Sunday, January 4, 2009

Awards Watch: National Critics Go for a Waltz

Following the holiday break, the award season kicked back into gear today with the announcement of the National Society of Film Critics Awards. And, like the Los Angeles critics (who named WALL-E), the NSFC unexpectedly picked an animated feature — Waltz with Bashir — as the best of the year.

Milk's Sean Penn wracked up another trophy, while Hanna Schygulla won Best Supporting Actress for her performance in The Edge of Heaven. Otherwise, it was all about Mike Leigh's Happy-Go-Lucky, which swept the remaining major awards, including two for Leigh himself for writing and directing. Fresh off her Dearie Award, Sally Hawkins and her onscreen nemesis Eddie Marsan rounded out the acting awards.

For a complete run-down of all the awards, including second and third place selections, visit Awards Daily.