Critical Week: Up to no good

With the distraction of the Paris Olympics on television, and the fact that they're so close we can almost touch them from London, it's easy to lose sight of the movies screening in nice, cool cinemas. But there's a steady stream of releases, and I'm trying to keep up for the moment while anticipating a drastic change in my daily routine over the next few months. The biggest filmI saw this week was The Instigators, a reunion for Matt Damon with both Casey Affleck and director Doug Liman. It's an enjoyably scrappy action comedy with sharp character touches. The cheeky animated adventure Ozi: Voice of the Forest has a starry voice cast that includes Laura Dern, Amandla Stenberg, Djimon Hounsou and the late Donald Sutherland. This helps make up for a sometimes awkward, preachy script. 

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Kensuke's Kingdom
A Story of Bones • Kneecap
ALL REVIEWS >

Abbie Cornish elevates the low-budget psychological thriller Detained, which is twisty but undercooked. Robin Campillo's 1970s Madagascar coming-of-age drama Red Island is gorgeous to look at, and powerfully involving as it tackles personal and political issues. The British drama Sebastian is an intimate, moving profile of a writer who becomes an escort for research, then has to rediscover himself. The Chinese noir-style thriller Only the River Flows weaves wit and visual style into a darkly resonant odyssey. And the Saint Helena doc A Story of Bones packs a powerfully resonant kick in its exploration of the importance of remembering difficult history. I also saw Jamie Allan's stage magic show Amaze, and published a roundup of TV reviews for the summer, including The Bear, Shogun, The Boys, The Acolyte, Fallout, The Curse and more.

This coming week I'll be watching Cate Blanchett and Jamie Lee Curtis in Borderlands, Eugenio Derbez in Radical and a whole bunch of films that will be showing at London's FrightFest later in the month. I'm also heading up to Edinburgh for a week to cover the Fringe theatre festival, which I'll be covering here.

LFF: Soak it in

The 66th London Film Festival moves into its second week with more nightly galas and special events. I'm largely watching from outside this year, but I attended the starry screening of Allelujah last night in the Royal Festival Hall, introduced by cast and crew including Jennifer Saunders, Judi Dench, Richard Eyre, Bally Gill, David Bradley and pretty much everyone else who worked on the movie. But I'm seeing most of these films thanks to distributors who have invited me to other screenings or sent online links for me to watch them. It sure beats sanding in queues for two hours before press screenings. Here are more highlights...

Causeway
dir Lila Neugebauer; with Jennifer Lawrence, Brian Tyree Henry 22/US ****.
Theatre director Lila Neigebauer makes a remarkable feature film debut with this delicately crafted drama, which explores a topical issue through an especially internalised perspective. This requires sensitive performances from Jennifer Lawrence and Brian Tyree Henry, who are extraordinary as two people struggling to get their lives back on track after serious injuries. Never obvious about anything, the film gets deep under the skin.

Allelujah
dir Richard Eyre; with Jennifer Saunders, Bally Gill 22/UK ****
Based on the Alan Bennett play, this gently edgy comedy is a celebration of the tenacity of Britain's National Health Service in the face of relentless government interference, from sell-offs to cut-backs. It's is a remarkably complex, engagingly freeform romp. And coming on the heels of a pandemic, it could hardly be more timely. But the filmmakers hold back their biggest statement until a seriously powerful wallop the final moments.

Emily the Criminal
dir-scr John Patton Ford; with Aubrey Plaza, Theo Rossi 22/US ***.
There's a serious theme running through this engaging drama set in the criminal underworld of Los Angeles. Writer-director John Patton Ford cleverly pulls the audience in along with a hugely engaging central character adeptly played by Aubrey Plaza. It's a remarkable look at a society that makes it almost impossible for someone to escape their past. So even if it dips into several thriller cliches, it remains gripping.

