2013 Oscar Posters

This year there are two Oscar official posters, one to celebrate current edition and the other to celebrate 85th Oscar anniversary.

The Official poster of the 85th Oscars features a new representation of the iconic Oscar statuette. The "light Oscar" is based on Gjon Mili's 1949 Life magazine photographs of Pablo Picasso and for the first time ever, poster includes the titles of all the nominated films.  Great poster but really dislike the ad at the bottom, maybe later a photo without the ad will appear, sigh.

English artist, graphic designer and illustrator Olly Moss in collaboration with Gallery 1988, designed the 85th Special Edition poster featuring 85 Oscar statuettes, each one distinctly inspired by Best Picture winners from 1927 through 2012. If you wish to see larger photos of each Oscar statuette in poster go to the Gallery found here.

The Posters

27th Annual American Society of Cinematographers Award Winner

Last night in an award ceremony that had Angelina Jolie presenting to Dean Semler the Lifetime Achievement Award plus director Steve McQueen and Natassja Kinski presenting the International Award to Robby Müller, Roger Deakings became the winner of this year top ASC honor for Skyfall.

A few hours before BAFTA gave the cinematography award to Claudio Miranda's Life of Pi which makes a lot more sense; so now I'm assuming that the Oscar race has to be between these two, as stats say that five of the last 10 previous ASC winners have gone to win the Oscar in the category. This means a 50/50 chance for Skyfall but we have to also consider that Deakings has been nominated for 10 Oscars without winning one so maybe the dry spell is broken this year.

Winner is in *BLUE.  To learn television categories use links below, but winners are not yet at official site.

1/9/13
A few minutes ago news about the ASC nominations started to circulate even when the official announcement is not yet at the official site, but surely will be here soon. Most impressive is to notice that today’s BAFTA nominations for cinematography are exactly the same to those that ASC nominated; so indeed there are high chances that category could be the same at Oscar nods. Awards ceremony will be on February 10.

These are the nominees for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography.

Danny Cohen for Les Misérables
*Roger Deakings for Skyfall
Janusz Kamiski for Lincoln
Seamus McGarvey for Anna Karenina
Claudio Miranda for Life of Pi

To check nominees in television categories –announced last December- go here.

25th Annual Scripter Award Winner

From news we learn that the winner this year is none other than the script of Argo. Announcement is not yet at official site but will be soon.  Winner is in *BLUE.

Believe that the author of the article, Joshuah Bearman, truly deserves the award as his article is outstanding for the story and the way is written; but as said before, in my opinion article was superior to the the script that could have had lots of improvement to make movie more memorable.

The award is voted by 41 critics, screenwriters and film professionals; now the question is whether Argo is heading to get honored again at the Writers Guild next week, if movie adapted screenplay repeats the win then we will have a better guess for the category in our Oscar predictions.

Another award given at the ceremony is USC Libraries Literary Achievement Award to Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana for significant, sustained contributions to the art of adaptation throughout their careers. Perhaps honorees most recognizable adaptation is the one they did for Brokeback Mountain but there are more like Hud, The Last Picture Show, Terms of Endearment, etc.; the writing partners have won 13 Oscars over the years.

1/26/13
On January 15 USC Libraries announced the finalists for this year edition and to remain us all, the Scripter Award honors the screenwriter or screenwriters of the year’s most accomplished cinematic adaptation as well as the author of the written work upon which the screenplay is based.

These are the finalists.

*Joshuah Bearman, author of the article “The Great Escape,” Antonio J. Mendez, author of The Master of Disguise, and screenwriter Chris Terrio, for Argo
For Beasts of the Southern Wild, dramatist Lucy Alibar, who wrote the play Juicy and Delicious, and screenwriter Benh Zeitlin, who co-wrote the screenplay with Alibar
Novelist Yann Martel and screenwriter David Magee for Life of Pi
Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, and screenwriter Tony Kushner for Lincoln
Stephen Chbosky, author of the novel Perks of Being a Wallflower, as well as the screenplay based upon the book
For Silver Linings Playbook, author Matthew Quick and screenwriter David O. Russell

This year marks the award's 25th anniversary and the ceremony will be on Saturday, February 9 and seems there will be a webcast at the official site. To read the official press release go here.

11th Annual Visual Effects Society Winners

Last night the winners were announced with Life of Pi and Brave collecting the most awards, four each. Winners are in *BLUE.

Ang Lee was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award as well as with his film winning in four of the five categories were was nominated and in Lee's speech we find the best words to describe what is happening with this category:

"What all of you here are doing is not visual effects, it is visual art"

His words are most true in his extraordinary Life of Pi, a true feast to the eyes; I'm looking forward to what great directors will do in serious films as foresee extraordinary visual effects will come in the kind of movies we all have learned to love, the movies that had no use of visual effects in their storytelling and now the door has been opened.

To check winners in non-film categories go to official site.

1/8/13
Yesterday VES announced their nominations in 24 categories of film, animation, television, commercials and video games. Awards ceremony will be on Tuesday, February 5 and as previously announced, Ang Lee will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award,

These are the nominations for film.
Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit
Prometheus
*Life of Pi
The Avengers
Battleship

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Feature Motion Picture
Rust and Bones
*The Impossible
Argo
Flight
Zero Dark Thirty

Outstanding Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture
*Brave
ParaNorman
Rise of the Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph
Hotel Transylvania

Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: Goblin King
The Hobbit: Gollum
The Avengers: The Hulk
*Life of Pi: Richard Parker

Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Feature Motion Picture
*Brave: Merida
Hotel Transylvania: Dracula
Wreck-It Ralph: Vanellope
The Pirates: Band of Misfits

Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: Goblin Caverns
Prometheus: LV-223
*The Avengers: Midtown Manhattan
Life of Pi: Open Ocean

Outstanding Created Enviroment in an Animated Feature Motion Picture
*Brave: The Forest
ParaNorman: Graveyard
ParaNorman: Main Street
Rise of the Guardians: North Pole

Outstanding Virtual Cinematography in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture
*The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
The Avengers: Downtown Manhattan
Total Recall: Hover Car Chase
The Amazing Spider Man

