2025 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

It's December which means that award season is now in full effect. The prizes are coming fast and furious with several critics groups have selected their winners or nominees for the best in cinema of this year. Here is a round-up of the early picks from various groups:

"One Battle After Another" took the top prize of Best Film from the 91st New York Film Critics Circle on December 2nd. The over fifty member, New York-based critics organization also selected Benicio Del Toro's performance for Best Supporting Actor from this film. Kleber Mendonça Filho’s "The Secret Agent" received Best International Film and star, Wagner Moura won Best Actor. Best Director went to Iranian director Jafar Panahi for his Cannes Palme d’Or-winning drama, "It Was Just an Accident" and Amy Madigan received Best Supporting Actress for her wild turn in the horror-drama, "Weapons".
Here are the winners of the 2025 New York Film Critics Circle:

Best Film: "One Battle After Another"
Best Director: Jafar Panahi, "It Was Just an Accident"
Best Screenplay: Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein, "Marty Supreme"
Best Actor: Wagner Moura, "The Secret Agent"
Best Actress: Rose Byrne, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Best Supporting Actor: Benicio Del Toro, "One Battle After Another"
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Madigan, "Weapons"
Best Cinematography: Autumn Durald Arkapaw, "Sinners"
Best Animated Film: "KPop Demon Hunters"
Best Non-Fiction Film: "My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow"
Best International Film: "The Secret Agent"
Best First Film: "Eephus"
Special Prizes: Museum of Moving Image; Screen Slate

The National Board of Review also selected "One Battle After Another" as their Best Film on December 3rd. This group of filmmakers, academics and fans gave Paul Thomas Anderson's crime-drama five awards including Best Director, Best Actor for Leonardo DiCaprio, Benicio Del Toro as Best Supporting Actor and Chase Infiniti for Breakthrough Performer Award. Other winners include Rose Byrne taking Best Actress for "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You" and Jafar Panahi's "It Was Just an Accident" was named Best International Film with both receiving these awards from NYFCC. Here are the winners of the 2025 National Board of Review:

Best Film: "One Battle After Another"
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, "One Battle After Another"
Best Directorial Debut: Eva Victor, "Sorry, Baby"
Best Original Screenplay: Ryan Coogler, "Sinners"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar, "Train Dreams"
Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, "One Battle After Another"
Best Actress: Rose Byrne, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Best Supporting Actor: Benicio Del Toro, "One Battle After Another"
Best Supporting Actress: Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, "Sentimental Value"
Breakthrough Performance: Chase Infiniti, "One Battle After Another"
Best Animated Feature: "Arco"
Best International Film: "It Was Just an Accident"
Best Documentary: "Cover-Up"
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Autumn Durald Arkapaw, "Sinners"
Outstanding Achievement in Stunt Artistry: "Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning"
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk"

The nominations for the 41st Film Independent Spirit Awards were revealed also on December 3rd with "Peter Hujar’s Day" receiving the most noms with five, followed by "Train Dreams", "Blue Sun Place", "One of Them Days", "Lurker" and "Sorry, Baby" each getting four apiece. This organization focuses only on indie film productions that cost under $30 million, leaving some films that were slightly above that figure like "Weapons", "Marty Supreme", "The Smashing Machine" and "Kiss of the Spider Woman" out of consideration. The Film Independent Spirit Awards will be held on Sunday, February 15, 2026 at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles.

Here are the nominations of the 2025 Film Independent Spirit Awards (Film):

Best Feature:

"Peter Hujar’s Day"
"The Plague"
"Sorry, Baby"
"Train Dreams"
"Twinless"

Best First Feature:

"Blue Sun Palace"
"Dust Bunny"
"East of Wall"
"Lurker"
"One of Them Days"

Best Director:

Clint Bentley, "Train Dreams"
Mary Bronstein, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Lloyd Lee Choi, "Lucky Lu"
Ira Sachs, "Peter Hujar’s Day"
Eva Victor, "Sorry, Baby"

Best Screenplay:

Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin, "Splitsville"
Angus MacLachlan, "A Little Prayer"
James Sweeney, "Twinless"
Christian Swegal, "Sovereign"
Eva Victor, "Sorry, Baby"

Best First Screenplay:

Andrew DeYoung, "Friendship"
Elena Oxman, "Outerlands"
Alex Russell, "Lurker"
Syreeta Singleton, "One of Them Days"
Constance Tsang, "Blue Sun Palace"

Best Lead Performance:

Everett Blunck, "The Plague"
Rose Byrne, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Kathleen Chalfant, "Familiar Touch"
Chang Chen, "Lucky Lu"
Joel Edgerton, "Train Dreams"
Dylan O’Brien, "Twinless"
Keke Palmer, "One of Them Days"
Théodore Pellerin, "Lurker"
Tessa Thompson, "Hedda"
Ben Whishaw, "Peter Hujar’s Day"

Best Supporting Performance:

Naomi Ackie, "Sorry, Baby"
Zoey Deutch, "Nouvelle Vague"
Kirsten Dunst, "Roofman"
Rebecca Hall, "Peter Hujar’s Day"
Nina Hoss, "Hedda"
Jane Levy, "A Little Prayer"
Archie Madekwe, "Lurker"
Kali Reis, "Rebuilding"
Jacob Tremblay, "Sovereign"
Haipeng Xu, "Blue Sun Palace"

Best Breakthrough Performance:

