13th Annual Awards Psychic Awards Winners

Best Picture – Drama

Winner - The Fabelmans

Runners Up - Close, Decision to Leave, TAR, Aftersun, EO, Women Talking, She Said

Commentary - Steven Spielberg has made classics. Bold historical epics like Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, and Lincoln. He has made some of the greatest science fiction, fantasy, adventure and horror films of all time including Jaws, E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Indiana Jones Trilogy, and Jurassic Park. He even tackled a movie musical remake last year, bringing new life and energy to West Side Story. The Fabelmans doesn't fit into any of these boxes. It is probably his most sedate, quite, charming film, but also his most personal. Led by a young actor, Gabriel LaBelle, who should have been in the conversation for a Best Actor nomination, we see a young Steven Spielberg revisit the formative years of his childhood, his first homemade films, and the divorce of his parents. Of course, in true Spielberg fashion, this is not a straight autobiographical film. Instead, it is a dream transported into a cinematic memory, with flare, and humor that was probably not as prominent in his actual life. An ensemble including Paul Dano, Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen and Judd Hirsch, an amazing script by Spielberg, and the still Oscar-less Tony Kushner, and the usual amazing production values brought on by some of the best technical cinematic wizards in the business including John Williams, Rick Carter, Janusz Kaminski, and Mark Bridges, who combined have eleven Academy Awards, all make The Fabelmans an impeccably made piece of art, and a satisfying emotional experience. I think what I loved the most though was Spielberg's personal passion, that clearly shown through every frame. Spielberg, like so many of us, fell in love with the power of film. He wanted to showcase that love, and celebrate the cinematic experience. He wanted to remind us of the power of going to the movies. He did just that and so much more.

Best Picture – Comedy/Musical

Winner - Bros

Runners Up - Babylon, The Banshees of Inisherin, Triangle of Sadness

Commentary - Now there are going to be some that balk at this pick. Go ahead. Straight people have had romantic comedies for 100 years. Finally, a major studio release features a gay couple in the lead, on the big screen, having the classic rom-com experience. I wish more people had gone to see it, and I hope its box office failure doesn't discourage studios from continuing to pursue LGBTQ stories. Also, it was just a great film. It was swoony and romantic, laugh out loud funny, and openly acknowledged its place in film history. A great comedy, a great story, a great cast, and a great film experience. 

Best Picture – Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Action/Horror

Winner - Everything Everywhere All at Once

Runners Up - Avatar: The Way of Water, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Nope, Top Gun: Maverick

The Woman King

Commentary - How do we talk about this film? What do we say that hasn't already been said? A great, inventive, funny, original screenplay. A stunning cast. Incredible directing from the The Daniels, that shows incredible control in the midst of chaos. Funny, zany, wild, and enormously entertaining. I think it was third viewing though where it finally hit just how much I loved this film. It wasn't the humor, or the fantasy, or the hot dog fingers. It was the heart that really hit. This film is about love, family, overcoming struggles, the immigrant experience, making new friends, finding new connections. It is that human component, beautifully wrought by this cast and crew, that make Everything Everywhere All at Once the best film of the year. 

Best Picture – Animated

Winner - Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio 

Runners Up - Turning Red, Marcel the Shell With Shoes On, The Bob’s Burgers Movie

Commentary - Turning Red was a great Pixar film that broke new ground, Marcel was inventive and fun, and I personally loved The Bob's Burgers Movie. But, no one this year can top the work of Guillermo Del Toro in his reinvention of the classic tale of Pinocchio. Not only was it political charged, well written, and had a great voice cast, but more importantly, it was a technical marvel. It should have gotten nominations for Production Design and Visual Effects at the Oscars for its wildly creative take on animation. But it is most likely winning Best Animated Feature at the Oscars, which will be a great moment, and another deserved award for the iconic Guillermo Del Toro. 

Best Picture – Documentary

Winner - All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

Runners Up - All that Breathes, Descendant, Fire of Love, Good Night Oppy

Commentary - Part an autobiographical memory piece, part a story about the impact of art in the world, and part an activist piece against an evil corporation, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is Laura Poitras magnum opus. Brilliantly blending these elements with an aesthetic flair, Poitras paints a compelling and compassionate look at Nan Golden, and her work, her life, and her activism. She manages to frame this incredibly personal story in the greater context of abuse, addiction, the AIDS crisis, corporate greed, and personal growth. It is a marvel to watch, and it demands repeat viewings. 

