And this year's 'Best Directed Film' goes to ...

Rating: Null/10 (12 January 2004)

We saw this film at the last moment and hadn't read any reviews
prior to taking our seats. Despite its length and simple story line,
this is a compelling and beatifully crafted movie. The characters
are well played and the batle sequences quite remarkable. I
imagine that this is just the kind of well made epic, well grounded
in American history, that will go down a storm at the Oscars. I
haven't seen the Tolkein movies but I wouldn't mind betting that it'll
be the stunning films without stunning special effects that win the
day. In the case of Cold Mountain, it will be thoroughly well
deserved.