Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

Director: Kathryn Bigelow

Starring: Jessica Chastain, Joel Edgerton, Chris Pratt

A chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L.s Team 6 in May 2011.

Based on fact, there’s no question about the importance of this being told. And there’s no denying this is a brilliant film. The entire cast was very good and the film incredibly well made, and very believable. In fact, there’s very little I can fault here – except for the final act: the film’s most crucial moments were so dark that one could hardly make out what was going on. The entire film revolves around finding Osama Bin Laden, and when that moment finally arrived, I sat there thinking “was that it?” Maybe that’s the way it really happened, but it didn’t really translate well dramatically into film. It was still a very good film, though, but must agree this is the type of film I won’t rush into another viewing.

The film received 171 award nominations and won 86.