Middle-aged media executive Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) lives a dull suburban life with his wife, real estate saleswoman Carolyn (Annette Bening), and teenage daughter, Jane (Thora Birch). Lester is reawakened by an attraction to his daughter’s friend, Angela Hayes (Mena Suvari), leading to him quitting his job, smoking pot, and buffing up. Meanwhile, Carolyn has an affair with real estate “King” Buddy Kane (Peter Gallagher), while Jane starts seeing Ricky Fitts (Wes Bentley), a sensitive new neighbor who likes making videos of floating plastic bags. Ricky’s father, Frank (Chris Cooper), is a retired Marine whose homophobia leads to shattering consequences.

Perhaps no other best picture winner from the ’90s has held up worse than 1999’s “American Beauty,” for a variety of reasons (including star Spacey turning out to be one of those actors who are actually terrible people). What was once a daring satire of suburban malaise now comes across as creepy and pretentious. 

In what was widely heralded as an all-time great year for cinema, the Academy awarded “American Beauty” over “The Cider House Rules,” “The Green Mile,” “The Insider,” and “The Sixth Sense,” snubbing movies like “Being John Malkovich,” “Eyes Wide Shut,” “Magnolia,” “The Matrix,” and “The Talented Mr. Ripley.” The film also won best actor for Spacey, best director for Sam Mendes, best original screenplay, and best cinematography.

• Cast: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, Thora Birch, Allison Janney, Peter Gallagher, Mena Suvari, Wes Bentley, Chris Cooper
• Director: Sam Mendes
• Rating: R
• Runtime: 122 minutes
• Where to watch: Prime Video, Paramount+, Apple TV
  

While waiting at a bus stop, the sweet but slow-witted Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) recounts his life story. Growing up in 1950s Alabama, Forrest was made fun of for having a 75 IQ, but his Momma (Sally Field) teaches him not to let anyone look down on him. He falls in love with Jenny (Robin Wright), a bright girl from a troubled home. As he gets older, Forrest finds himself drifting through the highlights of mid-century America; playing football, serving in Vietnam, working on a shrimp boat, playing ping-pong in China, running a marathon, and meeting Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon. Through it all, he pines for Jenny, who has taken a very different path.

“Forrest Gump” was a massive cultural hit, driving masses of Baby Boomers to the multiplexes and becoming the top grossing film of 1994. Its politics (and some of its darker history bits) are under harsher scrutiny today, along with its depiction of the mentally handicapped as lovable sages, although it still has fans. The Oscars were a race between “Forrest Gump” and the cool kid of the block, “Pulp Fiction,” with “Four Weddings and a Funeral,” “Quiz Show,” and “The Shawshank Redemption” in the mix. “Gump” emerged triumphant with six wins: best picture, best actor for Hanks, best director for Robert Zemeckis, best adapted screenplay, best film editing, and best visual effects.

• Cast: Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Mykelti Williamson, Sally Field
• Director: Robert Zemeckis
  
• Rating: PG-13
  
• Runtime: 142 minutes
  
• Where to watch: Prime Video, AMC+, Apple TV
  

After a failed suicide attempt, Union Army 1st Lieutenant John J. Dunbar (Kevin Costner, whose films run the gamut from awful to amazing) is granted a transfer to Fort Sedgwick, a remote outpost in the western frontier. Left on his own, Dunbar soon befriends the local Lakota tribe, bonding with their medicine man, Kicking Bird (Graham Greene), and romancing his adopted white daughter, Stands With A Fist (Mary McDonnell). Before long, Dunbar is welcomed into the tribe, and is even given the name Dances with Wolves. Yet the arrival of U.S. troops threatens to destroy his newfound peace.

Today, “Dances with Wolves” is best remembered as the movie that beat “GoodFellas” at the 1990 Oscars, a distinction that would forever haunt it. At the time, it was seen as a stirring throwback to the Hollywood epics of yore, a huge gamble for Costner as a director and star that paid off with huge dividends at the box office. Although its white savior narrative rings hollow today, its pictorial beauty is still impressive, and its sympathetic portrayal of Indigenous Americans remains commendable. 

In a best picture lineup that also included “Awakenings,” “Ghost,” and “The Godfather: Part III,” “Dances with Wolves” swept the Oscars with seven wins, including best director, best adapted screenplay, best cinematography, best film editing, best sound, and best original score.

• Cast: Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene, Rodney Grant, Robert Pastorelli, Wes Studi
• Director: Kevin Costner
  
• Rating: PG-13
• Runtime: 181 minutes
  
• Where to watch: Prime Video, HBO Max, Apple TV
  

As World War II draws to a close, French-Canadian Army Medical Corps nurse Hana (Juliette Binoche) is caring for László Almásy (Ralph Fiennes), a Hungarian cartographer who was badly burned in a plane crash. Confined to his bed in a bombed-out Italian monastery, Almásy reflects on his romance with a married Englishwoman, Katharine Clifton (Kristin Scott Thomas), who he met while drawing maps in the Sahara. As Almásy recounts his doomed love affair, Hana, who lost her husband in combat, learns to heal her own broken heart.

