Daily Archives: December 17, 2024

Anora Wins In Iowa

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Iowa Film Critics Association has announced its picks for the best of 2024!  Dreams have come true for:

Best Film
Winner: “Anora”

Best Director
Winner: Sean Baker – “Anora”

Best Actor
Winner: Adrien Brody – “The Brutalist”

Best Actress
Winner: Mikey Madison – “Anora”

Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Kieran Culkin – “A Real Pain”

Best Supporting Actress
Winners: Isabella Rossellini – “Conclave” and Ariana Grande – “Wicked” (TIE)

Best Animated Film
Winner: “The Wild Robot”

Best Foreign Language Film
Winner: “The Seed Of The Sacred Fig”

Best Original Song
Winner: “Kiss The Sky” from “The Wild Robot”

The Southern Eastern Film Critics Association Honors Anora!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Yesterday, the Southern Eastern Film Critics Association announced their picks for the best of 2024.

And here they are:

Top 10 Films of 2024
1. Anora
2. The Brutalist
3. Conclave
4. Dune: Part Two
5. Challengers
6. Nickel Boys
7. Sing Sing
8. Wicked
9. The Substance
10. A Complete Unknown
Runner-Up: I Saw the TV Glow (11th overall)

Best Actor
Winner: Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Runner-Up: Colman Domingo – Sing Sing

Best Actress
Winner: Mikey Madison – Anora
Runner-Up: Demi Moore – The Substance

Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Runner-Up: Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain

Best Supporting Actress
Winner: Ariana Grande – Wicked
Runner-up: Zoe Saldana – Emilia Perez

Best Ensemble
Winner: Conclave
Runner-Up: Sing Sing

Best Director
Winner: Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Runner-Up: Sean Baker – Anora

Best Original Screenplay
Winner: Sean Baker – Anora
Runner-Up: Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold – The Brutalist

Best Adapted Screenplay
Winner: Peter Straughan – Conclave
Runner-Up: RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes – Nickel Boys

Best Documentary
Winner: Sugarcane
Runner-Up: Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story

Best Animated Film
Winner: The Wild Robot
Runner-Up: Flow

Best Foreign Language Film
Winner: Emilia Perez
Runner-Up: The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Best Cinematography
Winner: Grieg Fraser – Dune: Part Two
Runner-Up: Jarin Blaschke – Nosferatu

Best Score
Winner: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – Challengers
Runner-Up: Daniel Blumberg – The Brutalist

The Substance Wins In Seattle

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Seattle Film Critics Society has announced its picks for the best of 2024!

BEST PICTURE
Anora – Sean Baker
The Beast – Bertrand Bonello
The Brutalist – Brady Corbet
Challengers – Luca Guadagnino
Conclave – Edward Berger
Dune: Part Two – Denis Villeneuve
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – George Miller
I Saw the TV Glow – Jane Schoenbrun
Sing Sing – Greg Kwedar
The Substance – Coralie Fargeat

DIRECTOR
Sean Baker – Anora
Bertrand Bonello – The Beast
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
Denis Villeneuve – Dune: Part Two

LEAD ACTOR
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
Keith Kupferer – Ghostlight
George MacKay – The Beast

LEAD ACTRESS
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Hard Truths
Mikey Madison – Anora
Demi Moore – The Substance
Léa Seydoux – The Beast

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Chris Hemsworth – Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Josh O’Connor – Challengers
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Joan Chen – Dìdi (弟弟)
Danielle Deadwyler – The Piano Lesson
Ariana Grande – Wicked
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Isabella Rossellini – Conclave

ENSEMBLE
Anora – Sean Baker
Conclave – Nina Gold and Martin Ware
Dune: Part Two – Dixie Chassay and Francine Maisler
His Three Daughters – Nicole Arbusto
Sing Sing – Greg Kwedar

PACIFIC NORTHWEST FILM
All We Carry – Cady Voge
Fish War – Jeff Ostenson, Charles Atkinson, and Skylar Wagner
Gasoline Rainbow – Bill Ross IV and Turner Ross
Rainier: A Beer Odyssey – Isaac Olsen
Strange Darling – J.T. Mollner

INTERNATIONAL FILM
The Beast – Bertrand Bonello
Evil Does Not Exist – Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
Flow – Gints Zilbalodis
Red Rooms – Pascal Plante
The Seed of the Sacred Fig – Mohammad Rasoulof

DOCUMENTARY FILM
Dahomey – Mati Diop
No Other Land – Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, and Rachel Szor
Sugarcane – Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story – Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui
Will & Harper – Josh Greenbaum