Outstanding Models in a Feature Motion Picture
*The Avengers: Helicarrier
The Impossible: Orchid Hotel
Men in Black 3: Cape Canaveral/Apollo Launch
The Dark Night Rises: Airplane Heist

Outstanding FX and Simulation Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture
*Brave
ParaNorman: Practical Volumetrics
ParaNorman: Angry Aggie Ink-Blot Electricity
Rise of the Guardians: Last Stand

Outstanding FX and Simulation Animation in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
*Life of Pi: Storm of God
Battleship
Life of Pi: Ocean

Outstanding Compositing in a Feature Motion Picture
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
*Life of Pi: Storm of God
The Avengers: Hulk Punch
Prometheus: Engineers & the Orrey

Believe that this is the natural category for The Hobbit but have to admit that Life of Pi is really fascinating in all the effects; very glad that Rust and Bone is recognized with a nod and believe that most of the nominated films excel in the use of visual effects. Not easy decisions for voters.

To check nominees in non-film categories go here.

Oscar Class of 2013

Yesterday the Academy honored Oscar nominees with traditional awards Luncheon and here, for fun, the full class photo plus more.

Part 2 - 2013 Oscar Nominations- A Late Analysis plus My Awards

Let's continue with other categories. If you wish to read part 1 please go here.

Actress in a Supporting Role

As in this category there is a new movie let me talk about The Sessions by Ben Lewin. It is a good movie with a nice entertaining human story that could touch you beyond what you could image thanks to outstanding performances by leading actors Helen Hunt and John Hawkes. Hawkes will get his nod if he continues to work in good movies, unfortunately this year he did not and he truly deserved one in the Best Actor category. Helen Hunt is nominated as a Supporting actress, but she the leading female character and she is as good as always. If you have not seen this indie I strongly suggest you watch it as you will enjoy it.

No doubt that Helen Hunt deserves another Oscar but will not be with this movie as the category has as favorite one actress that delivered a short but remarkable performance. I say short as truly what's really impressive is when Anne Hathaway sings one song in Les Misérables, I Dreamed a Dream; the rest of her screen time is not remarkable. Another actress that has possibilities is Sally Field as she not only has more time in the screen than Hathaway but the way she deliver very smart lines is just fantastic. Lincoln has several great performances by great actors and Sally Field is one of them. If there was a race in this category definitively had to be between Hathaway and Field.

Not easy to understand why Jacki Weaver got a nomination for this role. Please understand that I do believe she is a very good actress but her little inconsequential screen time in Silver Linings Playbook is not really noticeable, especially when Robert De Niro, Jennifer Lawrence and/or Bradley Cooper are in the same scene, which is always. Much the same happens with Amy Adams as she has most scenes with outstanding Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman, but she has a few close ups that clearly show how a great actress she is. I believe her 4th Oscar nomination thanks to The Master is very well-deserved.

When I compare in my head all the nominees definitely the one that has enough time to show how good she can be is Helen Hunt. The other four are eclipsed by performances by other more lead actors/actresses, so is not easy to select one that shines above the others, except for Hunt. Still, Hathaway can shine in the few minutes of screen time while singing one song.

... and My Award goes to Anne Hathaway in Les Misérables. Short in time but will stay with you, besides she was the one that sung the most memorable song in the Broadway musical and film plus she did it while giving a great performance. Even if words had not come out of her mouth, you could tell what her character was feeling.

Actor in a Supporting Role

I was really impressed by Robert De Niro performance as he made me believe his character, especially when considering that lately his performances in comedies look like caricatures and not "real-exaggerated" people. Alan Arkin was invisible for me as in my opinion John Goodman's performance/character was more remarkable and most scenes had them both together in the screen. The other three had extraordinary performances but only Tommy Lee Jones had a supporting role as Philip Seymour Hoffman and Christoph Waltz roles were leading and not supporting plus both had many extraordinary scenes where we are able to see how good they are.

So if I have to be strict, De Niro and Jones should be racing for this award as both had true supporting roles; choosing between Philip Seymour Hoffman and Christoph Waltz is not easy for me, but thinking about the type of movie they are in have to chose Hoffman. This brings me to think that the race probably will be between De Niro, Jones and Hoffman; any can win.

... and My Award goes to Philip Seymour Hoffman in The Master. I know his role is not supporting but he is truly mesmerizing and the many scenes with Joaquin Phoenix are glorious exchange of words, body language and eye contact.

Original Screenplay

This is the hardest category where I have to "forget" about Amour as NO matter what I try to find in the other scripts, the best of all five nominees is Amour by far and I'm being very objective.

Zero Dark Thirty is my best American movie from 2012 but can't say that the movie screenplay is what made this movie so great as believe script had much to do with all the controversies and to me this means weakness, not greatness. Quentin Tarantino is fantastic writing scripts but Django Unchained according to me is not one of his best. Flight has a good story but is Denzel performance plus the visual effects what makes movie good. The story in Moonrise Kingdom is good dark funny and no doubt that was a main ingredient in making movie good to watch. If have to chose from only the four, without Amour, then Moonrise Kingdom is the best; but reality tells me that Amour is the best Original Screenplay and if one award Amour really deserves is this one and maybe will get it.

... and My Award goes to Michael Haneke for Amour. No other nominated screenplay has the strength of this story and storytelling, one that moves viewers emotions in very intense and opposite ways.

Adapted Screenplay

I have read only two original documents that were adapted for the screen, Argo and Life of Pi. In Argo found article a lot more interesting than film, so believe script could have had many improvements. Found Life of Pi book similar to movie, as a matter of fact was the movie, amazing.

Considering only film story and storytelling Silver Linings Playbook and Lincoln are both good and definitively I didn't like anything related to story/storytelling in Beasts of the Southern Wild. If Silver Linings Playbook could win an Oscar this will be one of the easiest and perhaps well-deserved, but the two that I believe are in the race are Lincoln and Life of Pi.

... and My Award goes to David Magee for Life of Pi. Great adaptation of a complex novel that leaves viewers to believe whatever they want and of course, what they chose to believe is a reflection of themselves.

