‘Nomadland’ and ‘The Crown’ Lead 26th Annual Critics Choice Awards

‘Nomadland’ and ‘The Crown’ Lead 26th Annual Critics Choice Awards

The Critics Choice Association (CCA) announced the winners of the 26th annual Critics Choice Awards LIVE on The CW during an in-person/virtual hybrid ceremony hosted for the third time by acclaimed film, television, and stage star Taye Diggs on Sunday, March 4.  The full list of winners can be found below. 

“Nomadland” led the winners in the film categories, taking home four awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for Chloé Zhao, and Best Cinematography for Joshua James Richards.  Zhao is the first Chinese woman to win as either director or writer. 

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” followed closely behind, winning three categories including Best Actor for the late Chadwick Boseman, Best Costume Design, and Best Hair and Makeup.  Best Actress was awarded to Carey Mulligan for “Promising Young Woman,” which also earned a Best Original Screenplay win for Emerald Fennell.  Best Supporting Actor went to Daniel Kaluuya for “Judas and the Black Messiah,” and Best Supporting Actress to Maria Bakalova for “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.”   

In the series categories, “The Crown” took four categories, the most of the night, winning Best Drama Series, Best Actor in a Drama Series for Josh O’Connor, Best Actress in a Drama Series for Emma Corrin, and Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for Gillian Anderson.  In the comedy genre, “Ted Lasso” won all three categories for which it was nominated: Best Comedy Series, Best Actor in a Comedy Series for Jason Sudeikis, and Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for Hannah Waddingham.  “The Queen’s Gambit” took the prize for Best Limited Series, and its leading lady Anya Taylor-Joy won Best Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television. 

The race for “Best Comedy Special,” which was dominated entirely by Netflix nominees, resulted in a tie between “Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill” and “Michelle Buteau: Welcome to Buteaupia.” 

As was previously announced, John David Washington presented this year’s SeeHer Award to his “Malcolm & Marie” co-star, Zendaya.  The SeeHer Award recognizes a woman who embodies the values set forth by the SeeHer movement, to push boundaries, defy stereotypes and acknowledge the importance of authentic portrayals of women across the entertainment landscape. 

After leading the nominations, Netflix also won the most awards of any studio/network with a total of 14.  Amazon Studios and Searchlight Pictures each won four. 

Critics Choice Awards are bestowed annually to honor the finest in cinematic and television achievement.  Historically, they are the most accurate predictor of Academy Award nominations. 

The 26th annual Critics Choice Awards show was produced by Bob Bain Productions and Berlin Entertainment.  The CCA is represented by Dan Black of Greenberg Traurig. 

Follow the 26th annual Critics Choice Awards on Twitter and Instagram @CriticsChoice and on Facebook/CriticsChoiceAwards.  Join the conversation using #CriticsChoice and #CriticsChoiceAwards. 

FILM CATEGORIES 

BEST PICTURE 

Nomadland (Searchlight Pictures) 

BEST ACTOR 

Chadwick Boseman – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix) 

BEST ACTRESS 

Carey Mulligan – Promising Young Woman (Focus Features) 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR 

Daniel Kaluuya – Judas and the Black Messiah (Warner Bros.) 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS 

Maria Bakalova – Borat Subsequent Moviefilm (Amazon Studios) 

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS 

Alan Kim – Minari (A24) 

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE 

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Netflix) 

BEST DIRECTOR 

Chloé Zhao – Nomadland (Searchlight Pictures) 

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY 

Emerald Fennell – Promising Young Woman (Focus Features) 

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY 

Chloé Zhao – Nomadland (Searchlight Pictures) 

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY 

Joshua James Richards – Nomadland (Searchlight Pictures) 

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN 

Donald Graham Burt, Jan Pascale – Mank (Netflix) 

BEST EDITING – TIE  

Alan Baumgarten – The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Netflix) 

Mikkel E. G. Nielsen – Sound of Metal (Amazon Studios) 

BEST COSTUME DESIGN 

Ann Roth – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix) 

BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP 

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix) 

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS 

Tenet (Warner Bros.) 

