A “masterpiece” action triller arrived on Netflix this week, and fans hail it as a “edge-of-the-seat thrill ride”. Zero Dark Thirty (2012) dramatises the United States’ decade-long hunt for Osama bin Laden, the former leader of Al-Qaeda, following the terror group’s September 11 attacks on New York City.

Jessica Chastain stars as Maya, a fictional intelligence analyst for the CIA with Brotherhood’s Jason Clarke and Star Wars star Joel Edgerton in supporting roles. The film, directed by Kathryn Bigelow (who won an Oscar for her most famous work, The Hurt Locker), incorporates real-life figures with various fictional elements and was criticised by US lawmakers over its historical accuracy, with claims it erroneously suggested the use of torture was key to eventually tracking bin Laden down.

Nevertheless, it has a strong score 91% score on Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer, which gauges the percentage of positive reviews from approved critics, and is appreciated as a piece of dramatic entertainment by many.

One fan on the site wrote: “No idea how this didn’t win the Best Picture Oscar. The best advert I can give it is that it stands the test of time.

“I’ve seen it about 10 times over the years and each time I see it, I appreciate it more. Jessica Chastain is obviously outstanding, but actually my favourite performance comes from James Gandolfini. Don’t judge it; watch it and enjoy it.”

Another said: “It’s awesome. Better than I thought it would be. The last 50 minutes or so is an edge of the seat thrill ride.”

A third said the film contains “many disturbing moments throughout where it can become unbearable to watch, especially its depictions of torture, which are gruesomely realistic”.

“The tension throughout is high, and the movie never gets boring or repetitive,” they added. “The star-studded cast also makes this movie stand out, with brilliant performances from Chastain and Clarke, though there are many smaller actors that do surprisingly good in this film.”

Another added: “One of my all-time favorite movies. I have watched this movie many times since it first came out.”

They said overall it’s an “entertaining piece of art that serves as a dramatic and emotional masterpiece, and one of the best films to come out of the 2010s”.

The film has a fifteen certificate and contains strong language, violence and scenes of torture – so may not be for everyone.

Zero Dark Thirty is available to stream on Netflix now.