The film critics of two of the country’s biggest markets, Chicago and L.A., have spoken with their year-end awards. And the winners, I think, exemplify just how odd this pandemic year has been.
Chicago Film Critics Association named Nomadland the best movie of the year, with Chloe Zhao’s drama dominating with five wins. Zhao also won for Best Director, while Frances McDormand took Best Actress. It’s another taste of what seems like it is going to be an overwhelming showing for Zhao this awards season, likely through to the Oscars.
The late Chadwick Boseman also won Best Actor for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, making this his second such victory in days. The same goes for Maria Barkalova, who won yet again for her breakout performance in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.
In a normal year I’m not sure Steve McQueen’s Amazon anthology Small Axe would’ve received the same attention, but the group of five movies have received near-universal acclaim. The Los Angeles Film Critics Association decided not to pick any particular film but to honor the entire package, all directed by McQueen, as the year’s best film.
But it wasn’t McQueen who won the Best Director award, that went to Nomadland‘s Chloe Zhao, continuing her hot streak. Chadwick Boseman continues to be honored posthumously for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and Carey Mulligan’s buzzworthy role in Promising Young Woman gained her Best Actress.
There were still surprises, including Glynn Turman winning Best Supporting Actor for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, beating his co-star Colman Domingo. And maybe this isn’t such a surprise, really, but the start of something as Youn Yuh-jung won for Minari.
And more wins for Wolfwalkers as Best Animated Feature. It’s going to be a tight race between it and Pixar’s Soul.
The full list of winners by Chicago and L.A. below.
CHICAGO Film Critics Association
BEST PICTURE
“Da 5 Bloods”
“First Cow”
“Lovers Rock”
“Nomadland” – ***WINNER***
“Promising Young Woman”
BEST DIRECTOR
Emerald Fennell, “Promising Young Woman”
Spike Lee, “Da 5 Bloods”
Steve McQueen, “Lovers Rock”
Kelly Reichardt, “First Cow”
Chloe Zhao, “Nomadland” – ***WINNER***
BEST ACTOR
Riz Ahmed, “Sound of Metal”
Chadwick Boseman, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” – ***WINNER**
Anthony Hopkins, “The Father”
Delroy Lindo, “Da 5 Bloods”
Steven Yeun, “Minari”
BEST ACTRESS
Jessie Buckley, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
Carrie Coon, “The Nest”
Viola Davis, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Frances McDormand, “Nomadland” – ***WINNER***
Carey Mulligan, “Promising Young Woman”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Chadwick Boseman, “Da 5 Bloods”
Bill Murray, “On the Rocks”
Leslie Odom Jr., “One Night in Miami”
Paul Raci, “Sound of Metal” – ***WINNER***
David Strathairn, “Nomadland”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Maria Bakalova, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” – ***WINNER***
Toni Collette, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
Amanda Seyfried, “Mank”
Letitia Wright, “Mangrove”
Yuh-Jung Youn, “Minari”
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“Da 5 Bloods” by Danny Bilson, Paul De Meo, Kevin Willmott & Spike Lee
“Never Rarely Sometimes Always” by Eliza Hittman – ***WINNER***
“Promising Young Woman” by Emerald Fennell
“Soul” by Pete Docter, Mike Jones & Kemp Powers
“The Trial of the Chicago 7” by Aaron Sorkin
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“The Father” by Christopher Hampton & Florian Zeller
“First Cow” by Jonathan Raymond & Kelly Reichardt
“I’m Thinking of Ending Things” by Charlie Kaufman
“Nomadland” by Chloe Zhao – ***WINNER***
“One Night in Miami” by Kemp Powers
BEST ANIMATED FILM
“Onward”
“A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon”
“Soul”
“The Wolf House”
“Wolfwalkers” – ***WINNER***
BEST DOCUMENTARY
“Collective”
“David Byrne’s American Utopia”
“Dick Johnson is Dead” – ***WINNER***
“The Social Dilemma”
“Time”
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“Another Round” – ***WINNER***
“Bacurau”
“Beanpole”
“Collective”
“La Llorona”
“Vitalina Varela”
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“First Cow,” Christopher Blauvelt
“Lovers Rock,” Shabier Kirchner
“Mank,” Erik Messerschmidt
“Nomadland,” Joshua James Richards – ***WINNER***
“The Vast of Night,” Miguel Ioann Littin Menz
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
“Da 5 Bloods”, Terence Blanchard
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” Branford Marsalis
“Mank,” Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