Godland [Vanskabte Land, Volaða Land]
dir-scr Hlynur Palmason; with Elliott Crosset Hove, Ingvar Sigurdsson 22/Ice ****
Under gloomy skies in unforgiving landscapes, this visually striking epic follows a Danish priest to rural Iceland in the 19th century, where he confronts both a strange new land and also his own beliefs. It's a dark and brooding drama, but continual moments of wit and artistry make it remarkably compelling. And writer-director Hlynur Palmason digs deeply into the souls of the characters to challenge the audience to think about big issues in new ways

1976
dir Manuela Martelli; with Aline Kuppenheim, Nicolas Sepulveda 22/Chl ****
This strikingly thoughtful dramatic thriller tells a story set in the wake of Chile's 1973 coup, as a dictator cracked down on the country. Filmmaker Manuela Martelli takes an observational approach, letting the narrative take shape in bits and pieces with characters who are afraid to say too much to each other. It's beautifully shot and edited, and performed with steely understatement by a gifted cast.

And four more LFF films that I saw in Venice...

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
dir Laura Poitras; with Nan Goldin, Megan Kapler 22/US ****.
With this extraordinary film, documentarian Laura Poitras takes a multifaceted look at a fascinating artist. As a biography of photographer Nan Goldin, this is a clear-eyed look at her life, work and survival. And it seamlessly connects her efforts to raise awareness of the Sackler family's direct responsibility in more than half a million deaths from opioid addiction. All of this is skilfully woven together with a remarkably gentle hand... FULL REVIEW >

No Bears
dir-scr Jafar Panahi; with Jafar Panahi, Vahid Mobasheri 22/Irn ****.
Despite being banned from making movies, master filmmaker Jafar Panahi continues to tell powerful cinematic stories from Iran. This hugely involving film uses wry humour to capture cultural absurdities that have an impact on two love stories, while further complicating the process of making movies. More importantly, this is a personal depiction of people who are struggling to survive when traditions and borders turn them into desperate refugees... FULL REVIEW >

The Son
dir Florian Zeller; with Hugh Jackman, Laura Dern 22/UK ***
After The Father, writer-director Florian Zeller adapts another of his thorny plays for the big screen, this time about parents trying to help a troubled teen son. It's a dark story, with rare moments of lightness as characters struggle with elusive ideas that defeat almost everybody. Clinical depression is an important topic to dramatise, although it also means that the plot needs to retain a nagging level of uncertainty... FULL REVIEW >

Saint Omer
dir Alice Diop; with Kayije Kagame, Guslagie Malanga 22/Fr **.
There's a terrific story at the centre of this French drama, bursting with powerful themes and clever juxtapositions. But filmmaker Alice Diop remains in her head while she puts this onto the screen, as chilly, inexpressive scenes remain stubbornly out of reach. It's very sharply shot, as a genuinely riveting courtroom case steals focus from the loosely undeveloped plot thread that is clearly meant to be the film's main thrust... FULL REVIEW >

All London Film Festival reviews, once they're uploaded, will be linked to SHADOWS' LFF PAGE >

Venezia79: Happy families

The 79th Venice Film Festival continues to lay out starry red carpets, as I spotted Hugh Jackman, Laura Dern, Zen McGrath (pictured above), plus Vanessa Kirby and writer-director Florian Zeller out there today. I also took advantage of a long gap between two films to head off to the beach for awhile. It was nice to just stroll in the sand and lounge in the shade for a couple of hours. There's just one big premiere left, Ana de Armas in Blonde tomorrow, as the global festival attention shifts to Toronto. But there are still plenty of movies showing on the Lido here. Here are some more highlights...

The Son
dir Florian Zeller; with Hugh Jackman, Laura Dern 22/UK ***
After The Father, writer-director Florian Zeller adapts another of his complex family-centred plays for the big screen, this time a story about a troubled teen and the hoops his parents and stepmother jump through trying to help him. It's a dark story, with only very rare moments of lightness as the characters struggle with ideas they can't quite comprehend, largely because no one can. Clinical depression is an important topic to dramatise, although it means that the plot needs to retain a nagging level of uncertainty.

Dreamin' Wild
dir-scr Bill Pohlad; with Casey Affleck, Noah Jupe 22/US ****
Remaining in musical mode after 2014's Love & Mercy, filmmaker Bill Pohlad tells the true story of how Don and Joe Emerson's eponymous album became a hit some 30 years after it was recorded. It's an involving movie with strong characters, sharply shot and edited to the rhythms of these brothers' soulful-teen tunes. And while the film has a tendency to lean into the sentimental nostalgia, it also offers some knowing insight into family relationships. And it's likely to give birth to a whole new generation of fans.

