2010 Oscar Nominees for Best Picture of the Year Revealed at Oscar Announcement Ceremony

The 2010 Oscar nominees for Best Picture mark a specific change from recent history. These 2010 Oscar Best Picture nominees include 10 films instead of the regular five films, broadening the number of films that have a chance to take home Best Picture of the Year. For the Academy of Motion Pictures, this is a return to the way that things were done back in the 1930's and 1940's, when eight to 12 movies could be nominated. In 1934 and 1935, there were actually 12 nominees for Best Picture.

In 1944 the category of Best Picture was limited to five nominations, but due to a change intended to create more interest in the Academy Awards, the 2010 nominees include 10 movies. The 10 films nominated for Best Picture this year are listed on Page 2.

One of the most notable aspects that result from an increase in the number of films being nominated for Best Picture is the sheer number of people that become interested. Recent years have seen a lot of independent films take nominations away from bigger budget films that found wider audiences. By moving to 10 films in the Best Picture category, the opportunity was created to put more "familiar" films on to the ballot. The hope of course, is that it will get more viewers to tune into the live show that care about the categories, and for the Academy to get more in touch with the wide audiences in the United States.

The argument will be made that there are just too many nominees this year, but I think a better way to look at it is that there are more opportunities to create interest in the 2010 Academy Awards ceremony. The alternative way of viewing this increase is that it water's down the Best Picture category, but that shouldn't affect how people decide to vote on their Oscar ballots. Instead, it will give 10 films the chance to shine, and allow voters the chance to see a wider selection of nominees before they submit their final ballots. This way, if a voter has missed one of the films that could be on the cusp of the nominations, they then have a second chance to catch it before the final ballots are due.

This year's nominees for Best Picture are indeed a nice mixture of genres, including action films as well as quiet independent films, and that is the perfect way to split up films in such an awards ceremony. With all of the different genres that are represented in the 2010 Oscar nominations, it will definitely create a great debate on which movies deserve to walk away with a trophy the most. With that being said, the early favorites to win the Best Picture Oscar are Avatar, The Hurt Locker, and Inglourious Basterds. All of these films won major awards coming into the Oscar nominations, and could have a lot of support as a result.

The biggest surprise in the 2010 Oscar nominations was The Blind Side getting a Best Picture nomination, but it was also a bit of a snub that Crazy Heart didn't at least get nominated for the award. This should lead to some interesting voting in the academy with the coming weeks. Best Picture History

The 2010 Best Picture Oscar Nominees

Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
A Serious Man
Up
Up In The Air.

References:

2010 Oscar Nominees

Golden_Globe_Winners

Critics_Choice_Winners

Best Picture History