Liz Larsen, "The Baltimorons"
Misha Osherovich, "She’s the He"
Kayo Martin, "The Plague"
SZA, "One of Them Days"
Tabatha Zimiga, "East of Wall"

Best Cinematography:

Alex Ashe, "Peter Hujar’s Day"
Norm Li, "Blue Sun Palace"
David J. Thompson, "Warfare"
Adolpho Veloso, "Train Dreams"
Nicole Hirsch Whitaker, "Dust Bunny"

Best Editing:

Ben Leonberg, "Good Boy"
Carson Lund, "Eephus"
Fin Oates, "Warfare"
Sara Shaw, "Splitsville"
Sofía Subercaseaux, "The Testament of Ann Lee"

Best Documentary:

"Come See Me in the Good Light"
"Endless Cookie"
"My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow"
"The Perfect Neighbor"
"The Tale of Silyan"

Best International Film:

"All That’s Left of You" (Palestine, Jordan, Germany, Cyprus)
"On Becoming a Guinea Fowl" (Zambia, UK, Ireland)
"A Poet" (Colombia)
"The Secret Agent" (Brazil)
"Sirāt" (Spain)

John Cassavetes Award (given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000):

"The Baltimorons"
"Boys Go to Jupiter"
"Eephus"
"Esta Isla (This Island)"
"Familiar Touch"

Someone to Watch Award (recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition):

Tatti Ribeiro, "Valentina"
Neo Sora, "Happyend"
Annapurna Sriram, "Fucktoys"

Truer Than Fiction Award (presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition):

Tony Benna, "André is an Idiot"
Rajee Samarasinghe, "Your Touch Makes Others Invisible"
Brittany Shyne, "Seeds"

Robert Altman Award (given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast):

"The Long Walk"

The American Film Institute announced their annual picks of the top-ten films of the year on December 4th. These selections tend to be a fairly accurate indicator of which films will probably land Oscar nominations with eight of the AFI picks from the last two years also received Best Picture noms. The annual AFI Awards will be presented during a private luncheon at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles on January 9, 2026.

Here are AFI’s Top 10 Movies of 2025:

"Avatar: Fire and Ash"
"Bugonia"
"Frankenstein"
"Hamnet"
"Jay Kelly"
"Marty Supreme"
"One Battle After Another"
"Sinners"
"Train Dreams"
"Wicked: For Good"

And the Los Angeles Film Critics Association also awarded "One Battle After Another" as their selection for Best Film. Paul Thomas Anderson received Best Director and Teyana Taylor took the Best Supporting Performance for this film. Taylor shared this prize, which the acting awards here are gender neutral categories, with Stellan Skarsgård, who was honored for his work in “Sentimental Value". The Lead Performance Award went to Rose Byrne, who has been sweeping up prizes for her riveting turn in “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” and Ethan Hawke, who was quite impressive in the period biopic, “Blue Moon”.

Here are the winners of 2025 Los Angeles Film Critics Association:

Best Film: "One Battle After Another"
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, “One Battle After Another”
Best Screenplay: Jafar Panahi, “It Was Just an Accident”
Best Lead Performance: Rose Byrne, “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” and Ethan Hawke, “Blue Moon”
Best Supporting Performance: Stellan Skarsgård, “Sentimental Value” and Teyana Taylor, “One Battle After Another”
Best Documentary/Nonfiction: “My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow”
Best Animation: "Little Amélie or the Character of Rain”
Best Cinematography: Adolpho Veloso, “Train Dreams”
Best Film Editing: Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie, “Marty Supreme”
Best Production Design: Hannah Beachler, “Sinners”
Best Music Score: Kangding Ray, “Sirât”

THE GOLDEN GLOBES NOMINATIONS AND MORE AWARD NEWS

Although they have lost some of their luster over the last few years due to several scandals, the Golden Globes are back to reclaim their status as the first major awards organization to start shaping the conversation for which films could potentially win awards. "Emilia Pérez" leads in film nominations with ten, following with "The Brutalist" at seven and "Conclave" with six. There is a new film category this year (which the Oscars had flirted with but backed away from a few years ago) with Best Cinematic and Box Office Achievement, which apparently is supposed to honor movies that made a lot of money in theaters last year but wouldn't be recognized in the Best Motion Picture categories. I guess it's not much different from separating the Drama and Musical/Comedy in some of the categories but this addition still seems silly to me.

Viola Davis, the Oscar and a Golden Globe winning performer, will receive this year's Cecil B. DeMille Award. The 80th Golden Globes will be hosted by Nikki Glaser on January 5, 2025, at the Beverly Hilton and presented live on CBS.

Here is a partial list of the nominations for the 2024 Golden Globes Awards (Film):

Best Motion Picture – Drama:

"The Brutalist"
"A Complete Unknown"
"Conclave"
"Dune: Part Two"
"Nickel Boys"
"September 5"

Best Motion Picture – Musical Or Comedy:

"Anora"
"Challengers"
"Emilia Pérez"
"A Real Pain"
"The Substance"
"Wicked"

Best Cinematic and Box Office Achievement:

"Alien: Romulus"
"Beetlejuice Beetlejuice"
"Deadpool & Wolverine"
"Gladiator II"
"Inside Out 2"
"Twisters"
"Wicked"
"The Wild Robot"

Best Director – Motion Picture:

Jacques Audiard, "Emilia Pérez"
Sean Baker, "Anora"
Edward Berger, "Conclave"
Brady Corbet, "The Brutalist"
Coralie Fargeat, "The Substance"
Payal Kapadia, "All We Imagine as Light"

