With nine Oscar nominations, it has proven a brutal story about the worst degradations of American slavery can attract the biggest accolades Hollywood has to offer.
In particular, seeing Steve McQueen within spitting distance of becoming the first black person to win an Oscar for directing, you feel both a sense of progress for the moment and profound disappointment that such a benchmark would remain untouched in 2014. (That feeling persists for Gravity director Alphonso Cuaron, a Mexican director poised to make a similar achievement for Latinos).
But, as wonderful as it is to see the film's top acting and production talent rewarded for a bracing and informative work, it's worth noting that 2014 was a banner year for films about nonwhite people.
