We are 79 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards and today we discuss the rise and fall of a somewhat fake but mostly real (but still fake) American politician named Willie Stark in 1949's All the King's Men.


Willie Stark is the governor of a fictional and unnamed American state that is stealthily set in Stockton, California.  He is a stand-in for the very real politician Huey Long - the polarizing social Democrat from 1920s Louisiana.  Known for his commitment to wealth redistribution and helping the poor - he also ran the state as the closest thing we've seen to an American dictator; full of corruption and self-enrichment.  All men a king, but no one wears a crown... except for him.  This real life persona was adapted by Robert Penn Warren into a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, which then became All the King's Men.  It's an American political drama that definitely doesn't remind us of anything else - but how does it hold up in the Best Picture canon?


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• Deep history from our resident Huey Long apologist
• How nearly 75% of this movie was left on the cutting room floor
• What a Huey Long rap would have sounded like
• Which Real Housewives city each character would have been in 

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 80 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards and this week we ask:  To Brainrot?  Or not to Brainrot?  That is the question.  'Tis better to have Brainrotted and lost than... wait.  Wrong one.  This is 1948's Hamlet, the winner of the 21st Academy Awards.


We welcome back our friend from Rebecca, Laurence Olivier; he has redefined himself as a Shakespearean thespian, perhaps THE Shakespearean thespian at least until Kenneth Branagh and Baz Luhrmann come around.  This is one of many of his adaptations, but undoubtedly the most successful, taking home 4 Oscars, including Picture and Best Actor for himself.  It's the story of a Danish prince, told arguably by recasting all the characters as lions and jungle animals - so how does a classic human-led Shakespeare fare with the Brainrot crew?


 In this episode you're gonna hear:

• All of our histories with and feelings on Shakespeare
• Why it does or doesn't make sense how much Taylor Swift is entranced with the character of Ophelia
• How the British dominated the 21st Academy Awards in a sharp denial of American studios
• A return of the Brainrot summary - this time for the story of Hamlet

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 81 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards and this week it's time for a very special episode.  Like the Oscars in the late 40s, we are here to talk about antisemitism, and will do so through the lens of the well-meaning Gentleman's Agreement.


There's something to be said about earnest tackling of social issues by movies; they can uncover real rifts within society, attemping to diagnose and even heal them where possible.  However, in this movie we have a non-Jewish character pretending to be Jewish to write an article about it.  It was based on a best-selling novel at the time, and it came out right after World War II, contemporary with the founding of Israel.  One could argue that it's heart is in the right place - but how much weight does that carry for the Brainrot crew?


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• How antisemitism has remained a pervasive issue in both America and the world, and how it still affects people today
• Why Gregory Peck feels like a new era of movie star (it's because he's tall)
• Just how much this movie feels like an after-school special
• Our Second Brainrot Oscars, honoring the 11th-20th Best Picture Winners

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 82 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards and for a second time, the gang is Wylin' out.  William Wyler returns to the World War II well with another homefront war drama - but this one focuses on American veterans coming home.  This is 1946's The Best Years of Our Lives.


In the vaguely Midwestern town of Boone City, three veterans return home from World War II, each one bringing new outlooks on life, insecurities, and in some cases, physical disabilities.  They have to quickly adapt to being home again and find their place in a world that now feels foreign and in many ways, hostile, towards them.  Ultimately this is an emotional epic on a surprisingly small scale, and features a lot to love - but did it hit the mark for everyone here?


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• Deep lore on a large and impressive cast of characters
• How William Wyler is quickly becoming a new favorite director for Sarah
• Nostalgia for the soda fountain aesthetic
• A new featured voice on the Brainrot crew!

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 83 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards and it's... 5 'o clock somewhere!  Join hic Adam, Drew, and Sarah as they wash down last year's feel-good comedy with an unrelenting alcoholic drama; 1945's The Lost Weekend.



Don Birnam is a man with a problem - a post-Prohibition alcohol addiction that comes to a head on one specific weekend.  Instead of going on a rehabilitative retreat with his brother, Don goes on a bender; with a saga that twists in his backstory with his current downfall.  It may simultaneously be one of the darkest and the most weirdly artistic movies we've covered thus far - but does that go over smooth or bitter with the crew?


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• The most polarizing scores we've seen so far for a movie
• Which other major film award this movie was the first ever recipient of
• How The Lost Weekend is "a masterclass in visual storytelling"
• A drinking game you can play to get in the action with Don Birnam

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 84 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards and it's time Adam, Drew, and Sarah got a little bit... Catholic.  We're not following the standard path today, no, we're Going My Way - 1944's intergenerational comedy of a Best Picture Winner.


