Hollywood movies that have won the big 5 Oscars

It Happened One Night is a 1934 romantic comedy film that was directed and co-produced by Frank Capra. The plot, based on the short story "Night Bus" by Samuel Hopkins Adams, revolves around a spoiled and pampered heiress Ellen Andrews who elopes against the wishes of her wealthy father to reunite with her new spouse Westley, a fortune hunter, albeit unbeknown to Ellen. While on her way to New York, she meets a struggling reporter Peter Warne on a bus. Upon reconizing Ellen, Peter gives her a choice - if she will give him an exclusive on her story, he will help her reunite with Westley. If not, he will tell her father where she is. As Ellen agrees to the first choice, the duo go through several adventures together and they gradually fall for each other. However, a twist in the tale happens when Ellen's father tracks her down, leaving Ellen broken hearted as she thinks that Peter betrayed her to get the huge sum her father announced as reward in return of Ellen's whereabouts. Ellen's father eventually agrees to get her married to Westley, although Ellen is no longer willing to do so. Peter comes to meet Ellen's father on her wedding day, but instead of the reward money, he walks away with just the amount he spent of her during the few days they were together. What remains to be seen is whether Ellen and Peter can bury the hatchet and admit their love for each other.

The film features Claudette Colbert in the role of Ellen and Clark Gable as Peter, both of whom bagged Oscars respectively in the Best Actress and Best Actor categories. The screenplay of the film was written by Robert Riskin who won Oscar in the category of "Best Writing, Adaptation". Frank Capra won the Best Director award, and the film itself bagged the Best Picture award.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a 1975 comedy-drama film directed by Miloš Forman, based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey. The plot of the film revolves around a criminal, Randle Patrick McMurphy, who gets sentenced by the court. However, to escape labor duties in prison, McMurphy pleads insanity and is sent to a mental institution for evaluation. Although he assumed it will be a less restrictive environment, he is proved wrong upon meeting the martinet Nurse Ratched who runs the psychiatric ward with an iron fist, keeping her patients cowed through abuse, medication and sessions of electroconvulsive therapy. The rest of the story follows how McMurphy and the other inmates join hands to make a rebellious stance against the oppressive nurse.

The film stars Jack Nicholson as the male lead and Louise Fletcher as the female lead, both of whom bagged Oscars respectively in the Best Actor and Best Actress categories. Laurence Hauben and Bo Goldman won the award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Miloš Forman won the Best Director award, and the film itself bagged the Best Picture award.

The film was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing and Original Music Score categories.

The Silence of the Lambs is a 1991 psychological thriller film directed by Jonathan Demme and adapted from the 1988 novel of the same name by Thomas Harris. The plot of film revolves around a Young FBI agent Clarice Starling who is assigned to help find a missing woman and save her from a psychopathic serial killer nicknamed "Buffalo Bill", who skins his female victims' corpses. In order to do so Clarice gets in touch with Hannibal Lecter, a former psychiatrist and incarcerated cannibalistic serial killer, with an hope that the insight into the twisted mind of the killer might prove useful in the pursuit of the serial killer.

The film stars Jodie Foster as Clarice and Anthony Hopkins as Dr Hannibal Lecter, both of whom bagged Oscars respectively in the Best Actress and Best Actor categories. Ted Tally won the award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Jonathan Demme won the Best Director award, and the film itself bagged the Best Picture award.

The film was also nominated for Best Film Editing and Best Sound Mixing categories.