Katherine Bigelow

The best news from the Oscars was that Katherine Bigelow won for best director. The Hurt Locker was far superior than Avatar but was not, in my opinon, the best film, or had the best original screenplay, both of which also won an Oscar. A film documenting the last 34 days of a tour of duty for a bomb disposal team had no plot or story of any description. But what it did have was masses of nerve jangling tension, and it was the direction of Katherine Bigelow that transported the movie to greatness.

I have always loved her films. Blue Steel was the first of her thrillers and the excellent Point Break is notorious for making even Keanu Reeves look good. But I will always remember her best for Strange Days, a terrific Millennium sci fi thriller. But it was K19-Widowmaker that was such a flop ( although I thought it was OK) that Katherine had to wait seven years before her next, and Oscar winning movie. Best Director? Of course.