Movie of the Year 1930-2015? What are you talking about? Well let me tell you. Over the last 5 years we have written many movie pages on many different subjects. Since 2011 we have done a yearly page that looks at every major movie release. Last year we tracked 166 movies. We tracked three major categories of information: (1) Domestic and worldwide box office grosses. (2) Critic reviews and audience voting…. and (3) Award Recognition….namely Golden Globe® and Oscar® nominations and wins. Once we gather all of these information…we use the three main categories to rank the movies. To do well in the rankings a movie needs to do well in all three categories. Last year, despite winning 0 Oscars®….The Martian ended up being our Movie of the Year. So how did The Martian get the Top Spot? The Martian was the 8th biggest box office hit of the year, it was 9th best reviewed movie of the year, it picked up 7 Oscar® nominations and won a Golden Globe® for Best Comedy of the Year…yes Comedy….that is not a misprint.
Originally we were going to do a table with only the UMR Movie of the Year. After some debut, we figured it would be better to include the Best Picture Oscar® Winner, the Best Reviewed Movie of the Year, the Biggest Box Office Hit of the Year and the UMR Movie of the Year. So for each year listed you could have 4 different movies or you could only have 1 movie for the year.
Movie of the Year 1930-2016 Table
- Column One is the year the movie was tracked
- Column Two is the Best Picture Oscar® Winner
- Column Three is the Best Reviewed (critics & audiences) Movie of the Year
- Column Four is the Biggest Domestic Box Office Hit fo the Year
- Column Five is the UMR Movie of the Year (combines box office, reviews & awards)
| Year | Oscar Winning Best Picture | Movie With Best Reviews | Movie With Best Box Office | Top Rated UMR Movie | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | The Shape of Water (2017) | Coco (2017) | Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) | Dunkirk (2017) | |
| 2016 | Moonlight (2016) | Moonlight (2016) | Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) | La La Land (2016) | |
| 2015 | Spotlight (2015) | Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) | Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) | The Martian (2015) | |
| 2014 | Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014) | Whiplash (2014) | American Sniper (2014) | American Sniper (2014) | |
| 2013 | 12 Years A Slave (2013) | Before Midnight (2013) | The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013) | Gravity (2013) | |
| 2012 | Argo (2012) | Moonrise Kingdom (2012) | The Avengers (2012) | Lincoln (2012) | |
| 2011 | The Artist (2011) | Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011) | Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011) | The Help (2011) | |
| 2010 | The King's Speech (2010) | How To Train Your Dragon (2010) | Toy Story 3 (2010) | Toy Story 3 (2010) | |
| 2009 | The Hurt Locker (2008) | Up (2009) | Avatar (2009) | Avatar (2009) | |
| 2008 | Slumdog Millionaire (2008) | The Dark Knight (2008) | The Dark Knight (2008) | Slumdog Millionaire (2008) | |
| 2007 | No Country for Old Men (2007) | No Country for Old Men (2007) | Spider-Man 3 (2007) | Juno (2007) | |
| 2006 | The Departed (2006) | The Departed (2006) | P.O.T.C. Dead Man's Chest (2006) | The Departed (2006) | |
| 2005 | Crash (2005) | Good Night And Good Luck (2005) | Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2005) | Brokeback Mountain (2005) | |
| 2004 | Million Dollar Baby (2004) | The Incredibles (2004) | Shrek 2 (2004) | Million Dollar Baby (2004) | |
| 2003 | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) | Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The (2003) | |
| 2002 | Chicago (2002) | L.O.T.R. The Two Towers (2002) | Spider-Man (2002) | Chicago (2002) | |
| 2001 | A Beautiful Mind (2001) | Spirited Away (2001) | Harry Potter & Sorcerer's Stone (2001) | A Beautiful Mind (2001) | |
| 2000 | Gladiator (2000) | Memento (2000) | How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) | Gladiator (2000) | |
| 1999 | American Beauty (1999) | Fight Club (1999) | Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999) | American Beauty (1999) | |
| 1998 | Shakespeare in Love (1998) | Saving Private Ryan (1998) | Saving Private Ryan (1998) | Saving Private Ryan (1998) | |
| 1997 | Titanic (1997) | L.A. Confidential (1997) | Titanic (1997) | Titanic (1997) | |
| 1996 | The English Patient (1996) | Fargo (1996) | Indepence Day (1996) | Jerry Maguire (1996) | |
