Today the members of the NYFCC (New York Film Critics Circle) voted on this year’s best. We did it over Zoom. We normally meet in person. They are anonymous ballots, and it’s an involved system – you need a certain number of ballots to win, and so if you don’t get it you move to the next round … and sometimes the next round … It’s rare that something is anonymous. But when it is it’s very exciting. Anyway, because of being remote, there were added layers of complication, and so our meeting was 6.5 hours long. Jordan Hoffman, whom I love, joked that our meeting lasted as long as it would take to fly to England. But the results are in! You can read our choices – including two special awards – here.
Consider all of these recommendations from Yours Truly. One of these was my #1 pick – and so it’s very gratifying when your own personal #1 takes the prize. But in general, I am very happy with our collective choices.
I’ll be posting some personal lists later if I have the time, like I do every year. Films that might not be on this list but are no less worthy. This has been a very weird year for movies. In one way, there’s so much out there. Streaming services are working overtime. In another way, there’s so much out there that it can be overwhelming, and smaller films – or films that came out earlier this year – get lost in the shuffle. That always happens. So it’ll be fun to put that together. In the meantime, see Da 5 Bloods (on Netflix), watch the Small Axe films (5 in total on Amazon), and SEE Never Rarely Sometimes Always, which I wrote about for Film Comment (it’s not online).
Here I am, at around hour 3 of our voting process. I am starting to look a little dazed, and my one slightly lazy eyelid has drooped even further, which happens when I get tired or look at a screen for too long. Also not sure if my messy bun can be any higher on my head. Hang in there, Sheila. Only 3.5 hours to go.
Congratulations to all the winners. There will be an online celebration – unlike the in-person awards dinner done every year – which is sad, but there will be speeches and presenters, etc., all beaming in from different locations. I’ll be sure to provide a link when that’s available.