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture:

Jacques Audiard, "Emilia Pérez"
Sean Baker, "Anora"
Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold, "The Brutalist"
Jesse Eisenberg, "A Real Pain"
Coralie Fargeat, "The Substance"
Peter Straughan, "Conclave"

Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama:

Pamela Anderson, "The Last Showgirl"
Angelina Jolie, "Maria"
Nicole Kidman, "Babygirl"
Tilda Swinton, "The Room Next Door"
Fernanda Torres, "I’m Still Here"
Kate Winslet, "Lee"

Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy:

Amy Adams, "Nightbitch"
Cynthia Erivo, "Wicked"
Karla Sofía Gascón, "Emilia Pérez"
Mikey Madison, "Anora"
Demi Moore, "The Substance"
Zendaya, "Challengers"

Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama:

Adrien Brody, "The Brutalist"
Timothée Chalamet, "A Complete Unknown"
Daniel Craig, "Queer"
Colman Domingo, "Sing Sing"
Ralph Fiennes, "Conclave"
Sebastian Stan, "The Apprentice"

Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy:

Jesse Eisenberg, "A Real Pain"
Hugh Grant, "Heretic"
Gabriel Labelle, "Saturday Night"
Jesse Plemons, "Kinds Of Kindness"
Glen Powell, "Hit Man"
Sebastian Stan, "A Different Man"

Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role In Any Motion Picture:

Selena Gomez, "Emilia Pérez"
Ariana Grande, "Wicked"
Felicity Jones, "The Brutalist"
Margaret Qualley, "The Substance"
Isabella Rossellini, "Conclave"
Zoe Saldaña, "Emilia Pérez"

Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role In Any Motion Picture:

Yura Borisov, "Anora"
Kieran Culkin, "A Real Pain"
Edward Norton, "A Complete Unknown"
Guy Pearce, The Brutalist"
Jeremy Strong, "The Apprentice"
Denzel Washington, "Gladiator II"

Best Motion Picture – Animated:

"Flow"
"Inside Out 2"
"Memoir of a Snail" "Moana 2"
"Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl"
"The Wild Robot"

Best Motion Picture – Non-English Language:

"All We Imagine as Light" (USA/France/India)
"Emilia Pérez" (France)
"The Girl With The Needle" (Poland/Sweden/Denmark)
"I’m Still Here" (Brazil)
"The Seed of the Sacred Fig" (USA/Germany) 

"Vermiglio" (Italy)

Best Original Score – Motion Picture:

Volker Bertelmann, "Conclave"
Daniel Blumberg, "The Brutalist"
Kris Bowers, "The Wild Robot"
Clément Ducol and Camille, "Emilia Pérez"
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, "Challengers"
Hans Zimmer, "Dune: Part Two"

Best Original Song – Motion Picture:

"Beautiful That Way" from "The Last Showgirl" (Music & Lyrics By Andrew Wyatt, Miley Cyrus and Lykke Zachrisson)
"Compress / Repress" from "Challengers" (Music & Lyrics By Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Luca Guadagnino)
"El Mal" from "Emilia Pérez" (Music & Lyrics By Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard)
"Forbidden Road" from "Better Man" (Music & Lyrics By Robbie Williams, Freddy Wexler and Sacha Skarbek)
"Kiss the Sky" from "The Wild Robot" (Music & Lyrics By Delacey, Jordan K. Johnson, Stefan Johnson, Maren Morris, Michael Pollack and Ali Tamposi)
"Mi Camino" from "Emilia Pérez" (Music & Lyrics By: Clément Ducol and Camille)

For the 50th annual Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards, "Anora" went away with three awards including Best Picture. The film's star, Mickey Madison received Best Leading Performance along with Marianne Jean-Baptiste for her turn in "Hard Truths". The Best Supporting Performance went to Yura Borisov as a sympathetic thug in "Anora" and Kieran Culkin for his work in "A Real Pain".

Here are the winners of the 2024 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards:

Best Picture: "Anora"
Best Director: Mohammad Rasoulof, "The Seed of the Sacred Fig"
Best Screenplay: Jesse Eisenberg, "A Real Pain"
Best Leading Performances: Marianne Jean-Baptiste, "Hard Truths" and Mikey Madison, "Anora"
Best Supporting Performances: Yura Borisov, "Anora" and Kieran Culkin, "A Real Pain"
Best Film Not in English Language: "All We Imagine as Light"
Best Documentary/Non-Fiction Film: "No Other Land"
Best Animation: "Flow"
Best Cinematography: Jomo Fray, "Nickel Boys"
Best Editing (Tie): Nicholas Monsour, "Nickel Boys" and Hansjörg Weißbrich, "September 5"
Best Production Design: Judy Becker, "The Brutalist"
Best Music Score: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, "Challengers"
New Generation Award: Vera Drew, "The People’s Joker"
Career Achievement Award: John Carpenter

Jacques Audiard’s "Emilia Pérez" was the big winner at the 37th annual European Film Awards, winning all five of its nominations including Best Film. Held on December 7th in Lucerne, Switzerland, Audiard won Best Director and Best Screenplay while Karla Sofia Gascón received the Best Actress prize, making her the first trans actor to win this award.

