3. Compliance
Nomination deserved: Best Actress - Ann Dowd In one of the more obscure films of the year (and one that took me completely off guard), Ann Dowd turned in one of the most nuanced and layered performances of the year. She stars as fast food restaurant manager Sandra who is ordered by a prank phone call from a "police officer" to interrogate an employee. What makes Ann Dowd's performance so extraordinary is how her character and the said employee are developed. Dreama Walker (in another great performance) is employee Becky, a young, attractive cashier who clearly bumps heads with Sandra. But through fleeting glances and some interesting reactions to Becky, Sandra shows that she may even be a bit jealous of the young beauty. So when Sandra is ordered to carry out some pretty inappropriate and horrific actions, one can only wonder if she is just being compliant or actually enjoying being in a position of power over someone she clearly doesn't jive with. This is a testament to Ann Dowd's fantastically layered performance that deserved much more attention than it got.