Cinematography

Let's go to the point, the best cinematography of all nominated is in Life of Pi even when most compositions are visual effects. Anna Karerina was unwatchable for me and cinematography did not help me to imagine the "real thing" as all I was seeing was what they were showing.

Skyfall has good cinematography but nothing special for this type of film that requires good cinematography. Besides Life of Pi, Lincoln is the movie with great cinematography, great compositions and some good visuals; the race could be between these two movies.

... and My Award goes to Janusz Kamiski for Lincoln. Even if Life of Pi cinematography is good, due to the many special effects and because I'm still kind of old school , Kamiski prevails among all nominees with his chiarooscuro's, some very good use of light and darkness.

Film Editing

The race has to be between Argo and Zero Dark Thirty as editing absolutely was a key element in making the final product; but all five nominees without good editing would have been a mess, as each story has weaknesses that editing diminished quite good. So this is not an easy category and wont bore you with tech analysis, so let's say than in the first sentence I mentioned my best guess.

... and My Award goes to Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg for Zero Dark Thirty. Editing was key with this film and just imagine the huge amount of footage they had to work with to help create such a fantastic tense movie. The end product is remarkable.

Visual Effects

Do not want to get into trouble here but in my opinion the best visuals effects of all nominees are in Life of Pi that has created something new in this tech spec, something that will help storytelling beyond imagination and it is far away to the kind of common visual effects we usually see in movies like The Hobbit, The Avengers, Prometheus and Snow White and the Huntsman. To me this change is not like what Avatar did, is like what the first The Matrix did to change visual effects forever. Perhaps some of you recall what The Matrix did to change everything, that was nominated in four tech Oscar categories and that won all four.

... and My Award goes to Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer and Donald R. Elliott for Life of Pi. After this movie there are so many new possibilities for visual effects, especially in more serious less-blockbuster films.

So, will skip the rest of the categories and end post here as next will publish my predictions maybe for all categories. You already know what I think about the five nominees in the Foreign Language category as each has a post and there is no need to say that Amour HAS to win this category and if it doesn't will be a major upset, controversy and as I say every year: my Oscar credibility will go down the drain just as happened when Mungiu's first opus was not nominated.

Cheers!!!

Part 1 - 2013 Oscar Nominations - A Late Analysis plus My Awards

Been writing this post since the date the nods were announced but was traveling and became impossible to finish it, until today. But as always happens, what wrote before today was dramatically changed as now have more information to include in the analysis, which I believe is good.

We tend to forget that when playing the Oscar game we have to be objective -meaning: do not center on what you like and/or according to you deserves to win. I will try to be objective in the analysis but will also include my very subjective part as will share with you what I think of each movie plus MY Awards.

To be really objective I have to "forget" that Amour is nominated in more categories than Foreign Language as you know how strongly I feel for this movie and Michael Haneke. My biggest wish is film to transcend the "niche" into the top awards and exactly that is what will keep me watching the Oscar show on February 24th. With so many strange things happening this year, Amour winning all categories where is nominated will be the BEST strangest thing that could happen and IF happens already have a champagne bottle ready to celebrate!

So, this is a a brief review/analysis of every other movie, mostly American productions.

Let's start with the 8 other films nominated in the Best Film Category.

Argo
It is a good mainstream entertaining film, similar but not better than other films Ben Affleck directed. Film story is interesting but not memorable; still motivated me to read the full article that inspired the movie and found it outstandingly good, a lot better than the movie. Believe all honors film/director is collecting in America celebrate more his body of work than this film specifically as was time Affleck was recognized as a good American director, a lot better than what he is when performing as an actor.

After last night Directors Guild award today's news proliferate with many forecasting that Argo could win Best Picture, and IF wins seems will be the third film to win without the director being nominated.

Beasts of the Southern Wild
To understand why I hated movie please read movie post. Was not surprised got a nod as in early awards season film was a favorite but when critics awards came went into deep silence only to wake up with SAG nominations. Trying to be objective, actors performances, director and tech specs are not that bad (hated the story and "raw reality") so festivals and industry had to honor movie as they have done.

Django Unchained
Liked movie a lot more than what I expected, laughed hard at many moments and even spontaneously clapped with Franco Nero scene dialogue! (I was a huge Franco Nero fan for all his Spaghetti Westerns, including the original Django). But is a "heavy" movie that shows what now is considered in America as "not politically correct"; still, is nothing new if you are familiar with America's history. What many forget is that this is a Quentin Tarantino film and is as "irreverent" as all his movies; most surprising found film to be less graphically violent than previous films, so maybe due to story he contained himself with his usual very graphic violence. Suggest you watch movie no matter what you heard about story and IF you like Tarantino films. Good was nominated but believe is not Oscar winner material.

Les Misérables
As suspected I was not going to enjoy much this movie as don't really enjoy only song lyrics conducting the narrative. Have seen the Broadway musical and highly enjoyed the great singing; that is exactly what film lacks: great singing. Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman sing very acceptable and perhaps shine more because their face and body performance while singing; Russell Crowe is really bad singing, as well as other secondary roles, while some not-known secondary actors and all extras are remarkably good singers. For me film is no Oscar material, but due to the Broadway musical high success, film's epic storytelling style and one remarkable performance, I'm not surprised got some nominations and will get some Oscar love.

Life of Pi
Highly impressed with film and story; so much that read book while traveling. Outstanding visual effects that highly deserve many honors. Ang Lee was REALLY able to make the "impossible to film" story into a very entertaining, visually awesome and epic film. Talk about spending time in the vast sea, here 227 days feel so light while in Kon Tiki half feels tiresome. Strongly suggest you watch if you have not yet and preferably in real 3D to appreciate more the visual effects. Avatar was full of outstanding tech specs plus visual effects and could NOT win Best Picture (got 3 tech Oscars), so imagine that Life of Pi will run with similar luck among Oscar voters.

Lincoln
Great performances in this movie that surprisingly kept my interest and full attention during the 150 minutes. Know that many find it "boring" perhaps because is a "talkie" and a history lesson; but while knew much about that specific American history moment, I was impressed to be reminded that Lincoln was a Republican! Gosh, things have really changed for this political party. It is a good epic movie, perhaps the best not-so-mainstream movie that Steven Spielberg has ever done. Still believe that is a strong Best Picture contender plus race is between this movie and Argo.

