Spotlight (2015) - 4 Stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: Journalism is really important, people!

Cast: Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams.

Best of: This film feels real (a rare feat in Hollywood) and makes any viewer a champion for tenacious, quality journalism by the end. It successfully walks the tight rope of coming off as important without crossing over into indulgent self-importance.

Worst of: It's hard not to mourn the enormous cutbacks the journalism industry has faced since this time. What important stories have we missed?

Notable: The first Best Picture winner since 1952 to win only 2 Oscars.

Also nominated: The Big Short, Mad Max: Fury Road.

Birdman (2014) - 4 stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: An aging movie star known for super hero films (played by an aging movie star known for super hero films) goes a little bit crazy as he stages a new play.

Cast: Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Edward Norton.

Best of: It is so rare to see a truly unique film. Long, single take shots combined with a beautiful soundtrack played entirely on one drum kit make for an enthralling experience. Also, Edward Norton has never done anything wrong on screen.

Worst of: The hey-this-is-different spectacle of it all (which I generally love) can get in the way of the story having as big an emotional impact as it might otherwise have.

Notable: There are only 16 cuts in the entire film.

Also nominated: Whiplash, The Imitation Game.

12 Years a Slave (2013) - 3 stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: Based on the true story of Solomon Northup, a free black man is abducted and sold into slavery from 1841-1853

Cast: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lupita Nyong'o, Michael Fassbender, Michael Kenneth Williams.  

Best of: It's supremely acted and doesn't turn from the darkness of the subject matter (the long near-lynching scene is particularly memorable). When done this well, historical dramas can shed light on previously little known stories from history to deepen our understanding of our past.

Worst of:  A year later, it doesn't stand out as much as some of 2013's other films.

Notable: This is the first Best Picture winner to be directed by an African American.

Also nominated: Gravity, Her, Captain Phillips.

Argo (2012) - 3 Stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: The based-on-a-true-story of a CIA plot to save six US diplomats from Iran during the 1979 hostage crisis by pretending to shoot a sci-fi film.

Cast: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Alan Arkin.

Best of: A fun ride with plenty of edge-of-your-seat moments (many of which were added by Hollywood).

Worst of: Doesn't really stand up against other great films like you want a Best Picture winner to.

Notable: The fake studio that the CIA set up in real life received a script from Steven Spielberg in hopes that they would produce the film with him.

Also nominated: Lincoln.

The Artist (2011) - 2 Stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: This silent film tells the story of a 1920s silent film star watching helplessly as the movie world embraces sound.

Cast: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, John Goodman, James Cromwell

Best of: There are plenty of cute moments that work well among the many "look how cute we are, we made a silent film" moments.

Worst of: Ultimately, it is a very gimmicky flick. The emotional highlights fall flat.  It should take more than cute to win an academy award.

Notable quote: "          "

The King's Speech (2010) - 4 Stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: King George VI struggles to overcome a strong stutter with the help of a quirky speech therapist.

Cast: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter.

Best of: Rush and Firth are thrilling to watch with fantastic chemistry.

Worst of: Helena Bonham Carter has never done much for me and that doesn't change with this role.

Notable: The writer of the screenplay, David Seidler, suffered from a stammer as a child.

Also nominated: Inception, The Social Network.

The Hurt Locker (2009) - 4 stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: The life of an army bomb squad in 2004 Iraq.

Starring: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Ralph Fiennes, Christian Camargo, David Morse, Guy Pearce, Evangeline Lilly

Best of: Maybe the most intense movie ever to win the Oscar.

Worst of: It sometimes sways from serious drama into just an action movie. The action-hero heavy metal ending dumbs down the whole movie for me.

Notable: Adjusted for inflation, it is the lowest grossing Oscar winner ever.

Also Nominated: Avatar.

Slumdog Millionaire (2008) - 4 stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: A young man who grew up in the slums of Mumbai does well on a trivia game show and we learn about the life circumstances that allowed him to know each answer.

Starring: Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Anil Kapoor, Irrfan Khan, Madhur Mittal, Saurabh Shukla

Best of: It's rare that Oscar rewards such an all around feel-good movie. The soundtrack is superb...and you can't beat a movie that ends with a random elaborate dance number.

Worst of: Freida Pinto has yet to propose to me.

Notable: He's actually not a millionaire. $20 million rupees is worth a little more than $400,000. Slumdog Thousandaire is a dumb title though.

No Country for Old Men (2007) - 5 stars

One Sentence Plot Summary: If you find $2 million in the arms of a dead drug lord in the middle of the desert - leave it alone.

Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Woody Harrelson, Kelly Macdonald, Garret Dillahunt, Tess Harper, Barry Corbin, Stephen Root, Beth Grant

Best of: Flawless performances from nearly every actor on the screen.

Worst of: I'm still not a huge fan of the ending.

Notable: The Coen Brothers were nominated for 4 Oscars for the film - as producers, directors, editors and writers.

The Departed (2006) - 4 stars

One sentence plot summary: An undercover cop serving as a mole in the Irish Mafia clashes with an Irish Mafia member serving as a mole in the state police department.

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Ray Winstone, Vera Farmiga, Alec Baldwin, Anthony Anderson, James Badge Dale, Kevin Corrigan, David O'Hara

Best of: A stellar cast led by Jack Nicholson at his best.

Worst of: I find most of the musical choices distracting.

Notable: Despite being set in Boston, Jack Nicholson refused to wear a Red Sox cap and wore his New York Yankees hat instead.

Also nominated: Letters from Iwo Jima