BEST PICTURE/ TOP TEN FILMS OF 2014
A Most Violent Year
Birdman
Boyhood
Gone Girl
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Guardians of the Galaxy
The Imitation Game
The Lego Movie
The Theory of Everything
Whiplash
BEST DIRECTOR
Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Damien Chazelle, Whiplash
David Fincher, Gone Girl
Alejandro G. Inarritu, Birdman
Richard Linklater, Boyhood
BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Bradley Cooper, American Sniper
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game
Brendon Gleeson, Calvary
Tommy Lee Jones, The Homesman
Michael Keaton, Birdman
Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything
BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Amy Adams, Big Eyes
Felicity Jones, The Theory of Everything
Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl
Hilary Swank, The Homesman
Reese Witherspoon, Wild
BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Ethan Hawke, Boyhood
Logan Lerman, Fury
Edward Norton, Birdman
Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher
J. K. Simmons, Whiplash
BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
Jessica Chastain, A Most Violent Year
Carrie Coon, Gone Girl
Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game
Emma Stone, Birdman
BEST ENSMEBLE ACTING
Birdman
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Guardians of the Galaxy
Into the Woods
BEST SCREENPLY WRITTEN DIRECTLY FOR THE SCREEN
A Most Violent Year
Birdman
Boyhood
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Whiplash
BEST SCREENPLY ADAPTED FROM ANOTHER MEDIUM
American Sniper
Gone Girl
The Imitation Game
The Theory of Everything
Wild
BEST LIVE ACTION FAMILY FILM
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Guardians of the Galaxy
Into the Woods
Maleficent
Muppets Most Wanted
BEST ANIMATED FILM
Big Hero 6
The Boxtrolls
The Lego Movie
How to Train Your Dragon 2
OVERLOOKED FILM OF THE YEAR
Calvary
Edge of the Tomorrow
Obvious Child
The Skeleton Twins
Snowpiercer
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Force Majeure
IDA
Mood Indigo
The Raid 2
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Citizen Four
Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me
Jodorowsky’s Dune
Life Itself
Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
Everything is Awesome, The Lego Movie
Immortals, Big Hero 6
Lost Stars, Begin Again
Miracles, Unbroken
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Birdman
Gone Girl
The Imitation Game
Interstellar
The Theory of Everything
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
A Most Violent Year
Birdman
Interstellar
Into the Woods
The Theory of Everything
Unbroken
BEST FILM EDITING
Birdman
boyhood
Gone Girl
Interstellar
Into the Woods
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
The Grand Budapest Hotel
The Imitation Game
Interstellar
Snowpiercer
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Inherent Vice
Into the Woods
Maleficent
The Theory of Everything
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Edge of Tomorrow
Guardians of the Galaxy
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
Interstellar
BEST STUNTS
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Edge of Tomorrow
John Wick
Need for Speed
The Raid 2
BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE ON CAMERA
Ellar Coltrane, Boyhood
Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl
Jenny Slate, Obvious Child
BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE BEHIND THE CAMERA
Damien Chazelle, Whiplash
Dan Gilroy, Nightcrawler
Gillian Robespierre, Obvious Child
Jon Stewart, Rosewater
BEST PERFORMANCE BY A YOUTH – MALE
Ellar Coltrane, Boyhood
Daniel Huttlestone, Into the Woods
Jaeden Lieberber, St. Vincent
Ed Oxenbould, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Tony Revolori, The Grand Budapest Hotel
BEST PERFORMANCE BY A YOUTH – FEMALE
Lilla Crawford, Into the Woods
Mackenzie Foy, Interstellar
Sterling Jerins, And So It Goes
I for one loved guardians of the galaxy and Lego movie. I really hope micheal Keaton wins for birdman, he’s great in everything I’ve seen of his. I thought tgph wes Anderson’s film was fantastic and roger Ebert’s life itself was sad.
Of these secondary cities releasing their awards, the one I’m most interested in is Utah. Last year, there was a very fun thread after they announced their nominations and winners.
Does anyone know when Utah is announcing?
Today we have the SAG Winners and tomorrow the Golden Globes nominees.
Finally we get to the important stuff that are really decide the Oscar race.
Forget all Critics Awards. Let’s focus on these important decisions and not to a few critics awards. 🙂
The Phoenix Film Critics winners for Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor, Support Actress mirrored the Oscars last year.