Here are the winners of the 2024 European Film Awards:

Best European Film: "Emilia Pérez" (France)
Best European Director: Jacques Audiard, "Emilia Pérez" (France)
Best European Screenplay: Jacques Audiard, "Emilia Pérez" (France)
Best European Actress: Karla Sofía Gascón, "Emilia Pérez" (France)
Best European Actor: Abou Sangare, "L'Histoire de Souleymane (Souleymane's Story)" (France)
Best European Documentary: No Other Land (Palestine, Norway)
Best European Animated Feature Film: "Straume (Flow)" (Latvia, France, Belgium)
Best European Cinematography: Benjamin Kračun, "The Substance" (UK, United States, France)
Best European Editing: Juliette Welfling, "Emilia Pérez" (France)
Best European Production Design: Jagna Dobesz, "Pigen med nålen (The Girl With The Needle)" (Denmark, Poland, Sweden) 

Best European Original Score: Frederikke Hoffmeier, "Pigen med nålen (The Girl With The Needle)" (Denmark, Poland, Sweden)
Best European Sound: Marc-Olivier Brullé, Pierre Bariaud, Charlotte Butrak, Samuel Aïchoun and Rodrigo Diaz, "L'Histoire de Souleymane (Souleymane’s Story)" (France)
Best European Costume Design: Tanja Hausner, "Des Teufels Bad (The Devil's Bath)" (Germany)
Best European Make-up & Hair: Evalotte Oosterop, " Ljósbrot (When The Light Breaks)" (Iceland)
Best European Visual Effects: Bryan Jones, Pierre Procoudine-Gorsky, Chervin Shafaghi and Guillaume Le Gouez, "The Substance" (UK, United States, France)
European Achievement in World Cinema: Isabella Rossellini

And the Film Independent Spirit Awards, which honors the best of the year in indie cinema, unveiled their nominations with "Anora" and "I Saw the TV Glow" leading the field with six noms apiece including Best Feature. The other nominees for Best Feature are the historical drama based on the Pulitzer Prize winning novel, "Nickel Boys"; the prison reform through the arts drama, "Sing Sing" and the body-horror movie, "The Substance". The 40th annual Spirit Awards will be held on February 22, 2025, at the Santa Monica beach with former SNL member, Aidy Bryant returning as host.

Here are the 2024 nominations of the Film Independent Spirit Awards (Cinema):

Best Feature:

"Anora"
"I Saw The TV Glow"
"Nickel Boys"
"Sing Sing"
"The Substance"

Best Director:

Ali Abbasi, "The Apprentice"
Sean Baker, "Anora"
Brady Corbet, "The Brutalist"
Alonso Ruizpalacios, "La Cocina"
Jane Schoenbrun, "I Saw the TV Glow"

Best Screenplay:

Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, "Heretic"
Jesse Eisenberg, "A Real Pain"
Megan Park, "My Old Ass"
Aaron Schimberg, "A Different Man"
Jane Schoenbrun, "I Saw the TV Glow"

Best First Feature:

"Didi"
"In the Summers"
"Janet Planet"
"The Piano Lesson"
"Problemista"

Best First Screenplay:

Joanna Arnow, "The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed"
Annie Baker, "Janet Planet"
India Donaldson, "Good One"
Julio Torres, "Problemista"
Sean Wang, "Dìdi"

Best Lead Performance:

Amy Adams, "Nightbitch"
Ryan Destiny, "The Fire Inside"
Colman Domingo, "Sing Sing"
Keith Kupferer, "Ghostlight"
Mikey Madison, "Anora"
Demi Moore, "The Substance"
Hunter Schafer, "Cuckoo"
Justice Smith, "I Saw the TV Glow"
June Squibb, "Thelma"
Sebastian Stan, "The Apprentice"

Best Supporting Performance:

Yura Borisov, "Anora"
Joan Chen, "Dìdi"
Kieran Culkin, "A Real Pain"
Danielle Deadwyler, "The Piano Lesson"
Carol Kane, "Between the Temples"
Karren Karagulian, "Anora"
Kani Kusruti, "Girls Will Be Girls"
Brigette Lundy-Paine, "I Saw the TV Glow"
Clarence Maclin, "Sing Sing"
Adam Pearson, "A Different Man"

Best Breakthrough Performance:

Isaac Krasner, "Big Boys"
Katy O’Brian, "Love Lies Bleeding"
Mason Alexander Park, "National Anthem"
René Pérez Joglar, "In the Summers"
Maisy Stella, "My Old Ass"

Best International Film:

"All We Imagine as Light" (France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg)
"Black Dog" (China)
"Flow" (Latvia, France, Belgium)
"Green Border" (Poland, France, Czech Republic, Belgium)
"Hard Truths" (United Kingdom)

Best Documentary:

"Gaucho Gaucho"
"Hummingbirds"
"No Other Land"
"Patrice: The Movie"
"Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat"

Best Cinematography:

Dinh Duy Hung, "Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell"
Jomo Fray, "Nickel Boys"
Maria von Hausswolff, "Janet Planet"
Juan Pablo Ramírez, "La Cocina"
Rina Yang, "The Fire Inside"

Best Editing:

Laura Colwell and Vanara Taing, "Jazzy"
Olivier Bugge Coutté and Olivia Neergaard-Holm, "The Apprentice"
Anne McCabe, "Nightbitch"
Hansjörg Weißbrich, "September 5"
Arielle Zakowski, "Dìdi"

The Producers Award:

Alex Coco
Sarah Winshall
Zoë Worth

Truer Than Fiction Award (presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition):

Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, "Sugarcane"
Carla Gutiérrez, "Frida"
Rachel Elizabeth Seed, "A Photographic Memory"

John Cassavettes Award (presented to the best feature made for under $1,000,000):

"Big Boys"
"Ghostlight"
"Girls Wille Be Girls"
"Jazzy"
"The People’s Joker"

Robert Altman Award (presented to one film’s director, casting director, and ensemble cast): "His Three Daughters"

2023 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

The 2023 award season has finally begun with several critics groups weighing on what each considers the best of the year. As always, this can vary wildly yet there are a few select films and performances that tends to appear somewhere in each group's list. But they also tend to find room to recognize films  under the radar that will greatly benefit from the attention.

