The Black Film Critics Circle Picks Moonlight!

Posted on December 22, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Black Film Critics Circle has named their picks for the best of 2016!

And here they are:

Best Film
Moonlight

Best Director
Barry Jenkins, Moonlight

Best Actor
Denzel Washington, Fences

Best Actress
Ruth Negga, Loving

Best Supporting Actor
Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

Best Supporting Actress
Viola Davis, Fences

Best Original Screenplay
Barry Jenkins, Moonlight

Best Adapted Screenplay
August Wilson, Fences

Best Cinematography
James Laxton, Moonlight

Best Foreign Film
Elle

Best Documentary
13TH

Best Animated Film
Zootopia

Best Ensemble
Fences

The Alliance of Women Film Journalists Announced Their Picks For The Best of 2016!

Posted on December 22, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Alliance of Women Film Journalists (of which I am not a member and what’s up with that!?) announced their picks for the best of 2016 earlier this week.

And here they are:

AWFJ BEST OF AWARDS
These awards are presented to women and/or men without gender consideration.
Best Film
Arrival
Hell or High Water
La La Land
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight

Best Director
Damien Chazelle – La La Land
Barry Jenkins – Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester by the Sea
David Mackenzie – Hell or High Water
Denis Villeneuve – Arrival

Best Screenplay, Original
20th Century Women – Mike Mills
Hail Caesar – Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Hell or High Water – Taylor Sheridan
La La Land – Damien Chazelle
Manchester by the Sea – Kenneth Lonergan

Best Screenplay, Adapted
Arrival – Eric Heisserer
Lion – Luke Davies
Love & Friendship – Whit Stillman
Moonlight – Barry Jenkins
Nocturnal Animals –Tom Ford

Best Documentary
13th – Ava DuVernay
Gleason – Clay Tweel
I Am Not Your Negro – Raoul Peck
OJ Made in America – Ezra Edelman
Weiner – Elyse Steinberg and Josh Kriegma

Best Animated Film
Finding Dory – Andrew Stanton andAngus MacLane
Kubo and the Two Strings- Travis Knight
Moana – Ron Clements, Don Hall, John Musker, Chris Williams
Zootopia – Byron Howard, Rich Moore, Jared Bush

Best Actress
Amy Adams – Arrival
Isabelle Huppert – Elle
Ruth Negga – Loving
Natalie Portman – Jackie
Emma Stone – La La Land

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Viola Davis – Fences
Greta Gerwig – 20th Century Women
Naomie Harris – Moonlight
Octavia Spencer – Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams – Manchester by the Sea

Best Actor
Casey Affleck – Manchester By The Sea
Joel Edgerton – Loving
Ryan Gosling – La La Land
Tom Hanks – Sully
Denzel Washington – Fences

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
Jeff Bridges – Hell or High Water
Ben Foster – Hell or High Water
Lucas Hedges – Manchester By the Sea
Michael Shannon – Nocturnal Animals

Best Ensemble Cast – Casting Director
20th Century Women – Mark Bennett and Laura Rosenthal
Hail Caesar – Ellen Chenoweth
Hell or High Water – Jo Edna Boldin and Richard Hicks
Manchester by the Sea – Douglas Aibel
Moonlight – Yesi Ramirez

Best Cinematography
Arrival – Bradford Young
Hell or High Water – Giles Nuttgens
La La Land – Linus Sandgren
Manchester by The Sea – Jody Lee Lipes
Moonlight – James Laxton

Best Editing
Arrival – Joe Walker
I Am Not Your Negro — Alexandra Strauss
La La Land – Tom Cross
Manchester By The Sea – Jennifer Lame
Moonlight – Joi McMillon and Nat Sanders

Best Non-English-Language Film
Elle – Paul Verhoeven, France
Fire At Sea – Gianfranco Rossi, Italy
The Handmaiden – Chan-Wook Park, South Korea
Julieta – Pedro Almodovar. Spain
Toni Erdmann – Maren Ede, Germany

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS
These awards honor WOMEN only

Best Woman Director
Andrea Arnold – American Honey
Ava DuVernay -13TH
Rebecca Miller – Maggie’s Plan
Mira Nair – Queen of Katwe
Kelly Reichardt – Certain Women

Best Woman Screenwriter
Andrea Arnold – American Honey
Rebecca Miller – Maggie’s Plan
Kelly Reichardt – Certain Women
Lorene Scafaria – The Meddler
Laura Terruso – Hello, My Name is Doris

Best Animated Female
Dory in Finding Dory –Ellen DeGeneres
Judy in Zootopia – Ginnifer Goodwin
Moana in Moana – Auli’i Cravalho

Best Breakthrough Performance
Sasha Lane – American Honey
Janelle Monáe – Moonlight and Hidden Figures
Madina Nalwanga – Queen of Katwe
Ruth Negga – Loving