BEST COMEDY 

Palm Springs (Hulu and NEON) 

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM 

Minari (A24) 

BEST SONG  

Speak Now – One Night in Miami (Amazon Studios) 

BEST SCORE 

Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, and Jon Batiste – Soul (Disney) 

SERIES CATEGORIES 

BEST DRAMA SERIES 

The Crown (Netflix) 

BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES 

Josh O’Connor – The Crown (Netflix) 

BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES 

Emma Corrin – The Crown (Netflix) 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES 

Michael K. Williams – Lovecraft Country (HBO)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES 

Gillian Anderson – The Crown (Netflix) 

BEST COMEDY SERIES 

Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) 

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES 

Jason Sudeikis – Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) 

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES 

Catherine O’Hara – Schitt’s Creek (Pop) 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES  

Daniel Levy – Schitt’s Creek (Pop) 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES 

Hannah Waddingham – Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) 

BEST LIMITED SERIES 

The Queen’s Gambit (Netflix) 

BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION 

Hamilton (Disney+) 

BEST ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION 

John Boyega – Small Axe (Amazon Studios) 

BEST ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION 

Anya Taylor-Joy – The Queen’s Gambit (Netflix) 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION 

Donald Sutherland – The Undoing (HBO) 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION   

Uzo Aduba – Mrs. America (FX) 

BEST TALK SHOW 

Late Night with Seth Meyers (NBC) 

BEST COMEDY SPECIAL – TIE  

Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill (Netflix) 

Michelle Buteau: Welcome to Buteaupia (Netflix) 

BEST SHORT FORM SERIES 

Better Call Saul: Ethics Training with Kim Wexler (AMC/Youtube) 

About the Critics Choice Association (CCA)  

The Critics Choice Association is the largest critics organization in the United States and Canada, representing more than 400 television, radio and online critics and entertainment reporters. It was established in 2019 with the formal merger of the Broadcast Film Critics Association and the Broadcast Television Journalists Association, recognizing the blurring of the distinctions between film, television, and streaming content. For more information, visit: www.CriticsChoice.com.  

St. Louis Film Critics Association Honors ‘Nomadland’ with 4 Awards

St. Louis Film Critics Association Honors ‘Nomadland’ with 4 Awards

The independent drama “Nomadland” has won four awards from the St. Louis Film Critics Association, including film, director, editing and cinematography.

After losing everything in the 2008 recession, middle-aged Fern (Frances McDormand) embarks on a journey through the American west in writer-director Chloe Zhao’s “Nomadland.” Zhao also edited the film. Joshua James Richards earned Best Cinematography.

“Promising Young Woman,” writer-director Emerald Fennell’s social commentary thriller about toxic masculinity, was recognized for Carey Mulligan’s performance and Fennell’s original screenplay as well as soundtrack for a total of three awards.

Other multiple award winners included Pixar’s “Soul” for animated feature and music score by Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste; Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” as best action film and visual effects; and “The Invisible Man” for best horror film and best scene in which the sisters meet to dine at a restaurant.

In acting honors, Chadwick Boseman was named Best Actor for his final performance in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” Paul Raci of “Sound of Metal” and Youn Yuh-jung of “Minari” for supporting roles.

The Romanian film “Collective” won for documentary and the Danish film “Another Round” won for foreign language film.

The awards were announced on Sunday, Jan. 17, with nominations in 22 categories were announced Jan. 10.

Eligible films include those that opened in St. Louis during the 2020 calendar year or were made available as a video on demand or streaming service release.

For more information, visit the website, www.stlfilmcritics.org, follow us on Twitter (@stlfilmcritics) and “Like” our Facebook page.

