Critics' Groups

Inside the New York Film Critics Circle Awards Fete

John Anderson — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 19:25:30 GMT

The critics groups always take it on the chin during awards season, partly because they’re compelled to play in a sandbox not their own: They are writers, not performers, or public speakers or — intentionally, at least — stand-up comedians. So when they start handing out prizes at the various bauble-o-thons conducted during the pre-Oscar period, the perils of wind-baggery abound.

That said, Monday night’s New York Film Critics Circle show (if that’s the word) was a model of elegance and brevity, orchestrated and conducted by Star magazine’s Marshall Fine, chairman of the group (of which this writer is a member) and who — despite having to sidestep the occasional bus boy running across the stage at Tao Downtown — pulled it off with aplomb. No painful jokes, no awkward silences, no faux pas (save for a derisive reference to the upcoming “Ride Along 2,” a joke that seemed to evoke its own snort of derision from Samuel L. Jackson, who was on hand to help accept a special award to composer Ennio Morricone, of “The Hateful Eight” and 1,000 other films). No, the weirdness was all on the part of the presenters and/or awardees.

With documentarian Frederick Wiseman unable/unwilling to leave Paris for a 15-degree Manhattan, actress/activist Susan Sarandon was recruited to present his award, which made some sense — Wiseman’s “In Jackson Heights,” for all its lack of narration or subtitles, is a loud, bold statement about real American values (democracy, equality, opportunity), issues Sarandon has always been about. In addition, she spent part of her childhood living in the Queens neighborhood portrayed in the film — something we heard far more about than the issues Wiseman pursues in the film, which Sarandon may or may not have actually seen, but certainly hadn’t digested, because the best doc winner was the last thing she wanted to talk about, or was able to focus on.

This had its upside — especially when the following presenter, Kevin Kline, took the stage to present the cinematography award to “Carol’s” esteemed Ed Lachman, and promised not to talk about himself (“like Susan”) although he then proceeded to talk about himself in a digression-riddled address that included actorly quotations in Latin (which he then promised not to continue “ad nauseam”), all to considerable comic effect, and much of it at Sarandon’s expense.

The evening was something of a “Carol” love fest — Todd Haynes is not only America’s best filmmaker but New York’s, and there was a distinct sense of honoring one’s own, as the podium was visited by screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, Lachman and the best picture winner’s three producers — Christine Vachon, who was great; Elizabeth Karlsen, who seemed to forget she was in a room full of people who probably knew as much about her movie as she did; and Stephen Woolley, who said he wasn’t going to make a speech and then did. Haynes himself delivered the most moving words of the evening, many of them directed at Vachon, with whom he has worked for most of his career.

Kristen Stewart? Oh yes, she was there, and depending on how you receive her slightly disorganized persona, seemed to this listener to be among the more sincere honorees of the evening, offering up praise for her “Clouds of Sils Maria” director, Olivier Assayas, and acknowledging the incongruity of her presence at a group so (allegedly) elevated as the NYFCC. The best supporting actress honoree was self-effacing in the best possible way, and awkwardly charming.

Less awkward but just as charming was Saoirse Ronan, honored as best actress for “Brooklyn,” who parlayed her birthplace (The Bronx, a.k.a. the undeclared 33rd county of Ireland) into a coming home of sorts; Liam Neeson, who presented to Ronan, drew a parallel between the young actress and the recently deceased Maureen O’Hara, another Irish import and portrayer of strong women. And even if O’Hara was never the actress Ronan is, Neeson had done his homework.

Nathan Lane not so much. When you address a room full of 1) film critics 2) their long-suffering spouses/partners/guests 3) industry professionals and 4) the people IN the movies, you can safely assume your audience has a certain level of awareness about the films and people to whom you are giving out awards. Lane is not a performing monkey — he doesn’t have to be funny on command. But he might have done more than read what seemed to be “Carol’s” entry on Wikipedia. “The Wikipedia entry is shorter,” someone muttered, following Lane’s passion-free presentation.

All in all, though, people were appropriately adoring, appreciative and/or grateful — best actor Michael Keaton, for example, who emphasized several times how grateful he was, while also being quite frank about how pleased he was with himself (he was funny about it, not crowing like a birdman). Paul Haggis put an appropriately political-flavored introduction on the foreign film award to “Timbuktu,” the lovely, powerful anti-fascist drama by Mauritanian director Abderrahmane Sissako, who was not on hand. Neither was best supporting actor Mark Rylance (“Bridge of Spies”) whose Broadway colleague David Hyde Pierce gave a stirring appreciation of one of America’s finest actors — a fact well-known to theater-goers, less so to movie-goers (although now that Steven Spielberg has him, that’ll change). One of the sweeter moments was Criterion chief Peter Becker’s acceptance of a special award to his father, William, and Janus Films, two subjects about which no one needed an explanation. Not in this room.

National Society of Film Critics Gives Best Picture to Oscar Frontrunner 'Spotlight' UPDATED

Anne Thompson — Sun, 03 Jan 2016 20:19:36 GMT

Always among the last critics' groups out of the gate, the National Society of Film Critics, with 45 voting members from around the country, gave Tom McCarthy's “Spotlight” Best Picture and Best Screenplay Sunday. Oscar ballots are open for voting (if not already submitted), so these awards could move some still unwatched films up in Academy members' screener piles.

As late-breaking "Creed" and "45 Years" come up on the outside in the Oscar race, the NSFC awarded Michael B. Jordan Best Actor and Charlotte Rampling Best Actress, respectively. Supporting Actor yet again went to Brit thespian Mark Rylance for Steven Spielberg's "Bridge of Spies." And "Clouds of Sils Maria" Cesar-winner Kristen Stewart took another Supporting Actress prize.

"Carol" won Best Director for Todd Haynes, and in a year for superb cinematography, winner Ed Lachman looks like a lock for an Oscar nomination for “Carol.”

Best Foreign-Language Film, again, went to last year's Oscar nominee from Mauritania, "Timbuktu," released in 2015, while Best Non-Fiction Film was awarded to Asif Kapadia's "Amy."

Los Angeles Film Critics Vote (UPDATED)

Anne Thompson — Sun, 06 Dec 2015 23:46:00 GMT

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) hammered out their year-end awards this Sunday. The question each year is whether they will repeat the New York Film Critics Circle picks or go a different way. The West Coast critics tends to go in a more studio-mainstream direction, but not always. This year they went with an indie, Tom McCarthy's journalism expose "Spotlight" (Open Road), considered to be the Oscar frontrunner, for Best Film of 2015, as well as Best Screenplay.

Actors Charlotte Rampling ("45 Years") and Michael Fassbender ("Steve Jobs") and supporting players Michael Shannon ("99 Homes") and Alicia Vikander ("Ex Machina") advanced in their respective bids for Oscar slots.

READ MORE: New York Film Critics Push Faves in Awards Season, 'Carol' Wins Four

The NYFCC threw four wins at Todd Haynes' "Carol," which took home Best Score with the LAFCA, while George Miller's "Mad Max: Fury Road" took a total of three LAFCA wins including Best Director. In an upset, "Anomalisa" won Best Animation over "Inside Out," while Foreign Film went to "Son of Saul," consolidating its position as a frontrunner.

Two Boston critics' groups also split between "Spotlight" and "Fury Road."

The Los Angeles critics already announced a well-deserved Career Achievement award for "Lawrence of Arabia" editor and Academy Governor Anne V. Coates, who also crafted the sexy "Out of Sight" and "Unfaithful" and most recently, helped out with "Fifty Shades of Grey."

Last year LAFCA gave "Boyhood' four awards (Best Picture, Best Director Richard Linklater, Actress Patricia Arquette, who went on to win Supporting Actress at the Oscars, and Editing). Past winners are here. Each critic's vote was weighted: their first choice is worth 3 points, second, 2 points, third, 1 point.

The awards will be presented at a Los Angeles ceremony on January 9.

LAFCA AWARDS

Best Film: "Spotlight"
Runner-up: "Mad Max: Fury Road"
Both are mighty Oscar contenders. "Spotlight" has strong support from actors and writers, while "Fury Road" gets everybody else.

New Generation Award: Ryan Coogler ("Creed")
The writer-director broke out with Sundance hit "Fruitvale Station" two years ago. But this helps his bid for awards contention with "Creed," with both Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone gaining ground in acting races.

Best Foreign Language Film: "Son of Saul"
Runner-up: “The Tribe”
One is the Oscar frontrunner, while the other was submitted by the Ukraine last year and opened in theaters in 2015.

Best Actress: Charlotte Rampling ("45 Years")

Runner-up: Saoirse Ronan ("Brooklyn")
Both are strong contenders in the Oscar race.

Best Director: George Miller ("Mad Max: Fury Road")

Runner-up: Todd Haynes ("Carol")
These two films duked it out throughout the voting, with "Fury Road" coming out on top for the most part. Both will be in contention for multiple Oscars including Best Picture and Director.

Best Animation: "Anomalisa."

Runner-up: "Inside Out."
The critics have obviously decided to make a push for "Anomalisa," assuming Pixar Oscar frontrunner "Inside Out" is in good shape.

Best Actor: Michael Fassbender ("Steve Jobs")

Runner-up: Géza Röhrig ("Son of Saul")
Fassbender is expected to land an Oscar nomination, but debuting actor Röhrig, a New York poet, needs critics' attention to gain traction for the Hungarian Oscar entry from Sony Pictures Classics.

Best Screenplay: Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy ("Spotlight")
Runner-up: Charlie Kaufman, ("Anomalisa")
The original screenplay Oscar is "Spotlight" by a mile. "Anomalisa" has a good shot as an adapted screenplay with the writer's branch.

Best Documentary: "Amy"
Runner Up: "The Look of Silence"
It looks like these two films are duking it out for wins; "The Look of Silence" (Drafthouse), Joshua Oppenheimer's sequel to "The Act of Killing," took home the Gotham and IDA Award, while Asif Kapadia's "Amy" (A24) won the Boston Society of Film Critics.

Best Supporting Actress: Alicia Vikander ("Ex Machina")

Runner-up: Kristen Stewart ("Clouds of Sils Maria")
Vikander has been considered a strong contender in this category for Focus Features' "The Danish Girl," which is consciously omitted here in favor of A24's "Ex Machina"; IFC hasn't been pushing NYFCC-winner Stewart, but may have to now.

Best Editing: Hank Corwin ("The Big Short")

Runner-up: Margaret Sixel ("Mad Max: Fury Road")
If "The Big Short' is a contender in any category it's this one. "Fury Road" is already in.

Best Production Design: Colin Gibson ("Mad Max: Fury Road")
Runner-up: Judy Becker ("Carol")
Both are strong Oscar contenders.

Best Supporting Actor: Michael Shannon ("99 Homes")

Runner-up: Mark Rylance ("Bridge of Spies”)

This will help boost both into serious contention in a crowded field, but more people will wind up viewing Steven Spielberg's "Bridge of Spies" (Disney/DreamWorks) than indie "99 Homes" (Broad Green).

Best Cinematography: John Seale (“Mad Max: Fury Road”)
Runner-up: Edward Lachman (“Carol”)

Both could wind up with Oscar noms, but the category is crammed with outstanding work this year.

Best Music Score: Carter Burwell (“Anomalisa” and “Carol”)
Runner-up: Ennio Morricone (“The Hateful Eight”)

Burwell is long overdue for a nomination (and has two films in contention this year), while veteran Morricone, who Quentin Tarantino has long been sampling, is back with his first western score in 40 years.

Screen Talk: Status Update on Awards Race, Top 10 Lists

Anne Thompson — Fri, 04 Dec 2015 16:56:04 GMT

Eric Kohn and I share three films on our respective ten best lists, and amazingly, have the same number one! We'll be posting our lists soon. We start off assessing who comes out ahead and behind after the Gotham Awards, Oscar Doc Shortlist, National Board of Review, and New York Film Critics Circle.

New York Film Critics Push Faves in Awards Season, 'Carol' Wins Four (ANALYSIS)

Anne Thompson — Wed, 02 Dec 2015 18:24:10 GMT

The New York Film Critics Circle has always been willing to zig where others zag, allowing new faces to enter the awards fray. Their stamp of approval adds cred. Clearly, the critics are not thinking only in terms of their impact on other awards voters, as they selected 2014 Oscar contender "Timbuktu" as their best foreign film, a worthy movie that was released in theaters in 2015, as many foreign entries often are. (Clearly, not all critics love lauded hard-hitting Holocaust drama "Son of Saul," Hungary's Oscar entry, which had to settle for the First Film prize.)