Since 1975, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, comprised of L.A.-based professional film critics, honor screen excellence on both sides of the camera. This year, "The Zone of Interest" took the top prize from the LAFCA. This intense drama about an Auschwitz commandant and his family trying to live a comfortable life in their home next to a concentration camp also marked the return of the British filmmaker, Jonathan Glazer after a ten year absence, who received the Best Director award. This group does reveal the runners-up in each category and the acting categories are genderless but two winners are selected in each of them.

Here are the winners of the 2023 Los Angeles Film Critics Association:

Best Picture: "The Zone of Interest"
Best Director: Jonathan Glazer, "The Zone of Interest"
Best Screenplay: Andrew Haigh, "All of Us Strangers"
Best Lead Performance: Sandra Hüller, "Anatomy of a Fall" and "The Zone of Interest" and Emma Stone, "Poor Things"
Best Supporting Performance: Rachel McAdams, "Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret" and Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Best Documentary/Nonfiction: "Menus-Paisirs – Les Troisgros"
Best Animation: "The Boy and the Heron"
Best Cinematography: Robbie Ryan, "Poor Things"
Best Editing: Laurent Sénéchal, "Anatomy of a Fall"
Best Production Design: Sarah Greenwood, "Barbie"
Best Music/Score: Mica Levi, "The Zone of Interest"
Career Achievement Award: Agnieszka Holland

The New York Film Critics Circle Awards annually make their selections to honor excellence in cinema worldwide. While the group chose "Killers of the Flower Moon", Scorsese's lengthy period drama, as their Best Film, the members of NYFCC spread the other awards around to honor "Oppenheimer", "The Holdovers", "May December" and an inspired Best Actor choice with Franz Rogowski for his amazing work in "Passages"

Here are the winners of the 2023 The New York Film Critics Circle:

Best Film: "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Director: Christopher Nolan, "Oppenheimer"
Best Screenplay: Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik, "May December"
Best Actress: Lily Gladstone, "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Actor: Franz Rogowski, "Passages"
Best Supporting Actress: Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Best Supporting Actor: Charles Melton, "May December"
Best Cinematography: Hoyte Van Hoytema, "Oppenheimer"
Best International Film: "Anatomy of a Fall"
Best Non-Fiction Film: "Menus-Plaisirs — Les Troisgros"
Best Animated Feature Film: "The Boy and the Heron"
Best First Film: "Past Lives"

For over a hundred years the National Board of Review has been dedicated in its efforts to support cinema as both art and entertainment. This private organization of film enthusiasts, largely New York based, has been offering their selections for the best in cinema each Year. Usually the first of the critics groups to announce their picks but recently others have jumped ahead to try and be the first out the gate. This year, the NBR has selected Martin Scorsese's recent "Killers of the Flower Moon" as the big winner with Best Film, Best Director, Lily Gladstone as Best Actress and Rodrigo Prieto for his camerwork for this film and "Barbie". "The Holdovers" follows with three awards for Best Original Screenplay and Paul Giamatti and Da'Vine Joy Randolph for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress respectively.

Here are the winners of the 2023 National Board of Review:

Best Film: "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Director: Martin Scorsese, "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Original Screenplay: David Hemingson, "The Holdovers"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Tony McNamara, "Poor Things"
Best Actress: Lily Gladstone, "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Actor: Paul Giamatti, "The Holdovers"
Best Supporting Actress: Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Best Supporting Actor: Mark Ruffalo, "Poor Things"
Best Ensemble: "The Iron Claw"
Best Documentary: "Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie"
Best International Film: "Anatomy of a Fall" (France)
Best Animated Feature: "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse"
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Rodrigo Prieto, "Barbie" and "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Outstanding Achievement in Stunt Artistry: Chad Stahelski, Director and Stephen Dunlevy & Scott Rogers, Stunt Coordinators, "John Wick: Chapter 4"
Best Directorial Debut: Celine Song, "Past Lives"
Breakthrough Performance: Teyana Taylor, "A Thousand and One"
NBR Icon Award: Bradley Cooper

And the nominations of the Film Independent Spirit Awards were announced with "Past Lives", "May December" and "American Fiction" each receiving five noms apiece. To be eligble for a Spirit Award, films must have a budget below $30 million, making many of the most buzzed about movies of this season unable to be recognized by this non-profit arts organization. The 39th Spirit Awards will be held on February 25, 2024 on the beach in Santa Monica, CA. hosted by Aidy Bryant. The awards will be streamed live on the IMDb and Film Independent YouTube channels.

