Can You Name All of These Best Picture Winners From an Image?

ENTERTAINMENT

By: Jonnathan Chadwick

7 Min Quiz

Image: Paramount Pictures / 20th Century Fox / Lightstorm Entertainment

About This Quiz

The first Academy Awards ceremony was held in the summer of 1929, and it celebrated movies from 1927 and 1928. There were just 12 categories, and the entire ceremony lasted 15 minutes. It wasn't broadcast on TV or radio, and there were two "Best Picture" awards. They were called "Outstanding Picture" and "Unique and Artistic Feature." The movie "Wings" won "Outstanding Picture." "Sunrise" won "Unique and Artistic Feature."

The Academy dropped the "Unique and Artistic Feature" award the next year and experimented with the "Outstanding Picture" award for the next three decades. Hollywood declared that "Wings" was the first movie to win the night's highest honor, and in 1962, the Academy settled on the name "Best Picture." The top award has been labeled as such ever since.

There have been 91 Best Pictures, and not all of them have been good. Some have been horrible and some have been life-changing. Some have dominated the box office and some have flopped. The most recent black and white film to win Best Picture happened in 2016. The first color film won in 1940. No true comedy has ever won, but many Best Picture winners claim to be comedies. Only one horror film has won. Only three films have swept the major categories, and only one film has gone 11 for 11. Can you name these Best Picture winners from just a screenshot?


Which of these movies made history as the first foreign-language film to win Best Picture?

In addition to Best Picture, the South Korean hit also took home Oscars for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best International Film. Director Bong Joon Ho’s twisty black comedy meets thriller explores class divisions, telling the story of the Kim family who cons their way into the lives of the wealthy Park family.

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Leonardo DiCaprio became "king of the world" in this disaster story that earned 11 Academy Awards. What is it?

"Titanic" was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and took home 11 of them. "All About Eve" is the only film with as many nominations. James Cameron directed and produced the film and won Best Director for his work.

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This is commonly considered the greatest movie sequel ever. Do you know it?

Several sequels have been nominated for Best Picture, but the third "Lord of the Rings" film and the second "Godfather" film are the only ones to win. Robert De Niro portrayed the younger Vito Corleone and won a Best Supporting Actor award for the role.

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Do you know this war hero who invented the smiley face, invested in Apple early, made JFK laugh and founded Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.?

Author Winston Groom sold the movie rights to his novel for $350,000 and 3% of the net profit. The film grossed nearly $700 million, but slick accountants reported a $0 net profit, and Winston was paid nothing. Tom Hanks earned a percentage of gross profits and walked away with $40 million.

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Can you name this 2003 adventure film that won every single category it was nominated for?

Although this film didn't sweep the five main categories, this is considered a clean sweep. It was nominated for 11 awards and won all of them. Many films have come close to sweeping, and 1987's "The Last Emperor" went nine for nine, which is the second-highest clean sweep.

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Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman will always remember Paris in this film. What is it?

This 1942 black-and-white film is known for its iconic lines. It was released to coincide with "Operation Torch," which was a WWII allied invasion of strategic locations in northern Africa, including the city of Casablanca.

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It was all black and white until this movie. Can you name the first color film to win Best Picture?

"Gone With the Wind" is one of two novels to win the Pulitzer Prize and then go on to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Hattie McDaniel became the first African-American to win an Oscar for her supporting role in the film.

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Do you know the most recent film to sweep the major categories at the Academy Awards?

"The Silence of the Lambs" starred Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins, and the movie won every major award and the 1992 ceremony. The film is also the only horror film ever to win Best Picture. Only six horror films have ever been nominated for Best Picture.

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What's the longest movie to ever win Best Picture?

At three hours and 54 minutes, the total run time of "Lawrence of Arabia" is two minutes longer than "Gone With the Wind," which includes a five-minute intermission. The shortest Best Picture winner is 1955's "Marty," which clocks in at 91 minutes.

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This 1993 WWII drama is filmed almost entirely in black and white except for that red coat. What's the movie?

Some people consider this a black-and-white film, but there are some spots of color throughout. Spielberg wanted the film to resemble a documentary, so he shot it in black and white. The film scored 12 Oscar nominations and seven wins.

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Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman are two brothers traveling across the country in this 1988 drama. Do you know it?

Dustin Hoffman played an autistic savant in this film, and he won the Best Actor Academy Award for his performance. The film also won Best Director, Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay, making it awfully close to sweeping.