Silver Linings Playbook
Enjoyed movie a lot more than I ever imagined as is an entertaining romantic comedy (not drama or dramedy but a romcom) that shines with great performances. Believe film could become a classic romcom as find movie style very similar to classic romcoms like When Harry Met Sally (1 Oscar nod) and Moonstruck (3 Oscars), so believe could get some Oscar love, but will not be Best Picture unless voters softened to give award to a romantic comedy.

Zero Dark Thirty
Amazing movie that kept me in full tension while watching, just as it happens when I watch TV show Homeland. The comparison is on absolute purpose as not only both are fiction/inspired on reality, but while the second is highly praised, ZD30 became the object of negative media buzz even when both deal with similar stories, which I find extremely unfair and subjective. Film is about the ride and not the known destination, but most of all is the story of a woman's tenacity and successful prevail in a man's world and is this story I find simply outstanding. But Kathryn Bigelow's storytelling style is what makes the ride incredibly tense. It's a great movie telling a hard-to-watch story with extraordinary Oscar worthy performance by Jessica Chastain that with deadpan face,  mostly expressionless body and very tiny eyes-expressions tell more than what words could say. Fantastic performance by Chastain, very similar to what in European cinema is common and highly celebrated.

... and My Award goes to Zero Dark Thirty. I know all the negative publicity has diminished its Oscar chances BUT for me, is the BEST of the 8 nominated films and yes, I'm excluding Amour. As a matter of fact is the BEST American movie I saw during 2012 and one that will stay in my mind for a long time, as an excellent example of what great American filmmakers can do. Wish they could do it more often.

Directing

It is hard to consider that the best American movie I saw during 2012 did not translate into an Oscar nomination for Kathryn Bigelow; her snub is one that makes no sense especially when you consider that she had the most critics' wins. Movie went into wide release in January 11 and as of Feb 1st Box Office Mojo has an estimate of US$ 74.1 million domestic (US$7.7 million foreign), so believe that is Kathryn Bigelow's best revenge for her snub, lots of viewers have and will see her great work.

As Kathryn Bigelow already has a "milestone" Oscar, no surprise that the other snubbed director, Ben Affleck, is collecting most season awards. Affleck came close second in the critics' tally wins and film/director has been collecting major Guild awards. His movie has collected more than US$100 million in the 115 days that has had wide release but movie nomination while giving him a bump did NOT made it rank 1st with Best Picture Nomination effect as that position belongs to ZD30. But a nod in this category for me will have meant more an honor for his good career as a director than because only what he did in Argo.

So, after venting about the snubs, the great joy came when Michael Haneke got a nomination and as I have to avoid talking about "that" let's review the other four nominees.

In my opinion Steven Spielberg and Ang Lee got well-deserved nominations as their films are good and epic; David O. Russell nod is surprising if you NOT consider the huge influence and Oscar marketing efforts by Weinstein Bros, but it is a fact and believe without them, Russell would not have gotten a nod as this and Benh Zeitlin nods should have been for Bigelow, Affleck or Quentin Tarantino. Even Tom Hooper did a better job directing than those two nominees, not to mention some directors of extraordinary documentaries.

... and My Award goes to Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty. When creating viewer intense emotions and tension in war-related movies, a genre that used to belong to male directors, there is NO ONE like her. Of course I left out Michael Haneke!

Actress in a Leading Role

I'm really following Jennifer Lawrence career since Winter's Bone and believe she is a great actress; her second Oscar nomination is well-deserved and have no doubt that Jessica Chastain impressive career had to take her to her first Best Actress nomination -her first Oscar nod was for Supporting role-, both are great actresses with a great future if they continue to do great movies. I believe Oscar race in this category is between them and the only thing that could damage either one of them winning chances is that voters could split votes among them allowing a third actress to rise as a winner.

As Lawrence and Chastain have similar credentials it is very easy to guess that AMPAS voters -due to average age- could split votes among them and then there is a possibility that Emmanuelle Riva wins as the other two nominees do not have the clout to raise above Riva. Consider Quvenzhané Wallis nod well-deserved but not so Naomi Watts as she was NOT good in The Impossible, her average performance allowed young Tom Holland to steal the complete movie. This slot should have belonged to Marion Cotillard, Rachel Weiz, Helen Hunt, Emayatzy Corinealdi, and many more actresses that had great performances in American movies during 2012, all above Watts average performance.

... and My Award goes to Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty. She really delivered a magnificent European style performance, amazing. Of course, I left out Emmanuelle Riva.

Actor in a Leading Role

According to me only Daniel Day-Lewis, Joaquin Phoenix and Denzel Washington truly deserve the nominations as each of them were outstanding in Lincoln, The Master and Flight. Bradley Cooper and Hugh Jackman are good but not great and slots should have been occupied by Jean Louis Trintignant (Amour), John Hawkes (The Sessions), and/or even Denis Lavant (Holy Motors). Also Christoph Waltz has no supporting role in Django Unchained, he is the leading role and when he dies you really miss him in the screen as he is the reason why Jamie Foxx shines above what he has done before -including his Oscar winning role.

... and My Award goes to Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln. He really knows how to chose a role as most of his performances are always Oscar worthy ones; in Lincoln he absolutely shines and fills the screen with his amazing artistry.. He has to and will win his third Best Actor Oscar (a record) and if he does not, will be a major controversy.

So that's it for today, Part 2 will follow with other categories.  To continue reading Part 2 please go here.

65th Directors Guild of America Awards Winners

As expected by me, Ben Affleck got the Guild's top award and now the "heat" for him not being nominated at Oscar has risen to the maximum level. If him and his film has been honored in many industry awards, I really wonder what happened with AMPAS members; probably we will never know for sure but it is very strange when many -especially Guilds- honor him and he was unable to get enough votes to get an Oscar nomination.

Really glad that Searching for Sugar Man and Malik Bendjelloul are winning "everything" -well, almost all documentary awards in festivals and seasonal awards- as will not get tired of saying that is the best documentary I have seen "ever" (up to this year).

