Wednesday Oscar Retrospective: The Real Best Pictures of 2007

Welcome back to a weekly feature here at Movies with Abe, Wednesday Oscar Retrospective. The Real Best Pictures is the seventh in a series of projects looking back at the past eight years of the Oscars, dating back to the first ceremony I watched and closely followed.

For this feature, imagine that an Oscar nomination for Best Picture was cumulative rather than based on votes in just that category. That means taking into account how well a film performed in other categories, and how many Oscars it eventually took home. Like the other series before it, this one is highly speculative, but the point is just to have fun, so chime in with your thoughts in the comments!

And the nominees were… Atonement, Juno, Michael Clayton, No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood

The keepers, no questions: Winner No Country for Old Men was clearly a popular favorite, as were Juno and There Will Be Blood.

The question marks: It garnered all the requisite major nominations, but Michael Clayton wasn’t nearly as beloved in other categories as the other nominees.

The losers: Much as I think its place was deserved, it’s clear that voter enthusiasm for Atonement wasn’t strong enough to merit a secure spot in the top category.

The new inclusions: There were a few films vying for the Best Picture race in 2007, like Sweeney Todd, Into the Wild, and American Gangster. The only one that came anywhere near the top race was The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, with its four major nominations.

The new nominees: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Juno, Michael Clayton, No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood

Come back next week for a look at the Real Best Pictures of 2006!