Oscar 2007: Best Foreign Language Semi-Finalists

Cécile De France in Avenue Montaigne (top); Mads Mikkelsen in After the Wedding (middle); Carice van Houten in The Black Book (bottom)

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has narrowed down to nine titles the list of potential 2007 best foreign-language film nominees.
They are (listed in alphabetical order by country):

Algeria, Days of Glory, Rachid Bouchareb, director
Canada, Water, Deepa Mehta, director
Denmark, After the Wedding , Susanne Bier, director
France, Avenue Montaigne, Danièle Thompson, director
Germany, The Lives of Others, Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, director
Mexico, Pan’s Labyrinth, Guillermo del Toro, director
The Netherlands, Black Book, Paul Verhoeven, director
Spain, Volver, Pedro Almodóvar, director
Switzerland, Vitus, Fredi M. Murer, director

Though it may seem that the above films hail from all (or most) corners of the globe, [...]

2006 New York Film Critics Online Award Winners

The New York Film Critics Online went all out for The Queen, chosen as the best film of 2006, in addition to citations for best director Stephen Frears, best actress Helen Mirren, best screenplay for Peter Morgan, and best supporting actor Michael Sheen (who actually has a leading role in the film, but that’s how those things go).
Curiously, neither one of Clint Eastwood’s war epics — Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima — managed to make it to the NYOFC’s top-ten list. Also absent was Martin Scorsese’s The Departed.
On the other hand, David Lynch’s Inland Empire found its way into the list, and so did three non-English-language films, Water (top photo, Canada / India), directed [...]

2006 Genie Award Winners

"I’m touched. This has been something — a crazy experience," remarked director Jean-Marc Vallée upon accepting the best director Genie Award from the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television.
Vallée’s film, C.R.A.Z.Y., the story of a gay youth coming of age in the Quebec of the 1960s and 1970s, swept the Genies with a total of ten wins out of 12 nominations. In addition to the best director trophy, other awards that went C.R.A.Z.Y. include best film, best actor (Michel Côté, who beat his young co-star Marc-André Grondin, above), and best original screenplay (Vallée and François Boulay).
C.R.A.Z.Y. has also become one of the most commercially successful Canadian films ever.
Deepa Mehta’s controversial Water — which caused a major political [...]

Genie Awards 2006

2006 Genie Awards
2006 Genie Award winners: March 13, 2006
("*" denotes the winner in each category)
 

Marc-André Grondin (second from right) in Jean-Marc Vallée’s C.R.A.Z.Y.
 

BEST MOTION PICTURE
MEILLEUR FILM
* C.R.A.Z.Y. – Pierre Even, Jean-Marc Vallée
Familia – Luc Déry
It’s All Gone Pete Tong – Elizabeth Yake, Allan Niblo, James Richardson
Saint Ralph – Michael Souther, Teza Lawrence, Andrea Mann, Seaton McLean
Water – David Hamilton
BEST DOCUMENTARY
MEILLEUR DOCUMENTAIRE
* Scaredsacred – Velcrow Ripper, Tracey Friesen, Cari Green, Harry Sutherland
Les Voleurs d’enfance / Thieves of Innocence – Paul Arcand, Denise Robert
ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTION
MEILLEURE RÉALISATION
LUC PICARD – L’Audition
* JEAN-MARC VALLÉE – C.R.A.Z.Y.
LOUISE ARCHAMBAULT – Familia
MICHAEL DOWSE – It’s All Gone Pete Tong
DEEPA MEHTA – Water
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
INTERPRÉTATION MASCULINE DANS UN PREMIER RÔLE
LUC PICARD – L’Audition
* [...]