Another forerunner hit yesterday when the National Society of Film Critics issued its annual citations. This time around, they picked Chloe Zhao’s Nomadland in Best Picture and gave Zhao the Best Director Award, while star Frances McDormand took home the Best Actress Award. Nomadland has done well while love spread in other ways and continued a trend that lasted all season. Until the guilds get involved at some point, that’s how things will be, so you’re stuck with how things play out. Undoubtedly, this was a good precursor for Nomadland, but the film certainly still has a long way to go …
Now here are the winners of the National Society of Film Critics:
BEST PICTURE
Winner: Nomadland
2nd place: First cow
3rd place: never seldom sometimes always
BEST DIRECTOR
Winner: Chloé Zao, Nomadland
2nd place: Steve McQueen, Small Ax
3rd place: Kelly Reichardt, first cow
BEST ACTRESS
Winner: Frances McDormand, Nomadland
2nd place: Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s black bottom
3rd place: Sidney Flanigan, never seldom sometimes always
BEST ACTOR
Winner: Delroy Lindo, Da 5 Bloods
2nd place: Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
3rd place: Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
THE BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Winner: Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent film
2nd place: Amanda Seyfried, Mank
3rd place: Youn Yun-jung, MInari
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Winner: Paul Raci, Sound of Metal
2nd place: Glynn Turman, Ma Rainey’s black bottom
3rd place: Chadwick Boseman, Da 5 Bloods
BEST SCREENPLAY
Winner: Eliza Hittman, never seldom sometimes always
2nd place: Jon Raymond and Kelly Reichardt, first cow
3rd place: Charlie Kaufman, I’m thinking of Ending Things
BEST KINEMATOGRAPHY
Winner: Joshua James Richards, Nomadland
2nd place: Shabier Kirchner, Lovers Rock
3rd place: Leonardo Simões, Vitalina Varela
BEST FOREIGN VOICE FILM
Winner: Collective
2nd place: Bacurau and Beanpole
3rd place: Vitalina Varela
BEST NONFICTION FILM
Winner: time
2nd place: Town Hall
3rd place: collective
FILM HERITAGE AWARD
Women Make Movies, which has been releasing daring and distinctive female-directed films since the 1970s that more conventional distributors would not touch.
FILM HERITAGE AWARD
Film Comment was founded in 1962 and is currently on a hiatus that has long been the largest and most comprehensive American film magazine.
FILM HERITAGE AWARD
The Brattle Theater in Cambridge, MA, is one of America’s premier repertoire houses. It has shown art-house films continuously since 1953 and continues the time-honored tradition of daily double functions.
Stay tuned for more forerunners …