ANIMATED FILM
Flow – Gints Zilbalodis
Inside Out 2 – Kelsey Mann
Transformers One – Josh Cooley
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl – Merlin Crossingham and Nick Park
The Wild Robot – Chris Sanders

CINEMATOGRAPHY
The Brutalist – Lol Crawley
Dune: Part Two – Greig Fraser
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – Simon Duggan
Nickel Boys – Jomo Fray
Nosferatu – Jarin Blaschke

EDITING
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Dávid Jancsó
Dune: Part Two – Joe Walker
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – Eliot Knapman and Margaret Sixel
The Substance – Coralie Fargeat, Jérôme Eltabet, and Valentin Feron

SCREENPLAY
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold
Conclave – Peter Straughan
A Real Pain – Jesse Eisenberg
The Substance – Coralie Fargeat

PRODUCTION DESIGN
The Brutalist – Judy Becker (Production Design)
Conclave – Suzie Davies (Production Design) | Cynthia Sleiter (Set Decoration)
Dune: Part Two – Patrice Vermette (Production Design) | Shane Vieau (Set Decoration)
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – Colin Gibson (Production Design) | Katie Sharrock (Set Decoration)
Wicked – Nathan Crowley (Production Design) | Lee Sandales (Set Decoration)

COSTUME DESIGN
Conclave – Lisy Christl
Dune: Part Two – Jacqueline West
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – Jenny Beavan
Nosferatu – Linda Muir
Wicked – Paul Tazewell

ORIGINAL SCORE
The Brutalist – Daniel Blumberg
Challengers – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Conclave – Volker Bertelmann
Evil Does Not Exist – Eiko Ishibashi
The Wild Robot – Kris Bowers

ACTION CHOREOGRAPHY
Dune: Part Two – Lee Morrison (Stunt Coordinator) | Roger Yuan (Fight Choreographer)
The Fall Guy – Chris O’Hara and Keir Beck (Stunt Coordinator) | Jonathan Eusebio (Fight Choreographer)
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – Tim Wong (Stunt Coordinator) | Richard Norton (Fight Choreographer)
Monkey Man – Udeh Nans (Stunt Coordinator) | Brahim Achabbakhe (Fight Choreographer)
Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In – Kenji Tanigaki (Stunt Coordinator)

VISUAL EFFECTS
Dune: Part Two – Paul Lambert, Stephen James, and Rhys Salcombe
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – Andrew Jackson and Dan Bethell
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes – Erik Winquist and Sean Noel Walker
The Substance – Bryan Jones and Guillaume Le Gouez
Wicked – Anthony Smith, Jonathan Fawkner, Pablo Helman, and Robert Weaver

YOUTH PERFORMANCE
Alyla Browne – Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Katherine Mallen Kupferer – Ghostlight
Izaac Wang – Dìdi (弟弟)
Alisha Weir – Abigail
Zoe Ziegler – Janet Planet

VILLAIN OF THE YEAR
Count Orlok – Nosferatu (as portrayed by Bill Skarsgård)
Dementus – Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (as portrayed by Chris Hemsworth)
Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen – Dune: Part Two (as portrayed by Austin Butler)
Longlegs – Longlegs (as portrayed by Nicolas Cage)
Macrinus – Gladiator II (as portrayed by Denzel Washington)

The New York Film Critics Online Honor The Substance

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The New York Film Critics Online have announced their picks for the best of 2024!

PICTURE
Anora
The Brutalist
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
September 5
Sing Sing
The Substance
Wicked

DIRECTOR
Jacques Audiard – Emilia Pérez
Sean Baker – Anora
Edward Berger – Conclave
Jon M. Chu – Wicked
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys

SCREENPLAY
Anora
The Brutalist
Conclave
A Real Pain
September 5
The Substance

ACTOR
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
Sebastian Stan – A Different Man

ACTRESS
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Hard Truths
Karla Sofía Gascón – Emilia Pérez
Angelina Jolie – Maria
Nicole Kidman – Babygirl
Mikey Madison – Anora
Demi Moore – The Substance

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Yuriy Borisov – Anora
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Danielle Deadwyler – The Piano Lesson
Ariana Grande-Butera – Wicked
Carol Kane – Between the Temples
Natasha Lyonne – His Three Daughters
Zoe Saldaña – Emilia Pérez

ENSEMBLE CAST
Anora
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
Sing Sing
Wicked