There's a war going on?  Is what the good folk of 1944 probably asked as they laughed their way through this story of a young priest who shows up to a failing church and has to take over.  Father O'Malley and Father Fitzgibbon have nothing in common besides the cloth - one of them loves golf, and the other needs to have his tummy rubbed before beddy bye because he just gets so grumpy.  This may be one of the most quirky Best Picture Winners thus far and one of the most out of sync with the tone of the world - but that's why it's a fascinating flick for the Brainrotters to take on.


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• Why CODA is the perfect modern comparison for Going My Way
• A spirited debate between the three Abrahamic religions
• Stories of how golf addiction both ruined and enhanced Bing Crosby's life
• About a lad named Tony Scaponi, perhaps the best character we've seen on the pod

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 85 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards; follow Adam, Drew, and Sarah as they travel to unoccupied France to escape the Nazi takeover of mainland Europe.  Of course to get out they need to go through... Casablanca, 1943's iconic Best Picture Winner.


Back to back World War II movies isn't a surprise - though Casablanca bucks a bit of the optimistic patriotism of Mrs. Miniver for the cynical worldview of Rick, the owner of the American Cantina (I mean, Cafe) in French Morocco's most important city.  When a dame from his past arrives with her male traveling partner - Rick has to reassess the events in his life and choose the kind of man he wants to be.  Of pre-1950s movies, this joins Gone With the Wind in the list of "Best Picture Winners your average casual has heard of."  It's certainly an iconic film - but does it hit for the Brainrot gang?


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• Just how many Frances there were in World War II
• If the height of cinephiles is a debatable topic
• Which early 2000's-era star was going to be cast in a remake of this movie
• More Star Wars references taking hold, but at least this time we're talking about A New Hope

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 86 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards; follow Adam, Drew, and Sarah as they hang out with a particular British housewife by the name of Mrs. Miniver, the winner of 1942's Best Picture Oscar.


Step aside World War I - your time is up.  There's a new World War in town and this one has villains with killer fashion sense.  We appreciate your contributions but frankly my dear (wrong reference) you're old news.  On it's surface, Mrs.Miniver appears to be a WWII-version of pod-villain Cavalcade, though I can say with confidence that none of these future winners would hold the title of a certain German leader's favorite movie.  However, diving a bit deeper what we found was a wholesome family living in the British homestead in the early days of the war.  How wholesome was it?  Let's see what the Brainrot gang thinks.


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• How World War II gives us the iconic cinematic villains the world could rally against
• The story of Greer Garson, one of the 1940's most successful actresses
• A knowledge drop about inter-war propoganda ranging from WWII to Vietnam
• Our choice to retire the podcast to make Mrs. Miniver fan-edits of her punching Nazis

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 87 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards; follow Adam, Drew, and Sarah as the answer the question all of us have been thinking:  How Green Was My Valley?  Of course that is the name of 1941's Best Picture winner.


Wale, Wale, Wale, what do we have here?  A valley huh?  How green is it?  Oh, not that green?  Covered with coal soot actually?  Oh Wale...  That's it.  That's the movie.  It's a pretty even-keeled coming-of-age story for a young lad named Huw who comes from a coal mining family.  Directed by legend John Ford it contains a lot of his hallmarks - growth, love, loss, and worker's rights.  This is considered a bit of a controversial winner by cinema snobs - what does the Brainrot crew think of it?


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• A history of Wales and it's coal-mining roots (or seams)
• Robust discussion on a completely different Best Picture nominee, much to Drew's chagrin
• Why solving problems with violence is good, and awesome, sometimes
• So many Phantom Menace references.  Seriously you are not ready for the amount of times we reference The Phantom Menace.

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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We are 88 weeks away from the 100th Academy Awards; follow Adam, Drew, and Sarah as they get a little Hitchcockian and meet the winner of 1940's Best Picture - Rebecca.



We find ourselves in the hangover year from Gone With the Wind with Rebecca, another dark love story - but one where we trade American aesthetic for European sensibility, large scale for intimacy, and sweeping color for black and white cinematography at its best.  Rebecca tells the tale of a whirlwind romance across class barriers that sees our nameless heroine become the wife of the luxurious de Winter estate; but the lingering memory of Max de Winter's deceased wife (you'll never guess her name) threatens to derail it all.  If you're a fan of Hitchcock, you've likely seen, and enjoyed, Rebecca; but will the Brainrot crew's takes introduce a new twist?


In this episode you're gonna hear:

• How Hitchcock's Catholic upbringing informed his film catalogue
• Our thoughts on falling in love on vacation
• If therapy-speak may actually have a legitimate place in this movie
• Which current pop icon we are surprised hasn't made a song about this movie (shoutout this being the 13th winner)

Follow us @bestpicturebrainrotpodcast as we keep delving into Oscars history with a brainrot spin

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