As expected, the New York critics showered love on Todd Haynes' "Carol," awarding it Best Film, Director, Screenplay and Cinematography. So far so good for The Weinstein Co. release, which shared a Best Actress nod for Rooney Mara in Cannes and hasn't looked back, pulling art house audiences even during a challenging box office period.

The NYFCC were also not looking at who has an awards campaign behind them, as they chose as Best Supporting Actress Kristen Stewart, who I thought was a shoo-in Oscar contender for her Cesar-winning performance in "Clouds of Sils Maria" until IFC Films decided only to campaign for writer-director Olivier Assayas' screenplay. Hopefully they will reconsider now.

Too often, consensus pushes only a few gathering snowballs forward, leaving many deserving possibilities behind. Rather than go with presumed Oscar frontrunner Brie Larson ("Room"), the NYFCC chose Irish actress and New York resident Saoirse Ronan for her role as an Irish emigre "Brooklyn." These critics do have influence. Last year they gave Best Actress to "The Immigrant" and "Two Days, One Night" star Marion Cotillard, who had been overlooked by the Oscars since she won for "La Vie en Rose," and the French star wound up with an Oscar nomination. Arguably, without the NYFCC that would not have happened.

On the other hand, last year's NYFCC Best Actor nod for Cannes-winner Timothy Spall ("Mr. Turner") did not demonstrably move the needle in a more competitive Oscar category. This year the critics gave Michael Keaton of "Spotlight" the Best Actor slot they denied him last year for "Birdman," perhaps an indication that the stars will now shine on him after his Oscar loss. Per the wishes of the "Spotlight" ensemble, Open Road is campaigning all the cast (really, Keaton, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel McAdams) in supporting. So again, the NYFCC is stepping out of the box, as the Hollywood Foreign Press did when they assigned "Carol" star Rooney Mara and Alicia Vikander of "The Danish Girl" Best Actress status.

Supporting Actor went to British theater thespian Mark Rylance, who shined in "Wolf Hall" on television this year, for his role as an imprisoned Communist spy in Steven Spielberg's Cold War thriller "Bridge of Spies." This gives him a needed boost going forward in a crowded field.

Last year, the NYFCC's consensus vote for best screenplay for Wes Anderson's March release "The Grand Budapest Hotel" presaged a surge of support among Oscar voters for that film, which scored nine nominations and four wins. And the critics awarded "Boyhood" with three wins including Feature, Director and Supporting Actress Patricia Arquette, all contenders in the Oscar race; Arquette was the only winner. NYFCC awards for Supporting Actor JK Simmons ("Whiplash"), Documentary ("Citizenfour"), and Foreign Film ("Ida") all yielded Oscar wins.

Not so Warner Bros. 2014 animated comedy "The Lego Movie," which didn't land a nomination. This year, however, Disney/Pixar's Oscar frontrunner "Inside Out" took the Animation prize over Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson's smart R-rated indie "Anomalisa," which could have used the critics' stamp of approval.

This year's NYFCC Nonfiction win went to veteran Frederick Wiseman for another local New York movie, "In Jackson Heights," which did not make the Oscar doc shortlist revealed Tuesday.

Of the late-breaking trio of Christmas releases "The Revenant," "Joy" and "The Hateful Eight," only the latter won any recognition from the NYFCC, for Italian composer Ennio Morricone's superb score, which will live on as a classic western soundtrack separate from the Quentin Tarantino movie.

The winners are listed below.

Best Picture
"Carol"

Best Director

Todd Haynes, "Carol"

Best Cinematography

Edward Lachman, "Carol"

Best Screenplay

"Carol"

Best Actress

Saoirse Ronan, "Brooklyn"

Best Actor
Michael Keaton "Spotlight"

Best Supporting Actress

Kristen Stewart, "Clouds of Sils Maria"

Best Supporting Actor

Mark Rylance, "Bridge of Spies"

Best Animated Film

"Inside Out"

Special Award

Ennio Morricone, Composer

Best Nonfiction Film

"In Jackson Heights"

Best Foreign Film

"Timbuktu"

Best First Film

László Nemes, "Son of Saul"

Special Award

Posthumous Award honoring the legacy of William Becker and Janus Films

For Your Consideration: The 10 Pre-Oscar Awards Announcements That Could Change This Race

Peter Knegt — Tue, 01 Dec 2015 16:45:32 GMT

It's here. While there have been a few nomination announcements already, awards season is about to ramp up in serious fashion. And by "about to," we mean today. Working as precursors to the grand finale that is the Oscars, we'll be hearing about more awards almost daily between now and the end of January (with a break over Christmas), starting with the National Board of Review this afternoon.

While we're not about to preview all of them (there's go to be at least 100 groups announcing prizes these days), we will give you a heads up on 10 of the most notable Oscar precursors, from the big three critics' awards to the Golden Globes to the guild awards.

National Board of Review

Who are they? The oldest critics' group — they've been around since 1909 — the NBR isn't actually made up of critics alone. The membership is noted as a "select group of film enthusiasts, filmmakers, professionals, academics and student," which often makes for eclectic winners (for better or worse).
When do they announce? They vote on and announce the winners on December 1st (today!).
What were the big winners last year? The NBR rather boldly went with "A Most Violent Year" for best picture, and gave its stars Oscar Issac (who tied Michael Keaton for best actor) and Jessica Chastain awards as well. While "Year" didn't actually get any Oscar nominations, the other acting winners — Keaton, Julianne Moore and Edward Norton — all did.
What might they go for this time around? The NBR can be pretty wacky in their choices — though that's not always a bad thing. For every Clint Eastwood winning Best Director for "Invictus," there's an Ann Dowd winning Best Supporting Actress for "Compliance." Which makes them very hard to predict. Like any group this season, "Spotlight," "Carol" and "Beasts of No Nation" could factor in, as could the just-screened likes of "Joy," "The Revenant" and "The Hateful Eight." As for acting winners, we'll bet — with very little confidence — that Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Mark Rylance and Kate Winslet will be their quartet. But with NBR, you never know.

New York Film Critics Circle

Who are they? Around since 1935, the NYFCC is made up of New York-based film critics.
When do they announce? They vote on and announce the winners on December 2nd.
What were the big winners last year? The NYFCC kicked off the critics' awards season support for Richard Linklater's "Boyhood," giving it best film, best director and best supporting actress (to eventual Oscar winner Patricia Arquette). Timothy Spall, Marion Cotillard and J.K. Simmons (who would also win an Oscar) won the other acting awards.
What might they go for this time around? It's hard to imagine "Spotlight" and "Carol" not being major players here, but watch out for "The Revenant," "Anomalisa," "45 Years," "Steve Jobs" and "Joy," which just screened this week (the group gave David O. Russell's "American Hustle" the top prize two years ago right after it screened). The acting races are tough calls for such an early announcement, but at this point, Michael Fassbender, Brie Larson, Michael Keaton and Rooney Mara (who could win for lead or supporting, depending on where they decide her "Carol" performance belongs) seem like the safest bets.

Los Angeles Film Critics Association

Who are they? Founded in 1975, the LAFCA — made up, as one would guess, of L.A.-based critics — have tended to be a little more highbrow in their choices relative to the NYFCC and NBR. Consider the stretch from 2009-2011 when Yolande Moreau ("Seraphine"), Kim Hye-ja ("Mother") and Yoon Jeong-hee ("Poetry") won Best Actress.
When do they announce? They vote on and announce the winners on December 6th.
What were the big winners last year? "Boyhood" ruled again with four wins for best film, best director, best actress (Arquette moving up to the lead category here) and best editing (Sandra Adair). They also went with J.K. Simmons, but looked outside the box in the other two acting categories — Tom Hardy for "Locke" and Agata Kulesza for "Ida."
What might they go for this time around? The mix will probably be similar to the various films noted with respect to the NYFCC, with "Carol" and "Spotlight" again frontrunners. But watch out for some shockers. Like Géza Röhrig ("Son of Saul") for best actor perhaps? Or maybe Charlotte Rampling ("45 Years") for best actress?

AFI Awards

Who are they? Since 2000, the American Film Institute has released top 10 lists of the best in film and television in a given year.
When do they announce? December 16th.
What were the big winners last year? There's never really a "big winner" at the AFI Awards because they don't select one from their top 10 list (and simply order the results alphabetically). Last year, "American Sniper," "Birdman," "Boyhood," "Foxcatcher," "The Imitation Game," "Interstellar," "Into The Woods," "Nightcrawler," "Selma," "Unbroken" and "Whiplash" made the list (which was actually a "top 11" due to a tie).
What might they go for this time around? "Bridge of Spies," "Carol," "The Revenant," "Room" and "Spotlight" are almost certainly going to make the cut.

Screen Actors Guild Awards

Who are they? The Screen Actors Guild is a labor union representing over 160,000 film and television actors, and since 1994 they've been voting on annual awards for acting in film and television. They have a very wide voting base compared to the Globes or Oscars.
When do they announce? On December 9, we'll get the nominations and then the winners come January 30.
What were the big winners last year? The SAG Awards celebrated their 21st anniversary last year by offering the same four winners that Oscar did — Redmayne, Moore, Simmons and Arquette. Eventual best picture Oscar winner "Birdman" won best cast.
What might they go for this time around? Whatever the nominees end up being, expect Oscar to look fairly similar. Last year, SAG went 18 out of 20 in predicting Oscar's acting categories. Surefire bets at this point seem like Leonardo DiCaprio, Michael Fassbender, Matt Damon, Brie Larson, Cate Blanchett, Saoirse Ronan, Mark Rylance, Sylvester Stallone, Michael Keaton, Rooney Mara, Alicia Vikander, Kate Winslet and Jane Fonda. And we'd be surprised if "Spotlight," "Steve Jobs" and "The Martian" weren't in the best cast mix.

Golden Globe Awards

Who are they? The unofficial second fiddle of awards season to the Oscars, at least in terms of general anticipation and viewership, the Golden Globes come to us via the rather strange Hollywood Foreign Press Association, an organization of journalists and photographers that report on the entertainment industry activity and interests in the United States for information outlets predominantly outside the U.S. In their 73rd year, only about 90 people decide on the Golden Globes.
When do they announce? Nominations on December 10, winners a month later on January 10th.
What were the big winners last year? "Boyhood" and "The Grand Budapest Hotel" split the best picture prizes, with Redmayne, Moore, Simmons and Arquette all winning here, too. Michael Keaton and Amy Adams won in the comedy/musical acting categories.
What might they go for this time around? We'll have full predictions in every category up early next week — so hold on until then.

Critics Choice Awards

Who are they? Formerly known as the Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards, these are the newest of the major precursors, and are voted on by the Broadcast Film Critics Association. They have a seemingly endless array of categories, including Best Family Film, Best Action Film and Best Young Performer. And they tend to be more mainstream than most critics' awards, and very good Oscar predictors as well.
When do they announce? Nominations announced on December 14 and winners on January 17.
What were the big winners last year? Remember the part about how they're good Oscar predictors? Last year, 17 of 20 folks nominated for acting Oscars were nominated here first. However, they also went with "Boyhood" for best picture and best director (which the Oscars ultimately did not).
What might they go for this time around? "Brooklyn," "Bridge of Spies," "Carol," "The Martian," "The Revenant," "Room" and "Spotlight" seem like very likely nominees for Best Picture, with the remaining three slots bigger question marks. "Anomalisa," "Beasts of No Nation," "Black Mass," "The Danish Girl," "The Hateful Eight," "Inside Out," "Joy," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "Steve Jobs" and maybe even "Tangerine" seem like the ones battling out for those slots. Last year, "Gone Girl," "Nightcrawler" and "Unbroken" got Best Picture nods here and not at the Oscars.

