NYFCC has spoken, Boyhood looks solid in Picture

    Yeah it starts in September, but today we had the first actual awards - the NYFCC. And this year the voters stayed right until the end, so no American Hustle win this time folks! Boyhood ran the show stealing 3 awards including Picture, Director, Sup. Actress (Patricia Arquette). We did have some surprises that always make the season more pleasant and exciting, like Timothy Spall in Best Actor for "Mr. Turner" and Marion Cotillard in Best Actress for "Two Days, One Night" and "The Immigrant".
    One thing that we've learned from today, is that the main concern about Boyhood - will it be remembered and, most of all, campaigned enough - is theoretically false. Theoretically because these are the critics. And Boyhood has a 100 on Metacritic, it is their favorite. False because it showed its great potential and gained crucial momentum, entering the race, as the Globes nominations are being voted on soon. As well as the SAGs and all the other guilds.
    THIS is one of the big weeks. The critics' week. Today NYFCC, wednesday NBR, sunday LAFCC. Whoever wins the most by sunday, cake-walks into the Globes. And they are commercial and unreliable, but sometimes they do choose right, and they are prestigious. They give a helluva boost. You win there, you can be almost sure of an Oscar nomination. ALMOST. Big boost.
   So yes, Boyhood won big today, while its prime competitors Birdman, Selma, The Imitation Game, completely failed, were shut out. However tonight we have the Gotham awards, which will give us at least something to think about ahead of the NBR announcement. For now it looks very well for Linklater & co.
    So let's have a look at the race right now, and then after NBR on wednesday. Under each category I will be putting my NBR predictions.



BEST PICTURE:

1. Boyhood (Richard Linklater)
2. Selma (Ava DuVernay)
3. Birdman (Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu)
4. The Imitation Game (Morten Tyldum)
5. Whiplash (Damien Chazelle)
6. The Theory of Everything (James Marsh)
7. Unbroken (Angelina Jolie)
8. Interstellar (Christopher Nolan)
9. Into the Woods (Rob Marshall)

NBR: Whiplash (2. Birdman; 3. Selma)


BEST DIRECTOR:

1. Richard Linklater (Boyhood)
2. Ava DuVernay (Selma)
3. Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu (Birdman)
4. Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game)
5. Damien Chazelle (Whiplash)

NBR: Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu (2. Richard Linklater; 3. Ava DuVernay)


BEST ACTOR:

1. Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Evrything)
2. Michael Keaton (Birdman)
3. David Oyelowo (Selma)
4. Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game)
5. Steve Carell (Foxcatcher)

NBR: David Oyelowo (2. Michael Keaton; 3. Steve Carell)


BEST ACTRESS:

1. Julianne Moore (Still Alice)
2. Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything)
3. Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl)
4. Reese Witherspoon (Wild)
5. Emily Blunt (Into the Woods)

NBR: Felicity Jones (2. Reese Witherspoon; 3. Julianne Moore)


BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:

1. J.K. Simmons (Whiplash)
2. Edward Norton (Birdman)
3. Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher)
4. Ethan Hawke (Boyhood)
5. Tim Roth (Selma)

NBR: J.K. Simmons (Whiplash)


BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:

1. Patricia Arquette (Boyhood)
2. Meryl Streep (Into the Woods)
3. Emma Stone (Birdman)
4. Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game)
5. Carmen Ejogo (Selma)

NBR: Emma Stone (2. Patricia Arquette 3. Meryl Streep)

BEST CAST ENSEMBLE (NBR):
1. Birdman
2. Boyhood
3. Foxcatcher



BURT MIZAKI