Ranking The Best Picture Nominees For The Oscars

1: Zero Dark Thirty

If you can see past the controversy that has seemingly swallowed it whole, Kathryn Bigelow’s latest film is a near flawlessly executed historical-thriller, a razor wire of a revenge story strung out over the ten year pursuit of Osama Bin Laden. But it’s those inlayed barbs –the thorny choices of subject matter, and their depiction- that set it apart. Is it a bitter expose of what we sacrificed in the name of justice, or a torture apologia? Is it Bigelow’s job to choose, or ours? There are even arguments to be made that the film’s ambiguity is, itself, a way of picking sides, which sounds completely crazy at first glance, but actually warrants serious consideration.

Beyond marking a shared moment of reflection, and being start-to-finish fantastic in its own right, Zero Dark Thirty is the deserving winner because it’s got people talking, about what we expect from our filmmakers, and our governments.

Which film do you think is going to win best picture? How would you rank the nominees? Let us know in the comments below.