USE OF MUSIC
The Brutalist
Challengers
A Complete Unknown
Dune: Part Two
Wicked

CINEMATOGRAPHY
The Brutalist
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu

DEBUT DIRECTOR
Annie Baker – Janet Planet
Mike Cheslik – Hundreds of Beavers
India Donaldson – Good One
Vera Drew – The People’s Joker
Josh Margolin – Thelma

BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMER
Lily Collias – Good One
Mark Eydelshteyn – Anora
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Mikey Madison – Anora
Katy O’Brian – Love Lies Bleeding

ANIMATION
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE
All We Imagine as Light
Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World
Emilia Pérez
I’m Still Here
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

DOCUMENTARY
Black Box Diaries
Dahomey
Daughters
No Other Land
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper

The Substance Wins In Indiana

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Indiana Film Journalists Association have announced their picks for the best of 2024!  The winners are in bold.
BEST FILM
Anora
The Brutalist
Challengers
Civil War
Conclave
A Different Man
Dune: Part Two
His Three Daughters
I Saw the TV Glow
In a Violent Nature
Longlegs
Mars Express
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu
The People’s Joker
A Real Pain
Rebel Ridge
Sing Sing
The Substance
Wicked

BEST ANIMATED FILM
Flow
Inside Out 2
Look Back
Mars Express
Memoir of a Snail
The Wild Robot

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Aattam
All We Imagine as Light
Emilia Pérez
Evil Does Not Exist
Los Frikis
Look Back
Mars Express
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Daughters
Ennio
Girls State
No Other Land
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
The Sixth
The Speedway Murders
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Moritz Binder, Tim Fehlbaum and Alex David – September 5
Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold – The Brutalist
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
Alex Garland – Civil War
Azazel Jacobs – His Three Daughters
Jeremy Saulnier – Rebel Ridge
Aaron Schimberg – A Different Man
Jane Schoenbrun – I Saw the TV Glow
Julio Torres – Problemista

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Jacques Audiard – Emilia Pérez
Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin and John “Divine G” Whitfield – Sing Sing
Jay Cocks and James Mangold – A Complete Unknown
RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes – Nickel Boys
Chris Sanders – The Wild Robot
Peter Straughan – Conclave
Denis Villeneuve and Jon Spaihts – Dune: Part Two
Virgil Williams and Malcolm Washington – The Piano Lesson

BEST DIRECTOR
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Robert Eggers – Nosferatu
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
Alex Garland – Civil War
Luca Guadagnino – Challengers
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys
Jeremy Saulnier – Rebel Ridge
Aaron Schimberg – A Different Man
Jane Schoenbrun – I Saw the TV Glow

BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Daniel Craig – Queer
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Kirsten Dunst – Civil War
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
Demi Moore – The Substance
Aaron Pierre – Rebel Ridge
Justice Smith – I Saw the TV Glow

BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE
Nicolas Cage – Longlegs
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin – Sing Sing
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Adam Pearson – A Different Man
Dennis Quaid – The Substance
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Bill Skarsgård – Nosferatu
Tilda Swinton – Problemista
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II

BEST VOCAL / MOTION-CAPTURE PERFORMANCE
Tom Hardy – Venom: The Last Dance
Maya Hawke – Inside Out 2
Lupita Nyong’o – The Wild Robot
Pedro Pascal – The Wild Robot
Amy Poehler – Inside Out 2
Sarah Snook – Memoir of a Snail
Owen Teague – Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
Robbie Williams – Better Man

BEST ENSEMBLE ACTING
Civil War
Conclave
A Different Man
Dune: Part Two
His Three Daughters
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu
A Real Pain
Saturday Night
Sing Sing

BEST EDITING
Sean Baker – Anora
Marco Costa – Challengers
Jérôme Eltabet, Coralie Fargeat and Valentin Feron – The Substance
Nick Emerson – Conclave
Louise Ford – Nosferatu
Dávid Jancsó – The Brutalist
Nicholas Monsour – Nickel Boys
Jeremy Saulnier – Rebel Ridge
Terilyn A. Shropshire – Twisters
Joe Walker – Dune: Part Two

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Jarin Blaschke – Nosferatu
Lol Crawley – The Brutalist
Greig Fraser – Dune: Part Two
Jomo Fray – Nickel Boys
Rob Hardy – Civil War
Benjamin Kračun – The Substance
Dan Mindel – Twisters
Sayombhu Mukdeeprom – Challengers
Sayombhu Mukdeeprom – Queer
Eric Yue – I Saw the TV Glow

