Here Are The 2024 Nominations of the Music City Film Critics Association!


The Music City Film Critics Association (that’s Nashville) has announced its nominees for the best of of 2024!  The winners will be announced on January 10th.

BEST PICTURE
Anora
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu
Sing Sing
The Brutalist
The Substance
Wicked

THE JIM RIDLEY AWARD
Close Your Eyes
Eno
Hundreds of Beavers
The People’s Joker
The Substance

BEST DIRECTOR
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
Denis Villeneuve – Dune: Part Two
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys
Robert Eggers – Nosferatu

BEST ACTRESS
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Demi Moore – The Substance
Lily Rose-Depp – Nosferatu
Mikey Madison – Anora
Nicole Kidman – Babygirl

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

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Ariana Grande – Wicked
Katy O Brian – Love Lies Bleeding
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Monica Barbaro – A Complete Unknown
Zoe Saldana – Emilia Pérez

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Jeremy Strong – The Apprentice
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain

YOUNG ACTRESS
Alisha Weir – Abigail
Alyla Brown – Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Ariel Donoghue – Trap
Beatrice Schneider – The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
Maisy Stella – My Old Ass

YOUNG ACTOR
Elliott Heffernam – Blitz
Ethan Herisse – Nickel Boys
Griffin Kramer – The People’s Joker
Ian Foreman – I Saw the TV Glow
Izaac Wang – Didi

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

BEST MUSIC FILM
A Complete Unknown
Emilia Pérez
Kneecap
Piece by Piece
Wicked

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

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

INTERNATIONAL FILM
Emilia Pérez
Flow
I’m Still Here
Red Rooms
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

SCREENPLAY
A Real Pain
Anora
Challengers
The Brutalist
The Substance

ORIGINAL SONG
Claw Machine – I Saw the TV Glow
Compress/Repress – Challengers
El Mal – Emilia Pérez
Kiss the Sky – The Wild Robot
Like a Bird – Sing Sing

SCORE
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
The Brutalist

SOUND
Civil War
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
The Substance
Wicked

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu
The Brutalist

PRODUCTION DESIGN
Hundreds of Beavers
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
The Brutalist
Wicked

EDITING
Anora
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
The Brutalist

STUNT WORK
Dune: Part Two
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Gladiator II
Hundreds of Beavers
The Fall Guy

COMEDY
Deadpool & Wolverine
Hundreds of Beavers
My Old Ass
Saturday Night
Thelma

HORROR
Heretic
Late Night with the Devil
Nosferatu
Smile 2
The Substance

ACTION
Deadpool & Wolverine
Dune: Part Two
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Kill
The Fall Guy

Here Are The 2024 Nominations for the Black Reel Awards


The 2024 nominations for the Black Reel Awards were announced on December 19th.  The winners will be announced on February 10th.

OUTSTANDING FILM
“Challengers” | Luca Guadagnino, Rachel O’Connor, Amy Pascal & Zendaya, producers
“Exhibiting Forgiveness” | Stephanie Allain, Derek Cianfrance, Sean Cotton, Titus Kaphar & Jamie Patricof, producers
“Nickel Boys” | Joslyn Barnes, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner & David Levin, producers
“The Piano Lesson” | Todd Black & Denzel Washington, producers
“Sing Sing” | Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar & Monique Walton, producers

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE
Naomi Ackie | “Blink Twice”
Ryan Destiny | “The Fire Inside”
Colman Domingo | “Sing Sing”
Cynthia Erivo | “Wicked”
Andre Holland | “Exhibiting Forgiveness”
Marianne Jean-Baptiste | “Hard Truths”
Regina King | “Shirley”
John David Washington | “The Piano Lesson”
Kerry Washington | “The Six Triple Eight”
Zendaya | “Challengers”

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR
Titus Kaphar | “Exhibiting Forgiveness”
Zoë Kravitz | “Blink Twice”
Steve McQueen | “Blitz”
RaMell Moss | “Nickel Boys”
Malcolm Washington | “The Piano Lesson”

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE
Danielle Deadwyler | “The Piano Lesson”
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor | “Exhibiting Forgiveness”
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor | “Nickel Boys”
Brian Tyree Henry | “The Fire Inside”
Clarence Maclin | “Sing Sing”
Lashana Lynch | “Bob Marley: One Love”
Zoe Saldaña | “Emilia Pérez”
Jurnee Smollett | “We Grown Now”
Denzel Washington | “Gladiator II”
Brandon Wilson | “Nickel Boys”

OUTSTANDING SCREENPLAY
“Blitz” | Steve McQueen
“Exhibiting Forgiveness” | Titus Kaphar
“The Fire Inside” | Barry Jenkins
“Nickel Boys” | RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes
“The Piano Lesson” | Malcolm Washington & Virgil Williams

