MORE AWARD NEWS

With award season starting to move in to high gear, the critic groups on both coasts have weighted in and have announced their picks for the best of the year. On November 30th, The New York Film Critics Circle selected Greta Gerwig's coming-of-age comedy, "Lady Bird" as Best Film while The Los Angeles Film Critics Association today have picked the romance, "Call Me By Your Name". This is hardly the only place they had differing opinions as each group had their own selections in most categories but did manage to agree on a few. They both picked Timothée Chalamet as Best Actor for his sensitive portrayal of a young teenager discovering himself in "Call Me By Your Name" and Willem Dafoe as Best Supporting Actor for his outstanding performance in "The Florida Project". They also agreed on Best Foreign-Language Film with "BPM (Beats Per Minute)", which looked at the ACT-UP AIDS activists in France although it tied with the Russian film, "Loveless" as LA's pick along with Best Documentary for Agnès Varda and JR with their joint venture, "Faces Places".

The most noteworthy selection was from New York with them picking Tiffany Haddish as Best Supporting Actress for her hilarious turn in the road-trip comedy, "Girls Trip". I'm hoping this will lead to her building some momentum to get that Oscar nod much like Melissa McCarthy who received a helpful boost from critics to ultimately getting a nomination for her very funny performance in "Bridesmaids".

The NYFCC Awards will be given out at a gala dinner on January 3 at Tao Downtown. The LAFCA will hand out the prizes at their annual gala on January 13 at the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles.

Here is the complete list of the 2017 New York Film Critics Circle winners:

Best Film: "Lady Bird"
Best Director: Sean Baker, "The Florida Project"
Best First Film: "Get Out"
Best Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson, "Phantom Thread"
Best Actor: Timothée Chalamet, "Call Me by Your Name"
Best Actress: Saoirse Ronan, "Lady Bird"
Best Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe, "The Florida Project"
Best Supporting Actress: Tiffany Haddish, "Girls Trip"
Best Cinematography: Rachel Morrison, "Mudbound"
Best Foreign Language Film: "BPM (Beats Per Minute)" (France)
Best Documentary: "Faces Places"
Best Animated Film: "Coco"

Here is the complete list of the 2017 The Los Angeles Film Critics Association winners:

Best Picture: "Call Me By Your Name"
Best Director: Guillermo del Toro, "The Shape of Water" and Luca Guadagnino, "Call Me By Your Name" (tie)
Best Screenplay: Jordan Peele, "Get Out"
Best Actress: Sally Hawkins, "The Shape of Water"
Best Actor: Timothée Chalamet, "Call Me By Your Name"
Best Supporting Actress: Laurie Metcalf, "Lady Bird"
Best Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe, "The Florida Project"
Best Cinematography: Dan Laustsen, "The Shape of Water"
Best Editing: Lee Smith, "Dunkirk"
Best Production Design: Dennis Gassner, "Blade Runner 2049"
Best Foreign-Language Film: "BPM (Beats Per Minute)" (France) and "Loveless" (Russia) (tie)
Best Documentary/Non-Fiction Film: "Faces Places"
Best Animated Film: "The Breadwinner"
Best Music/Score: Jonny Greenwood, "Phantom Thread"