Oscar Winner 2010: Best Picture: The Hurt Locker

The winner of the 2010 Academy Award for Best Picture goes to The Hurt Locker. Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, and the cast accepted the award and boy were they excited. Bigelow held both her Best Director and Best Picture Oscars in her hands and thanked all those who believed in the film when so many people didn’t. They also once again mentioned the men and women serving in the military to protect our country. Such a monumental night for records to be broken and history to be made.

See who they beat out this year in the Best Picture category…

The nominees for Best Picture were:

• Avatar
• The Blind Side
• District 9
• An Education
• The Hurt Locker
• Inglourious Basterds
• Precious
• A Serious Man
• Up
• Up in the Air

Avatar – Avatar centers on an ex-Marine who submerges himself into the culture of an alien race. With the help of his Avatar body, he is able to adapt to his new environment even though he’s still present in his human mind. Jake Sully is the lead character as played by Sam Worthington, while Zoe Saldana is featured as his love interest, Neyteri.

The Blind Side – Based on the humble beginnings of Michael Oher, an abandoned inner city kid who’s mother is a drug addict and father is no where to be found. A family friend finds a way to enter him into an upscale private school due to his size and athletic ability. While there he struggles with his grades, sleeps in the gym, and wears the same outfit on a daily basis. During a rainy walk from school, he’s discovered by the Tuohy family and slowly becomes a permanent staple in their lives. Throughout his stay, he’s given a tutor to help with his studies, a shot a college education, and a chance to play professional football in the NFL.

District 9 – A group of alien refugees who land in South Africa. A giant corporation is trying to reveal the technology behind their weapons, but they need alien DNA to unlock the mystery. A man contracts a strange virus, and he turns out to be the key to understanding the aliens weaponry. The only place the man can hide is in District 9.

An Education – A coming-of-age story set in the 1960’s about a teenage girl who lives in the suburbs of London. Her life is turned into a dream when a charming playboy nearly twice her age shows up and changes her life forever.

The Hurt Locker – An intense portrayal of elite soldiers who have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world: disarming bombs in the heat of combat. When a new sergeant, James (Jeremy Renner), takes over a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst violent conflict, he surprises his two subordinates, Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Eldridge (Brian Geraghty), by recklessly plunging them into a deadly game of urban combat. James behaves as if he’s indifferent to death. As the men struggle to control their wild new leader, the city explodes into chaos, and James’ true character reveals itself in a way that will change each man forever.

Inglourious Basterds – Set during WWII in Nazi-occupied France, where a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” are sent in to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by killing Nazis in as many obscene ways as possible.

Precious – (Based on the novel Push by Sapphire) Precious is set in Harlem. The story centers around an overweight, illiterate teen who is pregnant with her second child, who is invited to enroll in an alternative school in hopes that her life can head in a new direction.

A Serious Man – The story centers around Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg), a Midwestern professor who watches his life unravel when his wife prepares to leave him because her brother-in-law won’t move out.

Up – The film is about 78-year-old Carl Fredricksen who embarks on an adventure to South America by tying thousands of balloons to his house and allowing his house to float down south. Midair, Carl receives a knock at his door and discovers 8-year-old Russell on his front porch.

Up in the Air - The story centers on a corporate downsizing expert (George Clooney) who travels all over the US in pursuit of more opportunities to fire people. As he approaches the 10-million frequent flyer miles milestone and meets the frequent-flying woman of his dreams (Vera Farmiga), his cherished lifestyle is threatened as his company wants to move him to headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska.

Further Reading:

• List of Oscar Winning Films – Best Director Winners
• List of Oscar Winning Films – Best Picture Winners
• List of Oscar Winning Films – Best Original Screenplay
• List of Oscar Winning Films – Best Adapted Screenplay