Producers Guild Awards

Who are they? The Producers Guild of America established these awards back in 1990, and in the 25 years since, the winners have corresponded with the Oscar for Best Picture all but six times ("The Crying Game," "Apollo 13," "Saving Private Ryan," "Moulin Rouge!," "Brokeback Mountain" and "Little Miss Sunshine" were the odd folks out).
When do they announce? Nominations out January 4, winners on January 23.
What were the big winners last year? The sea change from "Boyhood" to "Birdman" started here when the film won top honors. Though "The LEGO Movie" and "Life Itself" — which won the animated and documentary awards at the PGAs — both weren't even nominated for Oscars.
What might they go for this time around? Let's just make a full-on prediction for the PGA Awards' ten nominees of its top award: "Bridge of Spies," "Brooklyn," "Carol," "Creed," "The Hateful Eight," "Joy," "The Martian," "The Revenant," "Room" and "Spotlight." Then again, January 4 is still more than a month away.

Directors Guild Awards

Who are they? The Directors Guild of America have been handing out these awards for 67 years. Only seven times since the DGA Awards' inception has the DGA Award winner not won the Academy Award for Best Director.
When do they announce? Nominations are out January 12, and winners on February 6.
What were the big winners last year? Alejandro González Iñárritu won here just as he did at the Oscars, and the nominees went for four for five, with Clint Eastwood making the cut here and Bennett Miller getting in at the Oscars.
What might they go for this time around? Alejandro González Iñárritu is looking pretty solid to get back-to-back nominations, alongside Tom McCarthy and Ridley Scott (who has never won a DGA Award despite a trio of nominations). The other two slots are much less certain, with Quentin Tarantino, David O. Russell, Todd Haynes, Steven Spielberg, George Miller and Lenny Abrahamson all very much in the running.

BAFTAs

Who are they? Handed out since 1948 by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, these are basically the UK equivalent of the Oscars, except unlike most national awards, films from any country are eligible. They usually look very much like the Oscars, except with British films tending to do a bit better overall here.
When do they announce? BAFTA will announce their nominations on January 8, and the winners on February 14.
What were the big winners last year? "Boyhood" and Richard Linklater had their final big win here, though all four BAFTA acting winners — Redmayne, Moore, Simmons and Arquette — won here shortly before winning Oscars.
What might they go for this time around? British titles "Brooklyn" and "The Danish Girl" could potentially be big fixtures here, though American favorites "Carol," "The Martian" "The Revenant" and "Spotlight" seem like heavier favorites.

For full updated charts of all our Oscar predictions in all the feature film categories go here, and check out more predictions from Anne Thompson.

Peter Knegt is Indiewire's Contributing Editor and awards columnist. Follow him on Twitter.

5 Takeaways From This Weekend's Critics' Awards

Peter Knegt — Mon, 08 Dec 2014 01:20:40 GMT

The critics' awards kept rolling along this weekend, with Los Angeles, Boston and the New York Film Critics Online groups all announcing their annual award winners. The results were a mix of expected favorites and a few surprises. These were the five developments that stood out to us as most significant:

"Boyhood" is officially the critics' favorite.

Richard Linklater's 12 years-in-the-making opus had a very good weekend, winning top honors with all three groups, in addition to some big wins for Linklater himself (he won multiple director and screenplay honors) and actress Patricia Arquette (who managed a major feat by winning Best Actress with the L.A. groups). Add that to a Best Film win at with the New York Film Critics Circle earlier this week and it's pretty safe to call "Boyhood" the official critics favorite of awards season. Whether that translates into making the actress the best bet for the category in this year's Oscar race remains to be seen, but Linklater's film is definitely the current frontrunner in that regard. Of course, there's still a possibility things could chance once the Golden Globes, SAGs and Critics Choice make their announcements (though we doubt they won't follow suit).

"The Grand Budapest Hotel" has a momentum we shouldn't ignore.

Certainly an underdog going into awards season, Wes Anderson's critical and commercial hit "The Grand Budapest Hotel" got a major boost thanks to the L.A. critics. It was a runner-up to "Boyhood" in both the Best Film, Best Director and Best Editing categories, but managed to win awards for both Best Screenplay and Best Production Design. It was nipping at the heels of Linklater and company, which in a very competitive year gives Anderson's movie a significant boost heading into the next few weeks. Once seen as a long-shot to become Wes Anderson's first Best Picture nomination, "Grand" all of a sudden seems like a genuine contender.

Marion Cotillard could be the fifth best actress nominee.

The Best Actress category is a confusing element of awards season so far this year, with four assumed nominees -- Felicity Jones, Rosamund Pike, Julianne Moore and Reese Witherspoon -- and one giant question mark concerning the final slot. Marion Cotillard is one of a half dozen or so women in the mix for said slot, and she received a big boost this weekend thanks to both the Boston group and New York Film Critics Online awarding her actress honors a few days after the NYFCC did the same. And given that L.A. opted for Patricia Arquette (already on the campaign trail for a supporting role nomination at the Oscars), Cotillard is definitely the queen of options in that category so far, at least as far as critics are concerned.

J.K. Simmons vs. Edward Norton: It's on.

The Best Supporting Actor race, meanwhile, is clearly down to two options. JK Simmons ("Whiplash") won all three awards in that category this weekend, while Edward Norton ("Birdman") was his runner-up. It's hard to imagine the Oscar going to anyone aside from these two (who collectively also won with NYFCC and NBR, with Simmons winning the former and Norton the latter), and it seems that after this weekend their awards season battle has now been officially set up.

Tom Hardy and Agata Kulesza might not make the cut at the Oscars, but they still have reason to celebrate.

The L.A. critics' most unexpected choices came in the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress categories, respectively, as they chose two people on very few radars as far as Oscar is concerned: Tom Hardy ("Locke") and Agata Kulesza ("Ida") -- bold moves that probably won't do much to impact the overall state of the race, but the LAFCA definitely stirred things up by giving major kudos to two performers that few were discussing in the midst of very heated races.

6 Things The New York Film Critics Circle Just Told Us About Awards Season

Peter Knegt — Mon, 01 Dec 2014 18:43:31 GMT

Awards season shifted into high gear this morning as the New York Film Critics Circle announced their annual awards. You can check out the full list of winners here, but here's 6 bullet points in terms of how the NYFCC shifted a race that will continue to shift with near daily announcements in the weeks to to come:

"Boyhood" is now the frontrunner, if it wasn't already before.
Taking three major prizes today -- Best Film, Best Director and Best Supporting Actress -- Richard Linklater's "Boyhood" was the big winner with the NYFCC and can probably be considered the frontrunner to win Best Picture at the Oscars. Winning the top prize with the NYFCC doesn't always translate into Oscar glory, but only once in the past 10 years -- in 2006 with "United 93" -- has the winner not gone on to receive at least a nomination for Best Picture at the Oscars. So consider "Boyhood" a lock for a nomination (which it pretty much was already), and the best bet to take it all home. For now.

Timothy Spall has a fighting chance in the Best Actor race.
Up until last year, the winner of the NYFCC's Best Actor prize had gone on to get an Oscar nomination for eight years running, and on five of those occasions, they won. That certainly bodes well for Timothy Spall, who joins David Thewlis ("Naked"), Imelda Staunton ("Vera Drake") and Sally Hawkins ("Happy-Go-Lucky") in an impressive group of folks who have won NYFCC acting prizes for Mike Leigh films. The NYFCC could have gone with one of the five folks who seem like safe bets in the Best Actor Oscar race -- Steve Carell, Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Keaton, David Oyelowo and Eddie Redmayne -- but instead they gave a significant boost to who is now arguably the biggest threat to take one of them out. It's no sure thing considering the insane competition in that category, though. Just ask Robert Redford, who ended the aforementioned streak last year when his NYFCC Award winning performance in "All Is Lost" didn't make Oscar's cut in a similarly crowded field. Either way, the folks at Sony Pictures Classics now have a major accolade to attach to their campaign for Spall and "Turner."

Marion Cotillard is still a dark horse in the Best Actress race, but her profile just got boosted significantly.
Unlike its male counterpart, Best Actress is a depressingly weak race this year -- at least in terms of genuine Oscar contenders. Four women -- Felicity Jones, Julianne Moore, Rosamund Pike and Reese Witherspoon -- seem locked into nominations, but the fifth slot is a massive question mark. The NYFCC going for Marion Cotillard throws her very much in the mix for that last slot, even though one thing going against her is that the win was for two very worthy performances -- "The Immigrant" and "Two Days, One Night" -- which could end up canceling themselves out with Oscar voters. Cotillard would make a much more worthy fifth nominee (in these eyes, and clearly the NYFCC's) than say, Hilary Swank or Amy Adams or Jennifer Aniston, so hopefully this win catapults her campaign a bit. But one of the two films will need to back off if Cotillard is to make the cut. Though notably, eight of the last 10 winners here did indeed go on to net an Oscar nod.

J.K. Simmons and Patricia Arquette solidified their frontrunner statuses.
Much less in need of a boost were J.K. Simmons ("Whiplash") and Patricia Arquette ("Boyhood"), who were widely considered frontrunners in the Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress races before today, and their wins with the NYFCC only make that more clear. There's still a way to go, but it's very hard to imagine the two of them not at least getting nominated.

"The LEGO Movie," "Ida" and "CITIZENFOUR" did too.
Even someone with a mild interest in awards season could have guessed that "The LEGO Movie," "Ida" and "CITIZENFOUR" were the films to beat in the Animated Feature, Foreign Language and Non-Fiction Film races today, and sure enough all three won. Things could change after another announcement or two, but for now, this trio makes up the films to beat in those respective races with Oscar and elsewhere.

We might need to watch out for "The Grand Budapest Hotel."
It might have only won Best Screenplay at the NYFCC, but that's one more win that "Selma," "Unbroken," "Gone Girl," "The Imitation Game," "Birdman," "The Theory of Everything" and "Foxcatcher" had combined. Wes Anderson has yet to really break into the Oscar race save a screenplay nomination or two, and "The Grand Budapest Hotel" was a huge hit both critically and commercially. This win boosts its profile and will definitely have people talking about its chances more than they were before.

Peter Knegt is Indiewire's Contributing Editor and awards columnist. Follow him on Twitter.

Check out Indiewire's latest chart of Oscar predictions here.

Sign up HERE for Indiewire's Awards Season newsletter and receive a twice-weekly email roundup of our awards stories, hand-picked by our editors from across the Indiewire Network, plus additional coverage in the final run up to the Oscars.

Your Guide to Awards Season (And Who Might Win)

Peter Knegt — Mon, 01 Dec 2014 12:40:01 GMT

It's here. Though there have been a few nomination announcements already, awards season is about to ramp up in serious fashion. And by "about to," we mean today. Working as precursors to the grand finale that is the Oscars, we'll be getting kudos coming at us almost daily between now and the end of January (with a break over Christmas), starting with the New York Film Critics Circle this afternoon. And while we're not about to preview all of them (there's go to be at least 100 groups announcing prizes these days), we will give you a heads up on 9 of the most notable Oscar precursors, from the big three critics' awards to the Golden Globes to the guild awards.

New York Film Critics Circle

Who are they? Around since 1935, the NYFCC is made up of New York-based film critics, and as of late they've become the first critics' group to announce their annual awards.
When do they announce? They vote on and announce the winners on December 1st (today!).
What were the big winners last year? The NYFCC surprised many (and irked a few) in 2013 by going with David O. Russell's "American Hustle" for Best Film, Best Supporting Actress and Best Screenplay. Other winners included eventual Oscar winners Cate Blanchett and Jared Leto, and eventual Oscar snub Robert Redford. Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" got a runner-up status in four major categories (including Best Film), and only won Best Director.
What might they go for this time around? It's hard to imagine "Boyhood" and "Birdman" not being major players here, though watch out for "Foxcatcher," "Selma," "Mr. Turner" (the NYFCC love them some Mike Leigh, historically) "Whiplash" and just screened "Unbroken." The acting races should be very interesting given they will be the first to announce, though at this point Michael Keaton, Julianne Moore, JK Simmons and Patricia Arquette are probably the safest bets. Though it'd be shocking if all four ended up winning.

