© Focus Features
Despite their name, one shouldn't consider the Critics Choice Awards as an accurate reflection of critical consensus. More often than not, that organization seems singularly fixated on predicting the Oscars to the point it's hard to denote any idiosyncrasies of taste. To get a better grasp of what the critics think, one should regard such surveys as the one Indiewire did with 165 critics and journalists, among them our own Nathaniel Rogers. Though various titles are mentioned across nine lists, one picture stands tall above all the others, signaling a clear favorite from the season. TÁR obliterates the competition, damning them all to hell like the maestro herself, raving like a lunatic with an accordion in hand.
The survey results, plus some commentary, after the jump…
BEST FILM
- TÁR
- Aftersun
- The Banshees of Inisherin
- Everything Everywhere All At Once
- The Fabelmans
- Decision to Leave
- Nope
- RRR
- Top Gun: Maverick
- All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
No surprise here, though it's notable how high Park Chan-wook's murderous romance ranks despite a lackluster performance in critics' awards so far into the season. All things accounted for, this year's selection is much more English-language-inclined than 2021's list, where half of the top 10 was devoted to non-Anglophone cinema. Once again, only one documentary makes it to these high placements.
BEST DIRECTOR
© Focus Features
- Todd Field, TÁR
- The Daniels, Everything Everywhere All At Once
- S.S. Rajamouli, RRR
- Steven Spielberg, The Fabelmans
- Charlotte Wells, Aftersun
- Park Chan-wook, Decision to Leave
- Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin
- Jerzy Skolimowski, EO
- Jordan Peele, Nope
- Alice Diop, Saint Omer
International cinema is better represented in this list, though Todd Field still reigns supreme. I'm ecstatic at any mention of EO, but RRR in the top 3 is also a pleasant surprise. Though this vote should be read beyond the shadow of punditry, one wonders if Rajamouli could make a dent in the awards season. His movie certainly feels popular enough at this point.
BEST PERFORMANCE
© Focus Features
- Cate Blanchett, TÁR
- Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin
- Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All At Once
- Danielle Deadwyler, Till
- Park Ji-Min, Return to Seoul
- Brendan Fraser, The Whale
- Tilda Swinton, The Eternal Daughter
- Paul Mescal, Aftersun
- Mia Goth, Pearl
- TIE: Guslagie Malanda, Saint Omer + Austin Butler, Elvis + Léa Seydoux, One Fine Morning
This is one appreciably offbeat list, combining Oscar contenders with some of the year's most unfairly unheralded work in international cinema and genre pictures. Park above critical darlings like Fraser and Mescal is the most surprising choice. Still, I'd also like to applaud the inclusion of Swinton's doubled performance in Joanna Hogg's latest and Mia Goth's wild grotesquerie in Pearl. It's always lovely when voters remember horror movies also deserve attention.
BEST DOCUMENTARY
© NEON
- All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
- Fire of Love
- Moonage Daydream
- All That Breathes
- Descendant
- Navalny
- Three Minutes: A Lengthening
- The Janes
- Mr. Bachmann and His Class
- TIE: Sr. + We Need to Talk About Cosby
Poitras unsurprisingly tops this list, confirming her status as the documentary queen of 2022 and All the Beauty and the Bloodshed as the most acclaimed non-fiction film. Now wait and see AMPAS snubbing it – one can never be too sure with that branch.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
© MUBI
- Decision to Leave, Kim Ji-yong
- Top Gun: Maverick, Claudio Miranda
- TIE: EO, Michal Dymek + Nope, Hoyte van Hoytema
- The Fabelmans, Janusz Kaminski
- The Banshees of Inisherin, Ben Davis
- Athena, Matias Boucard
- Avatar: The Way of Water, Russell Carpenter
- Bardo: False Chronicles of a Handful of Truths, Darius Khondji
- Ambulance, Roberto De Angelis
I don't care how postcard-pretty the Irish landscape is. Giving Cinematography honors to Ben Davis feels deeply wrong. The man practically invented the greyish-brown CGI-heavy sludge that characterizes the Disney-Marvel industrial complex and which has infected the rest of mainstream cinema. I'm probably being unfair and may change my tone once I actually see Banshees – hope is everlasting. Also, it's faintly shocking that TÁR didn't manage to score a spot in the top 10.
BEST SCREENPLAY
© Focus Features
- TÁR, Todd Field
- The Banshees of Insiherin, Martin McDonagh
- Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Daniels
- Aftersun, Charlotte Wells
- Women Talking, Sarah Polley & Miriam Toews
- The Fabelmans, Steven Spielberg & Tony Kushner
- Crimes of the Future, David Cronenberg
- Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, Rian Johnson
- Saint Omer, Amrita David, Alice Diop & Marie N'Diaye
- TIE: The Eternal Daughter, Joanna Hogg + After Yang, Kogonada
Fear not, TÁRheads, for Miss Linda's fall from grace is back on top.
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
© MUBI
- Decision to Leave
- RRR
- EO
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- No Bears
- The Banshees of Inisherin
- Saint Omer
- Happening
- Hit the Road
- Benediction
The inclusion of international English-language fare is fascinating because it doesn't correlate with the main Best Film list. So should those titles be eligible for this list? Regardless, I'm happy that Benediction, my #1 2022 film, got some love.
BEST FIRST FEATURE
© A24
- Aftersun
- Saint Omer
- Turning Red
- Nanny
- Murina
- Hit the Road
- Emily the Criminal
- We're All Going to the World's Fair
- The Inspection
- Three Minutes: A Lengthening
Considering that Aftersun seems bound to win every First Feature award out there, this list is a nice reminder that more directorial debuts are worthy of admiration this year. On another note, since this list includes documentaries – see Three Minutes: A Lengthening – why is Saint Omer considered Alice Diop's first feature? It may be her first narrative project, but it's the director's fourth feature overall. The way these types of lists regularly disrespect non-fiction filmmaking is a personal vexation of mine.
BEST FILMS OPENING IN 2023
© A24
- Showing Up
- Godland
- Close
- De Humani Corporis Fabrica
- Pacification
Though Close is listed here, A24 includes it on its FYC page, meaning it probably got a qualifying release for awards season eligibility. It's interesting to note how four of 2021's honorees featured in this vote, but none of them got into Best Film. They are Benediction, Hit the Road, Happening, and We're All Going to the World's Fair.
Visit Indiewire for the original article and more information on this survey. You can also check out the complete list of all critics who voted.