“Dune: Part Two” leads with 12 nominations, followed by “The Brutalist” with 9, “Wicked” and “Conclave” each with 8, “Nickel Boys” with 6, and “Sing Sing” with 5.
“Dune: Part Two” may have been released Feb. 25, but the St. Louis Film Critics Association recognized this action-science fiction epic with 12 nominations for Denis Villeneuve’s world-building visual artistry.
The massive spectacle was mentioned in film, director, ensemble, adapted screenplay, cinematography, editing, production design, music score, costume design, visual effects, action film, and best scene categories.
The epic historical drama “The Brutalist” earned nine nominations for film, director Brady Corbet, actor Adrien Brody, supporting actor Guy Pearce, original screenplay, cinematography, editing, production design and music score.
The religious political thriller “Conclave” received eight nominations for film, director Edward Berger, actor Ralph Fiennes, supporting actor Stanley Tucci, ensemble, adapted screenplay, production design and music score.
Also with eight, the musical adaptation and pop culture phenomenon “Wicked” was nominated for film, actress Cynthia Erivo, supporting actress Ariana Grande, ensemble, adapted screenplay, costume design, production design, and soundtrack.
“Nickel Boys” was cited in six categories for film, director, supporting actress Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, adapted screenplay, cinematography and editing. “Sing Sing” received five – film, actor Colman Domingo, supporting actor Clarence Maclin, adapted screenplay, and ensemble.
“A Complete Unknown,” “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga,” “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” and “The Wild Robot” each garnered four nominations.
SLFCA announced nominations Dec. 8; awards will be announced Dec. 15.
In addition to determining nominations in 26 categories, the regional critics’ group recognized film industry professionals for three special merits
Special Merit: Iranian Director Mohammad Rasoulof and the cast/crew of “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” for their courage and persistence in confronting political oppression in the pursuit of artistic expression and portraying truth through film.
Special Merit: Pete Timmermann, director of Webster University’s Film Series in St. Louis, for his exceptional, expert programming of international, restored, and independent films, including fiction and nonfiction, animation and live action, in addition to special events. His superb offerings for the St. Louis film community enriches and expands our cinematic world.
Special Merit: Filmmakers who found creative uses for practical effects and were less reliant on digitized computer-generated graphics this year, such as hair and makeup artist Christine Brundell using puppetry and prosthetics, in collaboration with director Tim Burton, on “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice”; makeup effects director Pierre Oliver Pierson on “The Substance” prosthetics; the micro budget DIY home computer effects from director Mike Cheslik for “Hundreds of Beavers”; the no-green-screen creature work on “Alien: Romulus” with animatronics and puppetry, among other collaborations by director Fede Alvarez; and the “Wicked” production design by Nathan Crowley where he merged practical imagery with CGI throughout, and grew 9 million tulips for Munchkinland.
Founded in 2004, the St. Louis Film Critics Association is a nonprofit organization of professional film reviewers who regularly publish current and timely film criticism, support local productions and festivals, and enhance public education, awareness, and appreciation of films. Vetted members are affiliated with qualifying media outlets in the St. Louis metropolitan region.
For the awards, eligible films are those that opened in the greater St. Louis area or had an online premiere during the 2024 calendar year – including those films that were given awards-qualifying runs but aren’t slated for release until early 2025.
For more information, visit the site: www.stlfilmcritics.org
Full List of Nominations:
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 ACTOR
Adrien Brody “The Brutalist”
Timothee Chalamet “A Complete Unknown”
Daniel Craig “Queer”
Colman Domingo “Sing Sing”
Ralph Fiennes “Conclave”
Hugh Grant “Heretic”
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 SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kieran Culkin “A Real Pain”
Clarence Maclin “Sing Sing”
Guy Pearce “The Brutalist”
Stanley Tucci “Conclave”
Denzel Washington “Gladiator II”
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 ENSEMBLE
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Saturday Night
Sing Sing
Wicked
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Peter Straughan, “Conclave”
Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts, “Dune: Part Two”
RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes, “Nickel Boys”
Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John “Divine G” Whitfield, “Sing Sing”
Winnie Holzman, Dana Fox “Wicked”
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Sean Baker, “Anora”
Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold, “The Brutalist”
Mike Leigh, “Hard Truths”
Jesse Eisenberg, “A Real Pain”
Jason Reitman, Gil Kenan, “Saturday Night”
Mohammad Rasoulo, “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Lol Crawley, “The Brutalist”
Greig Fraser, “Dune: Part Two”
Edward Lachman, “Maria”
Jarin Blaschke, “Nosferatu”
Jomo Fray, “Nickel Boys”
BEST EDITING
Dávid Jancsó, “The Brutalist”
Joe Walker, “Dune: Part Two”
Nicholas Monsour, “Nickel Boys”
Nathan Orloff, Shane Reid, “Saturday Night”
Hansjörg Weißbrich, “September 5”
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Judy Becker, “The Brutalist”
Suzie Davies, Roberta Federico, “Conclave”
Zsuzsanna Sipos, Shane Vieau, Patrice Vermette, “Dune: Part Two”
Beatrice Brentnerova, Paul Ghirardani, Craig Lathrop, “Nosferatu”
Nathan Crowley, Lee Sandales, “Wicked”
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Jacqueline West, “Dune: Part Two”
Casey Harris, “Hundreds of Beavers”
Massimo Cantini Parrini, “Maria”
Linda Muir, “Nosferatu”
Paul Tazewell, “Wicked”
BEST MUSIC SCORE
Daniel Blumberg, “The Brutalist”
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, “Challengers”
Volker Bertelmann, “Conclave”
Hans Zimmer, “Dune: Part 2”
Kris Bowers, “The Wild Robot”
BEST SOUNDTRACK
A Complete Unknown
Deadpool & Wolverine
I Saw the TV Glow
Maria
Wicked
BEST VOCAL PERFORMANCE
Maya Hawke “Inside Our 2”
Lupita Nyong’o “The Wild Robot”
Pedro Pascal “The Wild Robot”
Amy Poehler “Inside Out 2”
Sarah Snook “Memoir of a Snail”
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“Alien: Romulus” – Eric Barba, Shane Mahan, Nelson Sepulveda
“Dune: Part Two” – Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe, Gerd Nefzer
“Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” – Andrew Jackson, Dan Bethell, Eric Whipp, Andy Williams
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” – Erik Winquist, Danielle Immerman, Paul Story
“Nosferatu” – Angela Barso, Lisa Wakeley
BEST STUNTS
Deadpool & Wolverine
The Fall Guy
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Gladiator II
Monkey Man
BEST ACTION FILM
Deadpool & Wolverine
Dune: Part Two
The Fall Guy
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Monkey Man
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot
BEST COMEDY
Deadpool & Wolverine
The Fall Guy
Hundreds of Beavers
A Real Pain
Saturday Night
BEST HORROR
Heretic
I Saw the TV Glow
Late Night with the Devil
Longlegs
Nosferatu
The Substance
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Daughters
Will & Harper
Music by John Williams
No Other Land
Sugarcane
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
BEST INTERNATIONAL
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
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 American are you?”
Dune: Part Two – Riding the Sandworm
The Substance – New Year’s Eve performance
Furiosa – War Rig battle
His Three Daughters – Dad’s Chair
Lynn (Zipfel) Venhaus has had a continuous byline in St. Louis metro region publications since 1978. She writes features and news for Belleville News-Democrat and contributes to St. Louis magazine and other publications.
She is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic, currently reviews films for Webster-Kirkwood Times and KTRS Radio, covers entertainment for PopLifeSTL.com and co-hosts podcast PopLifeSTL.com…Presents.
She is a member of Critics Choice Association, where she serves on the women’s and marketing committees; Alliance of Women Film Journalists; and on the board of the St. Louis Film Critics Association. She is a founding and board member of the St. Louis Theater Circle.
She is retired from teaching journalism/media as an adjunct college instructor.