Here are the nominations of the 2023 Film Independent Spirit Awards (Film):

Best Feature:

"All of Us Strangers"
"American Fiction"
"May December"
"Passages"
"Past Lives"
"We Grown Now"

Best Director:

Andrew Haigh, "All of Us Strangers"
Todd Haynes, "May December"
William Oldroyd, "Eileen"
Ira Sachs, "Passages"
Celine Song, "Past Lives"

Best Screenplay:

David Hemingson, "The Holdovers"
Cord Jefferson, "American Fiction"
Laura Moss and Brendan J. O’Brien, "Birth/Rebirth"
Emma Seligman and Rachel Sennott, "Bottoms"
Celine Song, "Past Lives"

Best Lead Performance:

Jessica Chastain, "Memory"
Greta Lee, "Past Lives"
Trace Lysette, "Monica"
Natalie Portman, "May December"
Judy Reyes, "Birth/Rebirth"
Franz Rogowski, "Passages"
Andrew Scott, "All of Us Strangers"
Teyana Taylor, "A Thousand and One"
Jeffrey Wright, "American Fiction"
Teo Yoo, "Past Lives"

Best Supporting Performance:

Erika Alexander, "American Fiction"
Sterling K. Brown, "American Fiction"
Noah Galvin, "Theater Camp"
Anne Hathaway, "Eileen"
Glenn Howerton, "BlackBerry"
Marin Ireland, "Eileen"
Charles Melton, "May December"
Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Catalina Saavedra, "Rotting in the Sun"
Ben Whishaw, "Passages"

Best Cinematography:

Katelin Arizmendi, "Monica"
Eigil Bryld, "The Holdovers"
Jomo Fray, "All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt"
Pablo Lozano, "Chronicles of a Wandering Saint"
Pat Scola, "We Grown Now"

Best Editing:

Santiago Cendejas, Gabriel Díaz and Sofía Subercaseaux, "Rotting in the Sun"
Stephanie Filo, "We Grown Now"
Daniel Garber, "How to Blow Up a Pipeline"
Jon Philpot, "Theater Camp"
Emanuele Tiziani, "Upon Entry"

Best Documentary:

"Bye Bye Tiberias"
"Four Daughters"
"Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project"
"Kokomo City"
"The Mother of All Lies"

Best International Film:

"Anatomy of a Fall" (France)
"Godland" (Denmark/Iceland)
"Mami Wata" (Nigeria)
"Tótem" (Mexico)
"The Zone of Interest" (United Kingdom, Poland)

Best First Feature:

"All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt"
"Chronicles of a Wandering Saint"
"Earth Mama"
"A Thousand and One"
"Upon Entry"

Best First Screenplay:

Samy Burch; Story by Samy Burch, Alex Mechanik, "May December"
Noah Galvin, Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman and Ben Platt, "Theater Camp"
Tomás Gómez Bustillo, "Chronicles of a Wandering Saint"
Laurel Parmet, "The Starling Girl"

Best Breakthrough Performance:

Marshawn Lynch, "Bottoms"
Atibon Nazaire, "Mountains"
Tia Nomore, "Earth Mama"
Dominic Sessa, "The Holdovers"
Anaita Wali Zada, "Fremont"
Alejandro Rojas and Juan Sebastián Vásquez, "Upon Entry"

John Cassavetes Award (Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000):

"The Artifice Girl"
"Cadejo Blanco"
"Fremont"
"Rotting in the Sun" "The Unknown Country"

Someone To Watch (Recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition):

Joanna Arnow, "The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed"
Laura Moss, "Birth/Rebirth"
Monica Sorelle, "Mountains"

Truer Than Fiction Award (Presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition):

Set Hernandez, "unseen"
Jesse Short Bull and Laura Tomaselli, "Lakota Nation vs. United States"
Sierra Urich, "Joonam"

Robert Altman Award (Given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast):

"Showing Up"

THE RETURN OF THE GOLDEN GLOBES AND OTHER AWARD NEWS

After going off the air last year due to the outrage over the Hollywood Foreign Press Association's controversial practices surrounding its governing and the make-up of their members, it appeared like the Golden Globes might be over. The group seemed to have made an effort to boost the racial and ethnic diversity of their membership and banning the practice of members accepting gifts but will it be enough to convince the industry that the HFPA has actually changed?

Regardless, the Golden Globes seem poised to return to business as usual with the announcement of their nominations for the year's best in film and television. In the motion picture section, "The Banshees of Inisherin", Martin McDonagh's Irish comedy, led with eight nominations, followed by the breakout indie, "Everything Everywhere All at Once" with six, the Brad Pitt/Margot Robbie period drama, "Babylon" and the Steven Spielberg-directed family drama, "The Fabelmans" with five.

One good thing about the Globes is that it does bring attention to great performances in little seen films that may get overlooked during award season. And they did not disappoint this year by recognizing the outstanding work of the British acting vets, Lesley Manville and Emma Thompson in their indie films, "Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris" and "Good Luck to You, Leo Grande"; Jeremy Pope's amazing turn in "The Inspection", the captivating Dolly De Leon in "Triangle of Sadness" and the fine supporting performances of Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan in "The Banshees of Inisherin".

Eddie Murphy was selected to receive this year's Cecil B. DeMille Award, celebrating the actor and stand-up comedian's lasting impact on film and television. And Ryan Murphy will be honored with the Carol Burnett Award. The writer, producer and director behind "Nip/Tuck", "Glee", "American Horror Story" and "Pose" was chosen for his body of work and the lasting impact of his television career achievements. The 80th annual Golden Globes will be held January 10, 2023 live from the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills with first-time host, Jerrod Carmichael. NBC and Peacock will air the ceremony although this is the final telecast under the HFPA's current contract with the network. No word at this time if it will be renewed.

