This image released by A24 shows John Magaro in a scene from the movie “First Cow”. The New York Film Critics Circle named Kelly Reichardt’s western fable “First Cow” the best film of 2020 on Friday, December 18, 2020. (Allyson Riggs / A24 via AP)
This image released by A24 shows John Magaro in a scene from the movie “First Cow”. The New York Film Critics Circle named Kelly Reichardt’s Western fable “First Cow” the best film of 2020 on Friday, December 18, 2020. (Allyson Riggs / A24 via AP)
NEW YORK (AP) – The New York Film Critics Circle on Friday named Kelly Reichardt’s western fable “First Cow” the best film of 2020, while also paying special tribute to Spike Lee and arthouse distributor Kino Lorber for their roles in a movie year. deeply marred by the pandemic.
The film critics, meeting virtually, gave their top prize to ‘First Cow’, a delicate tale of friendship and capitalism in the Oregon Territory of the mid-1800s.. Reichardt’s movie, which was released in cinemas in March, just days before COVID-19 forced cinemas to close across the country, isn’t widely seen but remains one of the most acclaimed movies of the year. The Associated Press also named “First Cow” his No. 1 movie.
The critics also awarded awards to ‘Borat Subsequent Movie Film’ co-star Maria Bakalova for Best Supporting Actress, and Chadwick Boseman for Best Supporting Actor, for his final performance in the August Wilson adaptation ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’. Boseman died in August.
Best Actor went to Delroy Lindo for his performance as a Vietnam War veteran in “Da Five Bloods” by Spike Lee. Best Actress was given to Sidney Flanigan who plays a Pennsylvania teen who travels to New York for an abortion in Never Rarely Sometimes Always. Eliza Hittman, who wrote and directed “Never Rarely Sometimes Always”, won the best screenplay. Chloe Zhao, the filmmaker of “Nomadland”, hired the best director.
Spike Lee released two feature films in 2020 – “Da Five Bloods” and “David Byrne’s American Utopia” – but he received a special award for a three-minute short film he released on Instagram: “New York New York”, a short documentary tribute to his hometown, made during the first wave of the pandemic.
The group’s other special mention went to Kino Lorber for creating the virtual cinema service Kino Marquee, which shares proceeds with independent theaters closed by COVID-19. The critics said the honor was a service “intended to support cinemas, not destroy them.”
The New York Film Critics Circle Awards are usually part of a wave of accolades by critics that can occasionally influence the award season. Such awards would typically be a drumbeat this time of year, but there’s little normal about this year’s prize season. The Oscars and Golden Globes, along with many other award ceremonies, were postponed by about two months.
Other NYFCC picks include: “Time” for the Best Non-Fiction Film; “Bacurau” for Best Foreign Language Film; “The Forty-Year-Old Version” for Best First Picture; “Wolfwalkers” for the best animated film; and the five-film anthology “Small Ax” for the best cinematography.