Winners are in *BLUE. To check winners in non-film categories go here.

1/8/13
A few minutes ago the DGA announced the five nominees for current edition of the guild awards and on Saturday, February 2 at the Ray Dolby Ballroom will be the awards ceremony that will include honoring documentary films which will be announced on January 14 –will modify post to include these nominations-.

DGA President Taylor Hackford commented: "DGA members have chosen an incredibly rich and varied group of filmmakers to nominate for this year's Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film Award. These directors represent the highest standard of filmmaking, and their films are a testament to artistic achievement, innovative storytelling and the passion that filmmakers share with their audiences. Being nominated by their peers is what makes this award particularly meaningful for directors, and I congratulate all of the nominees for their outstanding work."

Feature Film Award
*Ben Affleck for Argo
Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Tom Hooper for Les Misérables
Ang Lee for Life of Pi
Steven Spielberg for Lincoln

Documentary Award
*Malik Bendjelloul for Seaching For Sugar Man
Kirby Dick for The Invisible
David France for How To Survive A Plague
Lauren Greenfield for The Queen of Versailles
Alison Klayman for Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry

In the past ten years the Oscar and DGA’s nominees have coincided only twice, so can assume that what the approx. 14,500 guild members chose could be different than what total Academy members that vote for Oscar nominations could select. Most are speculating that Tom Hooper will not make it to Oscar but now I’m wondering if Steven Spielberg will get a nod. The two Anderson’s (Paul and Wes) were snubbed from these awards and now is questionable if they will get a nod. Most notable are the absence of movies from TWC. Anyway next Thursday we will learn what will happen with Oscar and how similar nods are to above ones.

To read nominees in the Directorial Team go here. On other news, Milos Forman will receive the DGA Lifetime Achievement Award and Michael Apted the Aldrich Award. Television nominees will be announced on January 9 and you can use above link to check them on or after that date.

17th Annual Art Directors Guild Awards Winners

Last night winners announced at the awards ceremony in *BLUE. To learn Television and other categories winners use link at post bottom, there are some surprises for me.

From winners there are only two films in the Oscar category, so we can assume that Guild members that also are AMPAS members will split vote among these two: Anna Karenina and Life of Pi. As have seen both movies my personal opinion is that Production Design is a lot better in Life of Pi; but recognize that Anna Karerina has a very original production design, so original that made film unwatchable for me. Sigh.

1/3/13
The Art Directors Guild (ADG) today announced nominations in nine categories of Production Design for theatrical motion pictures, television, commercials and music videos competing in the ADG’s 17th Annual Excellence in Production Design Awards. The nominations were announced by ADG Council Chair John Shaffner and Awards co-producers Greg Grande and Raf Lydon. Deadline for final voting, which is done online, is January 31.

The ADG represents nearly 2,000 members who work throughout the United States, Canada and the rest of the world in film, television and theater as Production Designers, Art Directors, and Assistant Art Directors; Scenic, Title and Graphic Artists; Illustrators and Matte Artists; and Set Designers and Model Makers. Members will now have to vote to define winners and the awards ceremony will take place Saturday, February 2, 2013, from the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills with Paula Poundstone serving as host for the fourth consecutive year.

These are the nominations for Feature Film

Period Film
*Sarah Greenwood for Anna Karenina
Sharon Seymour for Argo
J. Michael Riva for Django Unchained
Eve Stewart for Les Misérables
Rick Carter for Lincoln

Fantasy Film
Uli Hanisch and Hugh Bateup for Cloud Atlas
*David Gropman for Life of Pi
Arthur Max for Prometheus
Nathan Crowley and Kevin Kavanaugh for The Dark Night Rises
Dan Hannah for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Contemporary Film
Nelson Coates for Flight
*Dennis Gassner for Skyfall
Alan MacDonald for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Eugenio Caballero for The Impossible
Jeremy Hindle for Zero Dark Thirty

To learn nominees in television, commercials and music videos go here. Nominations show us a great variety of films that could get an Oscar nomination in this category; but up to this moment Anna Karenina, Les Misérables, Lincoln and The Hobbit are the ones with more buzz along with another film that got no nod from this guild, The Master.

19th Screen Actors Guild Awards Winners

Last night the guild had their award ceremony and to be honest was not much entertaining and waiting for top film awards was impossible for me as went to sleep like a baby while the television awards were given. Still today was able to watch videos of the awards I missed.

The show opened with film supporting roles with the first award going to Tommy Lee Jones in Lincoln which was very unexpected and now opens Oscar supporting actor race even more plus makes guessing winner harder. Many were already speculating that Lincoln was the top contender to win Oscar Best Picture but with tonight's results is obvious that Argo is still a top contender; for me race is still between Argo and Lincoln.

Believe that with this win Daniel Day-Lewis secured his third Oscar which probably will be a record for the stats book. It is a safe bet to say that Anne Hathaway will win an Oscar in the supporting actress category and still believe that Best Actress race is open with Jennifer Lawrence and Jessica Chastain competing for the award.

Can't help but to comment that in the television categories there were some surprises, like great Downton Abbey beating Homeland and Bryan Cranston beating Damian Lewis, so if you wish to check winners go here.

Winners are in *BLUE.

12/12/12
The first industry group to announce their nominations will give us an idea of how close or far away critics' are from those that actually vote for the Academy Awards and represent the largest group in all guilds, so their vote matters.

Award ceremony will be on Sunday, January 27, 2013 and will be simulcast live from Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Centre on TNT and TBS starting at 8pm EST.

These are the nominees announced by Busy Philipps and Taye Diggs a few minutes ago.