Saint Omer
dir Alice Diop; with Kayije Kagame, Guslagie Malanga 22/Fr **
There's a terrific story at the centre of this French drama, and it's woven in with some powerful themes and clever juxtapositions. But filmmaker Alice Diop never manages to get out of her head as she puts this onto the screen, so the chilly, inexpressive scenes remain stubbornly out of reach. But it's sharply well shot, and the courtroom drama that the story revolves around is genuinely riveting, stealing focus from the loosely undeveloped plot thread that is clearly meant to be the film's main thrust.

The Damned Don't Cry [Les Damnés Ne Pleurent Pas]
dir-scr Fyzal Boulifa; with Aicha Tebbae, Abdellah El Hajjouji 22/Mor ****
Grounded and earthy, this Moroccan drama finds resonance in a complex relationship between a woman and her teen son. It's the kind of film in which the audience has to work to discover the deeper truths about the events depicted on-screen, with secrets carefully revealed by writer-director Fyzal Boulifa. The story feels bracingly realistic and impossible to predict as it cycles through events that are hopeful and darkly troubling. And this authenticity in the story and characters bravely takes on the system.

Lord of the Ants [Il Signore Delle Formiche]
dir Gianni Amelio; with Luigi Lo Cascio, Elio Germano 22/It ***
Big and melodramatic, this Italian period drama is so locked into its 1960s style that it neglects to provide much insight on its hugely important central topic. This means the film says essentially the same things that were said at the time, even if they weren't shouted loudly enough. It's the true story of a court case in which a gay university professor was tried for plagio, manipulating a student. The injustice is horrific on several levels, and filmmaker Gianni Amelio sharply depicts this. But the dialog waffles through far too much poetry and metaphor.

Full reviews will be linked at Shadows VENICE FILM FESTIVAL page, eventually!

Sundance London: Keep dancing

Sundance Film Festival: London is back in its usual slot this year, after two disrupted editions. This is a slightly odd festival for the press, as they pack all of the industry screenings into two days before the actual events kick off. Which leaves us feeling like we're finished before anything begins. So I've already seen 10 of the 13 films in the programme, and I'll be catching a couple more at public screenings with cast and crew members in attendance at Picturehouse Central. The actors and filmmakers turned up last night for the opening film Good Luck to You, Leo Grande. Here are comments about that one, and a few others, plus my usual Critical Week below... 

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
dir Sophie Hyde; with Emma Thompson, Daryl McCormack 22/UK ****
If you can get into this film's theatrical vibe, there are several very strong themes woven through the narrative that make it deeply involving. Essentially three scenes featuring two people in a room, the stagey set-up is echoed in the heightened dialog, which pointedly takes on several big issues. The observations are insightful and sharply important, as are the bravely transparent performances from the two lead actors.

Watcher 
dir-scr Chloe Okuno; with Maika Monroe, Karl Glusman 22/Rom ***.
Writer-director Chloe Okuno creates a superbly unsettling atmosphere in this quietly suspenseful thriller about an American in Romania. The film knowingly plays on the feeling of being a foreigner unable to communicate in an unknown place, while generating scares by twisting a range of cinematic cliches in intriguing directions. It's a shame there's not much more to the film, but it definitely gets our hearts pumping a bit faster.

Free Chol Soo Lee
dir Julie Ha, Eugene Yi; with Chol Soo Lee, KW Lee 22/US  ***.
While this documentary traces a true story in a rather straightforward manner, the important subject matter makes it worth a look. Chol Soo Lee's experience was shocking and sad, but also carries elements of redemption and complex humanity. And it highlights a rarely explored aspect of underlying racism in the American justice system. These ideas emerge strongly, even as the filmmakers remain more focussed on the compelling personal narrative.

We Met in Virtual Reality
dir-scr Joe Hunting; with Jenny, Dust Bunny, IsYourBoi, Toaster 22/UK ***
This extraordinary documentary was somehow shot virtually, as filmmaker Joe Hunting takes the audience into various digital environments to meet people who interact there. It's an extraordinary film, and remarkably personal as it hones in on relationships within VR communities, often spilling out into the real world as well. It's a great introduction to a virtual world, although newcomers may find it tricky to engage with the film's perspective.