| 1995 | Braveheart (1995) | Toy Story (1995) | Toy Story (1995) | Apollo 13 (1995) | |
| 1994 | Forrest Gump (1994) | Pulp Fiction (1994) | The Lion King (1994) | Forrest Gump (1994) | |
| 1993 | Schindler's List (1993) | Schindler's List (1993) | Jurassic Park (1993) | Schindler's List (1993) | |
| 1992 | Unforgiven (1992) | Reservoir Dogs (1992) | Aladdin (1992) | Unforgiven (1992) | |
| 1991 | The Silence of the Lambs (1991) | The Silence of the Lambs (1991) | Terminator 2 (1991) | The Silence of the Lambs (1991) | |
| 1990 | Dances with Wolves (1990) | Good Fellas (1990) | Home Alone (1990) | Dances with Wolves (1990) | |
| 1989 | Driving Miss Daisy (1989) | Say Anthing....(1989) | Batman (1989) | Driving Miss Daisy (1989) | |
| 1988 | Rain Man (1988) | Big (1988) | Rain Man (1988) | Rain Man (1988) | |
| 1987 | The Last Emperor (1987) | Full Metal Jacket (1987) | Three Men And A Baby (1987) | Moonstruck (1987) | |
| 1986 | Platoon (1986) | Aliens (1986) | Top Gun (1986) | Platoon (1986) | |
| 1985 | Out of Africa (1985) | Brazil (1985) | Back To The Future (1985) | The Color Purple (1985) | |
| 1984 | Amadeus (1984) | The Terminator (1984) | Ghostbusters (1984) | Amadeus (1984) | |
| 1983 | Terms of Endearment (1983) | The Right Stuff (1983) | Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983) | Terms of Endearment (1983) | |
| 1982 | Gandhi (1982) | E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) | E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) | E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) | |
| 1981 | Chariots of Fire (1981) | Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) | Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) | Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) | |
| 1980 | Ordinary People (1980) | Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) | Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) | Ordinary People (1980) | |
| 1979 | Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) | Apocalypse Now (1979) | Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) | Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) | |
| 1978 | The Deer Hunter (1978) | The Deer Hunter (1978) | Grease (1978) | The Deer Hunter (1978) | |
| 1977 | Annie Hall (1977) | Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) | Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) | Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) | |
| 1976 | Rocky (1976) | Taxi Driver (1976) | Rocky (1976) | Rocky (1976) | |
| 1975 | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) | Jaws (1975) | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) | |
| 1974 | The Godfather: Part II (1974) | Chinatown (1974) | Blazing Saddles (1974) | Godfather: Part II, The (1974) | |
| 1973 | The Sting (1973) | American Graffiti (1973) | The Exorcist (1973) | The Sting (1973) | |
| 1972 | The Godfather (1972) | The Godfather (1972) | The Godfather (1972) | The Godfather (1972) | |
| 1971 | The French Connection (1971) | The Last Picture Show (1971) | Love Story (1971) | The French Connection (1971) | |
| 1970 | Patton (1970) | Patton (1970) | Airport (1970) | Patton (1970) | |
| 1969 | Midnight Cowboy (1969) | The Wild Bunch (1969) | Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) | Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) | |
| 1968 | Oliver! (1968) | 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) | 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) | 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) | |
| 1967 | In The Heat of The Night (1967) | Cool Hand Luke (1967) | The Graduate (1967) | Bonnie and Clyde (1967) | |
| 1966 | A Man for All Seasons (1966) | The Good, The Bad & The Ugly (1966) | Hawaiii (1966) | A Man for All Seasons (1966) | |
| 1965 | The Sound of Music (1965) | Doctor Zhivago (1965) | The Sound of Music (1965) | Sound of Music, The (1965) | |
| 1964 | My Fair Lady (1964) | Dr. Strangelove (1964) | Mary Poppins (1964) | My Fair Lady (1964) | |
| 1963 | Tom Jones (1963) | The Great Escape (1963) | Cleopatra (1963) | Tom Jones (1963) | |
| 1962 | Lawrence of Arabia (1962) | Lawrence of Arabia (1962) | Lawrence of Arabia (1962) | Lawrence of Arabia (1962) | |
| 1961 | West Side Story (1961) | Yojimbo (1961) | 101 Dalmatians (1961) | West Side Story (1961) | |
| 1960 | The Apartment (1960) | Psycho (1960) | Swiss Family Robinson (1960) | The Apartment (1960) | |
| 1959 | Ben-Hur (1959) | North By Northwest (1959) | Ben-Hur (1959) | Ben-Hur (1959) | |
