Online Film Critics Choose "Moonlight"
Tuesday, January 3, 2017 at 9:22PM by Glenn Dunks
Moonlight took 4 prizes from the OFCS
The Online Film Critics Society, of which I am a member, just announced their winners and... I'd love to say they're a great bunch, but I haven't been able to see at least two of the big winners yet. International release dates (I'm back in Australia) always make voting in these sort of awards a tricky prospect when the need to be early is ever-present, but I have no doubt that the OFCS's selection of Moonlight as the best picture of 2016 is worth cheering about.
The organisation with its some 260 members awarded the Barry Jenkins' drama with three additional wins for Best Director, and duel supporting acting prizes for Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris. Casey Affleck and Natalie Portman took the lead actor awards, Arrival and Hell or High Water took screenplay honours, Kubo and the Two Strings was handed a much-deserved animation win, and the Oscar frontrunner La La Land settled for the two technical prizes that the organization gives out for cinematography and editing.
And proving yet again that South Korea made the wrong choice by not selecting Park Chan-wook's The Handmaiden for the foreign language Oscar, it was awarded Best Film Not in the English Language alongside its nomination for Best Picture.
What do we think that film's Oscar prospects are like? Hong Kong's The Grandmaster surprised with two nominations several years ago - there's certainly precedence. It just depends on whether Oscar's costume and production design voters are having one of those years where they think more outside of the box or fall in line with general Oscar buzz.
FULL NOMINEES AND WINNERS AFTER THE JUMP...
Best Picture
Arrival
The Handmaiden
Hell or High Water
Jackie
La La Land
Manchester By the Sea
Moonlight
O.J.: Made in America
Paterson
The Witch
Best Animated Feature
Is the animation Oscar down to Kubo vs Zootopia?
Finding Dory
Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
The Red Turtle
Zootopia
Best Director
Damien Chazelle - La La Land
Barry Jenkins - Moonlight
Pablo Larraín - Jackie
Kenneth Lonergan - Manchester By the Sea
Denis Villeneuve - Arrival
Best Actor
Casey Affleck - Manchester By the Sea
Adam Driver - Paterson
Ryan Gosling - La La Land
Viggo Mortensen - Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington - Fences
Best Actress
Amy Adams - Arrival
Isabelle Huppert - Elle
Ruth Negga - Loving
Natalie Portman - Jackie
Emma Stone - La La Land
Best Supporting Actor
Mahershala Ali - Moonlight
Tom Bennett - Love & Friendship
Jeff Bridges - Hell or High Water
Lucas Hedges - Manchester By the Sea
Michael Shannon - Nocturnal Animals
Best Supporting Actress
Viola Davis - Fences
Lily Gladstone - Certain Women
Naomie Harris - Moonlight
Octavia Spencer - Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams - Manchester By the Sea
Best Original Screenplay
Hell or High Water - Taylor Sheridan
Jackie - Noah Oppenheim
La La Land - Damien Chazelle
The Lobster - Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthymis Filippou
Manchester By the Sea - Kenneth Lonergan
Best Adapted Screenplay
Arrival - Eric Heisserer, Ted Chiang
Elle - David Birke, Philippe Djian
Love & Friendship - Whit Stillman
Moonlight - Barry Jenkins, Tarell Alvin McCraney
Nocturnal Animals - Tom Ford
Best Editing
Arrival - Joe Walker
Cameraperson - Nels Bangerter
Jackie - Sebastian Sepulveda
La La Land - Tom Cross
Moonlight - Joi McMillon, Nat Sanders
Best Cinematography
Arrival - Bradford Young
Jackie - Stéphane Fontaine
La La Land - Linus Sandgren
Moonlight - James Laxton
The Neon Demon - Natasha Braier
Best Film Not in the English Language
Elle - France
The Handmaiden - South Korea
Neruda - Chile
The Salesman - Iran
Toni Erdmann - Germany
Best Documentary
13th
Cameraperson
I Am Not Your Negro
O.J.: Made in America
Weiner
Best Non-U.S. Release (Non-competitive)
After the Storm
The Death of Louis XIV
The Girl With All the Gifts
Graduation
Nocturma
Personal Shopper
A Quiet Passion
Staying Vertical
The Unknown Girl
Yourself and Yours
Special Memorail Awards
Carrie Fisher
Gene Wilder
Alan Rickman
Reader Comments (26)
It is a shame that Viola Davis category-frauded herself in Supporting Actress. Naomie Harris would have won easily.
^ I don't think so ... she would've put up a good fight for sure, but I think it would've probably ended up going to Michelle Williams as it's her fourth nomination and she's highly-respected. But who knows, would've been between them two for sure.
Either way, would've been interested had Viola been in Lead considering Emma Stone doesn't need to win for La La Land, and Natalie Portman doesn't need a second Oscar...it's a competitive category for nods, but she shoulda just stuck it out. I guess after last time she just wants to do the safest thing and get an Oscar however she can lol. PTSD.
BUT, if she had been in lead it would've been interesting to have potential winners in every category that are black. Viola, Denzel, Naomie, Mahershala.
Path of least resistance will always be the supporting categories. Best Actress remains impenetrable for the nonwhite.
Well, yeah...I don't think anyone is refuting that lol. It's quite obvious. Only Halle Berry. In almost 100 years. Obviously the conversation is welcome, but you should try to add something new sometime. You say almost the same thing every time.