Here is the list of the 2022 Golden Globes (Motion Picture):

Best Motion Picture (Drama):

"Avatar: The Way of Water"
"Elvis"
"The Fabelmans"
"Tár"
"Top Gun: Maverick"

Best Picture (Musical or Comedy):

"Babylon"
"The Banshees of Inisherin"
"Everything Everywhere All at Once"
"Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery"
"Triangle of Sadness"

Best Director (Motion Picture):

James Cameron, "Avatar: The Way of Water"
Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert, "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Baz Luhrmann, "Elvis"
Martin McDonagh, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Steven Spielberg, "The Fabelmans"

Best Screenplay (Motion Picture):

Todd Field, "Tár"
Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert, " Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Martin McDonagh, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Sarah Polley, "Women Talking"
Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner, "The Fabelmans"

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama):

Cate Blanchett, "Tár"
Olivia Colman, "Empire of Light"
Viola Davis, "The Woman King"
Ana de Armas, "Blonde"
Michelle Williams, "The Fabelmans"

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy):

Lesley Manville, "Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris"
Margot Robbie, "Babylon"
Anya Taylor-Joy, "The Menu"
Emma Thompson, "Good Luck to You, Leo Grande"
Michelle Yeoh, "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama):

Austin Butler, "Elvis"
Brendan Fraser, "The Whale"
Hugh Jackman, "The Son"
Bill Nighy, "Living"
Jeremy Pope, "The Inspection"

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy):

Diego Calva, "Babylon"
Daniel Craig, "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery"
Adam Driver, "White Noise"
Colin Farrell, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Ralph Fiennes, "The Menu"

Best Supporting Actress (Motion Picture):

Angela Bassett, "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever"
Kerry Condon, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Jamie Lee Curtis, "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Dolly De Leon, "Triangle of Sadness"
Carey Mulligan, "She Said"

Best Supporting Actor (Motion Picture):

Brendan Gleeson, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Barry Keoghan, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Brad Pitt, "Babylon"
Ke Huy Quan, "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Eddie Redmayne, "The Good Nurse"

Best Picture (Non-English Language):

"All Quiet on the Western Front" (Germany)
"Argentina, 1985" (Argentina)
"Close" (Belgium)
"Decision to Leave" (South Korea)
"RRR" (India)

Best Motion Picture (Animated):

"Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio"
"Inu-Oh"
"Marcel the Shell With Shoes On"
"Puss in Boots: The Last Wish"
"Turning Red"

Best Original Score (Motion Picture):

Carter Burwell, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Alexandre Desplat, "Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio"
Hildur Guðnadóttir, "Women Talking"
Justin Hurwitz, "Babylon"
John Williams, "The Fabelmans"

Best Original Song (Motion Picture):

Taylor Swift, "Carolina" from "Where the Crawdads Sing"
Alexandre Desplat, Roeban Katz and Guillermo del Toro, "Ciao Papa" from "Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio"
Lady Gaga, BloodPop and Benjamin Rice, "Hold My Hand" from "Top Gun: Maverick"
Tems, Ludwig Göransson, Rihanna and Ryan Coogler, "Lift Me Up" from "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever"
Kala Bhairava, M. M. Keeravani and Rahul Sipligunj, "Naatu Naatu" from "RRR"

The Los Angeles Film Critics had a tie in Best Picture this year with "Everything Everywhere All at Once" and "Tár" sharing the prize, making this the fourth time the group had a tie in their forty-eight year history. The LAFC also introduced gender-neutral acting categories this year but selected a male and a female winner in Lead Performance and Supporting Performance, making this not really much different from previous years.

Here are the winners of the 2022 Los Angeles Film Critics Association:

Best Picture: "Everything Everywhere All at Once" and "Tár" (tie)
Best Director: Todd Field, "Tár"
Best Screenplay: Todd Field, "Tár"
Leading Performances: Cate Blanchett, "Tár" and Bill Nighy, "Living"
Supporting Performances: Dolly De Leon, "Triangle of Sadness" and Ke Huy Quan, "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Best Foreign Language: "EO"
Best Documentary/Non-Fiction Film: "All the Beauty and the Bloodshed"
Best Animation: "Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio"
Best Cinematography: Michal Dymek, "EO"
Best Editing: Blair McClendon, "Aftersun"
Best Production Design: Dylan Cole and Ben Procter, "Avatar: The Way of Water"
Best Music Score: M.M. Keeravani, "RRR"
New Generation Award: Davy Chou and Park Ji-Min, "Return to Seoul"
Career Achievement Award: Claire Denis

Ruben Östlund and his black comedy satire involving class and the wealthy, "Triangle of Sadness" was the big winner at the 35th annual European Film Awards, handed out on December 10th in Reykjavík, Iceland, winning four awards including Best Film. Vicky Krieps received Best European Actress for her irreverent turn as Empress Elisabeth of Austria in "Corsage", a historical drama which is due to be released in the US on December 23rd. And German actress and filmmaker, Margarethe von Trotta received the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Here are the winners of the 2022 European Film Awards:

Best European Film: "Triangle of Sadness"
Best European Director: Ruben Östlund, "Triangle of Sadness"
Best European Screenwriter: Ruben Östlund, "Triangle of Sadness"
Best European Actor: Zlatko Burić, "Triangle of Sadness"
Best European Actress: Vicky Krieps, "Corsage"
Best European Comedy: "The Good Boss"
Best European Documentary: "Mariupolis 2"
Best European Animated Feature Film: "No Dogs or Italians Allowed"
Best European Short Film: "Granny’s Sexual Life"