The 1996 Oscars were the year of the indies, with one big studio release, “Jerry Maguire,” competing against the independently-produced “The English Patient,” “Fargo,” “Secrets & Lies,” and “Shine.” Although critical support was behind “Fargo,” the Academy fell head-over-heels in love with Anthony Minghella’s lavish adaptation of Michael Ondaatje’s novel, handing it trophies for best picture, best supporting actress for Binoche, best director, best cinematography, best art direction, best costume design, best film editing, best sound, and best original score. Even with the Academy stamp of approval, the film because an instant punchline, thanks to a “Seinfeld” episode in which Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is ostracized for calling it long and boring. That’s a little unfair, considering how pretty the film is while it unveils its sweeping romance.

• Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche, Willem Dafoe, Kristin Scott Thomas, Naveen Andrews, Colin Firth
• Director: Anthony Minghella
  
• Rating: R
  
• Runtime: 162 minutes
  
• Where to watch: Prime Video, Kanopy, Apple TV
  

In the 13th century, Edward I of England (Patrick McGoohan) conquers Scotland and rules it with an iron fist. Having lost his family to Edward’s army as a young boy, William Wallace (Mel Gibson) returns to his homeland and marries his childhood friend Murron MacClannough (Catherine McCormack). When Murron is captured and executed by English troops, Wallace swears revenge against Edward I and his heir, Prince Edward (Peter Hanly). As Wallace mobilizes amateur Scottish warriors, he romances Prince Edward’s bride, Isabella (Sophie Marceau), Princess of France. Even though Wallace is ultimately executed in gruesome fashion, his quest to liberate his native land proves successful.

Few Oscar races are as odd in retrospect as the 1995 one, with best picture frontrunners “Apollo 13” and “Sense and Sensibility” having the air let out of their tires by the exclusion of filmmakers Ron Howard and Ang Lee from the best director lineup. With the children’s movie “Babe” and the Italian indie “Il Postino” also in the mix, it’s little wonder Gibson’s epic of Scottish rebellion emerged as the consensus pick. Shockingly brutal and violent by Academy standards, “Braveheart” is also ravishingly beautiful and action-packed, and has become a mainstay of cable television. The film won five prizes in total, including best director for Gibson, best cinematography, best sound effects editing, and best makeup.

• Cast: Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau, Patrick McGoohan, Catherine McCormack, Brendan Gleeson, Brian Cox
• Director: Mel Gibson
• Rating: R
• Runtime: 178 minutes
• Where to watch: Prime Video, Kanopy, Apple TV

In 16th century England, young William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) is struggling with writers block on his newest play, “Romeo and Ethel, The Pirate’s Daughter.” Desperate for cash, Rose Theater owner Philip Henslowe (Geoffrey Rush) decides to start auditions even though a script hasn’t been completed. Shakespeare’s imagination comes alive by the arrival of Viola de Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow), a merchant’s daughter who disguises herself as a man in order to act at a time when women weren’t allowed onstage. Their romance leads to “Romeo and Juliet,” a play that manages to delight even Queen Elizabeth I (Judi Dench). 

The reputation of “Shakespeare in Love” became instantly marred the moment it won best picture at the 1998 Oscars over Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan.” It’s unfair to characterize the controversy of its victory (due in large part to campaign tactics by Harvey Weinstein) as a reflection of the movie’s quality. Portraying Elizabethan theater akin to modern day Hollywood, the script by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard is filled with quotable witticisms, nimbly delivered by an all-star cast under the direction of John Madden (not the football guy). 

Stacked up alongside “Elizabeth,” “Life Is Beautiful,” and “The Thin Red Line,” “Shakespeare in Love” took home seven statuettes, including best actress for Paltrow, best supporting actress for Dench, best original screenplay, best art direction, best costume design, and best comedy score.

• Cast: Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Colin Firth, Ben Affleck, Judi Dench
• Director: John Madden
• Rating: R
• Runtime: 123 minutes
• Where to watch: Prime Video, Paramount+, Kanopy, Apple TV

In 1912, the RMS Titanic makes its fateful maiden voyage. Aboard the ship is 17-year-old Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet), who is engaged to wed the wealthy Cal Hockley (Billy Zane) in order to secure his fortune for her mother, Ruth (Frances Fisher). Also aboard is Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), a poor orphan who snuck into steerage. Jack and Rose fall madly in love, but their plans of running away together are dashed when the Titanic hits an iceberg, sinking the “unsinkable” ship to the bottom of the sea.

After numerous delays and budget overruns, “Titanic” became not just the highest grossing film of 1997, but the highest grossing film of all time, with James Cameron eventually breaking his own record with “Avatar.” So even though it faced stiff competition from “As Good as It Gets,” “The Full Monty,” “Good Will Hunting,” and “L.A. Confidential,” there was no mystery as to what would emerge victorious on Oscar night. 

