Wall-E Wins Big: Critics' Awards

East and west meet-up: Awards were announced this week for both The Los Angles Film Critics Association and the New York Film Critics Circle, and there are some distinct favorites emerging ... at least with the critic crowd!

The Big News: The LAFCA awarded its Best Picture award to an animated feature, for the first time in its 33-year history! The charming and thought-provoking Wall-E won the title. Can you see an Oscar in the works? I doubt it. But it’s still an utterly amazing win. The LAFCA gave its Best Actor award to Sean Penn for Milk, Best Actress to Sally Hawkins of the delightful Happy-Go-Lucky, and Best Director went to Slumdog Millionaire’s Danny Boyle.
Visit the LAFCA web site here.

The New York Film Critics Circle awarded their highest film prize to Milk, but Wall-E took home the Best Animated Film prize. As did the LAFCA, the NYFCC gave its Best Actor award to Sean Penn, and Best Actress to Sally Hawkins. Mike Leigh won the NYFCC’s Best Director award for Happy-Go-Lucky.
Visit the NYFCC web site here.

The last word on year-end favorites and awards: Roger Ebert has announced his favorite films of 2008, in case you need to know what to catch up on. I love his “screw’em, there are too many good ones to do a Top 10” attitude. Go, Roger. (My only complaint about this time of year: All the powerhouse films come out now, and sometimes they don't all make it here in time for the Academy Awards [or they play for one week and are gone]. It's a surprisingly short time between December and Oscar night when you have to work hard to see everything in time for Oscar martinis!)

We’re happy to note that not only did the truly award-worthy and excellent Wall-e make it to Roger's faves list, but so did Iron Man and Werner Herzog’s Encounters at the Edge of the World.