“First Cow” Named Best Film of 2020 By New York Film Critics Circle

The New York Film Critics Circle (NYFCC), one of the most important critics groups in the country, are currently announcing their 2020 winners. In 2019, Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” was voted best film of the year. See the full winners list below:

Best Picture: “First Cow”

Oh, boy. As much as I find the middle section of Kelly Reichardt’s film to be incredibly strong, something tells me we won’t really be talking much about it in the years to come. It’s very well directed, acted, edited, and shot, but I can name a handful of better movies this year that far surpass “First Cow” (you’ll get the full list when I publish my top 10 of 2020 next week). I attended its world premiere at the New York Film Festival last year, and there was never the vibe that this would transcend beyond its minimalist trappings and into an awards contender. Regardless, congrats to Ms. Reichardt, a maverick filmmaker if there ever was one these days.

Best Director: Chloe Zhao, “Nomadland”

Best Screenplay: Eliza Hittman, “Never Rarely Sometimes Always”

No complaints on my part. A top-notch screenwriting tour-de-force. Other worthy competitors would have been Christopher Hampton & Florian Zeller’s work on “The Father” and the Jonathan Raymond/Kelly Reichardt partnership for “First Cow.”

Best Actress: Sidney Flanigan, “Never Rarely Sometimes Always”

I’m a big NRSA fan, Sidney Flanigan was impeccable in the role, but Vanessa Kirby delivered the best performance, male or female, of the entire year.

Best Actor: Delroy Lindo, “Da 5 Bloods”

No, no, and no. This is a horrible choice, but one that will likely lead him to a Best Actor Oscar nomination. I absolutely love Lindo’s past work, however, his performance in this film was damn-near hammy. Give me Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal) or Anthony Hopkins (The Father) over Lindo any day of the week.

Best Supporting Actress: Maria Bakalova, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”

Sure, why not. Bakalova kinda stole the show from Sacha Baron Cohen in this movie. The fact that there haven’t been many indisputably great female performances this year surely helped. Come to think of it, I believe I voted for Bakalova in my BOFCA ballot, with Mangrove’s Letitia Wright as my runner-up.

Best Supporting Actor: Chadwick Boseman, “Da 5 Bloods”

You’ve gotta be kidding me. Know who deserved this way more? Sound of Metal’s Paul Raci. Hell, Bill Murray (On the Rocks), David Strathairn (Nomadland), Mark Rylance (Trial of the Chicago 7). Just to name a few. Boseman winning for Da 5 Bloods is the biggest travesty so far this awards season. The only reason I can think of for NYFCC giving this category is due to them knowing that he’s not going to win Actor.

Best Cinematography: “Small Axe” (All Films)

Best Non-Fiction Film: “Time”

Do I really have to get into this film again? “Time” wants you to feel bad for a man who committed armed robbery. He was also given a plea deal of 12 years, but refused it! His excuse for committing the crime? He was desperate because he really wanted his hip-hop clothing business to succeed. There was a slew of great documentaries released this year (Blood Nose Empty Pockets, American Utopia, Truffle Hunters, Born to Be), but this isn’t one of them.

Best Foreign Language Film: “Bacurau”

Great film. Not too far behind, “Young Ahmed,” “Incitement,” “Beanpole.” This has been a very bad year for foreign films, mostly due to there being no Cannes Film Festival. That’s the game-changer for world cinema to flourish and have a few standouts play like gangbusters in the States.

Best Animated Feature: “Wolfwalkers”

Best First Film: “The 40-Year-Old Version”