| 1958 | Gigi (1958) | Vertigo (1958) | South Pacific (1958) | Gigi (1958) | |
| 1957 | The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) | 12 Angry Men (1957) | The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) | The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) | |
| 1956 | Around the World in 80 Days (1956) | The Searchers (1956) | The Ten Commandments (1956) | Around the World in 80 Days (1956) | |
| 1955 | Marty (1955) | The Night of the Hunter (1955) | The Lady and the Tramp (1955) | Mister Roberts (1955) | |
| 1954 | On the Waterfront (1954) | Rear Window (1954) | Rear Windown (1954) | On the Waterfront (1954) | |
| 1953 | From Here to Eternity (1953) | Tokyo Story (1953) | The Robe (1953) | From Here to Eternity (1953) | |
| 1952 | The Greatest Show on Earth (1952) | Singin' In The Rain (1952) | The Greatest Show on Earth (1952) | High Noon (1952) | |
| 1951 | An American in Paris (1951) | Strangers on a Train (1951) | Quo Vadis? (1951) | An American in Paris (1951) | |
| 1950 | All About Eve (1950) | Sunset Blvd. (1950) | Cinderella (1950) | All About Eve (1950) | |
| 1949 | All the King's Men (1949) | White Heat (1949) | Samson & Delilah (1949) | Twelve O'Clock High (1949) | |
| 1948 | Hamlet (1948) | The Treasure of the Sierre Madre (1948) | The Red Shoes (1948) | Johnny Belinda (1948) | |
| 1947 | Gentleman's Agreement (1947) | Out Of The Past (1947) | Welcome Stranger (1947) | Gentleman's Agreement (1947) | |
| 1946 | The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) | It's A Wonderful Life (1946) | The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) | The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) | |
| 1945 | The Lost Weekend (1945) | The Lost Weekend (1945) | The Bells of St. Mary's (1945) | The Lost Weekend (1945) | |
| 1944 | Going My Way (1944) | Double Indemnity (1944) | Going My Way (1944) | Going My Way (1944) | |
| 1943 | Casablanca (1942) | Casablanca (1942) | This Is The Army (1943) | Casablanca (1942) | |
| 1942 | Mrs. Miniver (1942) | To Be Or Not To Be (1942) | Bambi (1942) | Mrs. Miniver (1942) | |
| 1941 | How Green Was My Valley (1941) | Citizen Kane (1941) | Sergeant York (1941) | How Green Was My Valley (1941) | |
| 1940 | Rebecca (1940) | The Philadelphia Story (1940) | Boom Town (1940) | Rebecca (1940) | |
| 1939 | Gone with the Wind (1939) | Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939) | Gone with the Wind (1939) | Gone with the Wind (1939) | |
| 1938 | You Can't Take It with You (1938) | Angel With Dirty Faces (1938) | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1938) | Boys Town (1938) | |
| 1937 | The Life of Emile Zola (1937) | Stage Door (1937) | Saratoga (1937) | The Life of Emile Zola (1937) | |
| 1936 | The Great Ziegfeld (1936) | Modern Times (1936) | San Franciso (1936) | Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) | |
| 1935 | Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) | Bride of Frankenstein (1935) | Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) | Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) | |
| 1934 | It Happened One Night (1934) | It Happened One Night (1934) | It Happened One Night (1934) | It Happened One Night (1934) | |
| 1933 | Cavalcade (1933) | King Kong (1933) | King Kong (1933) | Little Women (1933) | |
| 1932 | Grand Hotel (1932) | Scarface (1932) | Kid From Spain (1932) | Shanghai Express (1932) | |
| 1931 | Cimarron (1931) | City Lights (1931) | Palmy Days (1931) | City Lights (1931) | |
| 1930 | All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) | All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) | Whoopee (1930) | All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) |
Our Yearly Review Movie Pages
- 1939 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? Gone With The Wind
- 1942 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? Mrs. Miniver
- 1946 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? The Best Years of Our Lives
- 1952 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? Greatest Show on Earth
- 2011 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? The Help
- 2012 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? Lincoln
- 2013 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? Gravity
- 2014 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? American Sniper
- 2015 Movies Ranked Best to Worst Our movie of the year? The Martian
One day we hope to do every year….so far our progress has been very very slow moving.