Here is a complete list of the awards:

BEST FILM: Nomadland
Runner-up (tie): “First Cow” and “Promising Young Woman”

BEST DIRECTOR: Chloé Zhao – “Nomadland:
Runner-up: Emerald Fennell “Promising Young Woman”

BEST ACTOR: Chadwick Boseman – “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Runner-up: Delroy Lindo, “Da 5 Bloods”

BEST ACTRESS: Carey Mulligan – “Promising Young Woman”
Runner-up: Frances McDormand, “Nomadland”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Paul Raci – “Sound of Metal”
Runner-up: Sacha Baron Cohen, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Youn Yuh-jung – “Minari”
Runner-up: Maria Bakalova, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: “Promising Young Woman” – Emerald Fennell
Runner-up: Aaron Sorkin, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” – Charlie Kaufman (Screenplay); Iain Reid (Novel)

Runner-up: Kemp Powers (screenplay and play) “One Night in Miami”

BEST EDITING: “Nomadland” – Chloé Zhao

Runner-up: Robert Frazen, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: “Nomadland” – Joshua James Richards

Runner-up: “Mank” – Erik Messerschmidt

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN: “Mank” – Donald Graham Burt\

Runner-up: “Emma” – Kave Quinn

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: Tenet
Runner-up: The Invisible Man

BEST SCORE: Soul – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste
Runner-up: Nomadland – Ludovico Einaudi

BEST SOUNDTRACK: Promising Young Woman
Runner-up: Hamilton

BEST ACTION FILM: Tenet
Runner-up: Birds of Prey

BEST COMEDY FILM: Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Runner-up: Palm Springs

BEST HORROR FILM: The Invisible Man

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE: Soul
Runner-up: Wolfwalkers

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE: Collective

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FEATURE: Another Round
Runner-up: Beanpole

BEST SCENE: The Invisible Man – A restaurant meet-up between sisters is interrupted.
Runner-up: Rudy Guiliani visits hotel room in “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”

Here is a complete list of nominations:

BEST FILM
First Cow
I’m Thinking of Ending Things
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
The Trial of the Chicago 7


BEST DIRECTOR
Emerald Fennell, “Promising Young Woman”
Lee Isaac Chung, “Minari”
Spike Lee, “Da 5 Bloods”
Aaron Sorkin, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
Chloe Zhao, “Nomadland”

BEST ACTOR
Riz Ahmed, “Sound of Metal”
Chadwick Boseman, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Delroy Lindo, “Da 5 Bloods”
Anthony Hopkins, “The Father”
Gary Oldman, “Mank”

BEST ACTRESS
Jessie Buckley, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
Viola Davis, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Vanessa Kirby, “Pieces of a Woman”
Frances McDormand, “Nomadland”
Carey Mulligan, “Promising Young Woman”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Bo Burnham, “Promising Young Woman”
Sacha Baron Cohen, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
Bill Murray, “On the Rocks”
Leslie Odom Jr., “One Night in Miami”
Paul Raci, “Sound of Metal”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Maria Bakalova, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”
Ellen Burstyn, “Pieces of a Woman”
Olivia Colman, “The Father”
Amanda Seyfried, “Mank”
Yuh-jung Youn, “Minari”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Lee Isaac Chung, “Minari”
Emerald Fennell, “Promising Young Woman”
Jack Fincher, “Mank”
Andy Siara, “Palm Springs”
Aaron Sorkin, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Charlie Kaufman, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
Kemp Powers, “One Night in Miami”
Jon Raymond and Kelly Reichardt, “First Cow”
Ruben Santiago-Hudson, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Chloe Zhao, “Nomadland”

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Benjamin Kracun, “Promising Young Woman
Erik Messerschmidt, “Mank”
Joshua James Richards, “Nomadland”
Newton Thomas Sigel, “Da 5 Bloods”
Dariusz Wolski, “News of the World”

BEST EDITING
Alan Baumgarten, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
Kirk Baxter, “Mank”
Robert Frazen, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
Jonah Moran, “Hamilton”
Chloe Zhao, “Nomadland”

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Donald Graham Burt, “Mank”
Christina Casali, “The Personal History of David Copperfield”
Michael Perry, “Promising Young Woman”
Kave Quinn, “Emma”
Mark Ricker, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”

