NYFCC ANNOUNCE

Best Picture

1. THE ARTIST
2. MELANCHOLIA
3. HUGO

Best Director

1. MICHEL HAZANAVICIUS (THE ARTIST)
2. MARTIN SCORSESE (HUGO)
3. LARS VON TRIER (MELANCHOLIA)

Best Actor

1. BRAD PITT (MONEYBALL / THE TREE OF LIFE)
2. MICHAEL FASSBENDER (SHAME)
3. JEAN DUJARDIN (THE ARTIST)

Best Actress

1. MERYL STREEP (THE IRON LADY)
2. MICHELLE WILLIAMS (MY WEEK WITH MARILYN)
3. KIRSTEN DUNST (MELANCHOLIA)

Best Supporting Actor

1. ALBERT BROOKS (DRIVE)
2. CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER (BEGINNERS)
3. VIGGO MORTENSEN (A DANGEROUS METHOD)

Best Supporting Actress

1. JESSICA CHASTAIN (THE HELP / TAKE SHELTER / THE TREE OF LIFE)
2. CAREY MULLIGAN (SHAME)
3. VANESSA REDGRAVE (CORIOLANUS)

Best Screenplay
AARON SORKIN AND STEVEN ZAILLIAN (MONEYBALL)


Best Cinematography
EMMANUEL LUBEZKI (THE TREE OF LIFE)


Best Documentary
CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS


Best Foreign Language Film
A SEPARATION


Special Award
RAOUL RUIZ



What with these results being this season's first, it's hard to know how well these will correlate with what the other critics' groups decide. Normally, the NYFCC are able to influence a race already under way - last year, for example, they helped to solidify The Social Network's standing as frontrunner in the race, whilst also making an effort to boost The Kids Are All Right's chances - an effort which proved a little futile. But this year, they take a position in the race previously held by the NBR, who will announce in a matter of days. We tended to know where we stood with that arrangement - the NBR have been known to champion outsiders, like Lesley Manville last year, and yet often have made choices deeply out of sync with what would occur over the coming three months, whether out of their timing within the race, or their questionable taste...

If NBR's choices match with NYFCC's at all, we will have frontrunners just three days into the race. Whereas we used to have to wait a couple of weeks or so to receive a second opinion from a major critics' group, now, the first two groups out of the gate are two of these major four (the other two being LAFCA, still scheduled to announce in mid-December, and NSFC, also standing firm with their release date in January). And much as films like The Descendants and War Horse may currently seem to be leading the race alongside The Artist, should it win NBR, we have confirmation that the race has a strong favourite. Have The Descendants or War Horse won anything as yet? No, and favourites don't materialise truly until they have won at least something. Last year, The King's Speech wasn't quite the favourite until it took home the PGA. And one way or another, people will still remember NYFCC's and NBR's choices come February.

Disappointed that Shame won nothing, but there's still time, and at least it has come up second in two major categories. The apparent support for both it and Melancholia does give me a glimmer of hope for these films throughout the season too. Also disappointed that I did so terribly lol. A Separation was my alternative for Foreign Language Film; otherwise I called not a single one of the winners. I ought to have known, considering that so many prominent NYFCC members panned it, that The Descendants would not do well. I ought to have known, on the same principles, that Moneyball, The Tree of Life and The Artist would have done well. And what of Jessica Chastain? Will the fact that she's in consideration for (at least) three films in the same category hurt her chances? Will one of her performances take prominence over the others, or will she continue to gain recognition for several performances?

NBR announce on Thursday, and things will begin to come into sharper focus...