I haven’t looked through all the years, just the period up until I don’t have a big interest in the era.
Lots of work.
Hey Flora…I did this the hard way….the wife came home and did it the easy way….and correct way. It took me a few hours to put this together…and I messed up many of the Best Reviewed movies…she comes home….does some programming magic in 5 minutes and gives me better and more accurate information. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
Now this is a very unusual way to look at the best movies of the year. Unusual but interesting.
Hey Stein….not thinking this page is going to be a massive view getter….but I had fun putting it together….as well as checking out the finished product.
A interesting way to see the best of the year..
Thanks Trevot….glad you found this page interesting.
Interesting. From what I can see there are just 3 years with the same film topping all 4 charts, 1962, 1972 and 2003. Nice to see my favorite movie topping 3 of the charts in 1959. Did North by Northwest really have better reviews than Ben-Hur? William Wyler’s epic had stellar reviews.
When I can’t sleep at night instead of counting sheep I silently name each Best Picture winner in chronological order and when I get to the most recent one I name them again in reverse order. I always have difficulty remembering the 1940s winners. It wasn’t my favorite movie decade, only a few movies really stood out for me in the 40s. My favorite? Has to be Casablanca.
Of the 86 Best Picture winners you’ve listed I’ve seen 75, the most recent ones I haven’t seen are The English Patient, Ordinary People and Kramer vs Kramer.
There are 12 from the UMR chart I haven’t seen, most recent being The Help and Brokeback Mountain.
Good to see Deadpool currently topping the 2016 chart, I watched it a few weeks ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. Even the critics seem to like it.
The UMR chart lists a bunch of films I would have liked to see win Best Picture instead of the eventual winner – including 2001 A Space Odyssey, Star Wars (1977), Avatar, Gravity and The Martian. They’re all sci-fi what a coincidence! 🙂 Oh and Saving Private Ryan and Raiders of the Lost Ark too.
An interesting way to look at each years top films. Voted Up!
Hey Steve….I thought Best Years of Our Lives Did it too….but I see It’s A Wonderful Life ruined it for that movie. So you are right only 3 times. I thought that would be a more common thing. North by Northwest has the 9th best review score in my database….Ben-Hur has a stellar 88.7% which is also one of the best in my database…just a little behind The Man In Lincoln’s Nose.
I have seen all of the Oscar winners…and all of the UMR winners. I figured you would notice that 2001 owned 1968 except for the Oscar win….I feel the same way about Raiders in 1981. Overall I like my UMR winners more. Deadpool will stay in the Top 10….but I doubt it gets any Oscar love…maybe one tech nomination….but I even doubt that. So it will eventually get passed a few times ….by a box office hit that gets at least an Best Picture Oscar nomination.
Thanks for checking out the page….it is a silly page…but I have enjoyed looking at. I liked the years that had 4 winners in a year….like 2015….and The Revenant is not one of those 4 movies….did not see that coming.
I hope Deadpool gets to keep the top spot. That is my favorite movie of the last 5 years. Gotta admit the movies before 1990s I am not to familar with. Good job.
Hey Helakoski….thanks for stopping by….Deadpool will not hold the top spot….but I think it is going to be number 1 for awhile. I have not even started the 2016 page…..but I know Deadpool is going to be in the Top 10 at the end of the year. Thanks for the comment.