“Soul,” Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste – ***WINNER***
“Tenet,” Ludwig Goransson
BEST ART DIRECTION
“Birds of Prey”
“Emma”
“First Cow”
“I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
“Mank” – ***WINNER***
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Birds of Prey”
“Emma” – ***WINNER***
“First Cow”
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
“Mank”
BEST USE OF VISUAL EFFECTS
“I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
“The Invisible Man” – ***WINNER***
“The Midnight Sky”
“Possessor”
“Tenet”
BEST EDITING
“I’m Thinking of Ending Things,” Robert Frazen – ***WINNER***
“Lovers Rock,” Chris Dickens & Steve McQueen
“Nomadland,” Chloe Zhao
“Tenet,” Jennifer Lame
“The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Alan Baumgarten
MILOS STEHLIK AWARD FOR PROMISING FILMMAKER
Radha Blank, “The Forty-Year-Old Version”
Lee Isaac Chung, “Minari”
Emerald Fennell, “Promising Young Woman” – ***WINNER***
Darius Marder, “Sound of Metal”
Andrew Patterson, “The Vast of Night”
MOST PROMISING PERFORMER
Maria Bakalova, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”
Kingsley Ben-Adir, “One Night in Miami”
Sidney Flanigan, “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” – ***WINNER***
Kelly O’Sullivan, “Saint Frances”
Helena Zengel, “News of the World”
The Florida winners are as follows:
BEST PICTURE
First Cow
Runner up: “Nomadland,” “Trial of the Chicago 7,” “Minari”
BEST ACTOR
Anthony Hopkins, “The Father”
Runner up: John Magaro, “First Cow”
BEST ACTRESS
Frances McDormand, “Nomadland
Runners up: Viola Davis, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” Carey Mulligan, “Promising Young Woman”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Paul Raci, “Sound of Metal”
Runner up: Brian Dennehy; “Driveways”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Maria Bakalova, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”
Runner up: Yuh-Jung Youn, “Minari”
BEST ENSEMBLE
“Mangrove”
Runner up: “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
BEST DIRECTOR
Chloé Zhao, “Nomadland”
Runner up: Kelly Reichardt, “First Cow,” Aaron Sorkin, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Lee Isaac Chung, “Minari”
Runner up: Aaron Sorkin, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Charlie Kaufman, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
Runners up: Chloé Zhao, “Nomadland,” Ruben Santiago-Hudson, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Erik Messerschmidt, “Mank”
Runner up: Shabier Kirchner, “Lovers Rock”
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Murray Barber, “Possessor”
Runner up: Andrew Jackson, Tenet
BEST ART DIRECTION/PRODUCTION
Dan Webster, “Mank”
Runner up: Adam Marshall, “Lovers Rock”
BEST SCORE
Trent Reznor/Atticus Ross/Jon Batiste, “Soul”
Runner up: Ludwig Göransson, “Tenet”
BEST DOCUMENTARY
“You Don’t Nomi”
Runner up: “Dick Johnson is Dead”
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“Los Fuertes”
Runner up: “Minari”
BEST ANIMATED FILM
“Soul”
Runner up: “Wolfwalkers”
BEST FIRST FILM
“Promising Young Woman”
Runner up: “The Father”
BREAKOUT AWARD
Sidney Flanigan, “Never Rarely Sometimes Always”
Runner up: Maria Bakalova, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”
THE GOLDEN ORANGE AWARD
ENZIAN Theater
Los Angeles Film Critics Association
Best Film: “Small Axe”
Runner Up: “Nomadland”
Best Director: Chloe Zhao, “Nomadland”
Runner Up: Steve McQueen, “Small Axe”
Best Foreign Language Film: “Beanpole”
Runner Up: “Martin Eden”
Best Documentary/Nonfiction Film: “Time”
Runner Up: “Collective”
Best Screenplay: Emerald Fennell, “Promising Young Woman”
Runner Up: Eliza Hittman, “Never Really Sometimes Always”
Best Actor: Chadwick Boseman, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Runner Up: Riz Ahmed, “Sound of Metal”
Best Actress: Carey Mulligan, “Promising Young Woman”
Runner Up: Viola Davis, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Best Supporting Actress: Youn Yuh-jung, “Minari”
Runner Up: Amanda Seyfried, “Mank”
Best Supporting Actor: Glynn Turman, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Runner Up: Paul Raci, “Sound of Metal”
Best Editing: Yorgos Lamprinos, “The Father”
Runner Up: Gabriel Rhodes, “Time”
Best Production Design: Donald Graham Burt, “Mank”
Runner Up: Sergei Ivanov, “Beanpole”
Best Music/Score: “Soul”
Runner Up: “Lovers Rock”
Best Cinematography: Shabier Kirchner, “Small Axe”
Runner Up: Joshua James Richards, “Nomadland”
Best Animation: “Wolfwalkers”
Runner Up: “Soul”
New Generation: Radha Blank, “The 40-Year-Old-Version”
The Douglas Edwards Experimental Film prize will be given to John Gianvito’s “Her Socialist Smile”
