So much for my hopes for a non-sweep year. This was right down the line and I think clinches Boyhood as the pick for the vast majority of critics to come. The Los Angeles Film Critics Association is known for being quirky and purposely contrarian in their choices, and they rarely agree with New York, but that was not the case this year. Boyhood is simply too big of a filmmaking achievement (for the critics) to ignore. We'll see what happens with the industry and guild awards, but this could very well be the default winner of 2014.
LA FILM CRITICS
BEST PICTURE: Boyhood
BEST DIRECTOR: Richard Linklater, Boyhood
BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM: Ida
NEW GENERATION: Ava DuVernay, Selma
BEST SCREENPLAY: The Grand Budapest Hotel
BEST ACTRESS: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
BEST DOCUMENTARY/NONFICTION FILM: Citizenfour
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Emmanuel Lubezki, Birdman
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Agata Kulesza, Ida
BEST MUSIC SCORE (tie): Inherent Vice and Under the Skin
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN: The Grand Budapest Hotel
BEST EDITING: Boyhood
As you can see, their quirky no-chance-in-hell for an Oscar nom pick this year was Tom Hardy for Locke. What that really means is that Best Actor is a wide open race, with Michael Keaton not quite dominating the critics awards the way he was predicted to. And Patricia Arquette is not a lead for Boyhood, but they rewarded her there anyway.
BOSTON SOCIETY OF FILM CRITICS
Animated Film: THE TALE OF PRINCESS KAGUYA
Runner up: LEGO MOVIE
Best Cinematography: BIRDMAN
Runner up: MR. TURNER
Best Editing: BOYHOOD
Runner up: AMERICAN SNIPER
Best Use of Music: INHERENT VICE
Runner up: WHIPLASH
Best New Filmmaker: DAN GILROY, NIGHTCRAWLER
Runner up: GILLIAN ROBESPIERRE, OBVIOUS CHILD
Best Documentary: CITIZENFOUR
Runer up: JORODOWSKY'S DUNE
Best Screenplay: BIRDMAN & BOYHOOD (TIE)
Runner up: MR. TURNER
Best Foreign Language Film: TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT
Runner up: IDA
Best Supporting Actress: EMMA STONE, BIRDMAN
Runner up: LAURA DERN, WILD
Best Supporting Actor: JK SIMMONS, WHIPLASH
Runner up: EDWARD NORTON, BIRDMAN
Best Actress: MARION COTILLARD, THE IMMIGRANT & TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT
Runner up: HILARY SWANK, THE HOMESMAN
Best Actor: MICHAEL KEATON, BIRDMAN
Runner up: TIMOTHY SPALL, MR. TURNER
Best Ensemble: BOYHOOD
Runner up: BIRDMAN
Best Director: RICHARD LINKLATER, BOYHOOD
Runner up: CLINT EASTWOOD, AMERICAN SNIPER
Best Film: BOYHOOD
Runner up: BIRDMAN
More Boyhood and Birdman love here (I don't know what that Emma Stone win is about though), and after what the NYCC did the other day, other critics seemed to want to jump on the bandwagon in resisting Julianne Moore, instead banding together to try an get Marion Cotillard nominated (still a long shot at best).
NEW YORK CRITICS ONLINE
BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE: Jack O'Connell, Starred Up & Unbroken
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
BEST SCREENPLAY: Birdman
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Birdman
BEST USE OF MUSIC: Get On Up
BEST DEBUT DIRECTOR: Dan Gilroy, Nightcrawler
BEST DIRECTOR: Richard Linklater, Boyhood
BEST ACTRESS: Marion Cotillard, Two Days, One Night
BEST ACTOR: Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything
BEST ENSEMBLE: Birdman
BEST PICTURE: Boyhood
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM: Two Days, One Night
BEST DOCUMENTARY: Life Itself
BEST ANIMATED FILM: The Lego Movie
Top 10:
Birdman
Boyhood
Guardians of the Galaxy
The Imitation Game
A Most Violent Year
Mr. Turner
Selma
The Theory of Everything
Under the Skin
Whiplash
These guys are a little more mainstream in their choices, but still Boyhood prevails. Linklater is starting to look to me like a shoo-in for the "directorial achievement" aspect of the movie alone. And if he's winning Director no contest, than the movie is likely going with it, although we'll what happens.