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
*Argo (Ben Affleck, Alan Arkin, Kerry Biche, Kyle Chandler, Rory Cochrane, Bryan Cranston, Christopher Denham, Tate Donovan, Clea Duvall, Victor Garber, John Goodman, Scoot McNairy, Chris Messina)
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (Judi dench, Celia Imrie, Bill Nighy, Dev Patel, Ronald Pickup, Maggie Smith, Tom Wilkinson, Penelope Wilton)
Les Misérables (Isabelle Allen, Samantha Barks, Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Daniel Huttlestone, Hugh Jackman, Eddie Redmayne, Amanda Seyfried, Aaron Tveit, Colm Wilkinson)
Lincoln (Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Hal Holbrook, Tommy Lee Jones, James Spader, David Strathairn)
Silver Linings Playbook (Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Anupam Kher, Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Tucker, Jacki Weaver)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Marion Cotillard in Rust and Bone
*Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Helen Mirren in Hitchcock
Naomi Watts in The Impossible

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Sally Field in Lincoln
*Anne Hathaway in Les Misérables
Helen Hunt in The Sessions
Nicole Kidman in The Paperboy
Maggie Smith in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook
*Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
John Hawkes in The Sessions
Hugh Jackman in Les Misérables
Denzel Washington in Flight

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Alan Arkin in Argo
Javier Bardem in Skyfall
Robert De Niro in Silver Linnings Playbook
Philip Seymour Hoffman in The Master
*Tommy Lee Jones in Lincoln

Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Bourne Legacy
The Dark Knight Rises
Les Misérables
*Skyfall

Have to comment that TV nominations were extremely predictable and repetitive from last year, can even predict some winners this moment; but check them anyway right now in the press release as later all nominations will be in the Awards tab.

Now I'm almost certain that Marion Cotillard will get an Oscar nomination again and in my opinion she truly deserves the honor as she was outstanding in Rust and Bone. Do not know if Emmanuelle Riva was eligible (meaning if she's a SAG member) but definitively she is a strong contender for Oscar Best Actress.

Most surprising are Nicole Kidman's two nominations (Paperboy and TV Hemingway & Gellhorn) and definitively this year belongs to Maggie Smith with a whooping four (4) nominations (2 for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and 2 for Downton Abbey).

Cast category has movies that already have strong Oscar buzz with the exception of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel; most surprising is Zero Dark Thirty cast not being in this category but will find out the reason why.

There are no surprises in both Male actors categories (was expecting Bardem to get a nod), even if they snubbed Joaquin Phoenix and Robert De Niro got a slot. For those questioning why Beasts of the Southern Wild has no nominations I remind you that film had non-actors and was not eligible.

In general critics and this guild are not that far from each other as films plus actors with more buzz and critics' honors are alike, almost the same.

2013 Sundance Film Festival Award Winners

Last night the Sundance Institute announced the award winners in a ceremony hosted by Joseph Gordon-Levitt and the following is what the director of the fest, John Cooper, commented:

"The films at our Festival this year truly reflect the unbridled passion, immense talent and diverse stories coming from the independent filmmaking community. I am confident that the awards presented this evening will fuel those films with special promise and that audiences will continue to champion the films they have discovered here.”

These are the winners.

U.S. Competition

Dramatic
Grand Jury Award: Frutivale, Tom Rothman
Directing Award: Jill Soloway for Afternoon Delight
Screenwriting Award: Lake Bell for In a World..., Lake Bell
Cinematography Award: Bradford Young for Ain't Them Bodies Saints and Mother of George
Special Jury Award for Acting: Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley in The Spectacular Now, James Ponsoldt
Special Jury Award for Sound Design: Shane Carruth and Johnny Marshall for Upstream Color, Shane Carruth

Documentary
Grand Jury Award: Blood Brother, Steve Hoover
Directing Award: Zachary Heinzerling for Cutie and the Boxer
Editing Award: Matthew Hamacheck for Gideon's Army, Dawn Porter
Cinematography Award: Richard Rowley for Dirty Wars, Richard Rowley
Special Jury Award for Achievement in Filmmaking: Inequality for All, Jacob Kronbluth
Special Jury Award for Achievement in Filmmaking: American Promise, Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson

World Cinema Competition

Dramatic
Grand Jury Award: 지슬 Jiseul, Muel O, South Korea
Directing Award: Sebastián Silva for Crystal Fairy, Chile and USA
Screenwriting Award: Barmak Akram for Wajma (An Afghan Love Story), Barmak Akram, Afghanistan
Cinematography Award: Nieulotne (Lasting), Jacek Borcuch, Poland and Spain
Special Jury Award: Krugovi (Circles), Srdan Golubović, Serbia, Germany, France, Croatia and Slovenia

Documentary
Grand Jury Award: ក្បង់ទឹកទន្លេ A River Changes Course, Kayanee Mam, Cambodia and USA
Directing Award: Tinatin Gurchiani for Manqana, romelic kvelafers gaaqrobs (The Machine Which Makes Everything Disappear), Georgia and Germany
Editing Award: The Summit, Nick Ryan, Ireland and UK
Cinematography Award: Who is Dayani Cristal?, Marc Silver, UK
Special Jury Award for Punk Spirit: Pussy Riot - A Punk Prayer, Mike Lerner and Maxim Pozdorovkin, Russia and UK

Short Film Competition
Grand Jury Prize: The Whistle, Grzegorz Zariczny, Poland
U.S. Fiction Jury Award: Whiplash, Damien Chazelle, USA
U.S. Non-Fiction Jury Award: Skinningrove, Michael Almereyda
International Fiction Award: The Date, Jenni Toivoniemi, Finland
Animation Jury Award: Irish Folk Furniture, Tony Donoghue, Ireland
Special Jury Award for Acting: Joel Nagle in Palimpsest, Michael Tyburski, USA
Special Jury Award: Until the Quiet Comes, Kahlil Joseph, USA

Audience Awards
US Dramatic: Frutivale, Tom Rothman
US Documentary: Blood Brother, Steve Hoover
World Cinema Dramatic: Metro Manila, Sean Ellis, UK and Philippines
World Cinema Documentary: Al Midan (The Square), Jehane Noujaim, Egypt and USA
Best of NEXT <=>: This is Martin Booner, Chad Hartigan, USA
Short Film: Catnip: Egress to Oblivion?, Jason Willis, USA

Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize: Computer Chess, Andrew Bujalski, USA

To learn other special awards check press release. What somehow surprises me is the many female filmmakers present in different competitions and the very low percentage of them that got an award. In the US Dramatic competition only 2 female directors won awards, one for directing and another for screenwriting. Do not know what this fact really means but just hope that these female directors were not chosen because their gender or to fulfill a festival "quota" as IF their work was NOT award-quality then should not be in competition. Sigh.