National Board of Review

Who are they? The oldest critics' group -- they've been around since 1909 -- the NBR isn't actually made up of all critics. The membership is noted as a "select group of film enthusiasts, filmmakers, professionals, academics and student," which often makes for eclectic winners (for better or worse).
When do they announce? They vote on and announce the winners on December 2nd.
What were the big winners last year? The NBR rather boldly went with Spike Jonze's "Her" for both Best Film and Best Director, and spread out their acting winners with three folks that didn't end up getting Oscar nods -- Emma Thompson, Will Forte and Octavia Spencer -- and one eventual nominee, Bruce Dern.
What might they go for this time around? The NBR can be pretty wacky in their choices -- though that's not always a bad thing. For every Clint Eastwood winning Best Director for "Invictus" there's a Ann Dowd winning Best Supporting Actress for "Compliance." Which makes them very hard to predict. Like any group this season, "Birdman" and "Boyhood" could factor in, but Angelina Jolie's "Unbroken" also smells like something the NBR would go for. They also do, as noted, love Clint Eastwood, so watch out for "American Sniper." As for acting winners, we'll bet -- with very little confidence -- that Steve Carell, Rosamund Pike, Edward Norton and Meryl Streep will be their quartet. Expect us to be wrong.

Los Angeles Film Critics Association

Who are they? Founded in 1975, the LAFCA -- made up, as one would guess, of L.A. based critics -- have tended to be a little more high brow in their choices relative to the NYFCC and NBR. Think the stretch from 2009-2011 when Yolande Moreau ("Seraphine"), Kim Hye-ja ("Mother") and Yoon Jeong-hee ("Poetry") won Best Actress.
When do they announce? They vote on and announce the winners on December 7th.
What were the big winners last year? Lots of ties: "Gravity" and "Her" tied for Best Picture, Cate Blanchett and Adele Exarchopoulos tied for Best Actress, and James Franco and Jared Leto tied for Best Supporting Actor. Solitary winners included Bruce Bern for Best Actor and Lupita Nyong'o for Best Supporting Actress.
What might they go for this time around? The mix will probably be similar to the various films noted with respect to the NYFCC, with "Birdman" and "Boyhood" again frontrunners. But watch out for some shockers. Like Anne Dorval ("Mommy") for Best Actress, perhaps? Or maybe Scarlett Johannson ("Under The Skin")? Michael Keaton seems like a safer bet for Best Actor here than anywhere else, and JK Simmons is definitely in the kind of position to sweep all the critics' prizes. We'll find out soon enough.

Screen Actors Guild Awards

Who are they? The Screen Actors Guild is a labor union representing over 160,000 film and television actors, and since 1994 they've been voting on annual awards for acting in film and television. They have a very wide voting base compared to the Globes or Oscars.
When do they announce? On December 10th we'll get the nominations and then the winners come January 25th.
What were the big winners last year? The SAG Awards celebrated their 20th anniversary last year by offering the same four winners that Oscar did -- McConaughey, Blanchett, Leto and Nyong'o. "American Hustle" won Best Cast.
What might they go for this time around? Whatever the nominees end up being, expect Oscar to look fairly similar. Last year, SAG went 14 out of 20 in predicting Oscar's acting categories. Sure bets at this point seem like Michael Keaton, Eddie Redmayne, Benedict Cumberatch, Julianne Moore, Reese Witherspoon, Felicity Jones, JK Simmons, Edward Norton, Patricia Arquette, Keira Knightley and yes, Meryl Streep. And we'd be surprised if "Selma," "Birdman," "Foxcatcher" and "Into The Woods" weren't in the Best Cast mix.

Golden Globe Awards

Who are they? The unofficial second fiddle of awards season to the Oscars, at least in terms of general anticipation and viewership, the Golden Globes come to us via the rather strange Hollywood Foreign Press Association, an organization of journalists and photographers that report on the entertainment industry activity and interests in the United States for information outlets predominantly outside the U.S. In their 72nd year, only about 90 people decide on the Golden Globes, despite their status.
When do they announce? Nominations on December 10th, winners on January 11th,
What were the big winners last year? "12 Years a Slave" and "American Hustle" won the Best Motion Picture awards in the drama and comedy/musical categories, respectively, while Matthew McConaughey, Cate Blanchett, Amy Adams, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jared Leto and Jennifer Lawrence won the six competitive acting awards. Only one Oscar winner -- Lupita Nyong'o -- didn't win a Globe first last year.
What might they go for this time around? You can check out our full predictions in every category here.

Critics Choice Awards

Who are they? Formerly known as the Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards, these are the newest of the major precursors, and are voted on the Broadcast Film Critics Association. They have like a million categories, including Best Family Film, Best Action Film and Best Young Performer. And they tend to be more mainstream then most critics' awards, not to mention very good Oscar predictors.
When do they announce? Nominations announced on December 15th and winners on January 15th.
What were the big winners last year? Remember the part about them being good Oscar predictors? Well, last year Best Picture, Best Director, all acting categories and both screenplay awards lined up perfectly with Oscar. Also notable: 16 of 20 folks nominated for acting Oscars were nominated here.
What might they go for this time around? "Selma," "Boyhood," "Unbroken," "Birdman," "The Imitation Game" and "The Theory of Everything" seem like very nominees for Best Picture, with the remaining four slots bigger question marks. "Foxcatcher," "Gone Girl," "Mr. Turner," "Whiplash," "American Sniper," "Into The Woods" and "The Grand Budapest Hotel" seem like the ones battling out for those slots. Last year, only "Inside Llewyn Davis" and "Saving Mr. Banks" got Best Picture nods here and not at Oscar.

Producers Guild Awards

Who are they? The Producers Guild of America established these awards back in 1990, and in the 24 year since, the winners have corresponded with the Oscar for Best Picture all but six times ("The Crying Game," "Apollo 13," "Saving Private Ryan," "Moulin Rouge!," "Brokeback Mountain" and "Little Miss Sunshine" were the odd folks out).
When do they announce? Nominations out January 5th, winners on January 24th.
What were the big winners last year? Technically, "Gravity" can be added to that list of winners at the PGA that didn't win the Best Picture Oscar, because last year it tied "12 Years a Slave" here in a PGA Award first.
What might they go for this time around? Let's just make a full-on prediction for the PGA Awards' ten nominees of its top award: "Birdman," "Boyhood," "Foxcatcher," "Gone Girl," "The Grand Budapest Hotel," "The Imitation Game," "Into The Woods," "Selma," "The Theory of Everything" and "Unbroken." Though January 5th is still more than a month away.

Directors Guild Awards

Who are they? The Directors Guild of America have been handed out these awards for 67 years. Only seven times since the DGA Award's inception has the DGA Award winner not won the Academy Award for Best Director.
When do they announce? Nominations are out January 13th, and winners on February 7th.
What were the big winners last year? Alfonso Cuaron won here just as he did at the Oscars, and the nominees went for four for five, with Paul Greengrass getting in here and Alexander Payne getting in at the Oscars.
What might they go for this time around? Richard Linklater, Alejandro González Iñárritu and Ava DuVernay look pretty solid, with Angelina Jolie, Morten Tyldum, James Marsh, David Fincher, Bennett Miller, Damien Chazelle, Clint Eastwood and Mike Leigh among the many contenders for the final two slots. If DuVernay and Jolie both get in, it'll be the first time ever two women were nominated in the same year.

BAFTAs

Who are they? Handed out since 1948 by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, these are basically the UK equivalent of the Oscars, except unlike most national awards, films from any country are eligible. They usually look very much like the Oscars, except with British films tending to do a bit better overall here.
When do they announce? BAFTA will announce their nominations on January 9th, and the winners nearly a month later on February 8th.
What were the big winners last year? Cate Blanchett was the only acting winner to correspond with Oscar, with Chiewtel Ejiofor, Barkhad Abdi and Jennifer Lawrence all surprising. "12 Years a Slave" and Alfonso Cuaron won Best Film and Best Director, respectively, and "Gravity" oddly managed to win Best British Film.
What might they go for this time around? British titles "The Imitation Game" and "The Theory of Everything" will surely be big fixtures here, alongside American favorites "Selma," "Unbroken," "Boyhood" and "Birdman." And you can be pretty certain brits David Oyelowo, Benedict Cumberbatch and Eddie Redmayne will all be nominated for Best Actor.

Peter Knegt is Indiewire's Contributing Editor and awards columnist. Follow him on Twitter.

Check out Indiewire's latest chart of Oscar predictions here.

Sign up HERE for Indiewire's Awards Season newsletter and receive a twice-weekly email roundup of our awards stories, hand-picked by our editors from across the Indiewire Network, plus additional coverage in the final run up to the Oscars.

International Cinephile Society Go Their Own Way With Award Nominations

Indiewire — Tue, 14 Jan 2014 16:27:08 GMT

The International Cinephile Society -- a group of film academics, journalist and critics from around the world -- announced the nominees for their 11th annual awards, and they definitely went their own way. While critics group darlings "Inside Llewyn Davis," "Her" and "12 Years a Slave" each received 7 nominations, so did "Blue is the Warmest Color." And the four films were nominated for best picture alongside "Before Midnight," "Frances Ha," "Gravity," "Spring Breakers," "The Wolf of Wall Street," "The Great Beauty" and "Laurence Anyways," with no "American Hustle" or "Captain Phillips"anywhere to be found (the former actually did receive a solo nod for best ensemble).

The acting races were equally surprising. Melvil Poupaud and Suzanne Clément were nominated for "Laurence Anyways," as was Anton Adasinsky for "Faust" and Juliette Binoche for "Camille Claudel 1915." These nods came over Oscar sure things like Robert Redford, Matthew McConaughey, Sandra Bullock, Oprah Winfrey and Jennifer Lawrence. In an awards season that has become increasingly repetitive, it's a refreshing lineup to be sure.

Full list of nominations below. Winners of the 11th ICS Awards will be announced on February 23, 2014.

PICTURE
• 12 Years a Slave
• Before Midnight
• Blue is the Warmest Color
• Frances Ha
• Gravity
• The Great Beauty
• Her
• Inside Llewyn Davis
• Laurence Anyways
• Spring Breakers
• The Wolf of Wall Street

DIRECTOR
• Ethan Coen & Joel Coen - Inside Llewyn Davis
• Alfonso Cuarón - Gravity
• Xavier Dolan - Laurence Anyways
• Spike Jonze - Her
• Abdellatif Kechiche - Blue is the Warmest Color
• Paolo Sorrentino - The Great Beauty

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
• Beyond the Hills
• Blancanieves
• Blue is the Warmest Color
• Faust
• The Great Beauty
• The Hunt
• In the House
• Laurence Anyways
• The Past
• A Touch of Sin

ACTOR
• Leonardo DiCaprio - The Wolf of Wall Street
• Chiwetel Ejiofor - 12 Years a Slave
• Oscar Isaac - Inside Llewyn Davis
• Mads Mikkelsen - The Hunt
• Joaquin Phoenix - Her
• Melvil Poupaud - Laurence Anyways

ACTRESS
• Juliette Binoche - Camille Claudel 1915
• Cate Blanchett - Blue Jasmine
• Suzanne Clément - Laurence Anyways
• Adèle Exarchopoulos - Blue is the Warmest Color
• Greta Gerwig - Frances Ha

SUPPORTING ACTOR
• Anton Adasinsky - Faust
• Michael Fassbender - 12 Years a Slave
• James Franco - Spring Breakers
• Jared Leto - Dallas Buyers Club
• Matthew McConaughey - Mud

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
• Sally Hawkins - Blue Jasmine
• Scarlett Johansson - Her
• Lupita Nyong'o - 12 Years a Slave
• Léa Seydoux - Blue is the Warmest Color
• Kristin Scott Thomas - Only God Forgives

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
• Blue Jasmine - Woody Allen
• Frances Ha - Noah Baumbach, Greta Gerwig
• Her - Spike Jonze
• Inside Llewyn Davis - Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
• Laurence Anyways - Xavier Dolan

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
• 12 Years a Slave - John Ridley
• Before Midnight - Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke
• Blue is the Warmest Color - Abdellatif Kechiche, Ghalia Lacroix
• In the House - François Ozon
• Short Term 12 - Destin Cretton

CINEMATOGRAPHY
• Blancanieves - Kiko de la Rica
• Faust - Bruno Delbonnel
• Gravity - Emmanuel Lubezki
• Inside Llewyn Davis - Bruno Delbonnel
• Leviathan - Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Verena Paravel

EDITING
• Blue is the Warmest Color - Sophie Brunet, Ghalia Lacroix, Albertine Lastera, Jean-Marie Lengelle, Camille Toubkis
• Frances Ha - Jennifer Lame
• Gravity - Alfonso Cuarón, Mark Sanger
• Leviathan - Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Verena Paravel
• Spring Breakers - Douglas Crise
• The Wolf of Wall Street - Thelma Schoonmaker

PRODUCTION DESIGN
• Blancanieves - Alain Bainée
• Faust - Elena Zhukova
• The Great Gatsby - Catherine Martin
• Her - K.K. Barrett
• Inside Llewyn Davis - Jess Gonchor

ORIGINAL SCORE
• 12 Years a Slave - Hans Zimmer
• All is Lost - Alex Ebert
• Blancanieves - Alfonso de Vilallonga
• The Great Beauty - Lele Marchitelli
• Her - Owen Pallett

ENSEMBLE
• 12 Years a Slave
• American Hustle
• Frances Ha
• Inside Llewyn Davis
• Short Term 12

ANIMATED FILM
• Ernest & Célestine
• From Up On Poppy Hill
• Frozen
• Monsters University
• The Wind Rises

DOCUMENTARY
• The Act of Killing
• At Berkeley
• Leviathan
• Room 237
• Stories We Tell

BEST PICTURE NOT RELEASED IN 2013
• Child's Pose
• The Congress
• Gloria
• Home from Home: Chronicle of a Vision
• The Immigrant
• Like Father, Like Son
• Norte, The End of History
• Only Lovers Left Alive
• The Rendez-Vous of Déjà-Vu
• Snowpiercer
• The Strange Little Cat
• Stranger by the Lake
• Stray Dogs
• Tom at the Farm
• Young & Beautiful

'Inside Llewyn Davis' Wins Big With National Society of Film Critics

Peter Knegt — Sat, 04 Jan 2014 21:31:42 GMT

Largely left out of critics groups' prizes so far (save Toronto), Joel & Ethan Coen's "Inside Llewyn Davis" got a needed (and, in this opinion, much deserved) boost from the National Society of Film Critics, taking honors for best picture, best director, best actor and best cinematography.