An old fashioned Hollywood spectacle for a new generation, “Titanic” tied “Ben-Hur” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” for the most wins of any film with 11: best picture, best director, best cinematography, best art direction, best costume design, best film editing, best sound, best sound effects editing, best original score, best original song, and best visual effects.

• Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Kathy Bates, Bernard Hill, Bill Paxton, Gloria Stuart
• Director: James Cameron
• Rating: PG-13
• Runtime: 194 minutes
• Where to watch: Prime Video, Paramount+, Kanopy, Apple TV

In the town of Big Whiskey, Wyoming, a pair of cowboys slash the face of prostitute Delilah Fitzgerald (Anna Thompson), leaving her permanently scarred. While the brothel’s madame, Strawberry Alice (Frances Fisher), wants the boys hanged, Sheriff “Little Bill” Daggett (Gene Hackman, who offers his best work even in his worst films) lets them go in exchange for some ponies. Alice pulls together funds to hire bounty hunters, leading The Schofield Kid (Jaimz Woolvett) to seek the assistance of William Munny (Clint Eastwood), a notorious killer who left that life behind to become a pig farmer. Munny agrees to take on the bounty with his former partner, Ned Logan (Morgan Freeman), and all three find themselves up against a lawman who uses his badge as a shield for psychopathy.

From the moment “Unforgiven” premiered, it was clear that Eastwood’s Oscar moment had come. It emerged triumphant at the 1992 ceremony over “The Crying Game,” “A Few Good Men,” “Howards End,” and “Scent of a Woman.” Although it felt like a cinematic sendoff, it was in fact the start of a new golden age for the Western star as a director, one that found him exploring darker, more complex examinations of that American myth. An interrogation of the genre that made him famous, “Unforgiven” went home with Oscars for best picture, best director, best supporting actor for Hackman, and best film editing.

• Cast: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris, Jaimz Woolvett, Saul Rubinek, Frances Fisher
• Director: Clint Eastwood
• Rating: R
• Runtime: 130 minutes
• Where to watch: Prime Video, MGM+, Apple TV

Seeking to profit off of World War II, German businessman and proud Nazi party member Oskar Schindler (Liam Neeson) opens an enamelware factory and staffs it with Jewish workers. Initially driven by financial gain, Schindler’s motives change after witnessing the liquidation of the Kraków Ghetto. Desperate to save his workers from the concentration camps, he convinces psychotic SS officer Amon Göth (Ralph Fiennes) to allow them to work in his new munitions factory on behalf of the failing German Army. With the help of his accountant, Itzhak Stern (Ben Kingsley), Schindler saves the lives of 1,100 Jews whose names are placed on his list of essential workers.

From the moment it was announced that Steven Spielberg was directing “Schindler’s List” (in part as an effort to combat Holocaust denial) its Oscar victory was all but etched in stone. Indeed, its 1993 best picture win over “The Fugitive,” “In the Name of the Father,” “The Piano,” and “The Remains of the Day” was as predictable as they come, and equally hard to argue with. The winner of seven prizes in total (including best director, best adapted screenplay, best cinematography, best art direction, best film editing, and best score), the film is a monumental achievement that stares into the abyss of horror and still finds hope hiding there. In the end, when the real-life Jews who were saved by Schindler visit his grave, one can’t but feel the enormity of his actions.

• Cast: Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes, Caroline Goodall, Jonathan Sagall, Embeth Davidtz
• Director: Steven Spielberg
• Rating: R
• Runtime: 195 minutes
• Where to watch: Prime Video, Apple TV

As a serial killer known as Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine) is murdering and skinning young women, FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) is tasked with interviewing Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), a brilliant psychiatrist with a proclivity for eating his patients. Starling descends to the depths of Lecter’s maximum security cell in the hopes of gaining insight into Buffalo Bill’s psychology before he can kill his next victim, Catherine Martin (Brooke Smith), the daughter of a U.S. Senator. The more Lecter speaks to Starling, the deeper he burrows into her own fractured psyche, and the more she reluctantly grows to like and even admire him.

There is perhaps no more unlikely Oscar winner than 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs,” which became one of the only horror films to triumph in the top five categories: best picture, best actor for Hopkins, best actress for Foster, best director for Jonathan Demme, and best adapted screenplay. Yet the box office sensation transcends the depravity of its subject matter through the humanity brought to the story. 

Unlike other serial killer movies, “Lambs” interrogates our true crime obsession by blurring the lines between good and evil. Even competing against the Oscar-bait titles “Beauty and the Beast,” “Bugsy,” “JFK,” and “The Prince of Tides,” a victory for “Lambs” was all but inevitable — and in hindsight, well deserved.

• Cast: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Ted Levine, Anthony Heald, Brooke Smith
• Director: Jonathan Demme
• Rating: R
• Runtime: 118 minutes
• Where to watch: Prime Video, MGM+, Apple TV