Full reviews will be on the site soon. For more information, visit SUNDANCE LONDON >

~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~~~
C R I T I C A L    W E E K

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Listen • All My Friends Hate Me
Il Buco • Moneyboys • Swan Song
ALL REVIEWS >

I've only seen four non-Sundance films in the past week - and each is opening this week in the US or UK. I was unable to attend the single press screening of Jurassic World: Dominion, so caught up with it at a local cinema. It's funny, thrilling and packed with witty nods in various directions, a superb summer blockbuster. The award-winning Italian drama Il Buco is a masterfully assembled exploration of historical progress; the doc A Sexplanation is a witty look at why Americans are so obsessed with sex, and also afraid of it; and Baloney documents rehearsals and performances of a San Francisco queer burlesque with warmth and insight.

Aside from Sundance, this coming week I'll be watching the Pixar prequel Lightyear, Antonio Banderas and Penelope Cruz in Official Competition, Ethan Hawke in the horror thriller The Black Phone, the British drama It Snows in Benidorm, the restored Satyajit Ray classic The Big City and the theatrical version of the doc George Michael: Freedom Uncut.

Out on a limb: Oscar picks & predictions

And so Oscar night rolls around again, much earlier than usual, capping a crazily truncated awards season. Here are who I think has a good chance of winning, and who I hope will win. My track record isn't great here, and this year there are some big questions lingering, mainly how much love Ampas voters will have for a Korean movie. Parasite is undoubtably the best movie of the year, perhaps the decade. But Oscars rarely actually go to the "best", as they're too busy honouring people they like. As always, I'm hoping for upsets and surprises...

BEST PICTURE

Should win: Parasite
Will win: 1917
Dark horse: Once Upon A Time ... in Hollywood

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE

Should win: Pain and Glory
Will win: Parasite

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Should win: Honeyland
Will win: American Factory
Dark horse: For Sama

ANIMATED FEATURE

Should win: I Lost My Body
Will win: Klaus
Dark horse: Missing Link

DIRECTING

Should win: Parasite - Bong Joon Ho
Will win: 1917 - Sam Mendes
Dark horse: Once Upon A Time ... in Hollywood - Quentin Tarantino

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Should win: The Two Popes - Anthony McCarten
Will win: Little Women - Greta Gerwig
Dark horse: Jojo Rabbit - Taika Waititi

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Should/will win: Parasite - Bong Joon Ho & Han Jin Won
Dark horse: Once Upon A Time...In Hollywood - Quentin Tarantino

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Should/will win: Renee Zellweger - Judy

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Should win: Antonio Banderas - Pain and Glory
Will win: Joaquin Phoenix - Joker

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Should/will win: Laura Dern - Marriage Story
Dark horse: Florence Pugh - Little Women

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Should win: Al Pacino - The Irishman
Will win: Brad Pitt - Once upon a Time ... in Hollywood

CINEMATOGRAPHY

Should/will win: 1917 - Roger Deakins

COSTUME DESIGN

Should win: Once Upon A Time ... in Hollywood - Arianne Phillips
Will win: Little Women - Jacqueline Durran

FILM EDITING

Should win: The Irishman - Thelma Schoonmaker
Will win: Ford v Ferrari - Michael Mccusker & Andrew Buckland
Dark horse: Parasite - Yang Jinmo

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING

Should win: Judy - Jeremy Woodhead
Will win: Bombshell - Kazu Hiro, Anne Morgan & Vivian Baker

ORIGINAL SCORE

Should win: 1917 - Thomas Newman
Will win: Joker - Hildur Gudnadottir
Dark horse: Little Women - Alexandre Desplat
Always a contender: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - John Williams

ORIGINAL SONG

Should/will win: (I'm Gonna) Love Me Again -  Rocketman, Elton John & Bernie Taupin
Dark horse: I Can't Let You Throw Yourself Away - Toy Story 4, Randy Newman

PRODUCTION DESIGN

Should win: Once Upon A Time ... in Hollywood - Barbara Ling, Nancy Haigh
Will win: 1917 - Dennis Gassner, Lee Sandales
Dark horse: Parasite - Lee Ha Jun, Cho Won Woo

SOUND EDITING

Should win: 1917 - Oliver Tarney & Rachael Tate
Will win: Ford v Ferrari - Donald Sylvester