BEST MUSICAL SCORE
Volker Bertelmann – Conclave
Daniel Blumberg – The Brutalist
Kris Bowers – The Wild Robot
Raffertie – The Substance
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – Challengers
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – Queer
Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow – Civil War
Alex Somers and Scott Alario – Nickel Boys
Umberto Smerilli – A Different Man
Benjamin Wallfisch – Twisters

BEST STUNT / MOVEMENT CHOREOGRAPHY
Bren Foster (action designer / fight choreographer) and Jaylan Foster, Jimmy Foster, Nick Harding, Jordan Petersen, Matthew Murgola and Mike Duncan (stunt team) – Life After Fighting
Muhammad Irfan (stunt coordinator / fight choreographer) – The Shadow Strays
Jeremy Marinas (fight coordinator and choreographer / second-unit director) – The Beekeeper
Lee Morrison (supervising stunt coordinator), Roger Yuan (fight coordinator / stunt coordinator) and Tanya Lapointe (second-unit director) – Dune: Part Two
Saifuddin Mubdy (stunt coordinator) and Brahim Chab (fight coordinator) – Monkey Man
Guy Norris (action designer / supervising stunt coordinator / second-unit director) and Richard Norton (fight choreographer / coordinator) – Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Chris O’Hara (stunt coordinator and stunt designer) – The Fall Guy
Christopher Scott (choreographer) and Jo McLaren (stunt coordinator) – Wicked
Ashley Wallen (dance choreographer), Nicholas Daines (stunt coordinator), Slavisa Ivanovic (stunt coordinator), Tim Wong (fight choreographer) and Spencer Susser (second-unit director) – Better Man
Keith Woulard and Cory DeMeyers (stunt coordinators) – Rebel Ridge

BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS
Mike Cheslik (visual effects) and Jerry Kurek (assistant effects artist) – Hundreds of Beavers
Bryan Jones (visual effects supervisor), Pierre Procoudine-Gorsky (visual effects producer) and Jean Miel (special effects supervisor) – The Substance
Paul Lambert (visual effects production supervisor), Gerd Nefzer (special effects supervisor), Rhys Salcombe (visual effects supervisor) and Stephen James (visual effects supervisor) – Dune: Part Two
Damien Leone (writer / director), Phil Falcone (producer), Christien Tinsley (design and creation of prosthetics and makeup effects), Brian Van Dorn (Tinsley Studios production coordinator), Ryan Ward (on-set makeup effects department head), Heather Albert (on-set makeup effects artist), Josh Petrino (visual effects supervisor), Declan Boyle (lead visual effects artist), Lincoln Smith (senior visual effects artist), John Caglione, Jr. (Virgin Mary / demon sequence prosthetics supervisor), Jason Baker (Callosum Studios on-set effects supervisor) and Jason Milstein (post-production supervisor and visual effects artist) – Terrifier 3
Luke Millar (visual effects supervisor) and Scott MacIntyre (special effects supervisor) – Better Man
Kevin Smith (visual effects supervisor), Kevin Sherwood (visual effects producer), Bruce Bright (special effects supervisor) and Michael Meinardus (special effects supervisor) – Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
Ben Snow (visual effects supervisor), Florian Witzel (Industrial Light & Magic visual effects supervisor), Charles Lai (ILM associate visual effects supervisor) and Scott Fisher (special effects supervisor) – Twisters
David White (prosthetic and makeup effects design), Angela Barson (visual effects supervisor) and Pavel Sagner (special effects supervisor) – Nosferatu (2024)
Erik Winquist and Stephen Unterfranz (VFX supervisors), Paul Story (senior animation supervisor) and Rodney Burke (special FX supervisor) – Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

BREAKOUT OF THE YEAR
Joanna Arnow (director / writer / editor / performer) – The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed
Mike Cheslik (director / co-writer / editor / visual effects) – Hundreds of Beavers
Vera Drew (director / co-writer / editor / performer) – The People’s Joker
Mikey Madison (performer) – Anora
Chris Nash (director / writer) – In a Violent Nature
Katy M. O’Brian (performer) – Love Lies Bleeding
RaMell Ross (director / co-writer) – Nickel Boys
Maisy Stella (performer) – My Old Ass
Julio Torres (director / writer / performer) – Problemista
Malcolm Washington (director / co-writer) – The Piano Lesson

