Da 5 Bloods

Terrence Malick adapted James Jones’s 1962 novel, inspired by the author’s experiences serving in World War II’s Guadalcanal campaign, for his first film since his 1978 classic Days of Heaven. Malick assembled an all-star cast (including George Clooney, Nick Nolte and John Travolta) for his unusually contemplative war epic, which received seven Oscar nominations including Directing, Adapted Screenplay (both for Malick) and Best Picture. Nominated composer Hans Zimmer spent nine months working on his evocative score, which he termed the most challenging assignment of his career.

After the killing of Israeli hostages at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, a Mossad agent (Eric Bana) assembles a team to assassinate the men deemed responsible for the murders. Steven Spielberg’s fact-based international thriller is a thoughtful look at the moral costs of violence, with gripping suspense and an impressive supporting cast including Best Actor winner Geoffrey Rush (Shine, 1996), Supporting Actor nominee Ciarán Hinds (Belfast, 2021), and Daniel Craig, shortly before he debuted as James Bond. The film received five Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Directing, and, for John Williams’ music, his 22nd feature score for the director. Williams’s somber, restrained score focused on, in the composer’s words, “the enormous suffering and guilt, and eventually, paranoia” of Bana’s protagonist.

Natalie Portman was nominated for her uncanny performance as Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy in this unusual biopic directed by Pablo Larraín (Maria, 2024). The screenplay by Noah Oppenheim is structured around an interview by a magazine journalist (Billy Crudup) and focuses on key events in the First Lady’s life, especially the assassination of her husband. The film was also nominated for Madeline Fontaine’s authentic costume designs and the unsettling score by Mica Levi (Under the Skin, 2013), which used flutes and strings to evoke its heroine’s combination of vulnerability and resilience.