OUTSTANDING DOCUMENTARY (awarded to the director)
“Dahomey” | Mati Diop, director
“Daughters” | Angela Patton & Natalie Rae, directors
“Luther: Never Too Much” | Dawn Porter, director
“Piece by Piece” | Morgan Neville, director
“Seeking Mavis Beacon” | Jazmin Renée Jones, director

OUTSTANDING INTERNATIONAL FILM (awarded to the country)
“Bird” | United Kingdom
“Emilia Pérez” | France
“Hard Truths” | United Kingdom
“Old Righteous Blues” | South Africa
“Nine” | South Africa

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE (awarded to the casting director)
“Exhibiting Forgiveness” | Kim Coleman, casting director
“Hard Truths” | Nina Gold, casting director
“Nickel Boys” | Victoria Thomas, casting director
“The Piano Lesson” | Lindsay Graham & Mary Vernieu, casting directors
“Sing Sing” | Greg Kwedar, casting director

OUTSTANDING VOICE PERFORMANCE
Ayo Edebiri | “Inside Out 2”
Brian Tyree Henry | “Transformers One”
Dwayne Johnson | “Moana 2”
Lupita Nyong’o | “The Wild Robot”
Aaron Pierre | “Mufasa: The Lion King”

OUTSTANDING INDEPENDENT FILM (awarded to the director)
“Albany Road” | Christine Swanson, director
“Blink Twice” | Zoë Kravitz, director
“Hard Truths” | Mike Leigh, director
“I Saw the TV Glow” | Jane Schoenbrun, director
“We Grown Now” | Minhal Baig, director

OUTSTANDING SHORT FILM (awarded to the director)
“Chocolate With Sprinkles” | Huriyyah Muhammad, director
“Mosiah” | Jirard, director
“On a Sunday at Eleven” | Alicia K. Harris, director
“Self” | Searit Kahsay Huluf, director
“Will I See You Again?” | Michael Perez-Lindsey, director

OUTSTANDING SCORE (awarded to the composer)
“Blink Twice” | Chandra Dancy, composer
“Bob Marley: One Love” | Kris Bowers, composer
“The Fire Inside” | Tamar-kali, composer
“Saturday Night” | Jon Batiste, composer
“The Wild Robot” | Kris Bowers, composer

OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL SONG (awarded to the performers & writers)
“Bricks” from “Exhibiting Forgiveness” | Andra Day, performer; Andra Day & Jherek Bischoff, writers
“El Mal” from “Emilia Pérez” | Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón & Camille, performers; Clément Ducol, Camille & Jacques Audiard, writers
“The Journey” from “The Six Triple Eight” | H.E.R., performer; Dianne Warren, writer
“Like a Bird” from “Sing Sing” | Adrian Quesada & Abraham Alexander, performers; Adrian Quesada, Abraham Alexander & Brandon Marcel, writers
“Piece by Piece” from “Piece by Piece” | Pharrell Williams and Princess Anne High School Fabulous Marching Cavaliers, performers; Pharrell Williams, writer

OUTSTANDING SOUNDTRACK
“Bob Marley: One Love” – Tuff Gong / Island
“Mufasa: The Lion King” – Walt Disney Records
“Piece by Piece” – Columbia / I AM Other
“Wicked” – Republic / Verve
“The Wild Robot” – Black Lot Music

OUTSTANDING EMERGING DIRECTOR
Titus Kaphar | “Exhibiting Forgiveness”
Zoë Kravitz | “Blink Twice”
RaMell Moss | “Nickel Boys”
Angela Patton | “Daughters”
Malcolm Washington | “The Piano Lesson”

OUTSTANDING BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
Naomi Ackie | “Blink Twice”
Ryan Destiny | “The Fire Inside”
Ray Fisher | “The Piano Lesson”
Elliot Heffernan | “Blitz”
Ethan Herisse | “Nickel Boys”
Blake Cameron James | “We Grown Now”
Jharrel Jerome | “Unstoppable”
Clarence Maclin | “Sing Sing”
Lamorne Morris | “Saturday Night”
Brandon Wilson | “Nickel Boys”

OUTSTANDING FIRST SCREENPLAY (awarded for the debut screenplay by a first-time writer)
“Blink Twice” | Zoë Kravitz
“Exhibiting Forgiveness” | Titus Kaphar
“Nickel Boys” | RaMell Moss
“Parallel” | Aldis & Edwin Hodge
“The Piano Lesson” | Malcolm Washington

OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY
“Ernest Cole: Lost and Found” | Wolfgang Held & Moses Tau, cinematographers
“Luther: Never Too Much” | Bryan Gentry, cinematographer
“Nickel Boys” | Jomo Fray, cinematographer
“Rez Ball” | Kira Kelly, cinematographer
“Suncoast” | Bruce Francis Cole, cinematographer

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN
“The Book of Clarence” | Antoinette Messam, costume designer
“The Piano Lesson” | Francine Jamison-Tanchuck, costume designer
“Shirley” | Megan Coates, costume designer
“We Grown Now” | Courtney Wheeler, costume designer
“Wicked” | Paul Tazewell, costume designer

OUTSTANDING EDITING
“Daughters” | Adelina Bichis & Troy Lewis, editors
“Hard Truths” | Tania Reddin, editor
“Seeking Mavis Beacon” | Yeelen Nelson Cohen, Jon Fine & Jazmin Renée Jones, editors
“Twisters” | Terilyn A. Shropshire, editor
“We Grown Now” | Stephanie Filo, editor

OUTSTANDING HAIRSTYLING & MAKEUP
“Bob Marley: One Love” | Nadia Stacy & Carla Farmer
“The Book of Clarence” | Allison Lacour, Wayne Jolla Jr. & Yolanda Mercadel
“Nickel Boys” | Iganica Soto-Aguilar & Shandrea Williams
“The Piano Lesson” | Andrea ‘Mona’ Bowman & Para Shardé Malden
“Shirley” | Nakoya Yancey & Debi Young

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION DESIGN
“Nickel Boys” | Nora Mendis (production designer), Elizabeth Herberg (art director) & Monique Champagne (set decorator)
“Nine” | Gilbert Ekow Ampah (production designer) & Edmund Johnson (set decorator)
“The Piano Lesson” | David J. Bomba (production designer), Chardae Adams (art director) & Patrick Cassidy (set decorator)

Anora Wins In Michigan


The Michigan Movie Critics Guild have announced their picks for the best of 2024!

(The winners are listed in bold.)

Best Picture
Anora
The Brutalist
Dune: Part Two
The Substance
Wicked

Best Director
Sean Baker – Anora
Jon M. Chu – Wicked
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Robert Eggers – Nosferatu
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance

Best Actress
Amy Adams – Nightbitch
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Nicole Kidman – Babygirl
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
Hugh Grant – Heretic

Best Supporting Actress
Ariana Grande-Butera – Wicked
Felicity Jones – The Brutalist
Natasha Lyonne – His Three Daughters
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Zoe Saldaña – Emilia Pérez

Best Supporting Actor
Yura Burisov – Anora
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Adam Pearson – A Different Man
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II

Best Animated Film
Flow
Inside Out 2
Piece By Piece
Transformers One
The Wild Robot

Best Documentary
Daughters
Music By John Williams
No Other Land
Piece By Piece
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper

Best Ensemble
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
Saturday Night
Wicked

Best Screenplay (Adapted or Original)
Anora
The Brutalist
Challengers
Nosferatu
The Substance
Wicked

Breakthrough Award
Mikey Madison – Actress for Anora
Giovanni Ribisi – Cinematographer for Strange Darling
Jane Schoenbrun – Director for I Saw the TV Glow
Maisy Stella – Actress for My Old Ass
Zelda Williams – Director for Lisa Frankenstein

Stunts
Deadpool & Wolverine
The Fall Guy
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Kill
Monkey Man
Road House

The MMCG Award for Film Excellence (presented to a filmmaker, writer, actor, crew member, etc., who has Michigan ties or to a film made or set in Michigan)
The Fire Inside (Set in Flint, and lead actress Ryan Destiny is a Detroit native)
Francis Ford Coppola (Writer/Director of Megalopolis)
Hundreds of Beavers (Partially filmed in Michigan)
Keegan-Michael Key (Actor in IF, Transformers One & Dear Santa)
J.K. Simmons (Actor in Saturday Night, Red One and Juror #2)

Here Are The 2024 Nominations of the Michigan Movie Critics Guild!


The Michigan Movie Critics Guild have announced their nominations for the best of 2024.  The winners will be announced on December 9th!