GH
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“SAG tomorrow” – WOW, already! Caught me by surprise, a bit – been so busy lately that I’d forgotten it was so close. And then there were 5… 🙂
Interesting to see Boyhood not getting an ensemble nomination here (or is that an error – I see only 4 nominees). I doubt it’s a sign, I don’t think such a big contender (if it is, indeed, what it seems to be) can miss out on the SAG ensemble nomination, but who knows?! I certainly would have expected to see it nominated in that category here – I mean, why not?! They must have had a reason, which means others could potentially think likewise. It’s probably nothing, though, like I said…
Love the GBH love, but do foreign films show up in Phoenix? The list is pretty conventional.
It’s also shocking that Julianne Moore is missing. Again.
All you naysayers about Guardians of the Galaxy, easily one of the best pictures of the year, should read Sasha’s very recent article about women in film, and the way people start to tear down those who are considered frontrunners (e.g. Julianne Moore, and we can also toss in the treatment of Christopher Nolan for Interstellar). You know Guardians was one of the best reviewed films of the year, and the best Marvel film yet, but, because it was so popular (and it was far from empty…it had tons of heart, more than most films I’ve seen this year), it has to be torn down by those who must be missing something in their lives.
I am glad to see Swanks nomination and she was runner up to Cotillard a couple of days ago.
I can hardly believe the Phoenix critics failed to give a best actress nomination to Julianne Moore for her performance in Still Alice.
Guardian of the Galaxy gets a best ensemble nod!!!! Way to go Dave Bautista
The film goes way deeper than that, you just stopped at a superficial level. When you got this key, you can really be amazed at the satyrical elemments in the story, ’cause you see how the child sees our society, and how this satire reflects us, adults, as a mirror, in which we may be finding ourselves out, we’re laughing at our own faults, like consumism, social alienation, sheep-behaviour and so on. Because that’s why the catchy song plays non stop, why no one seems to know Emmett at all, why he would be sharing his breakfast with a plant (can he really get more lonely?), why he would rejoice to pay more than 20 dollars for a branded-coffee… and so on.
^Should’ve said felt like it HAD ADD, I guess.
Jesus, The Lego Movie felt like it was on ADD, which isn’t surprising since the story is supposed to be made up by a kid. Its great reveal is a gimmick that was used a thousand times before, which doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing, I actually love it, especially in the Calvin & Hobbes comics, but it’s not genius either, it depends how you use it. The film felt disjointed and all over the place and I’m not going to waste time deconstructing it block by block. I’d rather watch my nephew wreck the childhood toys I’ve been carefully conserving for 15 years. Yes, I actually emphasize with the father more than with his brat!
Christophe, calling “The Lego Movie” hollow, just shows you can’t deconstruct a film and see why it’s so good and ambitious. It’s a multilayered screenplay, one of the deepest of the year, and that’s why the film keeps popping up again and again in precursors, and has so brilliant reviews. It trascends the original concept of “selling” Lego sets, by appealing to brains rather than consumism.
“Also, not a single nomination for Selma.”
Call me cynical, but Arizona is the same state that has banned Native American, Latino/Chicano/Hispanic, and African American/Black literature from its schools. As Ryan said, though, it could be a screener issue, and they did nominate Inarritu, so who knows?
Just some quick observation.
It looks peculiar to me for their #Top 10 BP list to have the Galaxy on it but without a few other (better) films (usual suspects or not) that could have been included. They might #not do it on purpose of simply trying to be different; I mean, they must have really loved the Galaxy. But to me, it still looks out of place when taking into account other titles on the list.
And given what seems to be a well-deserved exception in the #Best Actor in a Leading Role they’ve nicely made, they could have done the same to the #Best Animated Film category by adding another noteworthy one to it, Princess Kaguya, for instance.
(Apparently, they are willing to be flexible on case-by-case basis in terms of a number of nominees in certain categories; so, to me, it feels a bit strange for Princess Kaguya — for good measure, supposedly loved by most, if not all, US-based critics of note — to be eliminated in the final round. Since Lego seems to have fared so well and, I assume, understandably, culturally connected more or less easily than, unfortunately so, some beautiful but exotic culture’s production like Princess Kaguya, I didn’t expect the win for the Japanese masterpiece, but at least some sort of recognition in terms of nomination would have been nice.) [Sorry for a long rant (lol)]
Anyway, good to see some love for Gone Girl, too.
