How would you rank the Academy Award Best Picture winners from the 1970s?

A few months ago, I discussed how I had set out to watch all of the Academy Award winners for Best Picture, in reverse order, starting with the most recent winner and working my way back. I’m pleased to announce today that I recently finished watching all of the winners from the 1970s.

Winners from that decade included Patton (70), The French Connection (71), The Godfather (72), The Sting (73), The Godfather: Part II (74), One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest (75), Rocky (76), Annie Hall (77), The Deer Hunter (78) and Kramer vs. Kramer (79).

This group of 10 movies includes more than a few that I had never seen before, and, as you might have imagined, they were all very good. Which of these movies is the best is a hard question to answer, but what follows is my ranking of the Best Picture winners from 1970 to 1979.

No. 10 - Annie Hall (1977): Directed by and starring Woody Allen, this romantic comedy centers on the twisted relationship between an eccentric comedian and the woman of his dreams. Also starring Diane Keaton, Paul Simon and Christopher Walken, this movie won four Academy Awards and was nominated for another.

No. 9 - Kramer vs. Kramer (1979): Based on the novel of the same name by Avery Corman, this movie centers on the divorce of a young couple in New York and how the divorce affects the couple and their young son. Starring Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep, this movie won five Academy Awards and was nominated for four others.

No. 8 - One Flew Over the Cukoo’s Nest (1975): Based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey, this movie is set in an Oregon mental asylum and focuses on the exploits of Randle Patrick Murphy, who is transferred to the asylum from prison for a mental evaluation. Starring Jack Nicholson, Danny DeVito and Christopher Lloyd, this movie won five Academy Awards and was nominated for four others.

No. 7 - The Sting (1973): Based in part on David Maurer’s book, “The Big Con: The Story of the Confidence Man,” this movie is about two professional con artists who cheat a mob boss with an elaborate con operation. Starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford, this movie won seven Academy Awards and was nominated for three others.

No. 6 - Patton (1970): Based on “Patton: Ordeal and Triumph” by Ladislas Farago and “A Soldier’s Story” by Omar Bradley, is about U.S. General George S. Patton and his service during World War II. Starring George C. Scott and Karl Malden, this movie won seven Academy Awards and was nominated for three others.

No. 5 - The French Connection (1971): Based on the 1969 book, “The French Connection: A True Account of Cops, Narcotics and International Conspiracy” by Robin Moore, this movie centers on New York detectives, “Popeye” Doyle and Buddy “Cloudy” Russo, and their attempt to thwart an international drug deal. Starring Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider, this movie won five Academy Awards and was nominated for three others.

No. 4 - The Deer Hunter (1978): Based in part on “The Man Who Came to Play” by Louis Garfinkle and Quinn K. Redeker, this movie is about a group of West Pennsylvania steel workers and their service as Army infantrymen in the Vietnam War. Starring Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken and Meryl Streep, this movie won five Academy Awards and was nominated for four others.

No. 3 - The Godfather (1972): Based on the 1969 novel of the same name by Mario Puzo, this movie covers the years 1945 to 1955 in the Corleone crime family. Starring Marlon Brando, Al Pacino and Robert Duvall, this movie won three Academy Awards and was nominated for eight others.

No. 2 - Rocky (1976): Written by and starring Sylvester Stallone, this movie is about Rocky Balboa, an uneducated club boxer, who gets a shot at the world heavyweight title. Also starring Burgess Meredith and Carl Weathers, this movie won three Academy Awards and was nominated for seven others.

No. 1 - The Godfather: Part II (1974): Based on the novels of Mario Puzo, this movie includes events before and after the events in the first Godfather movie. Starring Al Pacino, Robert Duvall and Robert De Niro, this movie won six Academy Awards and was nominated for five others.

Half the fun of doing a ranking like this is hearing how readers in the audience would have ranked the same movies? Which of the movies listed above is you favorite and why? How would you rank them one through ten? Let us know in the comments section below.