Let’s be real: this pandemic has made people do everything from home. I’m sure there are many people who have spent part of quarantine doing movie nights, whether with your loved ones you’re living with or via watch parties with friends and family who live thousands of miles away. This was the situation with my sister and I. My sister and I would do movie nights together on weekends. We were trying to figure out what movie to watch one night and we decided to look at the Oscar Best Picture winner list to pick a movie to watch. Now, in this article, I will share my favorites that I watched of the Oscar Best Picture winners.
1. Birdman (2015)
This 2015 winner tells the story of Riggan Thomson (Micheal Keaton) as he makes his debut as a Broadway actor to prove to people that he is a true, versatile artist. Throughout the movie, he is in a constant battle with his ego and the imaginary voice of his famous superhero movie role, Birdman. The movie has a great story, cinematography, and a great cast, including Emma Stone, Zach Galifianakis, Naomi Watts, and Edward Norton.
2. Slumdog Millionaire (2009)
This movie follows the story of Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) who goes on a trivia show called Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? While on the show, he is accused of cheating because he somehow gets all the answers correct even though he grew up in the slums of Mumbai. The real reason why he gets all the answers correct is that the questions are connected to memories of his childhood with his brother Salim and crush Latika. I liked this movie because of the cinematography, characters, and thrilling but romantic storylines.
3. Million Dollar Baby (2005)
The movie follows the story of Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank), a waitress from Missouri who travels to Los Angeles in hope of becoming a great boxer. She finds Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood), an old boxing trainer, and asks him to train her. He declines at first because he doesn’t train female fighters but eventually agrees. The two form a close bond as Maggie makes it in the boxing world. I liked this movie because it has a strong female character and a great sports drama storyline.
4. Chicago (2003)
This musical movie is about Roxie Hart (Renee Zellweger), a married woman who dreams of becoming a jazz singer. However, she is arrested for murdering a man she cheated on her husband (John C. Reilly) with. While in jail, she meets Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones), a famous jazz singer who also is in jail for murdering her husband. The two battle it out for the attention of lawyer Billy Flynn (Richard Gere) and the media as their trials are coming up. I like this movie because it has a great cast, great musical numbers, cinematography, and storyline.
I hope you enjoy these movie recommendations and are getting excited for Oscar season!
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