30 Greatest Best Picture Oscar Nominees Of The Last Ten Years

The 2017 Best Picture line-up was very good overall and the best for a few years; one of its finest inclusions was Kenneth Lonergan's fantastic bereavement drama, Manchester By the Sea.

Bereavement and grief are common themes throughout cinema, yet few films have tackled this subject better than this film. What sets this particular movie apart is that it avoids the easy resolutions and manipulative melodrama of many similar movies and instead goes for a far more authentic, realistic approach that hits so much harder.

In general, Manchester is a masterpiece of a screenplay with few equals in recent American cinema, and it netted Lonergan a well-deserved Oscar for his efforts.

As raw, harrowing and emotionally devastating the film may be, thanks to the brilliance of the writing, the fantastic acting (particularly from lead Casey Affleck, Lucas Hedges and Michelle Williams) and Kenneth Lonergan's terrific direction (which does a superb job of making a very dialogue-based screenplay cinematically engaging), it will ultimately leave you feeling alive.

It's among the most depressing films of recent years - although, strangely enough, it is actually very funny at times, which further adds to the film's life-like tone - and it's probably going to be too depressing to watch again, but once is enough. This is not a film that leaves you.