.29 million

Box office: $6 million

Bottom Line: Rebecca

Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier hugging in Rebecca

"Rebecca" is based on the classic Daphne Du Maurier Gothic novel about an inexperienced young woman who marries a widower, Max de Winter.

He brings her back to live at his family estate, Manderley, in the English countryside, where she meets the cold and hostile housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers. The new wife is haunted by stories of her husband's first wife, Rebecca, who died mysteriously, and fears that Max still loves Rebecca.

Alfred Hitchcock, Joan Fontaine, Judith Anderson and Laurence Olivier were all nominated for Academy Awards, but missed out. "Rebecca" also won the Oscar for Best Cinematography.