National Society of Film Critics 2009 Winners
An animated film has won the National Society of Film Critics 2009 Awards. No, not WALL-E, but Ari Folman’s anti-war documentary-ish Waltz with Bashir, about Israel’s disastrous 1982 invasion of Lebanon. It’s hard not to believe that current events — the Gaza conflict has been going on since late December — influenced the vote, though war or no war in the Middle East, Waltz with Bashir has been garnering nearly universal praise.
Waltz with Bashir, which had previously won the Los Angeles Film Critics‘ best animated film award (a sort of consolation prize for having lost to WALL-E in the best film category), is Israel’s entry for the 2009 best foreign-language film Oscar; the film is also one of the semi-finalists in the best animated feature category. (See Oscar 2009 Predictions.)
As a result of the Israeli-made Waltz with Bashir best picture win, the best foreign-language film category was dropped this year. Not so, however, the documentary category: the winner was — as usual — Man on Wire, followed by Trouble the Water and Encounters at the End of the World. (Perhaps NSFC critics considered Waltz with Bashir a fiction film?)
Another big surprise among the NSFC’s selections was the best supporting actress winner, veteran German actress Hanna Schygulla, who was chosen for her powerful portrayal of a woman trying to make amends with her dead daughter in Fatih Akin’s The Edge of Heaven.
A minor surprise was the choice of Mike Leigh as both best director and best screenwriter for the improvised (screenplay-less?) Happy-Go-Lucky, whose star, Sally Hawkins (above), and male (semi-)lead Eddie Marsan, won, respectively, best actress and best supporting actor honors. Hawkins has already won a handful of best actress awards in the US, including those from the Los Angeles and New York critics, and is in the running for a Golden Globe.
Critics’ fave Slumdog Millionaire managed only two shows: best cinematography for Anthony Dod Mantle and a third place spot for director Danny Boyle.
Of the 63 NSFC members, 49 sent in ballots this year. However, only 23 critics were present at Sardi’s in New York City, and only those were eligible to vote in second and third ballots. (Things can get really twisted around in follow-up ballots; e.g., initially, WALL-E was the best picture front-runner, followed by Milk and Waltz with Bashir.) Tom O’Neil explains the process in the more detail in Gold Derby.
Numbers in parentheses reflect the votes in the decisive balloting (whether first round, second round, etc.).
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Tags: Anthony Dod Mantle, Ari Folman, Film Awards, Hanna Schygulla, Happy-Go-Lucky, James Marsh, Man on Wire, Mike Leigh, National Society of Film Critics Awards, Sally Hawkins, The Edge of Heaven, Waltz with Bashir
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