Awards Season Roundup

Winners from critics groups during this hectic awards season have been fast and furious in the past week. While the top contenders are certainly emerging for top films and best performances, there is no clear consensus winner. This is adding to the excitement and the mystery of who is actually the frontrunner for this year’s top award, the Oscar. Some of the awards announcements have been mindbenders (how did they come up with that?) and others have been long predicted. In a field that includes a contemporary silent film, a metaphysical epic by a reclusive director, an adaptation of a populist bestseller and the latest gems from such directors as Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and Alexander Payne, the choices are many and varied. We will all just have to wait until late January to see which ones make the cut for Oscar gold, and even then, no clear frontrunners are in place. In short, it is an open field, and that is damned exciting.

Here is a roundup of major awards already announced as of today:

New York York Film Critics Winners

Best Picture: “The Artist”

Best Director: Michel Hazanavicius for “The Artist”

Best Screenplay: Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin for “Moneyball”

Best Actor: Brad Pitt for “Moneyball,” and “Tree of Life”

Best Actress: Meryl Streep for “The Iron Lady”

Best Supporting Actor: Albert Brooks for “Drive”

Best Supporting Actress: Jessica Chastain for “Tree of Life, The Help”

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki for “Tree of Life”

Best First Feature: Margin Call

Best Documentary: Cave of Forgotten Dreams

Best Foreign Language Film: A Separation

Toronto Film Critics

Best Picture
The Tree of Life

Best Director
Terrence Malick – The Tree of Life

Best Actor
Michael Shannon – Take Shelter

Best Actress
Michelle Williams – My Week with Marilyn

Best Supporting Actor
Christopher Plummer – Beginners

Best Supporting Actress
Jessica Chastain – Take Shelter

Best Screenplay
Moneyball

Best Foreign-Language Film
Mysteries of Lisbon

Best Documentary Feature
Nostalgia for the Light

Best First Feature
Attack the Block

Best Animated Feature
The Adventures of Tintin

Los Angeles Film Critics Awards

Picture: “The Descendants”

Director: Terrence Malick, “The Tree of Life”

Actor: Michael Fassbender, “A Dangerous Method,” “Jane Eyre,” “Shame” and “X-Men: First Class”

Actress: Yun Jung-hee, “Poetry”

Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, “Beginners”

Supporting Actress: Jessica Chastain, “Coriolanus,” “The Debt,” “The Help,” “Take Shelter,” “Texas Killing Fields,” “The Tree of Life”

Screenplay: Asghar Farhadi, “A Separation”

Foreign-language Film: “City of Life and Death”

Animation: “Rango”

Documentary: “Cave of Forgotten Dreams”

Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, “The Tree of Life”

New Generation: Antonio Campos, Sean Durkin, Josh Mond and Elizabeth Olsen, “Martha Marcy May Marlene:

Las Vegas Film Critics Awards

Best Picture
“The Artist”

Best Director
Nicholas Winding Refn, “Drive”

Best Actor
Jean Dujardin, “The Artist”

Best Actress
Michelle Williams, “My Week with Marilyn”

Best Supporting Actor
Albert Brooks, “Drive”

Best Supporting Actress
Melissa McCarthy, “Bridesmaids”

Best Screenplay (Original or Adapted)
Steven Zaillian & Aaron Sorkin, “Moneyball”

Best Cinematography
Emmanuel Lubezki, “Tree of Life”

Best Film Editing
Thelma Schoonmaker, “Hugo”

Best Score
Ludovic Bource, “The Artist”

Best Song
“Man or Muppet” – Written by Bret McKenzie

Best Family Film
“Hugo”

Best Documentary
“Project NIM”

Best Animated Film
“Rango”

Best Foreign Film
“13 Assassins”

BOSTON FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION

Best Picture
The Artist

Best Actor
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

Best Actress
Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn

Best Supporting Actor
Albert Brooks, Drive

Best Supporting Actress
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids

Best Director
Martin Scorsese, Hugo

Best Screenplay
Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin and Stan Chervin, Moneyball

Best Cinematography
Emmanuel Lubezki, The Tree of Life

Best Documentary
Project Nim

Best Foreign-Language Film
Incendies

Best Animated Film
Rango

Best Film Editing
Christian Marclay, The Clock
(awarded in memory of Karen Schmeer)

Best New Filmmaker
Sean Durkin, Martha Marcy May Marlene

NATIONAL BOARD OF REVIEW

Best Film: Hugo

Best Director: Martin Scorsese, Hugo

Best Actor: George Clooney, The Descendants

Best Actress: Tilda Swinton, We Need to Talk About Kevin

Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, Beginners

Best Supporting Actress: Shailene Woodley, The Descendants

Best Original Screenplay: Will Reiser, 50/50

Best Adapted Screenplay: Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash

Best Animated Feature: Rango

Breakthrough Performance: Felicity Jones, Like Crazy

Breakthrough Performance: Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Debut Director: J.C. Chandor, Margin Call

Best Ensemble: The Help

Spotlight Award: Michael Fassbender (A Dangerous Method, Jane Eyre, Shame, X-Men: First Class)

NBR Freedom of Expression: Pariah

Best Foreign Language Film: A Separation

Best Documentary: Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory

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