MORE AWARD SEASON NEWS

The National Society of Film Critics have selected their picks for the best of 2021. This prestigious group, established in 1966, is made up of critics that write for a variety of weekly and daily newspapers along with major publications and media outlets. The NSFC are well-known for their high-brow picks and this year, they did not disappoint. Ryusuke Hamaguchi and his three-hour long drama, "Drive My Car" were selected as Best Film and Director along with star, Hidetoshi Nishijima as Best Actor. Based on a short story by Haruki Murakami, the film deals with a a theater director about to stage a production of Chekhov's play "Uncle Vanya" while grappling with loss and grief and makes a connection with his driver. Penélope Cruz received Best Actress for her work in the latest from Pedro Almodóvar in "Parallel Mothers". Ruth Negga was recognized as Best Supporting Actress for her outstanding turn in "Passing". And Anders Danielsen Lie won Best Supporting Actor for his part in the Norwegian romantic-dark comedy, "Verdens verste menneske (The Worst Person in the World)". The NSFC also selected the late filmmakers, Bernard Tavernier and Peter Bogdanovich and Maya Cade with the Black Film Archive as winners of the Film Heritage Award.

Here is the list of 2022 winners from The National Society of Film Critics:

Best Picture: "Drive My Car"
Best Director: Ryusuke Hamaguchi, "Drive My Car"
Best Screenplay: Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe, "Drive My Car"
Best Actress: Penélope Cruz, "Parallel Mothers"
Best Actor: Hidetoshi Nishijima, "Drive My Car"
Best Supporting Actress: Ruth Negga, "Passing"
Best Supporting Actor: Anders Danielsen Lie, "The Worst Person in the World"
Best Cinematography: Andrew Droz Palermo, "The Green Knight"
Best Non-Fiction Film: "Flee"

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association had also selected "Drive My Car" as their Best Picture on December 18th. Some other winners crossed over with the NSFC but the LAFCA went their own way with Simon Rex for Best Actor in "Red Rocket" for his performance as a washed-up LA porn star returning to his small Texas hometown to start over; Best Supporting Actress went to Ariana DeBose for her turn as Anita in "West Side Story"; a tie between for Best Supporting Actor with Vincent Lindon for his performance in the surreal French drama, "Titane" and a mesmerizing Kodi Smit-McPhee for "The Power of the Dog" and one of favorite films of 2021, "Summer of Soul" won for Best Documentary.

Here is the List of 2022 winners from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association:

Best Picture: "Drive My Car"
Best Director: Jane Campion, "The Power of the Dog"
Best Screenplay: Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe, "Drive My Car"
Best Actress: Penélope Cruz, "Parallel Mothers"
Best Actor: Simon Rex, "Red Rocket"
Best Supporting Actress: Ariana DeBose, "West Side Story"
Best Supporting Actor (tie): Vincent Lindon, "Titane" and Kodi Smit-McPhee, "The Power of the Dog"
Best Documentary: "Summer of Soul"
Best Film Not in the English Language: "Petite Maman"
Best Animation: "Flee"
Best Cinematography: Ari Wegner, "The Power of the Dog"
Best Editing: Joshua L. Pearson, "Summer of Soul"
Best Production Design: Steve Saklad, "Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar"
Best Music/Score: Alberto Iglesias, "Parallel Mothers"
Career Achievement Award: Mel Brooks

And the Golden Globes used to be the first major televised award show to kick off the season with a riotous party serving dinner and drinks for the attendees. But that has changed this year due the controversy surrounding the Hollywood Foreign Press Association with no one willing to attend nor present at their event. The awards will still be handed out but there will be no formal show that will be shown on television. Trying to fix their damaged image, they will be focusing on their philanthropy work and humanitarian causes during the ceremony. As for the awards; "The Power of the Dog" and "West Side Story" were the big winners of the Globes with each winning three. Jane Campion's psychological western won for Best Motion Picture (drama), Best Director and Best Supporting Actor for Kodi Smit-McPhee while Steven Spielberg's re-imagining of the Broadway musical received wins for Best Motion Picture (comedy) with Rachel Zegler (in her first film role) and Ariana DeBose receiving Best Actress (musical or comedy) and Best Supporting Actress.

Here is the complete list of winners of the 79th Annual Golden Globes Awards (Motion Picture):

Best Motion Picture (Drama): "The Power of the Dog"
Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy): "West Side Story"
Best Director (Motion Picture): Jane Campion, "The Power of the Dog"
Best Screenplay (Motion Picture): Kenneth Branagh, "Belfast"
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama): Nicole Kidman, "Being the Ricardos"
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy): Rachel Zegler, "West Side Story"
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama): Will Smith, "King Richard"
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy): Andrew Garfield, "Tick, Tick … Boom!"
Best Supporting Actress (Motion Picture): Ariana DeBose, "West Side Story"
Best Supporting Actor (Motion Picture): Kodi Smit-McPhee, "The Power of the Dog"
Best Motion Picture (Foreign Language): "Drive My Car" (Japan)
Best Motion Picture (Animated): "Encanto"
Best Original Score (Motion Picture): Hans Zimmer, "Dune"
Best Original Song (Motion Picture): Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell, "No Time to Die" from "No Time to Die"