The film -- recently snubbed by both the PGA and WGA -- follows in the footsteps of recent NSFC best picture winners "Amour," "Melancholia," "The Social Network," "The Hurt Locker," "Waltz With Bashir" and "There Will Be Blood." Only 4 of those 6 went on to get best picture nominations at the Oscars.

Other major winners included Cate Blanchett ("Blue Jasmine"), James Franco ("Spring Breakers") and Jennifer Lawrence ("American Hustle") who joined Oscar Isaac as the groups' acting winners. "Before Midnight," meanwhile, won best screenplay.

Notably the group also lists runners-up and vote counts, with "American Hustle," "12 Years a Slave" and "Her" all coming in right behind for the big prize, and Alfonso Cuaron and Steve McQueen coming in behind the Coens for best director.

Full list of winners and runners-up:

Picture: “Inside Llewyn Davis” (23)
Runners-up: “American Hustle” (17); “12 Years a Slave” (16); “Her” (16)

Director: Joel and Ethan Coen, “Inside Llewyn Davis” (25)
Runners-up: Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity” (18); Steve McQueen, “12 Years a Slave” (15)

Actor: Oscar Isaac, “Inside Llewyn Davis” (28)
Runners-up: Chiwetel Ejiofor, “12 Years a Slave” (19); Robert Redford, “All Is Lost” (12)

Actress: Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine” (57)
Runners-up: Adele Exarchopoulos, “Blue Is the Warmest Color” (36); Julie Delpy, “Before Midnight” (26)

Supporting actor: James Franco, “Spring Breakers” (24)
Runners-up: Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club” (20); Barkhad Abdi, “Captain Phillips” (14)

Supporting actress: Jennifer Lawrence, “American Hustle” (54)
Runners-up: Lupita Nyong’o, “12 Years a Slave” (38); Sally Hawkins, “Blue Jasmine” (18); Lea Seydoux, “Blue Is the Warmest Color” (18)

Screenplay: Richard Linklater, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, “Before Midnight” (29)
Runners-up: Joel and Ethan Coen, “Inside Llewyn Davis” (26); Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell, “American Hustle” (18)

Foreign-language film: “Blue Is the Warmest Color” (27)
Runners-up: “A Touch of Sin” (21); “The Great Beauty” (15)

Nonfiction: “The Act of Killing” and “At Berkeley” (tie, 20)
Runner-up: “Leviathan” (18)

Cinematography: Bruno Delbonnel, “Inside Llewyn Davis” (28)
Runners-up: Emmanuel Lubezki, “Gravity” (26); Phedon Papamichael, “Nebraska” (17)

Film Still Awaiting U.S. Distribution: “Stray Dogs” and “Hide Your Smiling Faces”

Film Heritage:
“Too Much Johnson”
“American Treasures From the New Zealand Film Archive”
“Allan Dwan and the Rise and Decline of the Hollywood Studios”
“The Hitchcock 9″

'12 Years a Slave,' 'Enough Said' Lead Alliance of Women Film Journalists' Awards

Peter Knegt — Fri, 20 Dec 2013 00:08:15 GMT

The Alliance of Women Film Journalists (AWFJ) -- a membership organization of women film journalists and critics from across the U.S., Canada and the U.K. -- have announced the winners of their annual EDA Awards. Steve McQueen’s “12 Years a Slave” won six awards, including Best Film, while Nicole Holofcener won awards for female director and woman screenwriter.

Full list of winners:

Best Film: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Director: Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Adapted Screenplay: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Original Screenplay: "Her"

Best Cinematography: "Gravity"

Best Editing: "Gravity"

Best Film Music Or Score: "Inside Llewyn Davis"

Best Non-English-Language Film: "The Hunt"

Best Documentary: "Stories We Tell"

Best Ensemble Cast: "American Hustle"

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS

Best Woman Director: Nicole Holofcener, "Enough Said"

Best Woman Screenwriter: Nicole Holofcener, "Enough Said"

Kick Ass Award For Best Female Action Star: Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"

Best Animated Female: Anna (Kristen Bell), "Frozen"

Best Breakthrough Performance: Lupita Nyong’o, "12 Years A Slave"

Actress Defying Age and Ageism: Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"

AWFJ Award Female Icon Award
Angelina Jolie
For continued commitments to humanitarian causes, and for promoting awareness about breast cancer.

This Year’s Outstanding Achievement By A Woman In The Film Industry
Haaifa Al-Mansour
For challenging the limitations placed on women within her culture by making the film "Wadjda."

EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS

AWFJ Hall Of Shame Award: "The Counselor"

Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent: Cameron Diaz, "The Counselor"

Movie You Wanted To Love But Just Couldn’t Award: "The Counselor"

Unforgettable Moment Award: "12 Years a Slave" – Solomon hanging

Best Depiction Of Nudity, Sexuality, or Seduction Award: Scarlett Johansson and Joaquin Phoenix, "Her"

Sequel or Remake That Shouldn’t Have Been Made Award: (tie) "Carrie" and "Oz the Great and Powerful"

Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Leading Man and The Love Interest Award: "Last Vegas" – Michael Douglas and Bre Blair (36 years)

'12 Years a Slave' and 'Her' Split Four More Critics Groups' Awards

Peter Knegt — Wed, 18 Dec 2013 16:02:27 GMT

Critics groups from Austin, Las Vegas, Florida and Phoenix have lent their voices to the awards season onslaught, with Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" and Spike Jonze's "Her" adding more best picture prizes to their counts. The former won Las Vegas, Florida and Phoenix, while the latter won Austin.

McQueen and Alfonso Cuarón split the best director prizes down the middle, while "12 Years" lead Chiwetel Ejiofor and Matthew McConaughey ("Dallas Buyers Club") did the same for best actor. Cate Blanchett, Emma Thompson and Brie Larson each won a best actress prize (or two, in Blanchett's case), and Lupita Nyong'o and Jared Leto continued their domination of the supporting prizes by winning all four.

Full list of winners from each group below. Check out this list of every single award announced so far this season here.

Austin Film Critics Association:

Best Film: "Her"

Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actress: Brie Larson, "Short Term 12"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Original Screenplay: Spike Jonze, "Her"

Best Adapted Screenplay: John Ridley, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, "Gravity"

Best Score: Arcade Fire, "Her"

Best Foreign Language Film: "Blue is the Warmest Color"

Best Documentary: "The Act of Killing"

Best Animated Film: "Frozen"

Best First Film: "Fruitvale Station"

Breakthrough Artist: Brie Larson, "Short Term 12"

Best Austin Film: "Before Midnight"

Special Honorary Award: Scarlett Johansson, for her outstanding voice performance in "Her"

AFCA 2013 Top Ten Films

1. "Her"
2. "12 Years a Slave"
3. "Gravity"
4. "The Wolf of Wall Street"
5. "Inside Llewyn Davis"
6. "Short Term 12"
7. "Mud"
8. "Before Midnight"
9. "Dallas Buyers Club"
10. "Captain Phillips"

Florida Film Critics Circle:

Picture: "12 Years a Slave"

Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave

Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, The Dallas Buyers Club

Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’O, 12 Years a Slave

Director: Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave

Adapted Screenplay: John Ridley, 12 Years a Slave

Original Screenplay: Spike Jonze, Her

Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity

Visual Effects: Gravity

Art Direction/Production Design: Damien Drew et.al. and Catherine Martin et.al., The Great Gatsby

Foreign Language: Blue is the Warmest Color

Animated: Frozen

Documentary: The Act of Killing

Breakout: Lupita Nyong’O, 12 Years a Slave

Golden Orange: Dana Keith

Las Vegas Film Critics Society:

Best Picture: “12 Years a Slave”

Best Director: Steve McQueen, “12 Years a Slave”

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, “Dallas Buyers Club”

Best Actress: Emma Thompson, “Saving Mr. Banks”

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club”

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’o, “12 Years a Slave”

Best Screenplay: Spike Jonze, “Her”

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, “Gravity”

Best Film Editing: Alfonso Cuaron & Mark Sanger, “Gravity”

Best Costume Design: Patricia Norris, “12 Years a Slave”

Best Art Direction: Andy Nicholson, “Gravity”

Best Visual Effects: “Gravity”

Best Foreign Film: “Blue is the Warmest Color”

Best Documentary: “Blackfish”

Best Animated Film: “Frozen”

Best Family Film: “Saving Mr. Banks”

Best Horror/Sci-Fi Film: “Pacific Rim”

Best Comedy Film: “This is the End”

Best Action Film: “Lone Survivor”

Best Score: Hans Zimmer, “12 Years a Slave”

Best Song: “Please Mr. Kennedy,” – “Inside Llewyn Davis”

Youth in Film: Tye Sheridan, “Mud”

Breakout Filmmaker of the Year: Ryan Coogler, “Fruitvale Station”

Best DVD (Packaging, Design and Content): “Breaking Bad – The Complete Series” (Blu-Ray)

William Holden Lifetime Achievement Award: John Goodman

LVFCS Top 10 Films of 2013
1. 12 Years a Slave
2. Dallas Buyers Club
3. Gravity
4. The Wolf of Wall Street
5. American Hustle
6. Inside Llewyn Davis
7. Saving Mr. Banks
8. Nebraska
9. Her
10. Lone Survivor

Phoenix Film Critics Society:

Best Picture: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Adapted Screenplay: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Original Screenplay: "Nebraska"

Best Original Score: "Frozen"

Best Original Song: "Let it Go" from "Frozen"

Best Cinematography: "Gravity"

Best Costume Design: "The Great Gatsby"

Best Film Editing: "Gravity"

Best Production Design: "Gravity"

Best Animated Film: "Frozen"

Best Foreign Language Film: "Blue is the Warmest Color"

Best Documentary: "20 Feet from Stardom"

Best Stunts: "Fast & Furious 6"

Best Live Action Family Film (Rated G or PG): "Oz the Great and Powerful"

The Overlooked Film of the Year: (tie) "The Kings of Summer" and "The Spectacular Now"

Breakthrough Performance on Camera: Oscar Isaac, "Inside Llewyn Davis"

Breakthrough Performance Behind the Camera: Lake Bell, "In a World…"

Best Performance by a Youth — Male: Tye Sheridan, "Mud"

Best Performance by a Youth — Female: Sophie Nélisse, "The Book Thief

Top 10 Films of 2013 (alphabetical)
"American Hustle"
"Captain Phillips"
"Dallas Buyers Club"
"Gravity"
"Mud"
"Nebraska"
"Philomena"
"Saving Mr. Banks"
"Short Term 12"
"12 Years a Slave"

A Guide To The 2013-14 Awards Season: All The Winners and Nominees So Far

Peter Knegt — Wed, 18 Dec 2013 16:01:00 GMT

Award season is in full swing, with basically three straight months of announcements from critics groups, guilds, boards, and yes, academies, underway.