SOUND MIXING

Should win: 1917 - Mark Taylor & Stuart Wilson
Will win: Ford v Ferrari - Paul Massey, David Giammarco & Steven A Morrow

VISUAL EFFECTS

Should win: 1917 - Guillaume Rocheron, Greg Butler & Dominic Tuohy
Will win: Avengers: Endgame - Dan Deleeuw, Russell Earl, Matt Aitken & Dan Sudick

40th London Critics' Circle Film Awards: The inside scoop

Being the 40th anniversary of our film awards, we decided to make our event a bit bigger this year, and indeed it felt extraordinary. Not only did we hand out three special awards to deserving winners who rarely get a spotlight, but the evening was punctuated with powerful moments that echoed the kinds of big themes movies should be tackling. As the chair of this event, I'm involved in each element of the night, so it often feels overwhelming in the weeks beforehand. Then I love sitting back and seeing how it all unfolds. And it was a gorgeous evening.

In the photo above, Elle Fanning watches as Sally Potter signs Sandy Powell's jacket. These were the first signatures on the garment, which Powell plans to wear to Bafta and Oscar before auctioning it to benefit the charity that is working to save Prospect Cottage,  the late filmmaker Derek Jarman's home in Dungeness: CLICK HERE FOR INFO. All photos are by Dave Benett, and you can see them larger by clicking on them.

Our host for the evening was actor-writer Sally Phillips, who kicked things off with a riotously irreverent opening monologue and never let the pace flag. Her inventive, hilarious running commentary kept the mood light, intimate and celebratory.

Our first special award of the evening was The London Critics' 40th Anniversary Award, which went to the animation powerhouse Aardman. Founders Peter Lord and David Sproxton were on hand, with a couple of pals, to accept the prize.

In the middle of the ceremony we gave our our second special honour, The Dilys Powell Award for Excellence in Film, which Elle Fanning came along to present to writer-director Sally Potter. Fanning's first film role was in Potter's Ginger & Rosa, and she also stars in her next project The Roads Not Taken, which had an exclusive clip in her introductory reel in advance of the film's world premiere next month in Berlin.

The third special prize came right at the end of the ceremony, as the gifted costume designer Sandy Powell also won The Dilys Powell Award for Excellence in Film. Producers Stephen Woolley and Elizabeth Karlsen presented the award to her on-stage.

In between those, we handed out awards in our usual categories. The Souvenir (left) won two prizes: Joanna Hogg collected the award for British/Irish Film of the Year, while its star Honor Swinton Byrne won Young British/Irish Performer. And Mark Jenkin was on hand to win Breakthrough British/Irish Filmmaker for his fable Bait.

Jessie Buckley (nominated as British/Irish Actress) was on hand to collect Actress of the Year on behalf of her Judy costar Renee Zellweger (left). And producers Ramin Sabi and Anthony Toma accepted British/Irish Short Film of the Year for The Devil's Harmony, while the director was off winning a prize for the film at Sundance. Others who couldn't make it included Florence Pugh, who has attended multiple times before as a nominee and this year won British/Irish Actress; Celine Sciamma, whose Portrait of a Lady on Fire was named Foreign-Language Film of the Year; and Barbara Ling, who won Technical Achievement for her production design work on Once Upon a Time ... in America. And producer Emma Tillinger Koskoff was on hand to accept two awards on behalf of her films: Actor of the Year for Joaquin Phoenix in Joker and Supporting Actor of the Year for Joe Pesci in The Irishman. Others sent video messages...

Bong Joon Ho sent two witty videos to accept both Director of the Year and Film of the Year for Parasite. "Awards are important," he said, "but even more so, to every single person who's watched the film, I hope they remember it in their hearts forever, like a parasite that never leaves your brain."

Noah Baumbach recorded a wry thank you as he won Screenwriter of the Year for Marriage Story. "This is an especially important award for me because both of my parents were film critics," he said. "And when I get a bad review it feels like my parents are criticising me."

In accepting her Supporting Actress of the Year award for Marriage Story by video, Laura Dern said, "As a girl who on her 16th birthday turned to her actor parents and said, 'I want to be a real actor: for my birthday present, I want to go to Rada,'" and did, and learned so, so much in that beautiful city of yours, I'm very grateful."