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Only three movies have swept the major categories at the Oscars. Do you know this one starring Jack Nicholson as a mental patient?

Ken Kesey's 1962 novel was turned into one of the greatest movies of all time in 1975. The film won awards for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Actress. The movie was set and filmed in a real mental hospital, the Oregon State Hospital.

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In what film does Don Corleone rule his family's empire with offers no one can refuse?

"The Godfather" was just the second R-rated movie to win Best Picture, and it's regularly considered one of the best movies ever. We first hear about Don Corleone making people offers they can't refuse in the first installment of the franchise.

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What's this movie that tells the story of Solomon Northup?

Steve McQueen became the first black director to win a Best Picture Academy Award in 2013 for this adapted film about Solomon Northup. Northup wrote his memoir in 1853. He was born free in New York City and then kidnapped and sold into slavery.

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A lonely cleaning lady falls in love with a mysterious creature at a secret government lab in this 2017 Best Picture. Do you know it?

Guillermo del Toro wrote, directed and produced this 2017 film that scored 13 Academy Award nominations and four wins. It was del Toro's first Oscar after four nominations. Del Toro spent several years working on the story.

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Clint Eastwood starred in and directed this film about a veteran corner man and his star fighter. Do you know the film?

"Million Dollar Baby" came pretty close to sweeping the major Oscars in 2005. The film won Best Picture. Clint Eastwood won Best Director. Hillary Swank won Best Actress, and Morgan Freeman won Best Supporting Actor. Eastwood was nominated for Best Actor but lost to Jaime Foxx in "Ray."

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William Wallace leads the Scots against the Kingdom of England in this war epic. What is it?

Sir William Wallace was a real person who led the Scots in rebellion during the First War of Scottish Independence in 1297. Mel Gibson directed, produced and starred in the film that went on to win five Academy Awards, including Best Director and Best Cinematography.

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Can you name this film where Briton Ben Kingsley plays one of Britain's most outspoken critics?

Someone in Hollywood thought it made sense to have an English actor play England's most famous critic, and it worked. Ben Kingsley was born to Indian parents in England and won an Oscar for his performance in the film.

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Kathryn Bigelow became the first female to win Best Director for this Best Picture. Do you know it?

"The Hurt Locker" was released in 2009 and made history multiple ways. It was the first time a female won for direction, and it's also the lowest-grossing film to go on to win Best Picture. It had grossed less than $15 million when it won. To date, it's grossed almost $50 million.

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Do you know the first sports film to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards?

"Rocky" beat out "Taxi Driver," "Network" and "All the President's Men" to win Best Picture in 1976. "The Champ" and "Pride of the Yankees" were nominated decades earlier but didn't win the award. "Raging Bull" was nominated four years later but lost to "Ordinary People."

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Ben Affleck starred in and directed this spy thriller about the CIA, a fake movie and a hostage rescue mission. Can you name the film?

"Argo" scored seven nominations at the 2013 Academy Awards and won three awards. The film focuses on the 1979 Iran hostage crisis. Ben Affleck played the lead role of Tony Mendez. Mendez was the CIA agent who pretended to film a movie in order to save the hostages.

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Russell Crowe starred in back-to-back Best Picture winners with "Gladiator" in 2000 and this film in 2001. What is it?

This 2001 film is based on the real story of mathematician John Nash. Nash won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1994 but suffered from mental illness much of his adult life. His biography of the same name was written by Sylvia Nasar in 1998.

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Broadway's biggest star fears being replaced by her younger understudy in this 1950 drama. What is it?

"All About Eve" is full of classic quotes and is considered one of Hollywood's best original screenplays. The film earned a record 14 nominations and is the only film ever to earn four female acting nominations.

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Maximus goes from general to slave to hero in this Ancient Roman drama. Do you know it?

Russel Crowe was nominated for back-to-back Best Actor awards for "Gladiator" and "A Beautiful Mind," but he only won for "Gladiator." Both movies went on to win Best Picture. "Gladiator" is credited with reviving public interest in historical epics.

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Do you know the most recent black-and-white film to win Best Picture?

"The Artist" took home the main award at the 2011 Oscars. Not only was the movie filmed in black and white, but it was also mostly a silent film except for some minor dialogue. The most recent black-and-white film nominated for Best Picture was "Roma" in 2018.

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What was the first R-rated film to win the Best Picture award?

Hollywood movies didn't have ratings until 1968, but movies were really vanilla up until that point. "The French Connection" won Best Picture in 1971, and "The Godfather" won in 1972. The 1970 winner, "Patton," was heavily edited in 1970 because Francis Ford Coppola didn't want an R-rating.