READ MORE: 2014 Oscar Predictions

To help everyone keep up to speed, Indiewire has created this linked list with all of the announced awards, which we'll continue to update through March 2014's grand Oscar finale.

Below are links to all of the announcements so far:

'12 Years a Slave' Leads London Critics Award Nominations

Peter Knegt — Tue, 17 Dec 2013 15:56:39 GMT

While Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" expectedly led the London Film Critics' Circle nominations with nine mentions, the group overall offered a refreshing batch of nominees.

"Blue is the Warmest Color," "Frances Ha" and "The Great Beauty" all made the cut for best film of the year, while thanks to its theatrical release in the UK, Michael Douglas is competing for best actor for "Behind The Candelabra" (makes you wonder whether he'd have made Oscar's cut had the film been released in theaters Stateside). The group was quite warm on "The Wolf of Wall Street," though "American Hustle" was shut out of the major races save a nomination of Jennifer Lawrence.

Full list of nominations below. Winners will be announced at the Circle's awards ceremony in London on February 2, 2014.

Film of the Year
"Blue is the Warmest Color"
"Blue Jasmine"
"Frances Ha"
"Gravity"
"Her"
"The Great Beauty"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"Nebraska"
"12 Years a Slave"
"The Wolf of Wall Street"

Director of the Year
Alfonso Cuaròn, "Gravity"
Paul Greengrass, "Captain Phillips"
Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"
Martin Scorsese, "The Wolf of Wall Street"
Paolo Sorrentino, "The Great Beauty"

Actor of the Year
Bruce Dern, "Nebraska"
Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Wolf of Wall Street"
Michael Douglas, "Behind the Candelabra"
Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"
Tom Hanks, "Captain Phillips"

Actress of the Year
Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"
Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"
Judi Dench, "Philomena"
Adèle Exarchopoulos, "Blue is the Warmest Color"
Greta Gerwig, "Frances Ha"

Supporting Actor of the Year
Barkhad Abdi, "Captain Phillips"
Michael Fassbender, "12 Years a Slave"
James Gandolfini, "Enough Said"
Tom Hanks, "Saving Mr. Banks"
Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Supporting Actress of the Year
Naomie Harris, "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom"
Sally Hawkins, "Blue Jasmine"
Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle"
Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"
June Squibb, "Nebraska"

Screenwriter of the Year
Spike Jonze, "Her"
Joel and Ethan Coen, "Inside Llewyn Davis"
Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope, "Philomena"
John Ridley, "12 Years a Slave"
Terence Winter, "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Foreign Language Film of the Year
"Blue is the Warmest Color"
"Caesar Must Die"
"Gloria"
"The Great Beauty"
"A Hijacking"

Documentary of the Year
"The Act of Killing"
"Beware of Mr. Baker"
"Leviathan"
"Stories We Tell"
"We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks"

British Film of the Year
"A Field in England"
"Filth"
"Philomena"
"Rush"
"The Selfish Giant"

British Actor of the Year (for body of work)
Christian Bale, "American Hustle" and "Out of the Furnace"
Steve Coogan, "Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa," "The Look of Love," "Philomena" and "What Maisie Knew"
Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"
Michael Fassbender, "The Counselor" and "12 Years a Slave"
James McAvoy, "Filth," "Trance" and "Welcome to the Punch"

British Actress of the Year (for body of work)
Judi Dench, "Philomena"
Lindsay Duncan, "About Time," "Last Passenger" and "Le Week-end"
Naomie Harris, "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom"
Sally Hawkins, "Blue Jasmine"
Emma Thompson, "Beautiful Creatures" and "Saving Mr. Banks"

Young British Performer of the Year (for body of work)
Conner Chapman, "The Selfish Giant"
Eloise Laurence, "Broken"
George Mackay, "Breakfast with Jonny Wilkinson," "For Those in Peril," "How I Live Now" and "Sunshine on Leith"
Saoirse Ronan, "Byzantium," "The Host" and "How I Live Now"
Shaun Thomas, "The Selfish Giant"

Breakthrough British Director of the Year
Jon S. Baird, "Filth"
Scott Graham, "Shell"
Marcus Markou, "Papadopoulos & Sons"
Rufus Norris, "Broken"
Paul Wright, "For Those in Peril"

Technical Achievement of the Year
Judy Becker (production design), "American Hustle"
Howard Cummings (production design), "Behind the Candelabra"
Mark Eckersley (editing), "Filth"
Sam Levy (cinematography), "Frances Ha"
Tim Webber (visual effects), "Gravity"
Trish Summerville (costume design), "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire"
T-Bone Burnett (music), "Inside Llewyn Davis"
Kurt Swanson and Bart Mueller (costume design), "Stoker"
Sean Bobbitt (cinematography), "12 Years a Slave"
Johnny Marshall (sound design), "Upstream Color"

Dilys Powell Award for Excellence in Film
Gary Oldman

Toronto Critics Finally Give a Big Prize To 'Inside Llewyn Davis'

Peter Knegt — Tue, 17 Dec 2013 15:46:21 GMT

Joel & Ethan Coen's "Inside Llewyn Davis" finally got a best picture critics prize last night, care of the Toronto Film Critics Association. Going their own way in a sea of regional groups naming "12 Years a Slave" over and over again, the Toronto critics named "Llewyn Davis" best picture while also giving its lead Oscar Isaac the best actor prize (notably . The other acting categories weren't so against the grain, with Cate Blanchett, Jared Leto and Jennifer Lawrence adding more to their mantels.

Full list of winners:

Best Picture: "Inside Llewyn Davis"

Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"

Best Actor: Oscar Isaac, "Inside Llewyn Davis"

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle"

Best Screenplay: "Her"

Best Animated Feature: "The Wind Rises"

Best Foreign Language Film: "A Touch of Sin"

Best First Feature: "Neighboring Sounds"

Best Canadian Film: "The Dirties," "Gabrielle" and "Watermark" (nominees)

'12 Years a Slave' Leads Chicago Critics Awards

Peter Knegt — Tue, 17 Dec 2013 15:33:00 GMT

The Chicago Film Critics Association announced their annual award winners last night, offering Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" 5 prizes from the 11 nominations it had received from the group last week. Those prizes included best picture, best actor (Chiwetel Ejiofor), best supporting actress (Lupita Nyong'o), best director (Steve McQueen) and best adapted screenplay (John Ridley). Ejiofor and Nyong'o were joined in the acting winners circle by the expected likes of Cate Blanchett and Jared Leto, who have swept their respective categories.

Other winners included "Gravity" (which won three technical prizes), "Her" (which won for original screenplay and score) and "The Act of Killing" (which impressively won both best foreign language film and best documentary).

Full list of winners and nominations below.

BEST PICTURE
12 Years A Slave
American Hustle
Gravity
Her
Inside Llewyn Davis

BEST DIRECTOR
Joel & Ethan Coen–Inside Llewyn Davis
Alfonso Cuaron–Gravity
Spike Jonze–Her
Steve McQueen–12 Years A Slave
David O. Russell–American Hustle

BEST ACTOR
Bruce Dern–Nebraska
Chiwetel Ejiofor–12 Years A Slave
Oscar Isaac–Inside Llewyn Davis
Matthew McConaughey–Dallas Buyers Club
Robert Redford–All Is Lost

BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett–Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock–Gravity
Adele Exarchopoulos–Blue is the Warmest Color
Brie Larson–Short Term 12
Meryl Streep–August: Osage County

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Barkhad Abdi–Captain Phillips
Michael Fassbender–12 Years A Slave
James Franco–Spring Breakers
James Gandolfini–Enough Said
Jared Leto–Dallas Buyers Club

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Scarlett Johansson–Her
Jennifer Lawrence–American Hustle
Lupita Nyong’o–12 Years A Slave
Lea Seydoux–Blue is the Warmest Color
June Squibb–Nebraska

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
American Hustle–Eric Singer & David O. Russell
Blue Jasmine–Woody Allen
Her–Spike Jonze
Inside Llewyn Davis–Joel & Ethan Coen
Nebraska–Bob Nelson

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
12 Years A Slave–John Ridley
August: Osage County–Tracey Letts
Before Midnight–Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke
Philomena–Steve Coogan & Jeff Pope
The Wolf of Wall Street–Terrence Winter

BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
The Act of Killing
Blue is the Warmest Color
The Hunt
Wadjda
The Wind Rises

BEST DOCUMENTARY
20 Feet from Stardom
The Act of Killing
The Armstrong Lie
Blackfish
Stories We Tell

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
The Croods
From Up on Poppy Hill
Frozen
Monsters University
The Wind Rises

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
12 Years A Slave–Sean Bobbitt
Gravity–Emmanuel Lubezki
Her–Hoyte Van Hoytema
Inside Llewyn Davis–Bruno Delbonnel
Prisoners–Roger Deakins

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
12 Years A Slave–Hans Zimmer
Blancanieves–Alfonso de Vilallongo
Gravity–Steven Price
Her–Arcade Fire
Spring Breakers–Cliff Martinez and Skrillex

BEST ART DIRECTION/PRODUCTION DESIGN
12 Years A Slave
Gravity
The Great Gatsby
Her
Inside Llewyn Davis

BEST EDITING
12 Years A Slave–Joe Walker
American Hustle–Alan Baumgarten, Jay Cassidy & Crispin Struthers
Gravity–Alfonso Cuaron & Mark Sanger
Upstream Color–Shane Carruth & David Lowery
The Wolf of Wall Street–Thelma Schoonmaker

MOST PROMISING FILMMAKER
Lake Bell–In A World
Ryan Coogler–Fruitvale Station
Destin Cretton–Short Term 12
Joseph Gordon-Levitt–Don Jon
Joshua Oppenheimer–The Act of Killing

MOST PROMISING PERFORMER
Barkhad Abdi–Captain Phillips
Chadwick Boseman–42
Adele Exarchopoulos–Blue is the Warmest Color
Lupita Nyong’o–12 Years A Slave
Tye Sheridan–Mud

'12 Years a Slave' and Alfonso Cuaron Lead Wave of Newly Announced Critics Prizes

Peter Knegt — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 18:31:00 GMT

A slew of critics associations and societies made their 2013 favorites be known in the past few days, from Dallas, St. Louis and Detroit to groups representing online and African-American critics groups. Of the ten announcements listed below, Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" took eight of the best picture prizes, while Spike Jonze's "Her" took the other two. Though notably Alfonso Cuarón won best director from six of the groups for "Gravity," a continuing trend among critics' prizes.

In the acting races, Cate Blanchett and Sandra Bullock each took a handful of best actress prizes, while Brie Larson also scored one (from Detroit). Chiwetel Ejiofor dominated best actor, though Forest Whitaker, Matthew McConaughey and Oscar Isaac each got mentions. Lupita Nyong'o and Jared Leto, meanwhile, won almost all of the supporting acting races, as they have been pretty much all season.

Full list of winners from each group below. Check out all the awards announced so far this season here.