Okay, where is Meryl? Why is she not getting nominated despite all the praise? And why do people say “let others have room to shine”? Thats really idiotic. If your performance was amazing, it deserves a nomination and/or win. It does not matter how many times you got nominated.
I liked the Overlooked category. While it is an rather empty award, it does at least call attention to films that should be given a second chance.
Ryan,
Say what you want about Oprah, her fluffy shows, her fawning interview style, her self-adoration, but SHE GETS THINGS DONE! It’s actually much more important and valuable than having talent and originality but waste it in idleness and indecisiveness (note to self).
I really like their picks for “Overlooked Film”. Could do a lot worse than what they picked. Plus they gave some nominations to The Homesman.
NO Julianne Moore!! NO Marion Cotillard!! lol : )
I think, Rosamund Pike will win!
Great for Gone Girl.
Not looking good for Steve Carell though.
Actually Julianne had 17 critics’ wins and Venice and she still lost. Just as Meryl Streep and Carey Mulligan each had much more support than Bullock who had zero critics’ wins but won the GG, SAG, Critics’ Choice (no, I don’t consider them critics).
Chris138,
I was thinking the same thing about Brendan Gleeson. I like it when solid actors finally get the roles and the recognition they deserve. Gleeson was great in “Calvary” . . . but Best Actor is a crowded field this year . . . and only so many Brits will get in I’m afraid (Spall, Redmayne, Cumberbach). It would be great to see Gleeson get in there too, though. I’ve followed his career for years now . . . he’s like Ian Holms: always reliable, always good, always making interesting acting choices, but never getting award recognition.
I’m just really really worried about Moore’s Oscar chances. She’s not a lock for a win as many people think. If Kate Winslet can win for a supporting performance in a mediocre movie, it would be a travesty not for Moore to win in a superb performance in a bland movie. Yes, I’m a huge fan of Moore, so I’m not ashamed in wanting her to win one finally 🙂
Correct. Unless all the Phoenix critics flew to LA to attend the SELMA premiere at the American Film Institute, they didn’t see it, because there are no DVD screeners for SELMA yet.
Here’s a stupid question.You know how people illegally download movies? Well can’t people legally download movies? I mean from some secure site that you have to have a special password to get to. Or something like that? It seems pretty dumb that their screeners aren’t out. Like Oprah didn’t want to pay a rush fee to get them made faster.
Here’s a stupid question.You know how people illegally download movies? Well can’t people legally download movies?
Not a stupid question. It happens. Online ‘screeners’ are a thing. Secure sites, strict multi-step password access to new movies so people can see a movie to help promote it or “for consideration” for voting purposes.
Can’t be emphasized enough how “wet” SELMA was when it screened at AFI on Nov 12. The digital film file package handed over to the projectionist at the AFI was still raw and rough around the edges, not even fully polished, according to Ava DuVernay. There was still work to be done on effects, and editing tweaks to be refined.
Oct 27th Ava DuVernay tweeted:
Nov 5 she was in Seattle to oversee the orchestral recording sessions for the score:
That week it was announced that 30 minutes of SELMA footage would be seen as a showreel at the AFI Fest.
Friday Nov 7 DuVernay was on the phone with producer Oprah Winfrey talking about how SELMA was then ‘picture-locked’ — and Oprah goes: “Let’s take this to twitter and announce the whole movie is ready to roll at the AFI”
DuVernay was, like, “ok, wait, what?!”
Not ready, not polished, not finished, not done yet.
5 days later, the night of the AFI premiere, Nov 12, Ava DuVernay says all she saw was the rough spots she still wanted to tighten up: “Like the pockets. Like I’m wincing with my editor and I’m like, Please don’t look too close.”
So that was 4 weeks ago. The movie was a fresh wet package of digital files 4 weeks ago.
heck, it’s taken me 4 weeks to get my Christmas ornaments out of the closet. I’m gonna actually need to get on the phone with Oprah so she can push me to get my tree up by Christmas.
Glad to see more recognition for Brendan Gleeson in Calvary. I doubt it will translate over with Oscar voters, but here’s hoping!
It’s kind of hard to believe that JM hasn’t been nommed since ’03, , I thought her performance in A Single Man was great but cuspy. She should have been nommed for Magnolia and Kids.
Hey, I’m happy to see Logan Lerman get some attention for ”Fury,” but overall, who cares about the Phoenix Film Critics?