And after an astonishing year of expertly immersive scene-stealing work in The Lighthouse, The King and High Life, Robert Pattinson won British/Irish Actor, noting, "I'm happy that I'm allowed to play crazy people in movies so that I don't have to be crazy in real life." Of course, his very active fan base immediately went nuts on Twitter. And one other award had a multiple acceptance...

For Documentary of the Year, For Sama directors Edward Watts and Waad Al-Kateab sent a video explaining their absence: "We're in Washington trying to meet Congresspeople, spreading our message to stop bombing hospitals, trying to get people to care about Syria even though it's impeachment time!" Meanwhile, Waad's husband Hamza Al-Kateab, who is featured in the film, and their colleague Afraa Hashem took to the stage to deliver a powerful plea on behalf of the people of Syria.

Part of my job was of course to thank the sponsors, because the entire event could never happen without them. New partners this year included our headline sponsor Pearl Pictures Productions, Fitz English sparkling wine, Whitney Neill Gin, Vestal Vodka and Double Dutch mixers, which joined our returning venue sponsor The May Fair, Remy Martin and our official car Audi.

And here are some more photos of our guests this year...

Nominees Jessie Buckley (for Wild Rose and Judy) and Raffey Cassidy (Vox Lux)

Nominees Noah Jupe (Honey Boy and Ford v Ferrari) and Dexter Fletcher (Rocketman)

Actor Mike Beckingham and producers Elizabeth Karlsen and Stephen Woolley

Producer Emma Tillinger Koskoff (Joker and The Irishman) and nominated composer Daniel Pemberton (Motherless Brooklyn)

Special guests included filmmakers Hannah and Jake Graf and actor-musician Ruby Turner

Obviously, the photo of the night.

The Best of 2019: 39th Shadows Awards

As always, hacking down the list of some 500 movies I've seen this year to just 10 is tricky business. But it feels like a discipline that specifically goes with this job. I keep a running set of lists each year, and it gets seriously out of control - usually there are around 100 on each list! Note that each film listed here played in a UK or US cinema to a public audience in 2019, although some are yet to go on general release, if ever.

There are longer lists (top 50 films, for example) and a lot more on the website at 39TH SHADOWS AWARDS. My number one movie this year is one of the most bracingly original films I've seen in years - gripping, genre-defying and pointedly timely. Korean filmmaker Bong Joon Ho has made some great movies in his career, and this one is masterful, breathtaking cinema. It definitely deserves the attention it's getting in mainstream awards categories this year....

BEST FILM:

1. Parasite (Bong Joon Ho)
2. Pain and Glory (Pedro Almodovar)
3. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (Celine Sciamma)
4. Wild Rose (Tom Harper)
5. Honeyland (Tamara Kotevska, Ljubomir Stefanov)
6. The Irishman (Martin Scorsese)
7. 1917 (Sam Mendes)
8. Queen & Slim (Melina Matsoukas)
9. Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood (Quentin Tarantino)
10. I Lost My Body (Jeremy Clapin)

BEST FILM OF THE 2010s:

1. Leviathan (Zvyagintsev, 2014)
2. A Separation (Farhadi, 2011)
3. Boyhood (Linklater, 2014)
4. The Act of Killing (Oppenheimer, 2012)
5. Parasite (Bong, 2019)
6. We Need to Talk About Kevin (Ramsay, 2011)
7. Inception (Nolan, 2010)
8. Fire at Sea (Rosi, 2016)
9. Moonlight (Jenkins, 2016)
10. A Fantastic Woman (Lelio, 2017)

DIRECTOR:

1. Pedro Almodovar (Pain and Glory)
2. Alma Har'el (Honey Boy)
3. Bong Joon Ho (Parasite)
4. Celine Sciamma (Portrait of a Lady on Fire)
5. Sam Mendes (1917)
6. Melina Matsoukas (Queen & Slim)
7. Jennifer Kent (The Nightingale)
8. Quentin Tarantino (Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood)
9. Ladj Ly (Les Miserables)
10. Alice Rohrwacher (Happy as Lazzaro)

SCREENWRITER:

1. Celine Sciamma (Portrait of a Lady on Fire)
2. Lena Waithe (Queen & Slim)
3. Pedro Almodovar (Pain and Glory)
4. Bong Joon Ho, Han Jin Won (Parasite)
5. Agnes Varda (Varda by Agnes)
6. Susanna Fogel, Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins, Katie Silberman (Booksmart)
7. Anthony McCarten (The Two Popes)
8. Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski (Dolemite Is My Name)
9. Charles Randolph (Bombshell)
10. Joe Talbot, Rob Richert (The Last Black Man in San Francisco)

