When you’re making a film, it’s important to have a good script and solid actors. But what really makes or breaks a film is its ability to win awards. If your movie wins lots of awards, then that means it was successful!
Of course, not all films are created equal: some movies have won more than 100 awards; others have won just one or two. So which films have won the most awards in the history of cinema? Read on to find out!
1. “The Godfather”, 1972
“The Godfather” is an American crime film based on the 1969 novel by Mario Puzo. It is Francis Ford Coppola who directed it. It stars Marlon Brando, James Caan, Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, Robert Duvall, and John Cazale. The movie follows the story of a mafia family headed by Don Vito Corleone (Brando), as his son Michael (Pacino) takes over the business after Kay Adams (Keaton) marries him in 1945 in New York City.
Michael’s marriage to Kay starts off well but quickly turns sour when he fails to protect her from one of his father’s enemies. She leaves him and returns to college; however, later in life she returns home when Michael becomes seriously ill due to an infected bullet wound that he received shortly after their honeymoon ended prematurely due to fighting during World War II.
2. “Titanic”, 1997
But these days, we’ve come to expect that an award-winning film will have won at least a handful of Oscars. Titanic won 11 awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for James Cameron (the only director to ever win three consecutive Oscars for directing), as well as a whopping eight technical awards.
3. “Ben-Hur”, 1959
The 1959 epic “Ben-Hur” is the winner of 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director. The film also won for Costume Design, Film Editing, and Adapted Screenplay. It lasted just under four hours and cost $15 million to make!
4. “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”, 2003
A long-awaited conclusion to the most successful trilogy of all time, this film won 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. It also won 4 Golden Globes and 2 BAFTsAs. It is one of only three films in history to win all five major awards from the American Film Institute: Best Picture (2003), Best Director (Peter Jackson), and Screenplay Adaptation (Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens & Peter Jackson). In addition, it won 3 Critics’ Choice Awards as well as countless other accolades and nominations for its screenplay adaptation.
5. “Shakespeare in Love”, 1998
“Shakespeare in Love” is easily one of the most awarded films of all time. The movie won 8 Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay. It also won a BAFTA award for Best Film and Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role.
The film was nominated for 13 awards at the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA) and won 7 of them, including Best Film and Leading Actor.
6. “The Last Emperor”, 1987
“The Last Emperor” is the story of Pu Yi, who was the last emperor of China. This movie won 9 Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director. It also received a nomination for Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen.
7. “Cabaret”, 1972
The film adaptation of Cabaret, the Broadway musical about the rise and fall of an American entertainer in pre-Nazi Germany, won eight Oscars. In addition to Best Picture and Best Director (Bob Fosse), it took home awards for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Maximilian Schell), Best Actress in a Leading Role (Liza Minnelli), and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black and White. Other winners included cinematography and costume design categories.
8. “West Side Story”, 1961
This is based on the musical by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim, “West Side Story” is the most awarded film of all time. It won 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director (Robert Wise), Best Screenplay (Jerome Robbins), and even Best Supporting Actress (Rita Moreno).
It also won 4 Golden Globes: Best Motion Picture – Drama; Best Actor for both Richard Beymer and Natalie Wood; a special award for Robert Wise as director; plus another special award to Natalie Wood as actress.
In addition to this impressive list of awards that included 4 BAFTsAs and 2 Palme d’Or Awards at the Cannes Film Festival in the 1962-among others-the film was also honored with two Golden Lion awards at the Venice Film Festival in 1961.
9. “An American in Paris”, 1951
This was a 1951 musical starring Gene Kelly, Alice Faye, and Leslie Caron. The film won 6 awards and became the first film to win the first-ever best musical score award. Another interesting fact about this movie is that it also won the first-ever best costume design award.
These are the most awarded films in the history of cinema. They may not be your favorite, and there might be some on here that you don’t even like, but they deserve their place on this list for being so successful at winning awards.