2012 Film Critics' Awards - Final

Post has become Final. As we know this year Oscar nominations behaved a bit different to what critics honored, especially in the Best Director category, so wonder if whoever got more critics' honors will win something in Oscar.

Nevertheless, in theory based on the tally, we can assume that Oscar Best Picture race could be between Argo and Zero Dark Thirty, but know our assumption will be wrong as ZD30 got so much negative buzz that there is no race between them and Argo will prevail above Kathryn Bigelow's movie. After seeing all nominated movies my best guess is that the race will be between Argo and Lincoln.

Perhaps the category were critics' and Academy members will agree is Best Actor as Daniel Day-Lewis is the big favorite to win Oscar by far. Still wonder how ZD30 negative buzz will influence Academy members but critics' tally suggests that Best Actress race will be between Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence.

As commented every year critics' are NOT Academy members and main difference could be the average age which makes them differ often. This year seems that again what critics praise will not be similar to what AMPAS could/will honor. Sigh.

Still, I am one that this year agree more with critics than with AMPAS nominations, as believe that Affleck and Bigelow should have gotten a nod as their work deserves recognition.

12/8
As every year this post will begin today when we have the first non-major film critics' group announcing their winners; remember that will be a work in progress until the last group of critics do their announcement around the second week of next January. Most groups are American but also you will find in one post info from some groups in Canada, Ireland and UK.

As last year, will publish the link to read all winners and will list winners in the following categories: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Actor and new this year, Best Documentary.

But, before the list and to have ALL in one post, first is the summary for the major film critics' groups.

Los Angeles Film Critics Association
Winners: Post
Best Film: Amour, Michael Haneke
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson for The Master
Best Actress: (tie) Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook and Emmanuelle Riva in Amour
Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix in The Master
Best Documentary: The Gate Keepers

Critics' Choice Movie Awards
Winners: Post
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man

International Press Academy
Winners: Post
Best Film: Silver Linings Playbook
Best Director: David O. Russell for Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Documentary: Chasing Ice

National Board of Review
Winners: Post
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty, Kathryn Bigelow
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugarman

New York Film Critics Circle
Winners: Post
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty, Kathryn Bigelow
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Rachel Weisz in The Deep Blue Sea
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Central Park Five

The List

African-American Film Critics Association
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: Emayatzy Corinealdi in Middle of Nowhere
Best Actor: Denzel Washington in Flight
Best Documentary: (tie) The House I Live In and Versailles '73

Alliance of Women Film Journalists (EDA Awards)
Nominees: Official Site
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man

Austin Film Critics Association
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson for The Master
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix in The Master
Best Documentary: The Imposter

Black Film Critics Circle
Winners: News Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Central Park Five

Boston Society of Film Critics
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Emmanuelle Riva in Amour
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: How To Survive a Plague

Boston Online Film Critics Association
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: How To Survive a Plague

Central Ohio Film Critics Association
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Moonrise Kingdom
Best Director: Wes Anderson for Moonrise Kingdom
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: How to Survive a Plague

Chicago Film Critics Association
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor:Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Invisible War

Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association
Winners: News Official Site
Best Film: Lincoln
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis In Lincoln
Best Documentary: Seaching for Sugarman

Denver Film Critics Society
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

Detroit Film Critics Society
Nominations: News
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Silver Linings Playbook
Best Director: David O. Russell for Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

Dublin Film Critics Circle (*NOT added to tally)
Winners: News
Best Film: The Artist
Best Director: Michael Haneke for Amour
Best Actress: Emmanuelle Riva in Amour
Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix in The Master
Best Documentary: Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present

Florida Film Critics Circle
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Ben Affleck in Argo
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Queen of Versailles

Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association (Dorian Awards)
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Not Awarded
Best Actress: Anne Hathaway in Les Miserables
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: How to Survive a Plague

The Guardian UK Top 10 films
Article with opportunity for audience vote: Official Site
Number 1 Film: The Master

The Houston Film Critics Society
Winners: News Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor:Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Imposter

Indiana Film Journalist Association
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Safety Not Guaranteed
Best Director: Quentin Tarantino for Django Unchained
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: (tie) Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook and Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man

Indiewire Annual Critics Survey (204 Critics)
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Holy Motors
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty
Best Performance: Denis Lavant in Holy Motors
Best Documentary: In film nist (This is Not a Film)

Iowa Film Critics Association
Winners: News
Best Film: Lincoln
Best Director: Steven Spielberg for Lincoln
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln

Kansas City Film Critics Circle
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: The Master
Best Director: Ang Lee for Life of Pi
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Imposter

Las Vegas Film Critics Society
Winners: News
Best Film: Life of Pi
Best Director: Ang Lee for Life of Pi
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Bully

National Society of Film Critics
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Amour
Best Director: Michael Haneke for Amour
Best Actress: Emmanuelle Riva in Amour
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Gatekeepers

Nevada Film Critics Society
Winners: Offficial Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: (tie) Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty and Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: (tie) Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook and Helen Hunt in The Sessions
Best Actor: John Hawkes in The Sessions
Best Documentary: Not awarded.

New York Film Critics Online
Winners: Official Site or Board
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Emmanuelle Riva in Amour
Best Actor:  Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Central Park Five

North Texas Film Critics Association
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Lincoln
Best Director: Steven Spielberg for Lincoln
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Bully

Oklahoma Film Critics Circle
Winners: News
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty.
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man

Online Film Critics Society
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson for The Master
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: In film nist (This is Not a Film)

Phoenix Film Critics Society
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor:Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man

St. Louis Film Critics
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man

San Diego Film Critics Society
Nominations: Official Site
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: Michelle Williams in Take This Waltz
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Invisible War

San Francisco Film Critics Circle
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: The Master
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress:Emmanuelle Riva in Amour
Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix in The Master
Best Documentary: The Waiting Room

Sight&Sound Film Magazine (90 international critics poll)
Article with Top 11 Films of 2012: Official Site
Number 1 Film: The Master