Outstanding Achievement by A Woman in The Film Industry
Ava DuVernay – For 13TH and raising awareness about the need for diversity and gender equality in Hollywood
Anne Hubbell and Amy Hobby for establishing Tangerine Entertainment’s Juice Fund to support female filmmakers
Mynette Louie, President of Gamechanger Films, which finances narrative films directed by women
April Reign for creating and mobilizing the #OscarsSoWhite campaign

EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS

Actress Defying Age and Ageism
Annette Bening – 20th Century Women
Viola Davis – Fences
Sally Field – Hello, My Name is Doris
Isabelle Huppert – Elle and Things to Come
Helen Mirren – Eye in the Sky

Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Lead and The Love Interest Award
Dirty Grandpa – Robert De Niro (b. 1943) and Aubrey Plaza (b. 1984)
Independence Day: Resurgence – Charlotte Gainsbourg (b 1971) and Jeff Goldblum (b 1952)
Mechanic Resurrection – Jason Statham (b. 1967) and Jessica Aba (b. 1981)
Rules Don’t Apply – Warren Beatty (b. 1937) and Lily Collins (b. 1989)

Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent
Jennifer Aniston – Mother’s Day and Office Christmas Party
Melissa McCarthy – The Boss and Ghostbusters
Margot Robbie – Suicide Squad and Tarzan
Julia Roberts – Mother’s Day
Shailene Woodley – Divergent Series

Bravest Performance
Jessica Chastain – Miss Sloane
Naomie Harris – Moonlight
Isabelle Huppert – Elle
Sasha Lane – American Honey
Ruth Negga – Loving

Remake or Sequel That Shouldn’t have been Made
Ben-Hur
Ghostbusters
Independence Day: Resurgence
The Magnificent Seven
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2

AWFJ Hall of Shame Award
Sharon Maguire and Renee Zellweger for Bridget Jones’s Baby
Nicholas Winding Refn and Elle Fanning for The Neon Demon
David Ayer and Margot Robbie for Suicide Squad
David E. Talbert and Mo’Nique for Almost Christmas

The St. Louis Film Critics Love La La Land

Posted on December 21, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

La La Land got even more love this weekend when the St. Louis Film Critics announced their picks for the best of 2016!

BEST FILM: “La La Land” (Runner-up: Manchester By The Sea and Hell or High Water)

BEST DIRECTOR: Damien Chazelle, “La La Land” (Runner-up: Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester By The Sea and Denis Villeneuve, Arrival)

BEST ACTOR: Casey Affleck, “Manchester by the Sea” (Runner-up: Joe Edgerton, Loving)

BEST ACTRESS: Isabelle Huppert, “Elle” (Runner-up: Natalie Portman, Jackie)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Mahershala Ali, “Moonlight” (Runner-up: Lucas Hedges, Manchester By the Sea)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Viola Davis, “Fences” (Runner-up: Michelle Williams, Manchester By The Sea)

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Whit Stillman, “Love and Friendship” (Runner-up: Eric Heisserer, Arrival)

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Taylor Sheridan, “Hell or High Water” (Runner-up: Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester By The Sea)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Linus Sandgren, “La La Land” (Runner-up: James Laxton, Moonlight)

BEST EDITING: Sebastian Sepulveda, “Jackie” (Runner-up: Hacksaw Ridge and La La Land)

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN: “The Handmaiden” (Runner-up: Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, Jackie, La La Land)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: “The Jungle Book” (Runner-up: Doctor Strange)

BEST MUSIC SCORE: Justin Hurwitz, “La La Land” (Runner-up: Mica Levi, Jackie)

BEST MUSIC SOUNDTRACK: “Sing Street” (Runner-up: La La Land)

BEST SONG: “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” from “La La Land” (Runner-up: City of Stars, La La Land)

BEST ACTION: “Captain America: Civil War” (Runner-up: Doctor Strange)

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE: “Zootopia” (Runner-up: Kubo and the Two Strings)

BEST COMEDY: “Hail, Caesar!” (Runner-up: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping)

BEST DOCUMENTARY: “I Am Not Your Negro” (Runner-up: Weiner)

BEST HORROR/SCI-FI: “The Witch” (Runner-up: Arrival)

BEST FOREIGN FILM: “Elle” (Runner-up: The Handmaiden)

BEST SCENE: Opening Traffic Jam, “Another Day of Sun!” in “La La Land” (Runner-up: “If only it where that simple” from Hail Caesar!)

WORST: “Warcraft” (Runner-up: The Angry Birds Movie)

The Utah Film Critics Association Celebrates La La Land

Posted on December 21, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Utah Film Critics announced their picks for the best of 2016!

• Best Picture: “La La Land”; runner-up: “Moonlight.”

