BIFA ❤️ "The Favourite" 10 Times
Sunday, December 2, 2018 at 6:18PM by Nathaniel R
Best Supporting Actor Alessandro Nivola
The 21st annual British Independent Film Awards were held today in London with sexy Russell Tovey hosting and The Favourite winning *GULP* 10 awards (that has to be a record at BIFA, doesn't it?). But the most wonderful surprise news around these parts is the Best Handsome win -- excuse us, Best Supporting Actor win for Alessandro Nivola. We were certain that he'd make it through the whole season with no hardware for his (typically) excellent work in Disobedience but BIFA happily proved us wrong. Nivola is of course something of an honorary Brit since he's married to a very fine British actress (Emily Mortimer) and has often worked in British cinema.
The BIFA winners and a few more notes after the jump...
[links go to our reviews]
British Independent Film The Favourite
Best Screenplay Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara, The Favourite
Best Director Yorgos Lanthimos, The Favourite
Best Actor Joe Cole, A Prayer Before Dawn
Best Actress Olivia Colman, The Favourite
Best Supporting Actor Alessandro Nivola, Disobedience
Best Supporting Actress Rachel Weisz, The Favourite
Most Promising Newcomer Jessie Buckley, Beast
Following in Rachel Weisz's hilarious footsteps at the Gotham Awards, Olivia Colman gave Rachel Weisz's acceptance speech for her with a handy cutout head on a stick. This is one of the only times ever that star absences at awards shows have proven possibly more entertaining than actual attendance. The Favourite proxy speeches are already the best thing about this particular awards season though we do hope the cast is eventually seen together at either the Globes, SAG, or Oscars. C'mon personal assistants, get those schedules in order!
A Prayer Before Dawn is the only movie that didn't make it across the ocean among the big acting winners. Now I'm regretting having missed Beast which didn't quite crossover at US arthouses but did solid business with an $800,000 gross.
Ella Smith and Justin Salinger as the parents in Ray & Liz
Discovery Award Voyageuse, May Miles Thomas
Best Debut Director Richard Billingham, Ray & Liz
Best Debut Screenwriter Bart Layton, American Animals
Best Documentary Evelyn
Breakthrough Producer Jacqui Davies, Ray & Liz
Best British Short The Big Day
Best International Film Roma
BIFA voters definitely liked Ray & Liz (which I've heard good things about) and the crime drama American Animals. And here we have yet another prize for Roma
Best Casting Dixie Chassay, The Favourite
Best Cinematography Robbie Ryan, The Favourite
Best Costume Design Sandy Powell, The Favourite
Best Editing Nick Fenton, Julian Hart, and Chris Gill, American Animals
Best Makeup and Hair Design Nadia Stacey, The Favourite
Best Music Jonny Greenwood, You Were Never Really Here
Best Production Design Fiona Crombie The Favourite
Best Sound Paul Davies, You Were Never Really Here
Best Effects Howard Jones, Early Man
The Favourite nearly swept the craft awards winning everything it was nominated for except Editing and Sound. The only craft categories it wasn't nominated for were Music and Effects.
The Richard Harris Award (Basically Lifetime Achievement) Dame Judi Dench
The Variety Award (Basically a Tribute) Felicity Jones
The Special Jury Prize Horace Ové
ALL IN ALL a nice little boost for The Favourite today after being shut out at the NBR and NYFCC awards and unexpectedly losing the top prize at The Gothams earlier in the week.
Reader Comments (16)
Beast is really good, a tight thriller set-up with deliciously magnetic lead performances. Well worth catching if you get an opportunity.
Oh, and Go The Favourite!
So, I just saw THE FAVOURITE. Loved Weisz, liked Colman, found Stone a complete misfire and was rather ho-hum on the film overall. :/
After the shutout fr NBR n NYFCC, finally sum hardwares!! Hooray for The Favourite!! Colman is such a sweetheart! ♥
All v deserving n kinda expected wins althot I'd thot Phoenix wld take Best Actor. YWNRH is a major contender in BIFA n Phoenix won at Cannes last yr.
Jessie Buckley is also in Wild Rose, a film about a Scottish wannabe country music star that I heard great things about at TIFF but that I couldn't fit into my schedule. I'm eagerly awaiting its US release, which unfortunately is next May.
Olivia Colman is without a doubt the Favorite of the British Independent Film Awards. Four times nominated and four times won.
Best Actress in Leading Role: Tyrannosaur
Best Actress in Supporting Role: Hyde Park on Hudson
Best Actress in Supporting Role: The Lobster
Best Actress in Leading Role: The Favourite
It will be strange if one day they nominate her and she does not win.
The Favourite is one of the best films of the year, with an ending that is both deeply unsettling and in keeping with the pitch blackness of the film overall. All three ladies are sensational, although Stone may have the greater degree of difficulty here. Brava.
Hooray for a different set of winners! The Oscar season is turning out to be more exciting than I thought. Or maybe not. Maybe the other precursors will nominate the same people, but...
I have not seen The Favourite and I can't wait. I have seen all of Lanthimos films so I am excited to see this new one. And wow to Alessandro Nivola! And the love for American Animals!
Roma seems unstoppable at the moment too! Love Jonny Greenwood's work in You Were Never Really Here but I thought Thomas Adès' work in Colette is far more superior, but then again....
I keep hearing conflicting reports on who is better: Weisz or Stone.
I’m thinking Weisz’s British-ness gave her the edge there but Stone’s starpower will give her the edge in the states?
I am thrilled for Nivola! Please, please, please, US awards voters take notice of this win across the ditch!
This is a great interview with Olivia Colman backstage after her win: 'Did I say thank you to Yorgos...I didn't did I?! FUCK!' https://youtu.be/6JlLbOaxslM?t=36
The BIFA seem to have a knack for entertaining acceptance speeches in absentia. A few years ago, when both Brendan and Domhnall Gleeson were nominated for Best Supporting Actor, Brendan won, and Domhnall accepted the award on his behalf. It was hilarious, and I can only urge anyone to look for this video on Youtube. On the same night, Domhnall Gleeson also accepted the Best Actor trophy on behalf of Tom Hardy, and it was almost as funny..
It's curious to me that people savaged the lensing of "The King's Speech" and "Les Mis" (despite the former's nomination) yet "The Favourite" seems to have avoided the criticism despite its similar gratuitous use of fish-eye lenses and severe angles. It didn't quite work for me. Robbie Ryan is genius though.
Can Tachel McAdams in Disobedience be the new thing we’re sad will win no hardware? I found her work in that movie to be even better than Spotlight, but it’s being mostly overlooked
huh -- from my own anecdotal evidence of conversations with people, there is zero consensus on the order of how people prefer the three leads in this. They're all so good! the only solution is an Ensemble prize ;)
So happy for Nivola. His performance (and Disobedience more broadly) really deserves a lot more attention and discussion than it got this year. Also, The Favourite ladies seem to be having so much fun this year.
Olivia Colman has been utterly wonderful at awards ceremonies for years. Here she is winning two TV Baftas in the same night in 2013: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3UILZXmyNI&t=91s
Felicity Jones already earned a tribute? She's been in some good and some popular (and some both) movies but this seems like a weird gesture.