They can’t even come up with an uniform number of nominees; most categories have 5, but Best Actor has 6, others have 3 or 4.
Even more basic, they can’t spell. ”Best ENSMEBLE Acting”? ”Best SCREENPLY”? (Not once, but twice!) Amateur hour, indeed!
Julianne The Empress
The following are the current contenders in the Best Director race, at least from what I can tell:
Richard Linklater, Boyhood
Ava DuVernay, Selma
Alejandro G. Innaritu, Birdman
Morten Tyldum, The Imitation Game
Damien Chazelle, Whiplash
Angelina Jolie, Unbroken
Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel
The top 3 are, for all intents and purposes, locks: Linklater isn’t going anywhere, and depending on their success during the season Innaritu and DuVernay seemed poised to ride all the way to the Kodak (or wherever). After that it gets tricky. There’s a lot of appreciation for TIG, but enough to bring Tyldum along? It remains to be seen. However, it is worth noting that TIG is the big british drama of the year (The Theory of Everything has no chance at a BD nod), so Tyldum could make it in. Same with Chazelle. Jolie might beat out one of these boys here if Unbroken turns into the unabashed critical success that some at the Gold Derby want it so desperately to be, but that’s a mighty big if. Which brings us to Anderson: he will only get in if Unbroken is anything less-than-stellar and Tyldum or Chazelle drop out of the running (my money is on Tyldum).
Does he have a shot? Yes. But lots has to happen to make that a reality
They definitely loved Gone Girl and that’s great in my book!
Boyhood seems to the strongest player in the editing category. Interesting.
I really need Amy Adams to take a year off. Geez, woman, give other people some room to shine.
Same goes for Meryl.
I actually kind of liked these nominations (don’t hit me!)
No, I didn’t agree with all of them (though I was thrilled to see Into the Woods pop up in a number of categories like editing, though I’m just a fanboy and haven’t seen it yet), but at least some of them were bizarre and different!
No Selma must have been because they haven’t seen it or not enough of them had. Maybe same deal with Still Alice? Who knows. There’s no Marion in there either.
Also, Carrie Coon!!
No Selma must have been because they haven’t seen it or not enough of them had.
Correct. Unless all the Phoenix critics flew to LA to attend the SELMA premiere at the American Film Institute, they didn’t see it, because there are no DVD screeners for SELMA yet.
“# of individual Critics Wins by Nicole Kidman in 2003: 0. Julianne had 5 or 6. Did it matter????”
Not really no, but she’s going to win anyway because of her extreme overdueness. Marion Cotillard on the other hand has won a couple but it probably won’t do her any good. Having already won an Oscar on her 1st try, coming seemingly out of nowhere, voters don’t feel as much sympathy or urgency to put her on top of their ballots.
# of individual Critics Wins by Nicole Kidman in 2003: 0. Julianne had 5 or 6. Did it matter????
Seriously, there were only 4 foreign films that were deserved to be nominated? What a lazy group for Christ’s sake
Associations like the Phoenix Film Critics should have maybe five categories tops. This is pretty tedious and not exactly informative, although it is good to see Carrie Coons and Logan Lerman finally make it onto lists.
Thanks for the response, Paddy!
I found Guardians of the Galaxy interminable. Likewise, Raid 2.
I thought you liked The Raid 2, Ryan. I seem to recall you praising it. Must have been someone else. I, too, found it interminable, and its predecessor. The stunt work and fight choreography were both astonishing, and the sound design was terrific, but they were otherwise basically artistically bankrupt celebrations of brutality.
Repeating: is there anyone who thinks that Wes Anderson stands a chance at a Director nod for the Big O??
A chance? Yes. A decent one? No. I do a yearly points chart of the critics’ awards, and Moonrise Kingdom was in 2012’s Top 5. It didn’t get an Oscar nomination in a Best Picture field of nine, and all it did get was a sole Original Screenplay nod. So, no, not a decent chance, but definitely a chance. The critics are doing their best to keep it in the race.
I second those who hate these nominations. I find the Phoenix Film Critics Society laughable in their notion that anybody actually gives a shit about which film they thought had the year’s best costume design, I mean plz. Not only that, it’s the narrow-mindedness of these nominations. The same films crop up category after category, and they’re often just buzzed-about titles rather than well-reviewed or actually good ones. Check their Ensemble Acting slate: all four are films with starry leading casts, rather than genuinely talented and effective ensembles.
