National Society of Film Critics Announces, I Yawn

But seriously, folks. Thanks to the good people at AD, I found out that the highly-regarded group just announced their winners for this past year. The list holds some nice surprises, as Sean Penn continues to chart his course toward Oscar history (he trounced Rourke nearly 2 to 1). Sally Hawkins bested Melissa Leo and Michelle WIlliams. Two names we haven't seen nearly enough this season also make an appearance: the wonderful Eddie Marsan ("Happy-Go-Lucky"), temporarily slowing down the Ledger roller-coaster, and Hanna Schygulla ("The Edge of Heaven") (who seems to have tied Viola Davis). Best Pic went to "Waltz for Bashir" while Mike Leigh took another best director prize for "Happy-Go-Lucky."


These are all a bit ho hum in terms of excitement, if anything because we've seen so many awards handed out already. Still, it's nice to see some adventurous choices mixed in with some more traditional selections.

BEST PICTURE
1. Waltz with Bashir, directed by Ari Folman (26)
2. Happy-Go-Lucky (20)
3. WALL-E (20)

BEST NON-FICTION FILM
1. Man on Wire, directed by James Marsh (55)
2. Trouble the Water (34)
3. Encounters at the End of the World (26)

BEST DIRECTOR
1. Mike Leigh, Happy-Go-Lucky (36)
2. Gus Van Sant, Milk & Paranoid Park (20)
3. Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire (16)

BEST ACTOR
1. Sean Penn, Milk (87)
2. Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler (40)
3. Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino (38)

BEST ACTRESS
1. Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky (65)
2. Melissa Leo, Frozen River (33)
3. Michelle Williams, Wendy and Lucy (31)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
1. Eddie Marsan, Happy-Go-Lucky (41)
2. Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight (35)
3. Josh Brolin, Milk (29)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
1. Hanna Schygulla, The Edge of Heaven (29)
2. Viola Davis, Doubt (29, on fewer ballots)
3. Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona (24)

BEST SCREENPLAY
1. Happy-Go-Lucky, by Mike Leigh (29)
2. A Christmas Tale (24)
3. Synecdoche, New York (17)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
1. Slumdog Millionaire, Anthony Dod Mantle (29)
2. The Flight of the Red Balloon (22)
3. The Dark Knight (18)
4. Still Life

BEST EXPERIMENTAL FILM
1. Razzle Dazzle, directed by Ken Jacobs

FILM HERITAGE AWARDS

The Criterion Collection for finally making Samuel Fuller’s suppressed White Dog (1982) available to a wide American audience via DVD release.
The Exiles, Kent Mackenzie’s realistic 1961 independent film about Native Americans in Los Angeles. (Restored by Ross Lipman of the UCLA Television and Film Archives and distributed by Milestone.)
Flicker Alley for releasing DVD collections of rare early U.S. and foreign silent films.
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment for its DVD set “Murnau, Borzage and Fox.”