‘American Sniper’
Nominated war film scripts tend to wrestle a complex skein of public events into coherence while giving some thought to warrior psychology. Hall’s probing of Chris Kyle’s career fits squarely within the acclaimed “Hurt Locker” tradition.
‘Gone Girl’
Protecting the smash “who-done-what?” thriller’s perspectives and twists was one of the year’s diciest screenwriting mandates. You have to hand it to a newcomer for taking it on so effectively, especially since it was the novelist herself, toiling in a wholly different medium.
‘The Imitation Game’
The writers’ branch loves puzzle movies (“Memento,” “The Usual Suspects”) and this one’s fun to play along with. It also could be the best evocation of a beautiful scientific mind since — well, since the 2002 award-winning “A Beautiful Mind.”
‘Inherent Vice’
The much-nominated PTA ingeniously discovers a navigable through-line within the novel’s picaresque noir doings, and has a shimmering secondary character serve as mouthpiece for Thomas Pynchon’s verbal hijinks. None of that is easy.
‘Into the Woods’
Tightening his own libretto into two enchanting hours, Lapine mollifies Sondheimistas, who generally object to so much as a syllable being touched. His cuts and changes have been largely lauded by tuner fans, many of whom are in the voting ranks.
‘Rosewater’
As writer-director, the media darling garnered near-unanimous praise for this intense true story of a journalist’s detention in Iran. Recognition of a first-timer’s job well done typically comes in this category.
‘Still Alice’
Much emotional truth and little melodrama in this depiction of family chaos as a mom’s mind breaks down. The personal sidelight of Glatzer’s own ALS battle is intriguing, but the work speaks for itself.
‘The Theory of Everything’
Taking a cue from Stephen Hawking’s ideas about reversing time to discover how the universe was created, McCarten playfully explores what time does to loving individuals while the search goes on. A sophisticated take on an unusual love story.
‘Unbroken’
Many cooks stirred this potent pot of “survival, resilience and redemption,” as it’s billed. But what a lineup of chefs! With 15 writing noms among them, pedigree alone could successfully propel this script into the hunt.
‘Wild’
Script honors its source by finding cinematic equivalents for Cheryl Strayed’s stream-of-consciousness leaps, even as it maintains the straight-line narrative of her wilderness adventure.