'Twas a lovely evening that honored a lovely day! Last night, the Chicago Film Critics Association gathered for its annual Awards Dinner, and announced the top honors in seventeen categories honoring cinematic excellence. President Dann Gire passionately addressed the crowd, referring to those in attendance as protectors of arts criticism--protectors, in fact, of a vital art form.
As you'll see in the results below, Mad Max: Fury Road swept the major categories. The CFCA stands with other critical organizations across the country in recognizing writer/director George Miller's under-the-radar technical and narrative grandeur. What could have easily been dismissed as a loud, plot-light nostalgia bomb has become a beacon of artistic possibility--thanks in large part to the articles, blog posts, podcasts, and broadcasts of dogged, articulate watch-dogs who compelled moviegoers with no interest in genre movies to give Mad Max a shot. Then they told two friends, and they told two friends, and...
Anyway, here are the winners and nominees for 2015, as selected by one of the most insightful, welcoming, and downright entertaining group of arts patrons as you're likely to come across. Enjoy!
BEST PICTURE
Carol
Inside Out
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight
BEST DIRECTOR
Todd Haynes--Carol
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu--The Revenant
Tom McCarthy--Spotlight
Adam McKay--The Big Short
George Miller--Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST ACTOR
Christopher Abbott--James White
Leonardo DiCaprio--The Revenant
Michael Fassbender--Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne--The Danish Girl
Jason Segel--The End of the Tour
BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett--Carol
Brie Larson--Room
Charlotte Rampling--45 Years
Saoirse Ronan--Brooklyn
Charlize Theron--Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Benicio Del Toro--Sicario
Sam Elliott--Grandma
Mark Rylance--Bridge of Spies
Michael Shannon--99 Homes
Sylvester Stallone--Creed
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Jennifer Jason Leigh--Anomalisa
Jennifer Jason Leigh--The Hateful Eight
Cynthia Nixon--James White
Kristen Stewart--Clouds of Sils Maria
Alicia Vikander--Ex Machina
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Bridge of Spies--Matt Charman and Joel & Ethan Coen
Ex Machina--Alex Garland
The Hateful Eight--Quentin Tarantino
Inside Out--Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve and Josh Cooley
Spotlight--Tom McCarthy & Josh Singer
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Anomalisa--Charlie Kaufman
The Big Short--Adam McKay & Charles Randolph
Brooklyn--Nick Hornby
Room--Emma Donoghue
Steve Jobs--Aaron Sorkin
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Carol--Edward Lachman
The Hateful Eight--Robert RIchardson
Mad Max: Fury Road--John Seale
The Revenant--Emmanuel Lubezki
Sicario--Roger Deakins
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Carol--Carter Burwell
The Hateful Eight--Ennio Morricone
Inside Out--Michael Giacchino
It Follows--Disasterpeace
Mad Max: Fury Road--Junkie XL
BEST ART DIRECTION/PRODUCTION DESIGN
The Assassin
Brooklyn
Carol
Crimson Peak
Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST EDITING
The Big Short--Hank Corwin
Mad Max: Fury Road--Jason Ballantine & Margaret Sixel
The Martian--Pietro Scalia
The Revenant--Stephen Mirrione
Spotlight--Tom McArdle
BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
The Assassin
The Look of Silence
Phoenix
Son of Saul
White God
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Amy
Cartel Land
The Hunting Ground
The Look of Silence
Where to Invade Next
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Anomalisa
The Good Dinosaur
Inside Out
The Peanuts Movie
The Shaun the Sheep Movie
MOST PROMISING PERFORMER
Christopher Abbott--James White
Bel Powley--The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Geza Rohrig--Son of Saul
Amy Schumer--Trainwreck
Jacob Tremblay--Room
MOST PROMISING FILMMAKER
Alex Garland--Ex Machina
Marielle Heller--The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Josh Mond--James White
Laszlo Nemes--Son of Saul
Bill Pohlad--Love & Mercy
Note: Though I'm sure it would have done well in several categories, Disney did not make Star Wars: The Force Awakens available for Awards Season consideration--hence, its noticeable absence above.
