In March, ScreenAge Wasteland will have its 4th annual Movie Madness tournament to determine the greatest film to take home the Oscar’s Best Picture Award.
Similar to the NCAA March Madness tournament that starts with 64 teams and ends with one winner standing tall, SAW is going to have 64 top Best Picture winners battle it out.
The great thing is you — our beloved Screenagers — will be able to help determine the winner by voting in the matchups!
You will have to check back on March 3, 2024, when voting begins, to see what the matchups are for each region. The movies were picked by an intricate scoring system to determine the best films from the decade with minimal opinions or bias involved. The top four movies to grade out the highest are your four #1 seeds in each region.
Curtiz Region | Coen Region | Demme Region
Coppola Region
The Godfather (1972)
Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
Stars: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan
The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.
CODA (2021)
Directed By: Sian Heder
Stars: Emilia Jones, Marlee Matlin, Troy Kotsur
As a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) Ruby is the only hearing person in her deaf family. When the family’s fishing business is threatened, Ruby finds herself torn between pursuing her passion at Berklee College of Music and her fear of abandoning her parents.
Everything, Everywhere All at Once (2022)
Directed By: Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert
Stars: Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, Jamie Lee Curtis
A middle-aged Chinese immigrant is swept up into an insane adventure in which she alone can save existence by exploring other universes and connecting with the lives she could have led.
The Sting (1973)
Directed By: George Roy Hill
Stars: Robert Redford, Paul Newman
Two grifters team up to pull off the ultimate con.
Ben-Hur (1959)
Directed By: William Wyler
Stars: Charlton Heston, Jack Hawkins, Stephen Boyd
After a Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend in 1st-century Jerusalem, he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge.
The Last Emperor (1987)
Directed By: Bernardo Bertolucci
Stars: John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O’Toole
Bernardo Bertolucci’s Oscar-winning dramatization of the life story of China’s last emperor, Pu Yi.
Platoon (1986)
Directed By: Oliver Stone
Stars: Charlie Sheen, Willem DaFoe, Tom Berenger
Chris Taylor, a neophyte recruit in Vietnam, finds himself caught in a battle of wills between two sergeants, one good and the other evil. A shrewd examination of the brutality of war and the duality of man in conflict.
Midnight Cowboy (1969)
Directed By: John Schlesinger
Stars: Jon Voight, Dustin Hoffman, Sylvia Miles
A naive hustler travels from Texas to New York City to seek personal fortune, finding a new friend in the process.
The Apartment (1960)
Directed By: Billy Wilder
Stars: Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine
A Manhattan insurance clerk tries to rise in his company by letting its executives use his apartment for trysts, but complications and a romance of his own ensue.
Gandhi (1982)
Directed By: Richard Attenborough
Stars: Ben Kingsley, Rohini Hattangadi, John Gielgud
The life of the lawyer who became the famed leader of the Indian revolts against the British rule through his philosophy of nonviolent protest.
Unforgiven (1992)
Directed By: Clint Eastwood
Stars: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman
Retired Old West gunslinger William Munny reluctantly takes on one last job, with the help of his old partner Ned Logan and a young man, The “Schofield Kid.”
Nomadland (2020)
Directed By: Chloé Zhao
Stars: Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, Linda May
A woman in her sixties, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Directed By: Peter Jackson
Stars: Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen
Gandalf and Aragorn lead the World of Men against Sauron’s army to draw his gaze from Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring.
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Directed By: David Lean
Stars: Peter O’Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn
The story of T.E. Lawrence, the English officer who successfully united and led the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes during World War I in order to fight the Turks.
Schindler’s List (1993)
Directed By: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley
In German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.
The Artist (2011)
Directed By: Michel Hazanavicius
Stars: Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo, John Goodman
When George, a silent movie superstar, meets Peppy Miller, a dancer, sparks fly between the two. However, after the introduction of talking pictures, their fortunes change, affecting their dynamic.
What do you think of the films in this region? Do you have any predictions regarding which film will make it to the Final Four?