• Directing: Barry Jenkins, “Moonlight”; runner-up, Damien Chazelle, “La La Land”

• Lead Actor, Male: Casey Affleck, “Manchester by the Sea”; runner-up: Joel Edgerton, “Loving”

• Lead Actor, Female: Emma Stone, “La La Land”; runner-up: Ruth Negga, “Loving”

• Supporting Actor, Female: Viola Davis, “Fences”; runners-up: (tie) Naomie Harris, “Moonlight,” Michelle Williams, “Manchester by the Sea”

• Supporting Actor, Male: (tie) Mahershala Ali, “Moonlight,” John Goodman, “10 Cloverfield Lane”

• Original Screenplay: Taylor Sheridan, “Hell or High Water”; runner-up: Kenneth Lonergan, “Manchester by the Sea”

• Adapted Screenplay: Barry Jenkins and Tarell Alvin McCraney, “Moonlight”; runner-up: Eric Heisserer, “Arrival”

• Cinematography: Linus Sandgren, “La La Land”; runner-up: Bradford Young, “Arrival”

• Original Score: Justin Hurwitz, “La La Land”; runner-up: Johann Johannsson, “Arrival”

• Documentary Feature: “Cameraperson”; runner-up: “Weiner”

• Animated Feature: “Kubo and the Two Strings”; runners-up: (tie) “Moana” and “Zootopia”

• Non-English Language Film: “The Handmaiden” (South Korea); runners-up: (tie) “Elle” (France) and “Toni Erdmann” (Germany)

Here Are the 2016 Seattle Film Award Nominees!

Posted on December 21, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Here are the 2016 Seattle Film Award Nominees! I don’t know what the cat’s yawning about; these nominations are actually an interesting mix of the usual suspects (Moonlight, Manchester, La La Land) and a few unexpected but intriguing picks (like 13th and The Witch).

THE 2016 SEATTLE FILM AWARD NOMINEES:

BEST PICTURE OF THE YEAR:

13^th (Netflix)
ARRIVAL (Paramount)
ELLE (Sony Pictures Classics)
THE HANDMAIDEN (Amazon Studios/Magnolia Pictures)
HELL OR HIGH WATER (CBS Films)
JACKIE (Fox Searchlight)
LA LA LAND (Lionsgate)
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA (Amazon Studios/Roadside Attractions)
MOONLIGHT (A24)
THE WITCH (A24)

BEST DIRECTOR:

Damien Chazelle – La La Land
Robert Eggers – The Witch
Barry Jenkins – Moonlight
Paul Verhoeven – Elle
Denis Villeneuve – Arrival

BEST ACTOR in a LEADING ROLE:

Casey Affleck – Manchester By The Sea
Ryan Gosling – La La Land
Logan Lerman – Indignation
Viggo Mortensen – Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington – Fences

BEST ACTRESS in a LEADING ROLE:

Amy Adams – Arrival
Kate Beckinsale – Love & Friendship
Isabelle Huppert – Elle
Natalie Portman – Jackie
Emma Stone – La La Land

BEST ACTOR in a SUPPORTING ROLE:

Mahershala Ali– Moonlight
Jeff Bridges – Hell Or High Water
Kyle Chandler – Manchester By The Sea
John Goodman – 10 Cloverfield Lane
Lucas Hedges – Manchester By The Sea

BEST ACTRESS in a SUPPORTING ROLE:

Viola Davis – Fences
Lily Gladstone – Certain Women
Naomie Harris – Moonlight
Kate McKinnon – Ghostbusters
Michelle Williams – Manchester By The Sea

BEST ENSEMBLE CAST:

Captain Fantastic
Hell Or High Water
Fences
Manchester By The Sea
Moonlight

BEST SCREENPLAY:

Arrival – Eric Heisserer
Hell Or High Water – Taylor Sheridan
La La Land – Damien Chazelle
Manchester By The Sea – Kenneth Lonergan
Moonlight – Barry Jenkins and Tarell McCraney

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE:

Finding Dory – Andrew Stanton, director; Angus MacLane, co-director
Kubo And The Two Strings – Travis Knight, director
Moana – Ron Clements and John Musker, directors
Tower – Keith Maitland, director
Zootopia – Byron Howard and Rich Moore, directors; Jared Bush, co-director.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM:

Elle – Paul Verhoeven, director
The Handmaiden – Park Chan-wook, director
The Innocents – Anne Fontaine, director
Under The Shadow – Babak Anvari, director
The Wailing – Na Hong-jin, director

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE:

13th – Ava DuVernay, director
Cameraperson – Kirsten Johnson, director
O.J.: Made In America – Ezra Edelman, director
Tickled – David Farrier, Dylan Reeve, directors
Weiner – Josh Kriegman, Elyse Steinberg, directors

