Boston Society of Film Critics. Beantown Loves...
Sunday, December 11, 2011 at 1:15PM 
would you be so good as to participate in the bean lottery? Please submit your bid for the number of beans in the bottleBeantown critics have assembled today to announce their prizes. LAFCA and the NYFCO critics are also announcing later.
Awful lot of bean vote counting going on today. In Boston's case they're being very leisurely about it. We'll see how quickly the other associations move. I only illustrated with Melancholia's wedding bean lottery because I was just watching it last night and here we are this morning and never mind...
The winners!
PICTURE The Artist (Runner up: Hugo and Margaret)
DIRECTOR Martin Scorsese for Hugo (Runner up: Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist)
ACTRESS Michelle Williams for My Week With Marilyn (Runner up: La Streep. Guess Boston liked their biographies above all else this year)
ACTOR Brad Pitt for Moneyball (Runners up The Clooney & Fassy)
SUPPORTING ACTRESS Melissa McCarthy for Bridesmaids (runner up: Jeannie Berlin for Margaret)
SUPPORTING ACTOR Albert Brooks for Drive (runner up: ???)
SCREENPLAY Moneyball (runner up: Margaret)
CINEMATOGRAPHY Emmanuel Lubezki for The Tree of Life (runner up: Robert Richardson for Hugo)
The Supporting Actress Competition. "That's a lot of energy to deal with!"
There's one or almost one for #TeamMargaret. I wish I'd seen it. Alas. But McCarthy picks up her first critics award for Bridesmaids. Will more follow? The BFSC claims it was a "very competitive category" this year. By which perhaps they mean Jessica Chastain vs. Jessica Chastain vs. Jessica Chastain vs. All of the Bridesmaids perhaps?
I'm wondering if Albert Brooks won in a landslide for Drive. Possibly he did as they didn't announce a runner up.
DOCUMENTARY Project Nim (runner up: Bill Cunningham New York)
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM Incendies (runners up: A Separation and Poetry)
ANIMATED FILM Rango
FILM EDITING (in memory of Karen Schmeer) Christian Marclay for The Clock (runner up: Thelma Schoonmaker for Hugo... see previous post)
NEW FILMMAKER (in memory of David Brudnoy) Sean Durkin for Martha Marcy May Marlene (runner up: JC Chandor for Margin Call)
At last Durkin beats Chandor to a prize. I knew some group would have to go that way. Both are good films but some have issues with the ambiguity of Durkin's work (see my Fandor contemplation of the problem.)
ENSEMBLE CAST CARNAGE (runner up: Margaret. Poor #TeamMargaret... bridesmaids but never the bride)
USE OF MUSIC IN FILM *tie* DRIVE & THE ARTIST (runner up: The Descendants... which, lol, um... okay. Hawaiian music for Hawaii? Award worthy decision-making right there!)
Boston joins #TeamMargaret. Sort of
They also handed out several local prizes and honors which you can read here. And they made a special plea to Fox Searchlight to start backing Kenneth Lonergan's Margaret. The film kept getting runner up notices. Poor #TeamMargaret ... always the bridesmaids but never the bride. In their words:
The Boston Society of Film Critics expresses its regret that Fox Searchlight refused to distribute screeners of the film "Margaret" and scheduling only a last-minute screening after numerous requests. The film, which received an extremely limited release, was a favorite of many BSFC members and could have won several awards had it been made available for viewing within a reasonable timeframe. Despite this disadvantage, "Margaret" was a runner up in three of the BSFC’s award categories. We encourage Fox Searchlight not compound this oversight and to make screeners available to the voting body of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and so give the film a fair chance in the upcoming awards competition.
Boston, Margaret, Melissa McCarthy, critics awards, precursor awards
Reader Comments (20)
A big yeah for Melissa! I want that nod to happen. She deserves it more than anyone. I hope she goes on winning things that make her a serious contender.
dinasztie -- i knew some critics org would bite. but i wonder if Oscar is too big a leap? unless the film starts getting screenplay buzz or SOMETHING. it's so quiet right now.
speaking of. where is everyone? usually critics awards get y'all talking.
Michelle Williams wins over Meryl Streep (close runner up)... and meanwhile NYFCO announce BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMER: JESSICA CHASTAIN - The Tree of Life, The Help, The Debt, Take Shelter, Texas Killing Fields, Coriolanus
Nate, how do BSFC is important for Oscar race?
Sooooo happy for Melissa.
This is reminding me how many great movies I missed this year. Sigh. Maybe next year.
Terris -- i would argue, unlike some, that NO critics awards are important for the Oscar race beyond NYFCC, LAFCA and BFCA. What matters is the cumulative power of all of the critical awards. So Boston only matters in how it lines up with NY, LA, Chicago, etcetera and how it doesnt. So if your name keeps popping up, it seeps into the Academy headspace.
I got the point, thank you for your explanations! =)
WOOOOO for Melissa! Bridesmaids was one of my best of the year and everyone in it are a LOL. Furthermore, I really feel Kristin Wiig should be nom'd, I've not seen everything but prefer her work to Williams/Davis/Dunst! Wiig leads a popular near perfect movie, her character isn't always likeable but she makes Annie our girl and she co wrote! Wiig for an Oscar!
@ Keegan
I completely agree. I've seen pretty much all the more heavily female performances, minus Meryl, and found Wiig to be in the top tier. I would put her up with Dunst and Swinton for my favorite lead female of the year. It will never happen for Oscar, but I'm holding out for a Golden Globe win. Fingers crossed.
I have so many fingers crossed that McCarthy pulls a Joan Cusack and gets in here.
^ I agree! I lovveed Melissa in Bridesmaids and I really want her to get in. I'm so happy she got this award.
I've just come back from seeing Margaret. I wonder if more people had seen this then Anna Paquin would be in the conversation. I still need time to let the film percolate, but it's definitely one of the most provocative, interesting films of the year and Paquin's performance is an absolute knock-out. But I'm pleased to see the film in general get some love, as it's very special.
I think it is an unusually competitive Supporting Actress field. You know performances like Jennifer Lawrence in Like Crazy and Judi Dench in My Week with Marilyn are getting noticed for solid work in small doses alongside the flashier competitors like Chastain, McCarthy, and McTeer with more substantial roles. We haven't even seen all the awards contenders yet--like Bullock and Redgrave--and then there's all the actors that aren't getting attention for being in films because other supporting actress performances are drawing attention. We could see a whole lot of actresses pick up one or two wins/honorable mentions before the end of the month.
Not one critics' award for Vanessa Redgrave so far. Not. One. This woman is supposedly locked and loaded for a nomination at the big show and yet no one seems to be paying attention to her performance in Coriolanus. I feel the exact same way I did last year when everyone had their chips on Robert Duvall and I was over in a corner yelling "He's not going to get it!"
I'd bet Bejo/Chastain/McCarthy/Mulligan/Spencer for Supporting Actress.
Wish Margin Call had won instead of MMMM, which I disliked intensely.
Kevin -- the difference I think is that Vanessa Redgrave is like POWERHOUSE EXTRAORDINAIRE in that movie unlike Duvall who had a few nice moments. If they watch Coriolanus she's a threat for the win. If they don't she'll miss out.
Ben -- i'm so sad i missed out on that one.
That would be awesome if Melissa McCarthy could snag a Golden Globe nom!! When do the Globes announce their noms anyway?
Garrett - Thursday!
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