ACTRESS:

1. Jessie Buckley (Wild Rose, Judy)
2. Florence Pugh (Midsommar, Little Women, Fighting With My Family)
3. Renee Zellweger (Judy)
4. Liv Hill (Jellyfish)
5. Sarah Bolger (A Good Woman Is Hard to Find)
6. Baran Kosari (Permission)
7. Lupita Nyong'o (Us, Little Monsters)
8. Scarlett Johansson (Marriage Story, Jojo Rabbit, Avengers: Endgame)
9. Awkwafina (The Farewell, Jumanji: The Next Level)
10. Charlize Theron (Bombshell, Long Shot)

ACTOR:

1. Adam Driver (Marriage Story, The Report, The Rise of Skywalker, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote)
2. Antonio Banderas (Pain and Glory, The Laundromat)
3. George MacKay (1917, Ophelia)
4. Tom Burke (The Souvenir)
5. Choi Woo Shik (Parasite)
6. Jonathan Pryce (The Two Popes, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote)
7. Daniel Kaluuya (Queen & Slim)
8. Robert Pattinson (The Lighthouse, High Life, The King)
9. Lucas Hedges (Honey Boy, Waves, Ben Is Back, Mid90s)
10. Eddie Murphy (Dolemite Is My Name)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:

1. Laura Dern (Jeremiah Terminator LeRoy, Marriage Story, Little Women)
2. Julie Walters (Wild Rose)
3. Taylor Russell (Waves)
4. Karen Gillan (Avengers: Endgame, All Creatures Here Below, Jumanji: The Next Level, Stuber)
5. Da'Vine Joy Randolph (Dolemite Is My Name)
6. Allison Janney (Bad Education, Bombshell, Ma)
7. Tilda Swinton (The Souvenir, Avengers: Endgame, The Dead Don't Die, The Personal History of David Copperfield)
8. Thomasin McKenzie (Jojo Rabbit, The King)
9. Riley Keough (Earthquake Bird, The Lodge)
10. Idina Menzel (Uncut Gems)

SUPPORTING ACTOR:

1. Noah Jupe (Honey Boy, Ford v Ferrari)
2. Bruce Dern (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, The Mustang)
3. Swann Arlaud (By the Grace of God)
4. Jamie Bell (Rocketman, Skin)
5. Wesley Snipes (Dolemite Is My Name)
6. Al Pacino (The Irishman, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood)
7. Baykali Ganambarr (The Nightingale)
8. Jonathan Majors (The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Out of Blue)
9. Richard Madden (1917, Rocketman)
10. Joe Pesci (The Irishman)

WORST FILM:

1. Rambo: Last Blood (Adrian Grunberg)
2. Black and Blue (Deon Taylor)
3. 6 Underground (Michael Bay)
4. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (Joachim Ronning)
5. Godzilla: King of the Monsters (Michael Dougherty)
6. Escape Plan: The Extractors (John Herzfeld)
7. Killers Anonymous (Martin Owen)
8. Ecco (Ben Medina)
9. Triple Frontier (JC Chandor)
10. Cats (Tom Hooper)

---

N O N - F I L M   D I V I S I O N

TV SERIES: 

1. Fleabag (BBC)
2. Schitt's Creek (CBN)
3. The Mandalorian (Disney)
4. Years and Years (BBC)
5. Special (Netflix)
6. Call My Agent (Netflix)
7. Chernobyl (HBO)
8. Killing Eve (BBC)
9. Jane the Virgin (ABC)
10. The Good Place (Netflix)

SINGLE: 

1. Juice (Lizzo)
2. Circles (Post Malone)
3. Slide Away (Miley Cyrus)
4. Play God (Sam Fender)
5. Bad Guy (Billie Eilish)
6. Giant (Calvin Harris, Rag'n'Bone Man)
7. Own It (Stormzy, Ed Sheeran, Burna Boy)
8. Watermelon Sugar (Harry Styles)
9. Orphans (Coldplay)
10. Harmony Hall (Vampire Weekend)