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This 1948 film was the first non-Hollywood film to win the Best Picture award. What is it?

"Hamlet" was released in 1948 and it was Britain's first film to win Best Picture. Only eight other films have been financed outside of Hollywood and went on to win Best Picture. "The Artist" was the most recent. It was financed in France.

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Can you name this Scorsese gangster flick set in Boston and loosely based on Whitey Bulger?

After "Goodfellas," "Casino," "Raging Bull," and the plethora of classic movies directed by Martin Scorsese, it took until 2006 for him to nab the Best Picture and Best Director Academy Awards. "The Departed" is a remake of a 2002 Hong Kong crime thriller.

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The Boston Globe's investigative unit uncovers widespread scandal within the Catholic church in this 2015 winner. What is it?

This biographical film follows the real investigative unit inside "The Boston Globe" known as the "Spotlight" team. The team won a Pulitzer Prize in 2003 for its exposes on widespread sexual abuse within the Catholic Church.

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This entire movie looks like it was filmed in one shot. What is it?

Alejandro Inarritu decided to make this film look like a single shot because, as he said, "We live our lives with no editing." Almost everybody told him it wouldn't work, but he did it anyway. The film scored nine nominations and four wins at the Academy Awards, including Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography.

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A hunter comes across a deal gone wrong and finds himself running for his life in this movie set in the Texas desert. What's the movie?

Josh Brolin finds himself running for his life in this neo-western thriller originally written by Cormac McCarthy. The Coen brothers adapted the novel into a screenplay two years after it was published, and the film won four Academy Awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay.

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Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening star in this 1999 drama. What is it?

"American Beauty" was released in 1999 and came very close to sweeping the five major Oscars. The film won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay. Annette Bening was nominated for Best Actress but lost to Hillary Swank in "Boys Don't Cry."

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Can you name the first move to sweep all the major Academy Awards?

This Frank Capra romantic comedy was released in 1934, which was just the seventh year Hollywood held the Academy Awards. Claudette Colbert hitchhikes by flashing her knee on the side of the road in what was considered a risque scene at the time.

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Marlon Brando "coulda been a contender" in this 1954 Best Picture. What is it?

This 1954 film about union corruption in New Jersey was nominated for 12 Academy Awards and won eight of them. The film was inspired by a series of Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper articles published in 1948.

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Only two stories in history have won a Pulitzer Prize and a Best Picture Oscar. Can you name this one?

Many novels have been turned into a film and found success in Hollywood. "The Godfather" and "Forrest Gump" are prime examples, but those books weren't shortlisted for a Pulitzer. "Gone With the Wind" is the other Pulitzer Prize Best Picture.

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Who can forget the Russian Roulette scene in this film? What movie is it?

The most nominated actor in history, Meryl Streep, scored her first Oscar nomination for her role in this 1978 film. She didn't win, but the film went on to win five categories after nine nominations.

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Do you know this movie that dissects racial stereotypes during Christmastime in Los Angeles?

This isn't your typical Christmas movie but it has all the Christmas themes of family and caring. Several strangers in LA learn how to deal with different types of people as they butt heads during the holiday season.

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What's this 1946 Best Picture winner about WWII heroes who struggle to adapt to society after the war?

The timing of this movie's release led to its massive commercial success. It was released just as Americans were returning from the war, and a war reporter wrote the screenplay. The film went on to win seven Academy Awards and four of the five major categories.

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Can you name the only Alfred Hitchcock film to win the Best Picture Academy Award?

Alfred Hitchcock is known as the master of suspense. He might be known for "Psycho," "Rear Window" and "North by Northwest," but this black-and-white thriller from 1940 is his only Best Picture win. He was nominated for five Best Director Oscars but never won, which ties for the record.

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Do you know this Woody Allen comedy famous for breaking the fourth wall?

"Annie Hall" was released in 1977. Today, it's considered a comedy, but in 1977 it was considered a step in a serious direction for Woody Allen. No straight-up comedy has ever been nominated for Best Picture. This is as close as it gets.

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Can you name this 2016 film that lost and then won the Best Picture award?

Not to be outdone by Steve Harvey's mix-up at Miss Universe 2015, the Best Picture presenters at the 2016 ceremony, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, incorrectly announced "La La Land" the 2016 Best Picture. They quickly fixed the mistake and correctly awarded the honor to "Moonlight."

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