Houston Film Critics Society Nominees

A couple of thoughts. Drive and Win Win seem to be critical favorites, and may help them boots to Oscar glory. Midnight in Paris finally gets some critical love, and The Help finally gets a bunch of nominations outside of ensemble (WAFCA did give it some, but there are more here). Extremely Loud also makes the cut. We will find out soon if this is national trend, or simply one group that actually likes it, but I still have a feeling it will be a big contender. Oldman and Close keep getting snubbed and need some SAG/GG love to stay in the race. The Supporting fields are still a mess, and while I applaud critics for their love of Andy Serkis in Apes, and too wish he would get a nomination, I really don't think the Academy is advance as you are in this thinking. Finally, Tilda Swinton and the 50/50 script continue to get love, hopefully inspiring the guilds to follow suit. Ok just kidding, one more thing, hardly any Hugo (only one nod), so not every critics group was head over heels for it.

Best Picture

• Drive, Film District
• Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, Warner Bros.
• Midnight in Paris, Sony Pictures Classics
• Take Shelter, Sony Pictures Classics
• The Artist, The Weinstein Company
• The Descendants, Fox Searchlight
• The Help, Dreamworks & Touchstone
• The Tree of Life, Fox Searchlight
• War Horse, Dreamworks & Disney
• Win Win, Fox Searchlight

Best Director

• Alexander Payne, The Descendants
• Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
• Nicholas Winding Refn, Drive
• Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life
• Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris

Best Actor

• Brad Pitt, Moneyball
• George Clooney, The Descendants
• Jean Dujardin, The Artist
• Michael Fassbender, Shame
• Michael Shannon, Take Shelter

Best Actress

• Elizabeth Olsen, Martha Marcy May Marlene
• Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
• Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn
• Tilda Swinton, We Need to Talk About Kevin
• Viola Davis, The Help

Supporting Actor

• Albert Brooks, Drive
• Alex Shaffer, Win Win
• Andy Serkis, Rise of the Planet of the Apes
• Armie Hammer, J. Edgar
• Christopher Plummer, Beginners

Supporting Actress

• Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
• Jessica Chastain, The Help
• Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
• Octavia Spencer, The Help
• Shailene Woodley, The Descendants

Best Screenplay

• Alexander Payne, Nat Foxon & Jim Rash, The Descendants
• Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
• Tom McCarthy, Win Win
• Will Reiser, 50/50
• Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris

Best Cinematography

• Emmanuel Lubezki, The Tree of Life
• Guillaume Schiffman, The Artist
• Janusz Kaminski, War Horse
• Robert Richardson, Hugo
• Thomas Newton Segel, Drive

Best Song

• “Lay Your Head Down,” from Albert Nobbs, music & lyrics by B. Bryne & G. Close
• “Life’s a Happy Song,” from The Muppets, music & lyrics by Bret McKenzie
• “Star-Spangled Man,” from Captain America, music & lyrics by Alan Menken
• “The Living Proof,” from The Help, music & lyrics by Mary J. Blige
• “Think You Can Wait,” from Win Win, music & lyrics by The National

Best Score

• Alexandre Desplat, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
• Harry Escott, Shame
• John Williams, The Adventures of Tin-Tin
• John Williams, War Horse
• Ludovic Bource, The Artist

Best Foreign Film

• 13 Assassins, Magnet Releasing
• Elite Squad: The Enemy Within, New Video
• I Saw the Devil, Magnet Releasing
• The Artist, The Weinstein Company
• The Skin I Live In, Sony Pictures Classics

Best Documentary

• Buck, Sundance Selects
• Cave of Forgotten Dreams, IFC Films
• Project Nim, Lionsgate
• The Elephant in the Living Room, NightFly Entertainment
• Undefeated, The Weinstein Company

Best Animated

• Adventures of Tin-Tin, Dreamworks
• Happy Feet Two, Warner Bros.
• Kung Fu Panda 2, Dreamworks
• Puss in Boots, Dreamworks
• Rango, Paramount
• Winnie the Pooh, Disney

Worst Film of the Year

• Jack and Jill, Columbia
• Red Riding Hood, Warner Bros.
• The Sitter, 20th Century Fox
• The Smurfs, Columbia
• The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1, Summit Entertainment
• Your Highness, Universal

2011 Humanitarian Honor – Joanne Herring
2011 – Lifetime Achievement – Jeff Bridges