Past Political Oscar Wins

Political thrillers win big at this year's Oscars. Check out past wins.

ByABC News
February 22, 2013, 4:24 PM

Feb. 22, 2013 -- This year the big winner at the Academy Awards won't be a specific actor or movie, but a whole category of films. Politically-focused movies like Argo, Zero Dark Thirty and Lincoln are all favored to win at least one Oscar category at Sunday's 85th Academy Awards, with a combined total of 24 nominations. In the spirit of political Academy Award winners, here's a look at some of the memorable past Oscar winners across categories:

The Hurt Locker - 2009 (Best Director, Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay)

Before the Zero Dark Thirty hype, Kathryn Bigelow's claim to fame was being the first woman to win an Oscar for best director at the 2009 Academy Awards. Bigelow won the award for directing The Hurt Locker, which was nominated in nine categories and won another two Oscars for best picture and best original screenplay.

The Hurt Locker chronicles the experiences of a three-man explosive ordinance disposal team who were responsible for the destruction of bombs during the Iraq war. Mark Boal, a former embedded journalist, wrote the screenplay as a reflection of his time with an EOD team in 2004.

Since the EOD team does not typically engage in combat, Bigelow and Boal faced criticism from war veterans about inaccurately depicting the protocol and responsibilities of this type of military unit.

Criticism aside, The Hurt Locker vividly framed the concept of war as a dangerous addiction. While the United States was depicted as being symbolically addicted to war through troop deployment, the movie also demonstrated how war led soldiers to become accustomed to an adrenaline-fueled lifestyle which prevented their return to normal civilian life.

Bigelow's method of presenting controversial political topics continues to gain acclaim at this year's Academy Awards with Zero Dark Thirty.

An Inconvenient Truth - 2006 (Best Documentary Feature, Best Original Song)

Typically, a movie about a guy giving a presentation would be anything but riveting let alone controversial, but Al Gore managed to make a blockbuster out of a slideshow with An Inconvenient Truth. The movie won two Academy Awards for best documentary feature and best original song in 2006..

The setup of the movie is simple. Gore takes viewers through the history of the world's climate changes and features experiences from his own life that made him aware of environmental issues. His narrative is paired with pop culture references, detailed photographs and video clips from environmental science experts.

"The world won't 'end' overnight in 10 years," Gore says in the movie. "But a point will have been passed and there will be an irreversible slide into destruction."

Four years away from the limit of Gore's timeframe, the global warming debate still rages on while both Congress and businesses see the public's growing demand for green energy sources.

The former vice president maintains his reputation as a leading climate-change activist and continues to give talks about the subject.