The Best Picture Oscar Winners of the 21st Century, Ranked According to Rolling Stone USA

In a warm-up for the Oscar 2024, which is almost 100 years old, the Rolling Stone USA prepared a list of all the feature films that won the Best Film award in the 21st century. Some titles have aged poorly, while others still clearly demonstrate the reason why they won the statuette. Check out the ranking from worst to best and the synopses of each film:

23 – Crash – No Limite (2004)

Racial tensions emerge in a series of stories involving Los Angeles residents. Several characters from the most varied ethnic origins cross paths in an incident. The different stereotypes that society has created for these racial groups affect their judgment, beliefs and attitudes, which causes problems and tensions for everyone.

22 – Green Book: The Guide (2018)

Dr. Don Shirley is a world-renowned African-American pianist about to embark on a tour of the southern United States in 1962. Needing a driver and bodyguard, Shirley recruits Tony Lip, an Italian-American braggart from the Bronx. Despite their differences, the two men develop an unexpected bond as they face racism and the dangers of an era of racial segregation.

21 – A Beautiful Mind (2001)

John Forbes Nash Jr. is recognized as a mathematical genius at 21 years old. He soon marries a beautiful woman, but soon begins to show signs of schizophrenia. After years of fighting the disease, he ends up winning the Nobel Prize.

20 – The King’s Speech (2010)

England’s Prince Albert is set to ascend the throne as King George VI, but he has a speech impediment. Knowing that the country needs her husband to be able to communicate perfectly, Elizabeth hires Lionel Logue, an Australian actor and speech therapist, to help the Prince overcome his gag.ueira. An extraordinary friendship develops between the two men, and Logue uses unconventional means to teach the monarch how to speak with confidence.

19 – In the Beat of the Heart (2021)

Ruby, 17, is the only hearing person in a deaf family. When her parents’ business is threatened, she is torn between her love of music and her obligations.

18 – Argo (2012)

During the 1980 Iran crisis, six Americans took refuge in the Canadian embassy in Tehran. To get them out, a CIA agent decides to make a fictional film as a strategy to rescue them.

17 – The Artist (2011)

In the 1920s, actor George Valentin is a silent film star, but his career is threatened by the arrival of sound cinema. While he struggles to maintain his films, Peppy Miller, a supporting character, rises to fame.

16 – Golden Girl (2004)

Frankie Dunn is a veteran boxing trainer from Los Angeles who keeps almost everyone at arm’s length except old friend and business partner Eddie Dupris. When Maggie Fitzgerald, a factory worker transferred from Missouri, arrives at Frankie’s gym seeking her expertise, he is reluctant to train the young girl. But when he gives in to his reserved ways, the two form a very close bond that will inevitably change their lives.

15 – Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (2008)

Jamal Malik is an 18-year-old boy who had a very difficult childhood, dealing with violence and poverty in India. He is called to participate in the Indian version of the famous TV show “Who wants to be a millionaire?” and his life experience helps him answer the show’s questions. However, the police are suspicious of Jamal’s honesty, who must prove his innocence.

14 – Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)

For more than 20 years, actor Riggan Thomson has been known for playing Birdman, a superhero who has become a cultural icon. However, when he refused to record the fourth film with the same character, his career began to decline.

13 – Chicago (2002)

Nightclub sensation Velma murders her philandering husband. So Billy Flyn, the smartest lawyer in Chicago, is chosen to defend her. Newbie singer Roxie also ends up in prison for killing her boyfriend, and Billy also takes on her case, turning the whole thing into a media circus. ElThey take advantage of the repercussions and enter into a dispute for the top of their stardom.

12 – The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

The final confrontation between the forces of good and evil fighting for control of the future of Middle Earth approaches. Sauron plans a major attack on Minas Tirith, capital of Gondor, which causes Gandalf and Pippin to head there with the intention of helping the resistance.

11 – The Shape of Water (2017)

1960s. Amid the great political conflicts and social transformations of the United States during the Cold War, the mute Elisa, a janitor at a secret government experimental laboratory, becomes enchanted by a fantastic creature kept trapped and mistreated there. To perform a risky and passionateFor rescue, she turns to her best friend Giles and her shift colleague Zelda, in an adventure that could cost much more than her job.

10 – Nomadland (2020)

A woman in her 60s who, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a road trip across the American West, living like a modern nomad.

9 – Gladiator (2000)

Maximus is a powerful Roman general, loved by the people and Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Before his death, the Emperor arouses the wrath of his son Commodus by making public his preference for leaving the throne to Maximus. Hungry for power, Commodus kills his father, assumes the crown and orders the death of Maximus, who manages to escape before being caught, and goes into hiding as a slave and gladiator while seeking revenge.

8 – War on Terror (2009)

JT Sanborn, Brian Geraghty and Matt Thompson are part of the US Army bomb squad on a mission in Iraq. They work on destroying an explosive, so that it can be detonated without hitting anyone. However, a mistake causes the artifact to explode and kill Thompson. In his place, Sergeant William James is sent, who is very cold-blooded, which bothers Sanborn. Despite this, the trio remains active, aware that each day of work completed is one more day of life.

7 – Everything Everywhere at the Same Time (2023)

An interdimensional rupture disrupts reality and an unexpected heroine must use her new powers to fight the bizarre dangers of the multiverse.

6 – The Departed (2006)

Billy Costigan, a young police officer, receives the mission of infiltrating the mafia, in the group led by Frank Costello. Billy gains his trust at the same time that Colin Sullivan, a criminal who worked in the police as Costello’s informant, also rises within the corporation. Both Billy and Colin feel distressed due to the double lives they lead. But when the mafia and the police discover that there is a spy among them, both their lives are in danger.

5 – No Country for Old Men (2007)

While hunting, Llewelyn Moss found traces of a drug deal. Despite knowing he shouldn’t, he doesn’t resist and takes the money found with him. The hunter becomes the hunted when the ruthless killer Chigurh finds his tracks. As if there wasn’t enough of a killer after Moss, the sheriff also starts looking for him.

4 – Spotlight: Secrets Revealed (2015)

A group of journalists investigates the abuse of children by Catholic priests, covered up by the Church. They manage to gather documents that can prove the crimes committed and the involvement of religious leaders who tried to hide the cases.

3 – 12 Years a Slave (2013)

In 1841, Solomon Northup is a free black man, living in peace with his wife and children. One day, after accepting a job that takes him to another city, he is kidnapped and chained. Sold as if he were a slave, Solomon must overcome physical and emotional humiliation to survive. Over the course of 12 years, he passes through two gentlemen, Ford and Edwin Epps, who exploit his services.

2 – Parasite (2019)

Ki-taek’s entire family is unemployed, living in a cramped, dirty basement. By chance, he starts teaching English to a girl from a rich family. Fascinated by the luxurious lives of these people, father, mother and children come up with a plan to infiltrate the wealthy family, one by one. However, the secrets and lies necessary for social mobility take their toll.

1 – Moonlight: Under the Moonlight (2017)

Black follows a journey of self-discovery as he tries to escape the easy path of crime and the world of drugs in Miami. Finding love in surprising places, he dreams of a wonderful future.