Best Director

Winner - Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert “Everything Everywhere All at Once”,

Runners Up -  Steven Spielberg “The Fabelmans”, Gina Prince-Blythewood “The Woman King”, Chan-wook Park “Decision to Leave”, Laura Poitras “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed”

Commentary - See Best Picture - Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Action/Horror

Best Actor – Drama

Winner - Brendan Fraser “The Whale”

Runners Up - Park Hae-il “Decision to Leave”, Gabriel LaBelle “The Fabelmans”, Paul Mescal “Aftersun”, Jeremy Pope “The Inspection”

Commentary - Brendan Fraser's transformation in The Whale wasn't just great makeup work. It was his heart-wrenching performance that proved that he has always been an excellent talent, and is capable of jaw-dropping dramatic work. I am so happy to see him back in Hollywood. His story is so heartbreaking and yet also inspiring at the same time. I hope that this role leads to other great roles and the next, and best yet phase of the career of one of our brightest stars. 

Best Actress – Drama

Winner - Cate Blanchett “TAR”

Runners Up - Viola Davis “The Woman King”, Danielle Deadwyler “Till”, Michelle Williams “The Fabelmans”, Zoe Kazan "She Said"

Commentary - Whew. Cate Blanchett's work in TAR was jaw-dropping. She was furious, commanding, manipulative. and towering in a performance that really did leave you breathless. 

Best Actor – Comedy/Musical

Winner - Billy Eichner "Bros"

Runners Up - Colin Farrell “The Banshees of Inisherin”, Daniel Craig “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”, Sterling K. Brown “Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul”

Commentary - Billy Eichner can be grating to some, and slight in his skill to others. I think Bros proved his critics wrong, by proving that he is an incredibly talented actor, a wonderful comedian, and a great leading man, whose charmingly different approach to his craft is a welcomed breath of fresh air. 

Best Actress – Comedy/Musical

Winner - Michelle Yeoh “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Runners Up - Regina Hall “Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.” and Emma Thompson “Good Luck to You, Leo Grande”

Commentary - Oh the great Michelle Yeoh. Her transformative, jaw-dropping, funny, emotional, wonderfully warm performance was the heartbeat of Everything Everywhere All at Once. She got to showcase her action skills, her acting skills, and she got to prove that Hollywood missed the mark over these last few decades by not giving her this kind of role before now. Triumph is not a strong enough word to describe her in this film. 

Best Supporting Actor

Winner - Ke Huy Quan “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Runners Up - Brendan Gleeson “The Banshees of Inisherin”, Brian Tyree Henry “Causeway”, 

Commentary - Ke Huy Quan's Hollywood comeback has been one for the ages. He had given up on Hollywood, and his fear of returning almost kept him from this once in a lifetime role. His return to the screen was an absolute triumph. He was wacky, funny, and at just the right moments, pulled quiet the dramatic punch. He stole every scene he was in, and has stole the hearts of awards watchers this season with his impassioned speeches and heartfelt and honest interviews. I love when the performance and the story mesh for an overdue performer, and Quan's is definitely a Hollywood story for the ages. 

Best Supporting Actress

Winner - Angela Bassett “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”

Runners Up - Kerry Condon “The Banshees of Inisherin”, Jamie Lee Curtis “Everything Everywhere All at Once”, Stephanie Hsu “Everything Everywhere All at Once”, Janelle Monae “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”, Carey Mulligan "She Said"

Commentary - You have to give Ryan Coogler credit. Losing his star, losing his vision, cannot be an easy thing for a filmmaker. Chadwick Boseman was a light in the darkness. His talent, his presence, made Black Panther the superhero of our time. Losing him, took away that light. So what do you do, if you are Coogler? Do you give up? Do you despair? Or do you, instead, press on, and lean on the totality of the strengths of the Black Panther franchise? Coogler had an impossible task, and yet he rose to the challenge. He recognized that Black Panther was a hero because he was surrounded by women whose strength was immeasurable. In his absence, Coogler doubled down on this strength. At this center was the amazing Angela Bassett. A legend whose screen presence is unmatched, Angela Bassett has long ago cemented her status as an icon. She had the enormous task of carrying the weight of Boseman's loss as the mother who lost her son, the leader of a country who lost its king, and the cinematic matriarch of a world that lost its film hero. Her bravura, her ability to channel grief, her presence and her strength on screen were unmatched this year. Coogler knew he had to turn to a queen to save his franchise, and boy did she ever. 