African-American Film Critics' Association:

Best Picture: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Director: Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actor: Forest Whitaker, "Lee Daniels' The Butler"

Best Actress: Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Oprah Winfrey, "Lee Daniels' The Butler"

Best Screenplay: John Ridley, "12 Years a Slave"

Best World Cinema: "Mother of George"

Best Animated Film: "Frozen"

Best Documentary: "American Promse"

Best Independent Film: "Fruitvale Station"

Best Breakout Performance: :Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave

Best Music: Raphael Saadiq. "Black Nativity"

Top 10 Films of 2013
1. "12 Years a Slave"
2. "Lee Daniels' The Butler"
3. "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom"
4. "American Hustle"
5. "Gravity"
6. "Fruitvale Station"
7. "Dallas Buyers Cllub"
8. "Saving Mr. Banks"
9. "Out of the Furnace"
10. "42"

Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association:

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years a Slave

Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

Cinematography: Gravity

Animated: Frozen

Foreign Language: Blue is the Warmest Color

Detroit Film Critics Society:

Best Picture: "Her"

Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron, "Gravity"

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Actress: Brie Larson, "Short Term 12"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Scarlett Johansson, "Her"

Best Screenplay: Spike Jonze, "Her"

Best Ensemble: "American Hustle"

Best Documentary: "Stories We Tell"

Best Breakthrough Performance: :Brie Larson, "Short Term 12"

Houston Film Critics Society:

Best Picture: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Director: Alfonso Cuaròn, "Gravity"

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actress: Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Screenplay: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Animated Film: "Frozen"

Best Cinematography: "Gravity"

Best Documentary: "20 Feet from Stardom"

Best Foreign Language Film: "The Hunt"

Best Original Score: "Gravity"

Best Original Song: "Please Mr. Kennedy" from "Inside Llewyn Davis"

Kansas City Film Critics Circle:

Best Picture: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Director: (tie) Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity" and Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actress: Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"

Best Supporting Actor: Michael Fassbender, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Supporting Actor: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Adapted Screenplay: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Original Screenplay: "Her"

Best Animated Film: (tie) "Despicable Me 2" and "Frozen"

Best Documentary: "The Act of Killing"

Best Foreign Film: "Blue is the Warmest Color"

Vince Koehler Award for Best Sci-Fi/Horror Film: "Her"

Online Film Critics Society:

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave

Best Animated Feature: The Wind Rises

Best Film Not in the English Language: Blue Is the Warmest Color

Best Documentary: The Act of Killing

Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron – Gravity

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine

Best Supporting Actor: Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave

Best Original Screenplay: Her

Best Adapted Screenplay: 12 Years a Slave

Best Editing: Gravity

Best Cinematography: Gravity

San Diego Film Critics Society:

Best Film: "Her"

Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"

Best Actor: Oscar Isaac, "Inside Llewyn Davis"

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Shailene Woodley, "The Spectacular Now"

Best Adapted Screenplay: "Before Midnight"

Best Original Screenplay: "Her"

Best Cinematography: "To the Wonder"

Best Film Editing: "Captain Phillips"

Best Production Design: "The Great Gatsby"

Best Score: "Her"

Best Animated Film: "The Wind Rises"

Best Documentary: "The Act of Killing"

Best Foreign Language Film: "Drug War"

Best Ensemble Performance: "American Hustle"

Body of Work: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club," "Mud," "The Wolf of Wall Street"

St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association:

Best Film: "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: "American Hustle")

Best Director: Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity")

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club")

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine" (Runner-up: Meryl Streep, "August: Osage County")

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club" (Runner-up: Will Forte, "Nebraska")

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: June Squibb, "Nebraska")

Best Adapted Screenplay: "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: "Philomena")

Best Original Screenplay: "Her" (Runner-up: "American Hustle")

Best Art Direction: "The Great Gatsby" (Runner-up: "Her")

Best Cinematography: "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: "Gravity")

Best Musical Score: "Her" (Runners-up: "Gravity," "Nebraska")

Best Soundtrack: "Inside Llewyn Davis" (Runner-up: "Frozen")

Best Animated Film: "Frozen" (Runner-up: "The Wind Rises")

Best Non-English Language Film: "Blue is the Warmest Color" (Runner-up: "Wadjda")

Best Documentary: "Blackfish" (Runners-up: "The Act of Killing," "Stories We Tell")

Best Art House or Festival Film: "Short Term 12" (Runners-up: "Blue is the Warmest Color," "Frances Ha")

Best Comedy: (tie) "Enough Said" and "The World's End"

Best Scene (favorite movie scene or sequence): "12 Years a Slave" — The hanging scene (Runner-up: "Gravity" — The opening tracking shot)

Indiana Film Journalists Association:

Best Film: "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: "Her")

Other Finalists (alphabetical)
"All is Lost"
"Before Midnight"
"Captain Phillips"
"Frances Ha"
"Mud"
"Prisoners"
"Spring Breakers"
"The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Director: Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: Spike Jonze, "Her")

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club")

Best Actress: Adèle Exarchopoulos, "Blue is the Warmest Color" (Runner-up: Brie Larson, "Short Term 12")

Best Supporting Actor: Barkhad Abdi, "Captain Phillips" (Runner-up: Jeremy Renner, "American Hustle")

Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle" (Runner-up: June Squibb, "Nebraska")

Best Adapted Screenplay: "Before Midnight" (Runner-up: "12 Years a Slave")

Best Original Screenplay: "Her" (Runner-up: "Rush")

Best Musical Score: "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: "Rush")

Best Animated Feature: "Frozen" (Runner-up: "The Wind Rises")

Best Foreign Language Film: "Blue is the Warmest Color" (Runner-up: "The Grandmaster")

Best Documentary: "The Act of Killing" (Runner-up: "Stories We Tell")

Original Vision Award: "Her" (Runner-up: "Gravity")

The Hoosier Award: Andrew Cohn and Davy Rothbart, "Medora"

Southeastern Film Critics Association:

Top 10
1. "12 Years a Slave"
2. "Gravity"
3. "American Hustle"
4. "Her"
5. "Inside Llewyn Davis"
6. "Nebraska"
7. "Dallas Buyers Club"
8. "Philomena"
9. "Captain Phillips"
10. "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club")

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine" (Runner-up: Judi Dench, "Philomena")

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club" (Runner-up: Michael Fassbender, "12

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’o, "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle")

Best Director: Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: Alfonso Cuaròn, "Gravity")

Best Ensemble: "American Hustle" (Runner-up: "12 Years a Slave")

Best Adapted Screenplay: "12 Years a Slave" (Runner-up: "Philomena")

Best Original Screenplay: "American Hustle" (Runner-up: "Her")

Best Documentary: "The Act of Killing" (Runners-up: "Blackfish," "Muscle Shoals")

Best Foreign Language Film: "The Hunt" (Runner-up: "Blue is the Warmest Color")

Best Animated Film: "Frozen" (Runner-up: "The Wind Rises")

Best Cinematography: "Gravity" (Runner-up: "12 Years a Slave")

Gene Wyatt Award: Jeff Nichols, "Mud" (Runner-up: Greg "Freddy" Cammalier, "Muscle Shoals")

'12 Years a Slave' and 'American Hustle' Lead 2014 Critics Choice Award Nominations With 13 Each

Peter Knegt — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 16:48:15 GMT

The Broadcast Film Critics Association has announced the nominations the 19th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards, with Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" and David O. Russell's "American Hustle" dominating with 13 mentions each. Both got nominations for best picture, best director, best acting ensemble, best screenplay (best adapted for "12 Years," best original for "Hustle"), as well as individual acting noms for trios from each cast -- Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender and Lupita Nyong'o from "12 Years," and Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence from "American Hustle."

Joining the pair in the best picture category were "Captain Phillips," "Dallas Buyers Club," "Gravity," "Her," "Inside Llewyn Davis," "Nebraska," "Saving Mr. Banks" and "The Wolf of Wall Street."

There weren't too many shocking omissions in the group, though Oscar hopes for Tom Hanks (in "Saving Mr. Banks," at least), Jonah Hill ("The Wolf of Wall Street"), Octavia Spencer ("Fruitvale Station") and Joaquin Phoenix ("Her") continue to dwindle as they all missed out here after big snubs last week. Brie Larson ("Short Term 12") and Scarlett Johannson (a voice over performance in "Her"), meanwhile, arguably got the biggest boosts from somewhat surprising nominations here (aided by the fact that the Critics Choice Awards give six nominations in each acting category).

Then of course there's the fairly new action and comedy-specific categories, which notably have 3 extra nominations to "American Hustle" where "12 Years" was ineligible (for best comedy and two comedy acting bids for Bale and Adams). The categories continued to offer frustrating and non-sensical nominations in a clear bid to give as many nominations as possible to big stars. Sandra Bullock and Leonardo DiCaprio got noms for best action actress and best comedy actor, respectively, for "Gravity" and "The Wolf of Wall Street." But then bizarrely neither film was nominated for best action movie or best comedy movie (despite both getting best overall picture nods). Bullock actually got another nomination for "The Heat" (which did get a best comedy movie nod as well), bringing her overall count here to 3. Surely that means the Critics Choice Awards will get her on that stage one way or another...

Full list of nominations below:

BEST PICTURE
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Inside Llewyn Davis
Nebraska
Saving Mr. Banks
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street

BEST ACTOR
Christian Bale – American Hustle
Bruce Dern – Nebraska
Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave
Tom Hanks – Captain Phillips
Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buyers Club
Robert Redford – All Is Lost

BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock – Gravity
Judi Dench – Philomena
Brie Larson – Short Term 12
Meryl Streep – August: Osage County
Emma Thompson – Saving Mr. Banks

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Barkhad Abdi – Captain Phillips
Daniel Bruhl – Rush
Bradley Cooper – American Hustle
Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave
James Gandolfini – Enough Said
Jared Leto – Dallas Buyers Club

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Scarlett Johansson – Her
Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle
Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts – August: Osage County
June Squibb – Nebraska
Oprah Winfrey – Lee Daniels’ The Butler

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Asa Butterfield – Ender’s Game
Adele Exarchopoulos – Blue Is the Warmest Color
Liam James – The Way Way Back
Sophie Nelisse – The Book Thief
Tye Sheridan – Mud

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
American Hustle
August: Osage County
Lee Daniels’ The Butler
Nebraska
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street

BEST DIRECTOR
Alfonso Cuaron – Gravity
Paul Greengrass – Captain Phillips
Spike Jonze – Her
Steve McQueen – 12 Years a Slave
David O. Russell – American Hustle
Martin Scorsese – The Wolf of Wall Street

Nomination list continues on next page.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Eric Singer and David O. Russell – American Hustle
Woody Allen – Blue Jasmine
Spike Jonze – Her
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen – Inside Llewyn Davis
Bob Nelson – Nebraska

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Tracy Letts – August: Osage County
Richard Linklater & Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke – Before Midnight
Billy Ray – Captain Phillips
Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope – Philomena
John Ridley – 12 Years a Slave
Terence Winter – The Wolf of Wall Street

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Emmanuel Lubezki – Gravity
Bruno Delbonnel – Inside Llewyn Davis
Phedon Papamichael – Nebraska
Roger Deakins – Prisoners
Sean Bobbitt – 12 Years a Slave

BEST ART DIRECTION
Andy Nicholson (Production Designer), Rosie Goodwin (Set Decorator) – Gravity
Catherine Martin (Production Designer), Beverley Dunn (Set Decorator) – The Great Gatsby
K.K. Barrett (Production Designer), Gene Serdena (Set Decorator) – Her
Dan Hennah (Production Designer), Ra Vincent (Set Decorator) – The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Adam Stockhausen (Production Designer), Alice Baker (Set Decorator) – 12 Years a Slave

BEST EDITING
Alan Baumgarten, Jay Cassidy, Crispin Struthers – American Hustle
Christopher Rouse – Captain Phillips
Alfonso Cuarón, Mark Sanger – Gravity
Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill – Rush
Joe Walker – 12 Years a Slave
Thelma Schoonmaker – The Wolf of Wall Street

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Michael Wilkinson – American Hustle
Catherine Martin – The Great Gatsby
Bob Buck, Lesley Burkes-Harding, Ann Maskrey, Richard Taylor – The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Daniel Orlandi – Saving Mr. Banks
Patricia Norris – 12 Years a Slave

BEST MAKEUP
American Hustle
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Lee Daniels’ The Butler
Rush
12 Years a Slave

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Gravity
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Iron Man 3
Pacific Rim
Star Trek into Darkness

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Frozen
Monsters University
The Wind Rises

BEST ACTION MOVIE
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Iron Man 3
Lone Survivor
Rush
Star Trek into Darkness

BEST ACTOR IN AN ACTION MOVIE
Henry Cavill – Man of Steel
Robert Downey Jr. – Iron Man 3
Brad Pitt – World War Z
Mark Wahlberg – Lone Survivor

BEST ACTRESS IN AN ACTION MOVIE
Sandra Bullock – Gravity
Jennifer Lawrence – The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Evangeline Lilly – The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Gwyneth Paltrow – Iron Man 3

BEST COMEDY
American Hustle
Enough Said
The Heat
This Is the End
The Way Way Back
The World’s End

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY
Christian Bale – American Hustle
Leonardo DiCaprio – The Wolf of Wall Street
James Gandolfini – Enough Said
Simon Pegg – The World’s End
Sam Rockwell – The Way Way Back

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY
Amy Adams – American Hustle
Sandra Bullock – The Heat
Greta Gerwig – Frances Ha
Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Enough Said
Melissa McCarthy – The Heat

BEST SCI-FI/HORROR MOVIE
The Conjuring
Gravity
Star Trek into Darkness
World War Z

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Blue Is the Warmest Color
The Great Beauty
The Hunt
The Past
Wadjda

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
The Act of Killing
Blackfish
Stories We Tell
Tim’s Vermeer
20 Feet from Stardom

BEST SONG
Atlas – Coldplay – The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Happy – Pharrell Williams – Despicable Me 2
Let It Go – Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez – Frozen
Ordinary Love – U2 – Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
Please Mr. Kennedy – Justin Timberlake/Oscar Isaac/Adam Driver – Inside Llewyn Davis
Young and Beautiful – Lana Del Rey – The Great Gatsby

BEST SCORE
Steven Price – Gravity
Arcade Fire – Her
Thomas Newman – Saving Mr. Banks
Hans Zimmer – 12 Years a Slave

'12 Years a Slave,' 'Gravity' Top San Francisco Critics Awards

Peter Knegt — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 00:49:27 GMT

Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" picked up another critics prize today, with the San Francisco Film Critics Circle honoring it as their best picture. The film also won best actor and best adapted screenplay, though Alfonso Cuarón's "Gravity" won more. Cuarón's film won best director, best cinematography, best film editing and best production design.