BEST SOUNDTRACK
Birds of Prey
Da 5 Bloods
Hamilton
Lovers Rock
Promising Young Woman

BEST MUSIC SCORE
Ludovico Einaudi, “Nomadland”
Ludwig Goransson, “Tenet”
James Newton Howard, “News of the World”
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste, “Soul”
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, “Mank”

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Birds of Prey
The Invisible Man
Mank
The Midnight Sky
Tenet

BEST ACTION
Birds of Prey
The Gentlemen
Greyhound
The Old Guard
Tenet

BEST HORROR
Alone
The Invisible Man
La Llorona
Possessor Uncut
The Vast of Night


BEST COMEDY
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Emma
The King of Staten Island
On the Rocks
Palm Springs

BEST DOCUMENTARY
City Hall
Collective
Dick Johnson is Dead
My Octopus Teacher
The Social Dilemma

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Onward
Over the Moon
Soul
The Wolf House
Wolfwalkers

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Another Round
Bacurau
Beanpole
Collective
Vitalina Varela


BEST SCENE
Human Resources complaint discussion in “The Assistant”
Rudy Guiliani hotel room visit in “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”
Dinner with parents at farmhouse in “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
Sisters dine in restaurant in “The Invisible Man”
Questionnaire administered in “Never Rarely Sometimes Always”

National Board of Review Honors ‘Da 5 Bloods,’ Spike Lee

National Board of Review Honors ‘Da 5 Bloods,’ Spike Lee

“The NBR is proud to honor ‘Da 5 Bloods,’ Spike Lee, and the film’s incredible ensemble cast, along with all of our 2020 awardees,” NBR president Annie Schulhof said in a statement.

“Lee is one of our greatest filmmakers, a bold auteur with a cinematic vision and an astute perspective on human relationships, focusing at times on that intersection between the personal and the political. ‘Da 5 Bloods’ is not only a unique portrait of the experience and lingering trauma of Black Vietnam War veterans, but also a moving story of enduring friendship, a suspenseful jungle treasure hunt, and a powerful reckoning with the American dream. We are also honored to present the posthumous NBR Icon Award to Chadwick Boseman, an extraordinary talent who represented the best of what an actor could be no matter what the role.”

The NBR was established in 1909 by theater owners protesting the New York mayor’s attempt to block the exhibition of motion pictures in the city.

According to The Wrap, In the 88 years it has been naming the year’s best film, it has agreed with the Oscars 22 times, though only once (“Green Book”) in the last 11 years.

The National Board of Review is not a critics’ organization. The group is made up of “knowledgeable film enthusiasts and professionals, academics, young filmmakers and students” in the New York area.

The Wrap said much of its relatively high profile comes from the fact that it is normally one of the first groups to pick the year’s best films — although in this year’s extended awards season, it made its choices well after the critics’ groups that adhered to calendar-year eligibility.

Like the Oscars and most guilds, the NBR allowed films to qualify this year as long as they were being released by Feb. 28, 2021.

Plans for an awards ceremony to celebrate 2020 winners will be announced at a later date.

Here’s the full list of winners below:

Best Film:  “Da 5 Bloods”

Best Director:  Spike Lee, “Da 5 Bloods”

Best Actor:  Riz Ahmed, “Sound of Metal”

Best Actress:  Carey Mulligan, “Promising Young Woman”

Best Supporting Actor:  Paul Raci, “Sound of Metal”

Best Supporting Actress:  Youn Yuh-jung, “Minari”

Best Adapted Screenplay:  Paul Greengrass & Luke Davies, “News of the World”

Best Original Screenplay:  Lee Isaac Chung, “Minari”

Breakthrough Performance:  Sidney Flanigan, “Never Rarely Sometimes Always”

Best Directorial Debut:  Channing Godfrey Peoples, “Miss Juneteenth”

Best Animated Feature:  “Soul”

Best Foreign Language Film:  “La Llorona”

Best Documentary:  “Time”

NBR Icon Award:  Chadwick Boseman

NBR Freedom of Expression Award: “One Night in Miami”