ORIGINAL VISION
Better Man
Emilia Pérez
Hundreds of Beavers
I Saw the TV Glow
In a Violent Nature
The People’s Joker
Problemista
Sasquatch Sunset
The Substance

The Phoenix Film Critics Society Names The Brutalist The Best Of 2024

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Phoenix Film Critics Society (not to be confused with the other film critic group from Phoenix) has announced its picks for the best of 2024.  Like a bird rising from the ashes, here they are:

PFCS TOP TEN (in alphabetical order)
A Real Pain
Anora
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
Sing Sing
The Brutalist
The Substance
The Wild Robot
Wicked

BEST PICTURE
The Brutalist

BEST DIRECTOR
Edward Berger – Conclave

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Mikey Madison – Anora

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Ariana Grande – Wicked

BEST ENSEMBLE ACTING
Conclave

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Anora

BEST SCREENPLAY ADAPTED FROM OTHER MATERIAL
Conclave

THE OVERLOOKED FILM OF THE YEAR
Strange Darling

BEST ANIMATED FILM
The Wild Robot

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Emilia Pérez

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Will & Harper

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
El Mal – Emilia Pérez

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Conclave

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Nosferatu

BEST FILM EDITING
Dune: Part Two

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Dune: Part Two

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Wicked

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Dune: Part Two

BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
Mikey Madison – Anora

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A YOUTH
Alisha Weir – Abigail

Here Are The 2024 Satellite Nominations

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Yesterday, the nominations for the 28th Annual Satellite Awards were announced.

The Satellites began as an off-shoot of the Golden Globes and they’ve never really escaped the shadow of the Globes (and the Globes themselves have never really escaped the shadow of the Oscars.)  That said, the Sattelites are usually interesting, if just because they usually have a few nominees that haven’t previously been considered to be contenders.  That’s certainly the case this year, with nominations for Cabrini, The Order, and LaRoy, Texas.

The winners will be announced on January 26th.

Motion Picture, Drama
Cabrini – Angel Studios
Conclave – Focus Features
Dune: Part Two – Warner Bros.
Nickel Boys – Amazon MGM Studios
Sing Sing – A24
The Brutalist – A24
The Order – Vertical Entertainment
Young Woman and the Sea – Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical
Anora – Neon
A Real Pain – Searchlight Pictures
Ghostlight – IFC Films
Hit Man – Netflix
LaRoy, Texas – Brainstorm Media
The Substance – MUBI
Thelma – Magnolia Pictures
Wicked – Universal Pictures

Motion Picture, International
I’m Still Here – Brazil
Queens – Swizerland / Peru
The Girl with the Needle – Denmark
The Seed Of The Sacred Fig – Germany
The Wait – Spain
Waves – Czech Republic

Motion Picture, Animated or Mixed Media
Flow – Janus Films
Inside Out 2 – Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Memoir of a Snail – IFC Films
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom – Fathom Events
The Wild Robot – Universal Pictures/Dreamworks Animation
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl – Netflix

Motion Picture, Documentary
Dahomey – MUBI
Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes – HBO Documentary Films
I Am: Celine Dion – Amazon MGM Studios
No Other Land – Self Distributed
Porcelain War – Picturehouse
Sugarcane – National Geographic Documentary Films
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story – Fathom Events
The Bloody Hundredth – Apple TV+

Director
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Denis Villeneuve – Dune: Part Two
Edward Berger – Conclave
Greg Kwedar – Sing Sing
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys
Sean Baker – Anora

Actress in a Motion Picture Drama
Angelina Jolie – Maria
Fernanda Torres – I’m Still Here
Lily-Rose Depp – Nosferatu
Nicole Kidman – Babygirl
Saoirse Ronan – The Outrun
Tilda Swinton – The Room Next Door

Actor in a Motion Picture Drama
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Daniel Craig – Queer
Hugh Grant – Heretic
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown

Actress in Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Demi Moore – The Substance
June Squibb – Thelma
Karla Sofía Gascón – Emilia Pérez
Mikey Madison – Anora
Winona Ryder – Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Actor in Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical
Glen Powell – Hit Man
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain
John Magaro – LaRoy, Texas
Keith Kupferer – Ghostlight
Michael Keaton – Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Ryan Gosling – The Fall Guy

Actress in a Supporting Role
Ariana Grande – Wicked
Danielle Deadwyler – The Piano Lesson
Felicity Jones – The Brutalist
Isabella Rossellini – Conclave
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Zoe Saldana – Emilia Pérez