Best Ensemble

Winner - Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Runners Up - Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Banshees of Inisherin, The Woman King, Women Talking

Commentary - Glass Onion, like its predecessor, is one of the year's best ensemble pieces, where well-known actors all bring their A-game, many doing work that is not normally their forte, and bring to life this great comedy. In particular I would like to shout out Janelle Monae and Kate Hudson, who I thought really rose to the occasion, and were standouts among a group of outright stars. 

Best Voiceover/Motion Capture Performance

Winner - Jenny Slate “Marcel the Shell With Shoes On”

Runners Up - Zoe Saldana “Avatar: The Way of Water”, Antonio Banderas “Puss in Boots: The Last Witch”, Gaten Matarazzo “My Father’s Dragon”

Commentary - Now over ten years ago (still hard to believe), my college friends and I were constantly quoting clever lines from the short videos of Marcel the Shell with Shoes On. A lot of the charm of this quirky film invention is on the voice of Jenny Slate, a brilliant and underrated performer, whose innocence, sometimes surprising darkness, and always enigmatic voice performance brought this quirky talking shell to life. 

Best Adapted Screenplay

Winner - Rebecca Lenkiewicz “She Said”

Runners Up - Rian Johnson “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”, Sarah Polley “Women Talking”, Guillermo del Toro, Matthew Robbins, Gris Grimly, Patrick Hale “Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio”

Commentary - I am still kind of surprised that She Said did not land in the Oscar conversation, especially in this category. A new spin on All the President's Men and Spotlight, She Said is another impeccably assembled ensemble piece, with a taught, slow building, and humanizing script from Rebecca Lenkiewicz that was just fantastic. 

Best Original Screenplay

Winner - Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Runners Up - Martin McDonagh “The Banshees of Inisherin”, Ruben Ostland “Triangle of Sadness”, Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner “The Fabelmans”, Billy Eichner and Nicholas Stoller “Bros”

Commentary - See Best Picture - Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Action/Horror

Best Cinematography

Winner - Claudio Miranda “Top Gun: Maverick”

Runners Up - James Friend “All Quiet on the Western Front”, Linus Sandgren “Babylon”, Hoyte van Hoytema “Nope”

Commentary - How in the hell did Top Gun: Maverick not get nominated for this award at the Oscars? This high-flying adventure, one of the year's glorious cinematic experiences, is made beautiful by the stunning work of Claudio Miranda's masterful cinematic eye. A snub for the ages. 

Best Visual Effects

Winner - Avatar: The Way of Water

Runners Up - Everything Everywhere All at Once and Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio

Commentary - Duh. I don't care what you think of Avatar: The Way of Water. You and I will probably disagree, but I found the film to be a visual cinematic masterpiece, and proved that you should never discount James Cameron. Others found it the opposite. But anyone who tries to deny its visual effects mastery is a fool. It, like pretty much every James Cameron film, managed to move the art and technological wonder of film making forward, and it, at the very least, deserves recognition for that. 

Worst Film of the Year

Winner - Amsterdam

Runners Up - Blonde, Morbius

Commentary - Blonde was sadly atrocious, Morbius was outright atrocious. But Amsterdam "wins" this award because it should not have been atrocious. David O. Russell, that amazing cast, the talent behind the camera. And yet, it was atrocious. That's the real crime, when you should be amazing, and you still screw it up. Amsterdam managed to achieve that dubious distinction. 

Top 20 Films of 2022

1. Everything Everywhere All At Once

2. The Fabelmans

3. All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

4. Bros

5. Avatar: The Way of Water

6. TAR

7. Decision to Leave

8. The Banshees of Inisherin

9. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

10. She Said

11. Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio 

12. The Woman King

13. EO

14. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

15. Top Gun: Maverick

16. Close

17. Nope

18. Aftersun

19. Women Talking

20. (TIE) Triangle of Sadness and Babylon