NBR Spotlight Award: Radha Blank for writing, directing, producing and starring in “The Forty-Year-Old Version”

Best Ensemble:  “Da 5 Bloods”

Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography:  Joshua James Richards, “Nomadland”

Top Films (in alphabetical order):

First Cow
The Forty-Year-Old Version
Judas and the Black Messiah
The Midnight Sky
Minari
News of the World
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Soul
Sound of Metal

Top 5 Foreign Language Films (in alphabetical order):

Apples
Collective
Dear Comrades
The Mole Agent
Night of the Kings

Top 5 Documentaries (in alphabetical order): 

All In: The Fight for Democracy
Boys State
Dick Johnson is Dead
Miss Americana
The Truffle Hunters

Top 10 Independent Films (in alphabetical order): 

The Climb
Driveways
Farewell Amor
Miss Juneteenth
The Nest
Never Rarely Sometimes Always
The Outpost
Relic
Saint Frances
Wolfwalkers

One of Year’s Best, ‘Nomadland’ Is an Ode to the Open Road and Those Marginalized By Society

One of Year’s Best, ‘Nomadland’ Is an Ode to the Open Road and Those Marginalized By Society

By Lynn Venhaus
A film of remarkable grace and wonder, “Nomadland” demonstrates power in stillness as a fiercely independent woman makes her way along the ribbon of highways through Arizona, the Dakotas, California and other places.

Fern (Frances McDormand) packs up her van and sets off on the road, finding work along the way, as she joins other modern-day nomads off-the-grid in the American West. It’s a transient life outside of conventional society, with freedom a trade-off. A widow, she lived in Empire, Nevada, but the company town collapsed when the sheet-rock facility closed in 2011, an economic victim in the Great Recession. This is Fern’s hard-fought middle-age journey.

In writer-director Chloe Zhao’s third film, she charts a third-act journey that is authentic in every possible way, making the impact even greater by using real-life people as Fern’s friends and mentors.

Linda May, Bob Wells and Charlene Swankie are memorable characters in this subculture. The only actor besides Frances McDormand is the superb character actor David Strathairn, who plays Dave, a park ranger she runs into on several occasions and develops a friendship with, and they later work together.

Based on journalist Jessica Bruder’s 2017 book, “Nomadland: Surviving America in the 21st Century,” Zhao draws on that experience, where Bruder documented itinerant Americans while living in a camper van for three years and traveling 15,000 miles.

As blue-collar Fern, McDormand delivers another lived-in performance that doesn’t have a false move. She fits in the landscape in a thoroughly believable way, her face a roadmap of a life lived on her terms.

Still grieving her husband, who died of cancer, and reducing her memories to a few boxes in the van she lives in, Fern shows strength in the roads not taken. She’s resourceful and resilient, not able to retire in a society that has marginalized her.

She depicts the dignity of hard work, whether it’s boxing up orders at an Amazon warehouse or working as a seasonal fry cook. She captures the essence of Fern, a restless soul who can no longer settle down. As opportunities for work and better conditions come along, we see her embrace the alone time.

When some former neighbors run into her, she refuses to be pitied. “I’m not homeless, I’m houseless.” There is a difference, she emphasizes.

With the stunning backdrop of the West’s natural beauty, we feel her loneliness but also the sense of community shared by other self-sufficient RV-living travelers. They learn from each other, show compassion in their humanity and maintain that connection: “See you down the road.”

Zhao also edited the film, and the way she frames shots is a beautiful thing. So is the camera work by cinematographer Joshua James Richards.

Composer Ludovico Einaudi has created a haunting piano score that beautifully captures the moods depicted.

“Nomadland” is one of the best films of the year and shows why McDormand is an uncommon talent full of enormous depth and sincerity. Every move she makes is reality-based, and we are the richer for her portrait, as we all try to understand the human condition ourselves.

“Nomadland” is a drama written and directed by Chloe Zhao, starring Frances McDormand, David Strathairn. Rated R for some full nudity, it is 1 hr. 48 min. long. Lynn’s Grade: A+