3 Best Picture Oscar Nominees are playing at Marshall Cinema

This week Marshall Cinema will be screening not one, not two, but three of the Best Picture Oscar nominated films. The political and historical drama "Lincoln" and the musical adaption of the long time Broadway sensation "Les Misérables" will open in Marshall Friday evening. The slavery-era western "Django Unchained" will mark its second week at Marshall Cinema.

All three films were announced yesterday as three of the nine contenders for the Best Picture of 2012 by the Academy of Film Arts and Sciences, which awards the Oscars annually, thought to be one of the most prestigious film awards. Each film was recently reviewed in this column, all receiving high accolades from this critic.

Reviews are available in the archives of this column.

Initial reports by entertainment experts site "Lincoln" as the frontrunner to win the Best Picture Oscar, with Steven Spielberg likely to win Best Director for his work on the film and Daniel Day-Lewis to win as Best Actor for his performance as the 16th President of the United States. The movie about the passing of the 13th Amendment leads the Oscar race with a total of twelve nominations. "Les Misérables" has eight nominations, including nods for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress. "Django Unchained" has five nominations, including Best Supporting Actor and Best Original Screenplay. There may not be a better weekend to see a movie in Marshall than this one.