Also, not a single nomination for Selma.
I thought you liked The Raid 2, Ryan. I seem to recall you praising it.
Back in July, some of us here got into a debate about whether or not the martial arts guys in the Raid movies are “real actors” and specifically what constitutes a “real stunt” and a “real fight.” I think I was trying to defend the amazing choreography stunt fighters do in movies like Snowpiercer and the Raid movies. I was trying to show some appreciation for the work they do, and Raid 2 is a visceral example.
So about Raid 2, I did say something like “It was thrilling to the point of being trippy.” — and in July I said it was one of the best movies I’d seen all year, but that was July when I hadn’t seen much of anything, and this is December so my idea of the best of the year has shifted and Raid 2 fell right out of my top 50, long ago.
I admire the camerawork. I was going to rewatch Raid 2 a couple of weeks ago, introduce a couple of friends to it, even though I knew I was in for a grueling sit, I thought I could get off on the camerawork some more, but I couldn’t do it. Luckily my friends felt pummeled by it too, so we shut it down after a half hour or so. It’s brutal ballet. It was too exhausting and punishing to rewatch. If I can’t rewatch a movie and get more out of it on 2nd and 3rd viewing then I have to reevaluate my first impression. Hell, first time around I thought AVATAR was “thrilling.”
Don’t ever trust anything I say right after I see a movie for the first time. I’m still under movie-induced hypnosis and liable to say anything. I’m on nitrous oxide and trippin and spouting all sorts of giddy shit.
(and I wouldn’t have it any other way).
LOL @ myself.
Thanks Christophe for solving my query! 🙂
I think we can forego nominations for critics groups. Overkill!
Bradley Cooper! I wondered when his name was going to start popping up.
Overlooked film of the year? What a silly category. Dear film critics from Phoenix. If you want to highlight a film nominate it for best picture.
FINALLY!!! CARRIE COON!!!
I still can’t believe she lost for Junebug, though. Now THAT was a performance!
I still don’t think Adams will get in for Oscar.
Agree about Guardians of the Galaxy … Hip, fun (at times), but shallow, and got on my nerves as it went.
Repeating: is there anyone who thinks that Wes Anderson stands a chance at a Director nod for the Big O??
MinaNagy, starting to think the same ..
Moore
Witherspoon
Pike
Cotillard (coming on strong)
Adams (acting branch loves her)
What???? No Julie?? is they smoking peyote down there or what????
Guardians of the Galaxy (like The Lego Movie imo.) had a really cool almost hip vibe, but it was completely hollow, no substance, though probably some illegal substance was used during development (lame pun intended). I have no idea what The Raid 2 is, never heard of it.
Michael, we’ve only had critics awards so far, Meryl was never expected to shine there for her part in a Disney musical. It’s already very promising for ITW to be nominated in the Ensemble category. If Meryl is ignored by SAG tomorrow or even worse by HFPA on Thursday, then we know she’s in trouble, but even so the Academy loves her, and they wouldn’t be afraid to contradict the precursors on that one.
Pretty awful nominations, lol.
So they could only come up with 4 FLF noms, 4 Ensemble, Prod Design, etc, but couldn’t whittle-down actor to 5? ‘Fraid of leavin’ someone out?
Yay for Amy Adams!
I think the final 5 actresses to be nominated this year will be
Adams
Cotillard
Moore
Pike
Witherspoon
Why is Meryl Streep not getting any nomination anywhere inspite of Into The Woods getting nominated in the best ensemble category everywhere?
Probably the only critics award that we get to see this film in the nomination list: The Raid 2.
I know I’m an oddball in this but I really did not like GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY. I’m going to assume they got nommed for ensemble based on Vin Diesel’s performance.
I know I’m an oddball in this but I really did not like GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY
You’re not alone, Antoinette. I found Guardians of the Galaxy interminable. Likewise, Raid 2. (my god, the fanboy goo oozing onto tighty-whiteys the night R2 premiered: “the greatest action movie ever made!” It felt more to me like the worst headache ever conceived.)
I do think it would be interesting to take Galaxy Guardians and Raid 2, tie them up together in a burlap sack and let them go at each other. As long as there’s a stomped raccoon corpse at the end of it.
Guardians of the Galaxy?
I just… I can’t…