Despite, just last night, the Gotham Awards naming Noah Baumbach’s “Marriage Story” the best film of the year, the National Board of Review has decided that, no, the best film of 2019 is actually Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman.” If you ask me, a much more valid choice than Baumbach’s movie.
The NBR is made up of film enthusiasts, industry professionals, academics, and filmmakers. They are usually the first major group to announce their year-end awards, with the New York Film Critics Circle usually announcing their picks a few days later (this year the NYFCC are announcing on December 4th, which is tomorrow).
Last year, the National Board of Review honored eventual Oscar winner “Green Book” with its top prize. Past NBR winners for Best Film this decade include “Her,” “Zero Dark Thirty,” “The Post,” “Manchester by the Sea,” and “Mad Max: Fury Road.”
Also, very soon we'll be saying “Oscar nominee for Best Actor, Adam Sandler” ...
Top Films (in alphabetical order)
1917
Dolemite is My Name
Ford v Ferrari
Jojo Rabbit
Knives Out
Marriage Story
Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
Richard Jewell
Uncut Gems
Waves
Top 5 Foreign Language Films (in alphabetical order)
Atlantics
Invisible Life
Pain and Glory
Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Transit
Top 5 Documentaries (in alphabetical order)
American Factory
Apollo 11
The Black Godfather
Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese
Wrestle
Top 10 Independent Films (in alphabetical order)
The Farewell
Give Me Liberty
A Hidden Life
Judy
The Last Black Man in San Francisco
Midsommar
The Nightingale
The Peanut Butter Falcon
The Souvenir
Wild Rose
Edward Berger seems to have settled on what comes next. His Lance Armstrong biopic, starring Austin Butler, is now holding casting calls, with production eyed for January.