2017 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

While it has not been theatrically released yet, "The Post", Steven Spielberg’s look at the Washington Post taking the lead in exposing the Pentagon Papers, impressed the National Board of Review enough for them to select it as the Best Film of 2017. Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks, who play Post publisher, Katherine Graham and the paper's editor, Ben Bradlee, took the Best Actress and Best Actor prizes for their roles in the film. "The Post" is due on December 22nd in limited release before rolling out nationwide in January.

In a pleasant and well-deserved surprise, actress, Greta Gerwig was selected as Best Director for her amazing coming-of-age dramedy, "Lady Bird", her directorial debut while Jordan Peele took the Directorial Debut prize for "Get Out", his reflective horror flick that examines race relations.

Both films are also well represented with nominations for the 2017 Independent Spirit Awards with "Get Out" receiving five and "Lady Bird" received four with both nominated for Best Feature. Laurie Metcalf won the Best Supporting Actress prize from NBR and a nomination from the Spirit Awards for her performance in "Lady Bird" as the harried mother. Another film not yet seen publicly, "Phantom Thread" was given the Best Original Screenplay by NBR with this drama (due out on Christmas day) by writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson being noteworthy and highly anticipated because it will feature the apparent last screen performance by three-time Oscar winner, Daniel Day-Lewis.

Meanwhile on the other side of the globe, The European Film Awards have previously announced their nominations of the best films of 2017 that originated from their continent. Four of the Best European Film nominees have been selected to represent their countries for Oscar as Best Foreign-Language Film (with "The Other Side of Hope" from Finland not getting that opportunity).

The National Board of Review Awards gala, hosted by Willie Geist, will be on January 9, 2018 at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York. The Spirit Awards will air live on IFC from the Santa Monica beach on March 3rd and will be hosted by Nick Kroll and John Mulaney for a second year in a row. The 30th annual European Awards will be held on December 9th in Berlin.

Winners of the 2017 National Board of Review:

Best Film: "The Post"
Best Director: Greta Gerwig, "Lady Bird"
Best Directorial Debut: Jordan Peele, "Get Out"
Best Original Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson, "Phantom Thread"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber, "The Disaster Artist"
Best Actor: Tom Hanks, "The Post"
Best Actress: Meryl Streep, "The Post"
Best Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe, "The Florida Project"
Best Supporting Actress: Laurie Metcalf, "Lady Bird"
Best Cast Ensemble: "Get Out"
Best Animated Feature: "Coco"
Best Foreign Language Film: "Foxtrot" (Israel)
Best Documentary: "Jane"
Best Breakthrough Performance: Timothée Chalamet, "Call Me By Your Name"
Freedom of Expression: "Let it Fall: Los Angeles, 1982-1992" and "First They Killed My Father" (tie)
Spotlight Award: "Wonder Woman" director Patty Jenkins and actress Gal Gadot

2017 Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominations:

Best Feature

"Call Me By Your Name"
"Get Out"
"Lady Bird"
"The Florida Project"
"The Rider"

Best First Feature

"Columbus"
"Ingrid Goes West"
"Menashe"
"Oh Lucy!"
"Patti Cake$"

Best Director

Sean Baker, "The Florida Project"
Jonas Carpignano, "A Ciambra"
Luca Guadagnino, "Call Me by Your Name"
Jordan Peele, "Get Out"
Benny Safdie & Josh Safdie, "Good Time"
Chloé Zhao, "The Rider

Best Screenplay

Greta Gerwig, "Lady Bird"
Azazel Jacobs, "The Lovers"
Martin McDonagh, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri"
Jordan Peele, "Get Out"
Mike White, "Beatriz at Dinner"

Best First Screenplay

Kris Avedisian, (Story by Kyle Espeleta and Jesse Wakeman), "Donald Cried"
Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani, "The Big Sick"
Ingrid Jungermann, "Women Who Kill"
Kogonada, "Columbus"
David Branson Smith, Matt Spicer, "Ingrid Goes West"

Best Female Lead

Salma Hayek, "Beatriz at Dinner"
Frances McDormand, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri"
Margot Robbie, "I, Tonya"
Saoirse Ronan, "Lady Bird"
Shinobu Terajima, "Oh Lucy!"
Regina Williams, "Life and nothing more"

Best Male Lead

Timothée Chalamet, "Call Me by Your Name"
Harris Dickinson, "Beach Rats"
James Franco, "The Disaster Artist"
Daniel Kaluuya, "Get Out"
Robert Pattinson, "Good Time"

Best Supporting Female

Holly Hunter, "The Big Sick"
Allison Janney, "I, Tonya"
Laurie Metcalf, "Lady Bird"
Lois Smith, "Marjorie Prime"
Taliah Lennice Webster, "Good Time"

Best Supporting Male

Nnamdi Asomugha, "Crown Heights"
Armie Hammer, "Call Me By Your Name"
Barry Keoghan, "The Killing of a Sacred Deer"
Sam Rockwell, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri"
Bennie Safdie, "Good Time"

Best Cinematography

Thimios Bakatakis, "The Killing of a Sacred Deer"
Elisha Christian, "Columbus"
Hélène Louvart, "Beach Rats"
Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, "Call Me by Your Name"
Joshua James Richards, "The Rider"

Best Editing

Ronald Bronstein and Benny Safdie, "Good Time"
Walter Fasano, "Call Me by Your Name"
Alex O’Flinn, "The Rider"
Gregory Plotkin, "Get Out"
Tatiana S. Riegel, "I, Tonya"

Best Documentary

"The Departure"
"Faces Places"
"Last Men in Aleppo"
"Motherland"
"Quest"

Best International Film

"BPM (Beats Per Minute)" (France)
"A Fantastic Woman" (Chile)
"I Am Not a Witch" (Zambia)
"Lady Macbeth" (U.K.)
"Loveless" (Russia)

John Cassavetes Award (for best feature made under $500,000)

"Dayveon"
"A Ghost Story"
"Life and nothing more"
"Most Beautiful Island"
"The Transfiguration"

Robert Altman Award (for Best Cast Ensemble)

"Mudbound"

Kiehl’s Someone To Watch Award

Amman Abbasi, "Dayveon"
Justin Chon, "Gook"
Kevin Phillips, "Super Dark Times"

2017 European Film Awards Nominations:

Best European Film

"BPM" (France)
"Loveless" (Russia)
"On Body And Soul" (Hungary)
"The Other Side Of Hope" (Finland)
"The Square" (Sweden/Germany/France/Denmark)

Best European Director

Ildikó Enyedi, "On Body And Soul"
Aki Kaurismäki, "The Other Side Of Hope"
Yorgos Lanthimos, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer"
Ruben Östlund, "The Square"
Andrey Zvyagintsev, "Loveless"

Best European Actress

Paula Beer, "Frantz"
Juliette Binoche, "Bright Sunshine In"
Alexandra Borbély, "On Body And Soul"
Isabelle Huppert, "Happy End"
Florence Pugh, "Lady Macbeth"

Best European Actor

Claes Bang, The Square"
Colin Farrell, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer"
Josef Hader, Stefan Zweig, "Farewell To Europe"
Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, "BPM"
Jean-Louis Trintignant, "Happy End"

Best European Screenwriter

Ildikó Enyedi, "On Body And Soul"
Yorgos Lanthimos & Efthimis Filippou, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer"
Oleg Negin & Andrey Zvyagintsev, "Loveless"
Ruben Östlund, "The Square"
François Ozon, "Frantz"

Best European Documentary

"Austerlitz"
"Communion"
"La Chana"
"Stranger In Paradise"
"The Good Postman"