History alive and kicking at 2013 Oscars

"The idea of taking these very modern problems and seeing them positioned in this noble historical past has been one that, in an odd way, is very comforting," Thompson added.

Not so comforting is "Django Unchained," director Quentin Tarantino's blood-soaked but audacious take on 19th century slavery, filmed in darkly humorous spaghetti Western style.

Spike Lee, one of the nation's most respected black filmmakers, called "Django" disrespectful to his ancestors and vowed not to see it.

"American slavery was not a Sergio Leone spaghetti Western. It was a holocaust," Lee said in a Twitter message in December.

Although the film has divided the African-American community, it has taken an impressive $154 million at the North American box office alone, received five Oscar nods, and sparked new debates about the brutal era of slavery.

No movie has split Americans more this season than "Zero Dark Thirty," which was released less than two years after the May 2011 killing of al Qaeda leader bin Laden by US Navy SEALS.

Attacked by politicians and some activist groups for its portrayal of torture in the decade-long hunt for bin Laden, the film is being promoted in Oscar campaigns as "the most talked-about movie of the year".

CHALLENGES NOT ANSWERS

"Zero Dark Thirty" screenwriter Mark Boal said the film is intended to challenge Americans to ask questions. "It's a story about our time, and our nation, and our role in the world," Boal said in a speech at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles this month. "It contributes to public dialogue about our government and its actions."