Actor in a Supporting Role
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II
Edward Norton – A Complete Unknown
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Yura Borisov – Anora

Screenplay, Original
Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold – The Brutalist
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain
Mike Leigh – Hard Truths
Mohammad Rasoulof – The Seed Of The Sacred Fig
Sean Baker – Anora

Screenplay, Adapted
Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John “Divine G” Whitfield (based on “The Sing Sing Follies” by John H. Richardson and “Breakin’ the Mummy’s Code” by Brent Buell) – Sing Sing
Jacques Audiard (based on “Listen” by Boris Razon) – Emilia Pérez
Pedro Almodóvar (written by), Sigrid Nunez (novel “What Are You Going Through”) – The Room Next Door
Peter Straughan (screenplay by), Robert Harris (book) – Conclave
RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes (based on “The Nickel Boys” by Colson Whitehead) – Nickel Boys
Vuk Draskovic, Miroslav Lekic (written by), Vuk Draskovic (novel) – Russian Consul

Cinematography
Edward Lachman – Maria
Greig Fraser – Dune: Part Two
Jarin Blaschke – Nosferatu
Jomo Fray – Nickel Boys
John Mathieson – Gladiator II
Lol Crawley – The Brutalist

Costume Design
Janty Yates – Gladiator II
Jacqueline Durran – Blitz
Jacqueline West – Dune: Part Two
Linda Muir – Nosferatu
Massimo Cantini Parrini – Maria
Paul Tazewell – Wicked

Film Editing
Dávid Jancsó – The Brutalist
Joe Walker – Dune: Part Two
Juliette Welfling – Emilia Pérez
Nick Emerson – Conclave
Sam Restivo, Claire Simpson – Gladiator II
Sean Baker – Anora

Production Design
Arthur Max (Production Designer), Jille Azis and Elli Griff (Set Decorators) – Gladiator II
Craig Lathrop (Production Designer), Beatrice Brentnerova (Set Decorator) – Nosferatu
Judy Becker (Production Designer), Patricia Cuccia and Mercédesz Nagyváradi (Set Decorators) – The Brutalist
Nathan Crowley (Production Designer), Lee Sandales (Set Decorator) – Wicked
Patrice Vermette (Production Designer), Shane Vieau (Set Decorator) – Dune: Part Two
Suzie Davies (Production Designer), Cynthia Sleiter (Set Decorator) – Conclave

Original Score
Alberto Iglesias – The Room Next Door
Clément Ducol, Camille – Emilia Pérez
Daniel Blumberg – The Brutalist
Hans Zimmer – Dune: Part Two
Kris Bowers – The Wild Robot
Volker Bertelmann – Conclave

Original Song
“El Mal” by Clement Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard – Emilia Pérez
“The Journey” by Diane Warren – The Six Triple Eight
“Kiss the Sky” by Delacey, Jordan Johnson, Stefan Johnson, Maren Morris, Michael Pollack & Ali Tamposi – The Wild Robot
“Mi Camino” by Clement Ducol and Camille – Emilia Pérez
“Never Too Late” by Elton John & Brandi Carlile – Elton John: Never Too Late
“Winter Coat” by Nicholas Britell, Steve McQueen, and Taura Stinson – Blitz

Sound (Editing and Mixing)
A Complete Unknown
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Pérez
Gladiator II
Twisters
Wicked

Visual Effects
Dune: Part Two
Gladiator II
Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes
Mufasa: The Lion King
Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In
Wicked

Ensemble Motion Picture
Nosferatu – Focus Features

Anora Wins in San Francisco

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Yesterday, the San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle announced their picks for best of 2024!

Best Film
Anora
The Brutalist
Hard Truths
Nickel Boys
Sing Sing

Best Director
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Brady Corbet
Hard Truths – Mike Leigh
Nickel Boys – RaMell Ross
The Substance – Coralie Fargeat

Best Actress
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Hard Truths
Karla Sofía Gascón – Emilia Pérez
Angelina Jolie – Maria
Mikey Madison – Anora
Demi Moore – The Substance

Best Actor
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown
Daniel Craig – Queer
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave

Best Supporting Actress
Joan Chen – Dìdi (弟弟)
Carol Kane – Between the Temples
Isabella Rossellini – Conclave
Ariana Grande – Wicked
Zoe Saldana – Emilia Pérez

Best Supporting Actor
Yura Borisov – Anora
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Jeremy Strong – The Apprentice