Southeastern Film Critics Association
Winners: News Official Site
Best Film: Argo
Best Director: Ben Affleck for Argo
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: The Queen of Versailles

Toronto Film Critics Association
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: The Master
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson for The Master
Best Actress: Rachel Weisz in The Deep Blue Sea
Best Actor:Denis Lavant in Holy Motors
Best Documentary: Stories We Tell

Utah Film Critics Association
Winners: News
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Wes Anderson for Moonrise Kingdom
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix in The Master
Best Documentary: Indie Game: The Movie

Vancouver Film Critics Circle
Nominations: Official Site
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix in The Master
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man

The Washington DC Area Film Critics
Nominations: Official Site
Winners: Official Site
Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln
Best Documentary: Bully

Women Film Critics Circle (*NOT added to Tally)
Winners: News Official Site
Best Film by a Woman: Zero Dark Thirty by Kathryn Bigelow
Best Actress: Anne Hathaway in Les Miserables
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln

As we know there are a few exceptions that will get their own post. For reference this is the link to what critics honored last year, which the Best Film winner among them was none other than The Artist that went to win an Oscar.

Please remember that links usually work for a limited time, meaning that if you wish to look for nominations/winners from last year you probably will have to browse site to find them and some sites simply delete previous years.

*Some groups are added for information but due to specialization or including last year movies, will NOT be added to tally.

Tally

The following is a summary with the winners in the five main categories. Tally will be updated from now on when a new group makes their announcement.

Best Film
13 - Zero Dark Thirty (NBR, NYFCC, AAFC, BSFC, BOFCA, NYFCO, WDCAFC, CFCA, AFCA, UFCA, BFCC, EDA, VFCC)
12 - Argo (SDFCS, SLFCA, SEFCA, PFCS, FFCC, OFCC, NFCS, HFCS, OFCS, DFCS, CCMA)
5 - The Master (TGUK, KCFCC, SFCC, S&SFM, TFCA, GALECA)
3 - Lincoln (DFWFCA, NTFCA, IFCA)
2 - Amour (LAFCA, NSFC)
2 - Silver Linings Playbook (IPA, DFCS)
1 - Holy Motors (IW)
1 - Life of Pi (LVFCS)
1 - Moonrise Kingdom (COFCA
1 - Safety Not Guaranteed (IFJA)

Best Director
15 - Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty (NBR, NYFCC, BSFC, BOFCA, NYFCO, SFFCC, WDCAFC, CFCA, DFWFCA, PFCS, IW, BFCC, NFCS, EDA, VFCC)
10 - Ben Affleck for Argo (AAFCA, SDFCS, SLFCA, SEFCA, FFCC, OFCC, NFCS, HFCS, DFCS, CCMA)
4 - Paul Thomas Anderson for The Master (LAFCA, TFCA, AFCA, OFCS)
2 - Wes Anderson for Moonrise Kingdom (UFCA, COFCA)
2 - Ang Lee for Life of Pi (KCFCC, LVFCS)
2 - David O. Russell for Silver Linings Playbook (IPA, DFCS)
2 - Steven Spielberg for Lincoln (NFTCA, IFCA)
1 - Michael Haneke for Amour (NSFC)
1 - Quentin Tarantino for Django Unchained (IFJA)

Best Actress
16 - Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty (NBR, BOFCA, WDCAFC, IFJA, CFCA, SLFCA, DFWFCA, PFCS, FFCC, BFCC, OFCC, OFCS, EDA, VFCC, IFCA, CCMA)
13 - Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook (LAFCA, IPA, DFCS, KCFCC, LVFCS, SEFCA, AFCA, UFCA, NFCS, HFCS, NTFCA, COFCA, DFCS)
5 - Emmanuel Riva in Amour (LAFCA, BSFC, NYFCO, SFFCC, NSFC)
2 - Rachel Weisz in The Deep Blue Sea (NYFCC, TFCA)
1 - Emayatzy Corinealdi in Middle of Nowhere (AAFCA)
1 - Michelle Williams in Take This Waltz (SDFCS)
1 - Helen Hunt in The Sessions (NFCS)
1 - Anne Hathaway in Les Miserables (GALECA)

Best Actor
28 - Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln (NYFCC, BSFC, BOFCA, DFCS, KCFCC, LVFCS, NYFCO, SDFCS, WDCAFC, IFJA, CFCA, SLFCA, SEFCA, DFWFCA, PFCS, FFCC, BFCC, OFCC, NSFC, HFCS, OFCS, NTFCA, EDA, COFCA, IFCA, DFCS, CCMA, GALECA)
5 - Joaquin Phoenix in The Master (LAFCA, SFFCC, AFCA, UFCA, VFCC)
3 - Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook (IPA, NBR, IFJA)
2 - Denis Lavant in Holy Motors (TFCA, IW)
1 - Denzel Washington in Flight (AAFCA)
1 - John Hawkes in The Sessions (NFCS)

Best Documentary
9 - Searching for Sugarman (NBR, IFJA, SLFCA, DFWFCA, PFCS, OFCC, EDA, VFCC, CCMA)
4 - How to Survive a Plague (BSFC, BOFCA, COFCA, GALECA)
3 - Bully (LVFCS, WDCAFC, NTFCA)
3 - The Central Park Five (NYFCC, NYFCO, BFCC)
3 - The Imposter (KCFCC, AFCA, HFCS)
2 - The Gatekeepers (LAFCA, NSFC)
2 - In film nist (This is Not a Film) (IW, OFCS)
2 - The Invisible War (SDFCS, CFCA)
2 - Jiro Dreams of Sushi (DFCS, DFCS-Denver)
2 - The Queen of Versailles (SEFCA, FFCC)
1 - Chasing Ice (IPA)
1 - The House I Live In (AAFCA)
1 - Indie Game: The Movie (UFCA)
1 - Stories We Tell (TFCA)
1 - Versailles '73 (AAFCA)
1 - The Waiting Room (SFFCC)

As we can see Best Actor category is the less dispersed while Best Documentary is the most dispersed; as of today (12/17) Best Director is the category that lists the most probable five Oscar nominees; oops! Indiana ruined the category but Quentin is always welcome.