In my book, there should be four black best actress winners by now (of those actually nominated): Whoopi for The Color Purple, Halle for Monster's Ball, Gabourey for Precious, and Viola for The Help.
I wish Viola was on lead but say what you will, her path to victory is much easier in supporting.
If she struggles to win on supporting, she sure as hell woulda struggled more in lead.
I'm no longer convinced that Viola has this in the bag. But if she does win (early in the ceremony), that will definitely raise the suspense for Best Actor, at least for me.
Paul, you have your doubts? Let me be your Amy Adams on the bench with you.
I have such doubts...
Joining in with everyone's sighing about Viola's category fraud. a Viola/Naomi Lead/Supporting win would have been the stuff of dreams!
Perhaps the fact that she was borderline in THE HELP and went for Lead and didn't win played on her mind when making that decision? idk.
Any group that would nominate Emma Stone over Rebecca Hall or Sandra Hüller for Best Actress is a failure.
I'm an anti-category fraud diva and I really don't think Viola is lead in Fences.
"anti-category fraud diva" Thank you internet
Emma - I'm pretty sure the sting of being that close to winning and having so many people rooting for you, and then still losing, hurt a lot so she just wanted to do whatever was a more guaranteed win.
I don't think Viola will have trouble winning this. I mean, first star on the Walk of Fame in 2017, she'll be the first black actress to receive three nominations, and she's one of the most respected actresses in the industry. She's got this in the bag.
In my opinion, there should have already been 3 African-American actresses with Lead Oscars - Whoopi in Colour Purple, Halle Berry in Monster's Ball and DIANA ROSS in Lady Sings the Blues (the most deserving of the lot). Viola, Gabourney and Angela didn't cut it for me.
Viola will probably be like Alicia last year. Inevitable even when vulnerable. The size of the part will do it.
Tess, sorry to say it but you're in for a lot of disappointment.
I don't think Viola will have any trouble winning either, but I do think her performance would have more impact if they had left her "big moment" out of all the trailers and ads. It would have been better if it came as a surprise to the audience. I really wish the marketers would learn that you don't have to show viewers everything upfront.
Viola should have had it in the bag but the inexorable Streep stepped in. That was a unique situation.
So people around these parts do think that Halle Berry should have won for Monster's Ball. As a longtime follower of this website, I definitely remember a time during which that opinion wasn't terribly popular, or am I imagining that?
I love all of the love that Moonlight has been receiving, if only for the fact that its crossover acclaim appears to defy almost certain odds, as the film is about such a specific type of experience (despite its universal themes).
I definitely need some awards-giving body to offer resistance to Casey Affleck's seemingly inevitable victory come Oscar night because I truly don't think I'll be able to stomach that. I can't stress enough how much I dislike most of the things about Manchester by the Sea.
Troy, I think we'll see Denzel win the SAG over Casey ala Meryl winning for DOUBT. He's never actually won one before.
uff people. CAN WE PLEASE STOP SAYING THAT BEST ACTRESS IS IMPENETRABLE FOR WOMEN OF COLOR. We cannot know this when Viola Davis, such a threat to win, opted not to even try. I still believe had she gone lead she could have been real threat to win... because place that powerhouse performance in FENCES against the war between a new darling and someone who's already won... I still think she could have won the whole thing.
Halle Berry's speech was picked apart by those who dislike her win because they see her as a lesser actress and her win as a purely political one. They did not comprehend the enormity and truth of her message. It was not exclusively for black women in the category but every nameless faceless woman of color (nonwhite) who despite a once in a career nomination in the category are merely window dress for voters to feel good about themselves while they're about the business of making another white girl happen.
It's a shame for La La Land to win cinematography over Moonlight. Some of LLL was beautiful, but it was often strangely lit and you couldn't see actors' faces during musical numbers (and not in a seemingly intentional way). Moonlight was much more consistent.
@Nat: so true!! I remember how Viola was viewed as "on the edge" when she put herself in Lead for The Help. Basically her nomination was seen as a coin flip, and she was shooting for 4th or 5th at best. But after the season heated up (Critics Choice and SAG wins), it was clear she was #1/#2 with Meryl. That was unthinkable just a couple months before. She was so close to winning. Definitely agree that she would have been in the same position this time - right up there with Emma and Natalie. Probably would have won.
Jans -- yikes, I forgot about Angela Basset! I'm awful. She would've been a really great choice, but Holly Hunter deserved the win anyway. In another year though...
As for Diana, I actually finally saw Lady Sings the Blues and Sounder a year or two ago, and I have to say I was shocked as to how little Cicely Tyson had to do -- I think she's fabulous, and I've seen other iconic roles of hers, but I was shocked she even got nominated for Sounder. I was expecting to be like "man, she should've won!" so it was strange. Diana was good but her inexperience showed. I think Liza deserved her Oscar for sure.
Philip - I share your sentiments on C. Tyson in Sounder...somehow I didn't find her performance Oscar-worthy but I must add that it sure feels good to see 2 African-American actresses nominated for Lead in the same year! I reckon Tyson was born to rule the stage rather the screen. As for Diana, I thought she was exceptional in her debut role...maybe I'm not a fan of Liza and have never been enthralled by her talent.
It slowly dawns on me that Portman IS winning that second Oscar. Bening should have got this in the bag with her performance and overdue status..
If Viola is in lead, Michelle Williams is getting the Oscar and Viola still would have faced much struggle. It's easier to win in supporting for her.
I would have cringed so much if that long ass OJ movie gets Oscar recognition