Best Picture
Anora
The Brutalist
Dune: Part Two
The Substance
Wicked

Best Director
Sean Baker – Anora
Jon M. Chu – Wicked
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Robert Eggers – Nosferatu
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance

Best Actress
Amy Adams – Nightbitch
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Nicole Kidman – Babygirl
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
Hugh Grant – Heretic

Best Supporting Actress
Ariana Grande-Butera – Wicked
Felicity Jones – The Brutalist
Natasha Lyonne – His Three Daughters
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Zoe Saldaña – Emilia Pérez

Best Supporting Actor
Yura Burisov – Anora
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Adam Pearson – A Different Man
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II

Best Animated Film
Flow
Inside Out 2
Piece By Piece
Transformers One
The Wild Robot

Best Documentary
Daughters
Music By John Williams
No Other Land
Piece By Piece
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper

Best Ensemble
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
Saturday Night
Wicked

Best Screenplay (Adapted or Original)
Anora
The Brutalist
Challengers
Nosferatu
The Substance
Wicked

Breakthrough Award
Mikey Madison – Actress for Anora
Giovanni Ribisi – Cinematographer for Strange Darling
Jane Schoenbrun – Director for I Saw the TV Glow
Maisy Stella – Actress for My Old Ass
Zelda Williams – Director for Lisa Frankenstein

Stunts
Deadpool & Wolverine
The Fall Guy
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Kill
Monkey Man
Road House

The MMCG Award for Film Excellence (presented to a filmmaker, writer, actor, crew member, etc., who has Michigan ties or to a film made or set in Michigan)
The Fire Inside (Set in Flint, and lead actress Ryan Destiny is a Detroit native)
Francis Ford Coppola (Writer/Director of Megalopolis)
Hundreds of Beavers (Partially filmed in Michigan)
Keegan-Michael Key (Actor in IF, Transformers One & Dear Santa)
J.K. Simmons (Actor in Saturday Night, Red One and Juror #2)

Here Are The 2024 AARP Movies For Grown-Ups Nominations


The awards precursor season is getting started …. kinda.

The AARP Movies For Grown-Ups Nominations were announced last week, on the 20th.  I’m only now getting around to sharing them because I’m not a member of AARP and therefore, I had no idea these nominations had even been announced.  It seems a bit earlier than usual, for them.  Then again, you know how retired folks are about getting up early.

How influential are the AARP nominations?  Not very.  These nominations were not made being film critics or people who work in the industry.  They were made by the editors of AARP’s magazine.  That said, it’s always good to get mentioned somewhere.  If nothing else, this list might indicate which films are resonating with the over-5o set.

Or maybe I just like long lists.

Anyway, here are the nominations!  The winners will be announced on January 11th, during the Denny’s breakfast special.

Best Picture/Best Movie for Grownups
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
Gladiator II
September 5

Best Actress
Pamela Anderson (The Last Showgirl)
Marianne Jean-Baptiste (Hard Truths)
Nicole Kidman (Babygirl)
Demi Moore (The Substance)
June Squibb (Thelma)

Best Actor
Adrien Brody (The Brutalist)
Daniel Craig (Queer)
Colman Domingo (Sing Sing)
Ralph Fiennes (Conclave)
Jude Law (The Order)

Best Supporting Actress
Joan Chen (Didi)
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor (Nickel Boys)
Lesley Manville (Queer)
Connie Nielsen (Gladiator II)
Isabella Rossellini (Conclave)

Best Supporting Actor
Clarence Maclin (Sing Sing)
Guy Pearce (The Brutalist)
Peter Sarsgaard (September 5)
Stanley Tucci (Conclave)
Denzel Washington (Gladiator II)

Best Director
Pedro Almodóvar (The Room Next Door)
Jacques Audiard (Emilia Pérez)
Edward Berger (Conclave)
James Mangold (A Complete Unknown)
Ridley Scott (Gladiator II)

Best Screenwriter
Jacques Audiard, Thomas Bidegain, Nicolas Livecchi (Emilia Pérez)
Jay Cocks and James Mangold (A Complete Unknown)
Winnie Holzman (Wicked)
Peter Straughan (Conclave)
Denis Villeneuve and Jon Spaihts (Dune: Part Two)

Best Ensemble
A Complete Unknown
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
His Three Daughters
September 5
Sing Sing

Best Actress (TV)
Jennifer Aniston (The Morning Show)
Jodie Foster (True Detective: Night Country)
Jean Smart (Hacks)
Meryl Streep (Only Murders in the Building)
Sofia Vergara (Griselda)

Best Actor (TV)
Billy Crudup (The Morning Show)
Idris Elba (Hijack)
Jon Hamm (Fargo)
Gary Oldman (Slow Horses)
Hiroyuki Sanada (Shōgun)

Best TV Series or Limited Series
The Crown
Hacks
Palm Royale
Shōgun
Slow Horses

Best Intergenerational Film
Didi
Here
His Three Daughters
The Piano Lesson
Thelma

Best Time Capsule
A Complete Unknown
The Brutalist
Here
Maria
September 5

Best Documentary
I Am: Celine Dion
Luther: Never Too Much
Piece by Piece
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper