As expected, this morning’s voting among members of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and the Boston Film Critics Society has boiled down to a Birdman vs. Boyhood battle with Boyhood coming out on top. The Grand Budapest Hotel and Citizenfour batted cleanup and a little J.K. Simmons Best Supporting Actor action kicked in on the side (i.e., no joy in Edward Nortonville). And Boston has given the under-promoted Marion Cotillardher second Best Actress prize (following last Monday’s NYFCC win) for her Two Days, One Night performance along with her work in James Gray‘s The Immigrant. Forget Selma, Unbroken, Imitation game, The Theory of Everything…as far as I can gather these films aren’t even being pondered, much less debated. And presumed fait accompli Best Actress Oscar winner Julianne Moore isn’t kicking it much. (Among LAFCA voters she placed second behind Boyhood‘s Patricia Arquette.) You know why? Because Still Alice is more or less a Lifetime movie, and as much as critics admire Moore they’re choking on that.
Los Angeles Film Critics Association awards: Boyhood for Best Picture, and Richard Linklater for Best Director. Boyhood‘s Patricia Arquette for Best Actress (Runner-Up: Still Alice‘s Julianne Moore). Whiplash‘s J.K. Simmons for Best Supporting Actor (Runner-up: Birdman‘s Edward Norton). Best Foreign Language Film: Ida, and Ida‘s Agata Kulesza was named Best Supporting Actress (Runner-up: Rene Russo for Nightcrawler). Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hoptel for Best Screenplay. (Runner-up: Alejandro González Inárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr. and Armando Bo‘s Birdman screenplay.) Boyhood‘s Sandra Adair for Best Editing (Runner-up: Barney Pilling, The Grand Budapest Hotel). Grand Budapest Hotel‘s Adam Stockhausen for Best Production Design. The Tale of Princess Kaguya for Best Animated Film (Runner-Up: The Lego Movie).
Boston Society of Film Critics awards: Boyhood has edged out Birdman for Best Picture, and Boyhood‘s Richard Linklater has won for Best Director. Birdman‘s Michael Keaton for Best Actor. Two Days, One Night and The Immigrant‘s Marion Cotillard for Best Actress (same award bestowed by the New York Film Critics Circle). Whiplash‘s J.K. Simmons for Best Supporting Actor…there goes Edward Norton‘s nascent momentum. Birdman‘s Emma Stone for Best Supporting Actress….yes! (Thank you, Beantown!) Citizenfour wins Best Documentary for a total of four awards so far — NYFCC, Gotham Awards, NBR and IDA. A tie between Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris and Armando Bo for Birdman & Richard Linklater for Boyhood for Best Screenplay.Birdman‘s Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki for Best Cinematography. Nightcrawler‘s Dan Gilroy for Best New Filmmaker. Boyhood‘s Sandra Adair for Best Film Editing. The Tale of The Princess Kaguya for Best Animated Film…who cares?
Special HE Award to James Gray and Dardennes Brothers Cabalists For Superior Strategic Backroom Maneuvering.
Runner-Up HE Award for Superior Backroom Maneuvering to the friends of Walter Reuben for ramming through the giving of a Douglas Edwards Experimental/Independent Film/Video Award to Reuben’s The David Whiting Story.
Earlier: Will the Los Angeles Film Critics Association champion some left-field or even bleacher-seat Best Picture favorite, as they sometimes have in the past, or will they go with a more-or-less safe choice (i.e., Boyhood)? The fact that 2014 is regarded in some quarters as a shitty year (not by me!) should result in “interesting” choices…maybe. Then again last year a significant percentage of LAFCA members voted for Gravity, basically an FX-driven Sandra Bullock haunted house space movie, so that tells you they aren’t exactly buttplug highbrow types. The voting actually resulted in a tie between Gravity and Spike Jonze‘s Her. Meanwhile, the Boston Society of Film Critics, which convened around 11 am Eastern, should be done voting by 3 or 4 pm.
