THESE Oscar-winning movies may have marked the world of cinema, but have they conquered the hearts of viewers? From ‘The Godfather’ to ‘Titanic’ to ‘Forrest Gump’, which Best Picture winners are America's favourites?
Ahead of the 95th Academy Awards, March 12, Morning Consult asked American adults to rate the 94 feature films that have won the Best Picture Oscar throughout the history of the awards.
And the winner is...
The survey found that Robert Zemeckis' ‘Forrest Gump’ was the top choice with the highest net favourability rating. The comedy-drama, released in 1994, was a hit at the 1995 Oscars, winning six awards, including Best Director, Best Actor for Tom Hanks and Best Screenplay for Eric Roth.
The American actor even managed to win two consecutive Oscars, after being crowned the previous year for his role in Jonathan Demme's ‘Philadelphia’.
According to the study, baby boomers are the biggest fans of this American movie hit, with the highest net favourability rating (84), followed by Gen Xers (76).
However, if the comedy has retained its popularity, Americans calling who see themselves as avid film fans rate it in second place, behind ‘Titanic’ by James Cameron. This feature film won no less than 11 Oscars, a record it shares with ‘Ben-Hur’.
The rest of the two rankings remain quite similar, with ‘Rocky’ directed by John G. Avildsen and ‘The Godfather’ by Francis Ford Coppola on the top five of both lists.
‘The Sound of Music’, ‘Braveheart’, ‘The Godfather Part 2’ and ‘Rain Man’, ‘Schindler's List’ and ‘Gone with the Wind’ all rank highly, despite their relative age.
Generation Z respondents were more likely to choose more recent films such as ‘Parasite’ by Bong Joon Ho (52nd place out of 94), or ‘CODA’, the most recent winner of the Best Picture Oscar.
According to the study's findings, younger generations were nonetheless interested in seeing Oscar-winning films from the 1990s and even earlier. Moreover, Gen Zers (60%) and Millennials (60%) were most likely to say they’re interested in seeing films that win the Best Picture Oscar.
Best Picture Oscar winners, ranked by net favourability rating (all US adults)
1) Forrest Gump (1994) – 76%
2) Titanic (1997) – 65%
3) Rocky (1976) – 62%
4) The Godfather (1972) – 61%
5) Rain Man (1988) – 57%
6) The Sound of Music (1965) – 54%
7) Gone with the Wind (1939) – 53%
8) Braveheart (1995), Dances with Wolves (1990), The Godfather Part 2 (1974) – 52%
9) Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Schindler's List (1993) – 51%
10) The Silence of the Lambs (1991) – 50%
11) One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) – 49%
12) Casablanca (1943), Gladiator (2000), West Side Story (1961) – 48%
13) Ben-Hur (1959) – 45%
14) Platoon (1986) – 44%
15) In the Heat of the Night (1967), Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), My Fair Lady (1964) – 42%
Best Picture Oscar winners, ranked by net favourability rating (avid film fans)
1) Titanic (1997) – 80%
2) Forrest Gump (1994) – 79%
3) Rocky (1976) – 72%
4) The Godfather (1972) – 70%
5) The Silence of the Lambs (1991) – 69%
6) Braveheart (1995), Gladiator (2000), The Sound of Music (1965), The Godfather 2 (1974) – 68%
7) Rain Man (1988) – 66%
8) Schindler's List (1993) – 64%
9) The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) – 62%
10) Casablanca (1943) – 61%
11) Gone with the Wind (1939), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) – 58%
12) Driving Miss Daisy 1989), Unforgiven (1992) – 55%
13) Ben-Hur (1959), Dances with Wolves (1990) – 54%
14) Platoon (1986) – 53%
15) Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), Gandhi (1982), In the Heat of the Night (1967), Patton (1970), West Side Story (1961) – 51% – ETX Daily Up, March 1, 2023
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