Best International Feature Film
All We Imagine as Light
Emilia Pérez
I’m Still Here
Kneecap
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Best Documentary Feature
Daughters
No Other Land
Sugarcane
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper

Best Animated Feature
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir Of A Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot

Best Original Screenplay
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold
Hard Truths – Mike Leigh
A Real Pain – Jesse Eisenberg
The Substance – Coralie Fargeat

Best Adapted Screenplay
Conclave – Peter Straughan
Dune: Part Two – Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts
Emilia Pérez – Jacques Audiard
Nickel Boys – RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes
Sing Sing – Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John “Divine G” Whitfield

Best Cinematography
The Brutalist – Lol Crawley
Conclave – Stéphane Fontaine
Dune: Part Two – Greig Fraser
Nickel Boys – Jomo Fray
Nosferatu – Jarin Blaschke

Best Editing
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Dávid Jancsó
Challengers – Marco Costa
Conclave – Nick Emerson
September 5 – Hansjörg Weißbrich

Best Original Score
The Brutalist – Daniel Blumberg
Challengers – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Conclave – Volker Bertelmann
Emilia Pérez – Clément Ducol, Camille
The Wild Robot – Kris Bowers

Best Production Design
The Brutalist – Judy Becker
Conclave – Suzie Davies, Roberta Federico
Dune: Part Two – Zsuzsanna Sipos, Shane Vieau, Patrice Vermette
Nosferatu – Craig Lathrop
Wicked – Nathan Crowley, Lee Sandales

Special Citation for Independent Cinema
Exhibiting Forgiveness
Femme
Rumours
The Secret Art of Taking Flight

Dune Part II Wins in St. Louis

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Yesterday, the St. Louis Film Critics Association announced their picks for the best of 2024!  It was another victory for Dune Part II!

BEST FILM
Anora
The Brutalist
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
The Seed of the Sacred Fig
September 5
Sing Sing
Wicked

BEST DIRECTOR
Edward Berger – “Conclave”
Brady Corbet – “The Brutalist”
Mohammad Rasoulof – “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”
RaMell Ross – “Nickel Boys”
Denis Villeneuve – “Dune: Part Two”

BEST ACTRESS
Pamela Anderson – “The Last Showgirl”
Cynthia Erivo – “Wicked”
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – “Hard Truths”
Mikey Madison – “Anora”
Demi Moore – “The Substance”
Saoirse Ronan – “The Outrun”

BEST ACTOR
Adrien Brody – “The Brutalist”
Timothee Chalamet – “A Complete Unknown
Daniel Craig – “Queer”
Colman Domingo – “Sing Sing”
Ralph Fiennes – “Conclave”
Hugh Grant – “Heretic”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Monica Barbaro – “A Complete Unknown”
Danielle Deadwyler – “The Piano Lesson”
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor – “Nickel Boys”
Ariana Grande – “Wicked”
Zoe Saldana – “Emilia Perez”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kieran Culkin – “A Real Pain”
Clarence Maclin “Sing Sing”
Guy Pearce – “The Brutalist”
Stanley Tucci – “Conclave”
Denzel Washington – “Gladiator II”

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Sing Sing
Wicked

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Anora
The Brutalist
Hard Truths
A Real Pain
Saturday Night
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
The Brutalist
Dune: Part Two
Maria
Nosferatu
Nickel Boy

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Dune: Part Two
Hundreds of Beavers
Maria
Nosferatu
Wicked

BEST EDITING
The Brutalist
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Saturday Night
September 5

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
The Brutalist
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
Wicked

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
The Brutalist
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
The Wild Robot

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Alien: Romulus
Dune: Part Two
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
Nosferatu

BEST SOUNDTRACK
A Complete Unknown
Deadpool & Wolverine
I Saw the TV Glow
Maria
Wicked

BEST VOCAL PERFORMANCE
Maya Hawke – “Inside Out 2”
Lupita Nyong’o – “The Wild Robot”
Pedro Pascal – “The Wild Robot”
Amy Poehler – “Inside Out 2”
Sarah Snook – “Memoir of a Snail”

BEST ANIMATED FILM
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot

BEST ENSEMBLE
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Saturday Night
Sing Sing
Wicked

BEST HORROR FILM
Heretic
I Saw the TV Glow
Late Night with the Devil
Longlegs
Nosferatu
The Substance

BEST STUNTS
Deadpool & Wolverine
The Fall Guy
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Gladiator II
Monkey Man

BEST COMEDY FILM
Deadpool & Wolverine
The Fall Guy
Hundreds of Beavers
A Real Pain
Saturday Night