Full list of winners:

Best Picture: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"

Best Supporting Actor: James Franco, "Spring Breakers"

Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle"

Best Adapted Screenplay: "12 Years a Slave"

Best Original Screenplay: "American Hustle"

Best Cinematography: "Gravity"

Best Film Editing: "Gravity"

Best Production Design: "Gravity"

Best Animated Film: "Frozen"

Best Foreign Film: "Blue is the Warmest Color"

Best Documentary: "The Act of Killing"

Marlon Riggs Award: Chris Statton (Roxie Theater) and Ryan Coogler ("Fruitvale Station")

Special Citation: "Computer Chess"

'12 Years' Wins Big With Boston Online Critics

Peter Knegt — Tue, 10 Dec 2013 15:17:25 GMT

Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" had just as many fans in the Boston Online Film Critics Association as they did the city's non-online group. The online group gave the film a whopping 7 awards this past weekend including best picture and best director.

Full list below.

Best Picture
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Director
Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actor
Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"

Best Supporting Actor
Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress
Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Screenplay
"Before Midnight"

Best Foreign Language Film
"Blue is the Warmest Color"

Best Documentary
"The Act of Killing"

Best Animated Film
(tie) "Frozen" and "The Wind Rises"

Best Cinematography
"Inside Llewyn Davis"

Best Editing
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Original Score
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Ensemble
"12 Years a Slave"

The 10 Best Films of the Year
1. "12 Years a Slave"
2. "Inside Llewyn Davis"
3. "The Wolf of Wall Street"
4. "Gravity"
5. "Before Midnight"
6. "The Spectacular Now"
7. "Blue is the Warmest Color"
8. "Spring Breakers"
9. "The World's End"
10. "Fruitvale Station"

St. Louis Critics Like '12 Years,' 'Nebraska' and 'Her'

Peter Knegt — Tue, 10 Dec 2013 14:55:45 GMT

Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave," Alexander Payne's "Nebraska" and Spike Jonze's "Her" led the nominations for the St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association's annual awards. Each got nods across the board, including best film -- where they compete against "American Hustle" and "Gravity."

Full list of nominations below.

Best Film
"American Hustle"
"Gravity"
"Her"
"Nebraska"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Director
Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"
Spike Jonze, "Her"
Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"
Alexander Payne, "Nebraska"
David O. Russell, "American Hustle"

Best Actor
Christian Bale, "American Hustle"
Bruce Dern, "Nebraska"
Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"
Michael B. Jordan, "Fruitvale Station"
Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Actress
Amy Adams, "American Hustle"
Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"
Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"
Judi Dench, "Philomena"
Meryl Streep, "August: Osage County"
Emma Thompson, "Saving Mr. Banks"

Best Supporting Actor
Barkhad Abdi, "Captain Phillips"
Michael Fassbender, "12 Years a Slave"
Harrison Ford, "42"
Will Forte, "Nebraska"
Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress
Scarlett Johannson, "Her"
Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle"
Lupita Nyongo, "12 Years a Slave"
Lea Seydoux, "Blue Is the Warmest Color"
June Squibb, "Nebraska"

Best Adapted Screenplay
"Before Midnight"
"Captain Phillips"
"Philomena"
"Short Term 12"
"The Spectacular Now"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Original Screenplay
"American Hustle"
"Enough Said"
"Her"
"Nebraska"
"Saving Mr. Banks"

Best Cinematography
"The Grandmaster"
"The Great Gatsby"
"Gravity"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"Nebraska"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Visual Special Effects
"Gravity"
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug"
"Iron Man 3"
"Pacific Rim"
"Star Trek Into Darkness"
"Thor: The Dark World"

Best Musical Score
"Gravity"
"Her"
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug"
"Nebraska"
"Saving Mr. Banks"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Soundtrack
"American Hustle"
"Despicable Me 2"
"Frozen"
"The Great Gatsby"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"Muscle Shoals"

Best Art Direction
"The Grandmaster"
"The Great Gatsby"
"Her"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Documentary
"20 Feet from Stardom
"The Act of Killing"
"Blackfish"
"Muscle Shoals"
"Stories We Tell"

Best Non-English Language Film
"Blue Is the Warmest Color"
"A Hijacking"
"The Hunt"
"No"
"Wadjda"

Best Comedy
"Enough Said"
"The Heat"
"Nebraska"
"The Way Way Back"
"The World’s End"

Best Animated Feature
"The Croods"
"Despicable Me 2"
"Frozen"
"Monsters University"
"The Wind Rises"

Best Art-House or Festival Film
For artistic excellence in independent, international or smaller-budget films that played at film festivals, film series or had a limited-release run in St. Louis, playing one to three cinemas.

"Ain’t Them Bodies Saints
"Before Midnight"
"Blue Is the Warmest Color"
"Frances Ha"
"In a World…"
"Short Term 12"

Best Scene
A favorite movie scene or sequence

"12 Years a Slave" – The hanging scene.
"Captain Phillips" – The scene near the end of the film where Tom Hanks is being checked out by military medical personnel and he breaks down.
"Gravity" – The opening tracking shot.
"Her" – Off-screen OS sex scene.
"The Place Beyond the Pines" – The opening scene where Ryan Gosling is walking through the carnival.

'Short Term 12' Leads Detroit Film Critics' Awards

Peter Knegt — Tue, 10 Dec 2013 14:43:58 GMT

The Detroit Film Critics Society went their own way for the 2013 awards nominations, with "Short Term 12" leading the pack with five nominations -- more than critics groups favorites "12 Years a Slave," "Gravity" and "Her." Those three films did indeed get best picture nods, alongside "Short Term" and "Before Midnight."

Full list of nominations below.

Best Picture
"Before Midnight"
"Gravity"
"Her"
"Short Term 12"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Director
Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"
Paul Greengrass, "Captain Phillips"
Spike Jonze, "Her"
David O. Russell, "American Hustle"
Martin Scorsese, "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Wolf of Wall Street"
Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"
Tom Hanks, "Captain Phillips"
Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club"
Robert Redford, "All is Lost

Best Actress
Amy Adams, "American Hustle"
Julie Delpy, "Before Midnight"
Adèle Exarchopoulos, "Blue is the Warmest Color"
Brie Larson, "Short Term 12"
Meryl Streep, "August: Osage County"

Best Supporting Actor
Barkhad Abdi, "Captain Phillips"
James Franco, "Spring Breakers"
Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"
Matthew McConaughey, "Mud"
Stanley Tucci, "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire"

Best Supporting Actress
Scarlett Johansson, "Her"
Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle"
Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"
Julia Roberts, "August: Osage County"
June Squibb, "Nebraska"

Best Screenplay
"American Hustle"
"Before Midnight"
"Her"
"Short Term 12"
"The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Documentary
"The Act of Killing"
"Blackfish"
"The Square"
"Stories We Tell"
"The Unknown Known"

Best Ensemble
"American Hustle"
"August: Osage County"
"Blue Jasmine"
"12 Years a Slave"
"The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Breakthrough
Lake Bell, "In a World…" (Director, Screenplay, Actress)
Ryan Coogler, "Fruitvale Station" (Director, Screenplay)
Destin Cretton, "Short Term 12" (Director, Screenplay)
Michael B. Jordan, "Fruitvale Station" (Actor)
Brie Larson, "Short Term 12" (Actress)

'12 Years a Slave' Leads Washington DC Critics Awards

Peter Knegt — Tue, 10 Dec 2013 14:41:00 GMT

Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" led the winners of the Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association. The film took prizes for best film, best actor, best supporting actress, best adapted screenplay, best acting ensemble and best music score. McQueen didn't take best director, however, as that prize went to Alfonso Cuarón.

Full list of winners and nominees below (winners in bold):

Best Film
"American Hustle"
"Gravity"
"Her"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Director
Alfonso Cuarón, "Gravity"
Spike Jonze, "Her"
Baz Luhrmann, "The Great Gatsby"
Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"
Martin Scorsese, "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Wolf of Wall Street"
Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"
Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club"
Joaquin Phoenix, "Her"
Robert Redford, "All Is Lost"

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"
Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"
Judi Dench, "Philomena"
Meryl Streep, "August: Osage County"
Emma Thompson, "Saving Mr. Banks"

Best Supporting Actor
Daniel Brühl, "Rush"
Michael Fassbender, "12 Years a Slave"
James Franco, "Spring Breakers"
James Gandolfini, "Enough Said"
Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress
Scarlett Johansson, "Her"
Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle"
Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"
Octavia Spencer, "Fruitvale Station"
June Squibb, "Nebraska"

Best Acting Ensemble
"American Hustle"
"August: Osage County"
"Prisoners"
"12 Years a Slave"
"The Way, Way Back"

Best Youth Performance
Asa Butterfield, "Ender's Game"
Adéle Exarchopoulos, "Blue Is the Warmest Color"
Liam James, "The Way, Way Back"
Waad Mohammed, "Wadjda"
Tye Sheridan, "Mud"

Best Adapted Screenplay
"Before Midnight"
"Captain Phillips"
"The Spectacular Now"
"12 Years a Slave"
"The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Original Screenplay
"American Hustle"
"Blue Jasmine"
"Enough Said"
"Her"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"

Best Animated Feature
"The Croods"
"Despicable Me 2"
"Frozen"
"Monsters University"
"The Wind Rises"

Best Documentary
"The Act of Killing"
"Blackfish"
"Leviathan"
"Stories We Tell"
"20 Feet from Stardom"

Best Foreign Language Film
"Blue Is the Warmest Color"
"The Broken Circle Breakdown"
"The Hunt"
"The Past"
"Wadjda"

Best Art Direction
"Gravity"
"The Great Gatsby"
"Her"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Cinematography
"Gravity"
"The Great Gatsby"
"Her"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"12 Years a Slave"

Best Editing
"Gravity"
"Her"
"Rush"
"12 Years a Slave"
"The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Original Score
"Frozen"
"Her"
"Gravity"
"Saving Mr. Banks"
"12 Years a Slave"

The Joe Barber Award for Best Portrayal of Washington, D.C.
"The East"
"Lee Daniels' The Butler"
"Olympus Has Fallen"
"Philomena"
"White House Down"

'12 Years a Slave' Tops Awards From New York Film Critics Online

Peter Knegt — Mon, 09 Dec 2013 08:03:11 GMT

Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" nabbed its second best picture critics prize of the weekend thanks to the New York Film Critics Online (it also led Boston's winners). The film won best picture, best actor and best supporting actress, though its director lost his prize to Alfonso Cuaron and "Gravity."

Full list of winners:

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave
Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
Best Debut Director: Ryan Coogler, Fruitvale Station
Best Ensemble Cast: American Hustle
Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years A Slave
Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years A Slave
Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club
Best Foreign Language Film: Blue Is The Warmest Color
Best Documentary: The Act Of Killing
Best Animated Feature: The Wind Rises
Best Use Of Music: Inside Llewyn Davis
Best Screenplay: Spike Jonze, Her
Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity
Best Breakthrough Performance: Adele Exarchopoulos, Blue Is The Warmest Color