Here are the five nominees: (Winner in Bold)
Biggest Snub:
Christopher Nolan – Inception
My Overall Thoughts:
This was a year where two films were neck and neck most of the way thru awards season. Both are based on historical events that have changed the world in vastly diverse ways.
My Rankings:
Directing
5. David O. Russell
4. Darren Aronofsky
3. Ethan Coen & Joel Coen
2. David Fincher
1. Tom Hooper
Movies
5. Black Swan – Another completely incoherent Aronofsky film. I understand that much of it is meant to be a metaphor but why can’t he just tell a straight story like he did in The Wrestler (2008). Despite the craziness of the narrative, Portman is hauntingly great in the lead role. Unfortunately tho, this film as a whole is a complete waste of time.
4. The Fighter – Enjoyable story that works eventhough it meanders a bit too much along the way. The story of Ward is interesting but the story of his brother is even more fascinating and that to me is the part of this story that is more impactful. Wahlberg is his usual self here but Bale really stands out and deservingly won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for this role. Leo is fine as their mother and does a fine job in the role. She also won an Oscar for the role but I’m still not convinced that this was the best supporting actress performance of that year.
3. True Grit – Good film but doesn’t add much to the original film’s premise. Steinfeld is great here and it’s fun watching Bridges, Damon and Brolin. The Coen Brothers always have interesting ways of telling stories and this is no exception, but the truth is that there isn’t much added to this story that would really warrant it being remade besides their more realistic views of violence and the story itself.
2. The Social Network – This movie isn’t as good as many people make it out to be. A bit over-rated. It is still entertaining because it shows that if you can ask the right questions, it doesn’t matter whats true or false.
1. The King’s Speech –Extremely well done movie. Deserving of it’s Best Picture win.The story is put together so well and they get things right from so many different aspects making this truly a collaborative effort. Firth is superb in the lead and did such an amazing job portraying a great character who must try and overcome a personal issue.
Do I agree with the Oscar winner? – Most Definitely! Hooper manages to give us such a great interpretation of a very important event in history that has helped change the way of the world and this film works on so many various levels that helps it make such an impact.
Let me know what you think about these films and my rankings!
MovieRob 
You’re letting your opinion sneak in here Rob. To which you are entitled, of course. But you can’t go putting words and opinions into the mouths of others. I did NOT find Black Swan incoherent, nor did I think that The Social network was “over-rated”. True Grit adds next to nothing to the original’s premise – because BOTH were based on the same novel (which I’ve read BTW) – and it all came down to what the adapters kept, dropped or slightly changed from the source material. Not much. here’s the problem with this thread – you are rightly separating the movie itself from the directed who directed it. Which makes it difficult to actually comment on the overall result – which shows in your separate rankings of each from 1 to 5. Bear in mind – the FULL voting membership of the Academy votes on the nominations for Best Picture -but only the Directors’ Branch nominates directors. That’s how you get a regular misalignment in the nominations and why nothinglines up in a straight line.
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