Louie Psihoyos' The Cove (above), about the annual slaughter of dolphins at a small Japanese village, has thus far been the various US critics groups' favorite documentary. The runner-up is Sacha Gervasi's Anvil! The Story of Anvil, which has been referred to as This Is Spinal Tap for real. (However, there have been accusations that Anvil! isn't technically a "documentary" as its chronology is supposed to have been twisted around for dramatic effect.)
Of the seven documentaries listed below, only four have a chance of getting shortlisted for the 2010 Academy Awards: The Cove, Robert Kenner's Food, Inc., James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo's Every Little Step, and Agnès Varda's The Beaches of Agnès. The others either were ineligible to begin with, or failed to be included in the Academy's list of semi-finalists.
The list below includes nearly all US-based critics groups (it'll be updated as more results are announced early next year), in addition to the Satellite and National Board of Review awards; Golden Globe and Spirit Award nominations; plus a handful of festival awards.
The Cove – National Board of Review, Utah, Toronto, Indiana, San Diego, New York Online, Los Angeles (tie), Houston, Florida, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Boston, in addition to a Critics Choice nomination, plus audience awards at the Seattle, Sundance, Silverdocs, Stockholm, and Sydney film festivals
Anvil! The Story of Anvil – San Francisco, Oklahoma, Las Vegas, Chicago, Austin, plus Critics Choice, Spirit nominations
Food, Inc. – Gotham, Washington, Southeastern, plus Critics Choice, Spirit nominations
The Beaches of Agnès – Los Angeles (tie), National Society of Film Critics
Capitalism: A Love Story – St. Louis, Phoenix, plus Critics Choice nomination
Every Little Step – Satellite
Of Time and the City – New York
Photo: Courtesy of the Oceanic Preservation Society