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:

Arrival – Bradford Young
Jackie – Stéphane Fontaine
La La Land – Linus Sandgren
Moonlight – James Laxton
The Witch – Jarin Blaschke

BEST COSTUME DESIGN:

The Handmaiden – Cho Sang-kyung
Jackie – Madeline Fontaine
La La Land – Mary Zophres
Love & Friendship – Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh
The Witch – Linda Muir

BEST FILM EDITING:

Arrival – Joe Walker
Cameraperson – Nels Bangerter, David Teague
Hell Or High Water – Jake Roberts
La La Land – Tom Cross
Moonlight – Nat Sanders, Joi McMillon

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE:

Arrival – Jóhann Jóhannsson
Jackie – Mica Levi
La La Land – Justin Hurwitz
Moonlight – Nicholas Britell
Swiss Army Man – Andy Hull, Robert McDowell

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN:

Arrival – Patrice Vermette (production designer); Paul Hotte (key decorator)
The Handmaiden – Ryu Seong-hee
Jackie – Jean Rabasse (production designer); Véronique Melery (set decorator)
La La Land – David Wasco (production designer); Sandy Reynolds-Wasco (set decorator)
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story – Doug Chiang, Neil Lamont (production designers); Lee Sandales (set decorator)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS:

BEST YOUTH PERFORMANCE (18 years of age or younger upon start of filming):

Alex Hibbert – Moonlight
Royalty Hightower – The Fits
Sunny Pawar – Lion
Harvey Scrimshaw – The Witch
Anya Taylor-Joy – The Witch

BEST VILLAIN:

The Southeastern Film Critics Association Honors Moonlight!

Posted on December 20, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

On December 19th, The Southestern Film Critics Association announced its awards, as follows:

TOP TEN FILMS
1. Moonlight
2. Manchester by the Sea
3. La La Land
4. Hell or High Water
5. Loving
6. Arrival
7. (Tie) Fences and Jackie
8. Nocturnal Animals
9. Hidden Figures

BEST ACTOR
Winner – Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)
Runner-up – Denzel Washington (Fences)

BEST ACTRESS
Winner – Natalie Portman (Jackie)
Runner-up – Ruth Negga (Loving)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Winner – Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)
Runner-up – Jeff Bridges (Hell or High Water)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Winner – Viola Davis (Fences)
Runner-up – Naomie Harris (Moonlight)

BEST ENSEMBLE
Winner – Moonlight
Runner-up – Manchester by the Sea

BEST DIRECTOR
Winner (tie) – Damien Chazelle, (La La Land)
Winner (tie) – Barry Jenkins (Moonlight)

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Winner – Manchester by the Sea
Runner-up – Hell or High Water

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Winner – Moonlight
Runner-up – Arrival

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Winner – I Am Not Your Negro
Runner-up – OJ: Made in America

BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
Winner – The Handmaiden
Runner-up – Elle

BEST ANIMATED FILM
Winner – Zootopia
Runner-up – Kubo and the Two Strings

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Winner – La La Land
Runner-up – Moonlight

The GENE WYATT AWARD
Winner – Loving
Runner-up – Moonlight

(h/t to AwardsCircuit.)

The Phoenix Film Critics Society Goes Ga Ga for La La!

Posted on December 20, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Phoenix Film Critics Society, one of two warring groups of Phoenix film critics, announced their winners for 2016 earlier today! Check out their nominees here and the winners below!

Best Picture — La La Land

Best Director — Damien Chazelle — La La Land

Best Actor — Casey Affleck, Manchester By The Sea

Best Actress — Emma Stone, La La Land

Best Supporting Actor — Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water

Best Supporting Actress — Viola Davis, Fences

Best Ensemble — Hell or High Water

Best Original Screenplay — Hell or High Water

Best Adapted Screenplay — Hacksaw Ridge

Overlooked Film Of The Year — Sing Street

Best Animated Film — Zootopia

Best Foreign Language Film — Elle

Best Documentary — Gleason

Best Original Song — City of Stars from La La Land

Best Original Score — La La Land

Best Cinematography — La La Land

Best Editing — Hacksaw Ridge

Best Production Design — La La Land

Best Costume Design — Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them

Best Visual Effects — Doctor Strange

Breakthrough Performance — Anya Taylor-Joy, The Witch

Best Performance By A Youth — Alex Hibbert, Moonlight

Manchester By The Sea Wins Almost Everything In Vancouver!

Posted on December 20, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Vancouver Film Critics have spoken! Check out their nominees here and their winners below!

BEST FILM
Manchester by the Sea

BEST ACTOR
Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea

BEST ACTRESS
Isabelle Huppert, Elle

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea

BEST DIRECTOR
Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea

BEST SCREENPLAY
Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Toni Erdmann

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Cameraperson