BEST ACTION FILM
Deadpool & Wolverine
Dune: Part Two
The Fall Guy
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Monkey Man

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Daughters
Music by John Williams
No Other Land
Sugarcane
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
All We Imagine As Light
Dahomey
Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World
Emilia Perez
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

BEST FIRST FEATURE FILM
Annie Baker – “Janet Planet”
Anna Kendrick – “Woman of the Hour”
Josh Margolin – “Thelma”
Dev Patel – “Monkey Man”
RaMell Ross – “Nickel Boys”
Malcolm Washington – “The Piano Lesson”

BEST SCENE
Civil War – “What kind of an American are you?”
Dune: Part Two – Riding the Sandworm
The Substance – New Year’s Eve performance
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – War Rig battle
His Three Daughters – Dad’s Chair

THE FAMILY MAN (2000) – Nicolas Cage gets a “glimpse” into a different life!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

Nicolas Cage stars as Jack Campbell, a Wall Street hot shot, who puts his success in the business world above everything else in his life. We meet him on Christmas Eve as he’s trying to close a multi-billion dollar merger. He’s making everyone work late and even calls for a work session on Christmas Day. Jack’s administrative assistant gives him a phone message from his former girlfriend Kate (Tea Leoni), who he almost married about 15 years earlier. He’s surprised to hear from her, especially since he essentially chose his career over her all those years ago. That night as he stops at a grocery store on his way home, events transpire so that a desperate man named Cash (Dan Cheadle) pulls a gun on the clerk. Jack is able to use a calm demeanor and business sense to talk to Cash in a way that diffuses the situation and the two leave the store together. As they walk down the street, Jack tries to talk to Cash and help him. When Cash starts asking Jack about his life, Jack indicates that his life is great and he has everything he needs. Interestingly, this is where Cash mysteriously tells Jack that he’s going to do something for him, something he really needs…

The next morning, Christmas morning, Jack wakes up in a different home, he’s married to Kate, and they have two kids and a dog. He’s no longer an investment banker; now he’s a tire salesman. He no longer drives a Ferrari; now he’s drives a mini-van. In panic-mode, Jack runs out of the house as his in-laws arrive, fires up the mini-van, and drives to his office on Wall Street where nobody knows him, and they kick him out of the building. About that time, Cash pulls up in Jack’s Ferrari and tells him that he’s giving him the gift of a “glimpse” into what his life could have been if he had married Kate instead of focusing on himself and his career. So Jack heads back to try life in Jersey, wondering when the glimpse will come to an end. 

My wife and I are continuing to watch Christmas movies throughout the month of December to stay in the holiday spirit. THE FAMILY MAN is not necessarily a movie we watch every year, but I’m a fan of Nicolas Cage. I enjoy these types of films where a person sees what their lives could have been like if they had made different decisions at certain key points along the way. An easy comparison can be made to Frank Capra’s IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE, which is my personal favorite Christmas movie, and it’s in my top 10 movies of all time. It’s not really an appropriate comparison though. These stories encounter their subjects in two very different places. In IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE, George Bailey is at the end of his rope and thinking his family would have been better off if he had never been born. It takes Clarence to reveal just how important George has been to those he loves. In THE FAMILY MAN on the other hand, Jack Campbell is at the top of the world and standing at the precipice of his crowning achievement in his career. He believes his life is wonderful. Cash decides to teach him a lesson by offering a “glimpse” into a life that he could have had if he had chosen Kate and a family over his career. Would life with her be more fulfilling than all the money in the world? I think the sale is a lot easier for Clarence than Cash, and I also think that’s why I found the film to be less compelling. George Bailey’s decision was literally life with a family who dearly loves him, or death. Jack Campbell’s decision is if he wants a middle class life with a loving wife and two precious kids that he only just met, or if he wants to continue his prior life as the multi-millionaire mover and shaker with his pick of beautiful women.  It doesn’t help the film’s case either that Jack’s never really presented as being completely empty on the inside or unhappy, say, the way Bill Murray is in SCROOGED. While I personally enjoy the type of life that Jack is able to glimpse, his character’s specific choice is not as obvious, or earned, the way George Bailey’s is. 

Overall, as a man who wouldn’t trade my family for all the money in the world, I do appreciate what THE FAMILY MAN is going for. The execution doesn’t quite pull it off in a way that is completely satisfying, and ultimately explains why I don’t watch it every year as a holiday staple.