National Board of Review Award Winners 2009

So begins the Oscar season, where critics' groups across the country announce their winners for the best in film during the year. The National Board of Review is usually the first out of the gate, giving filmgoers a premature indication of what the Oscar list may look like come February. Usually, the winners from the National Board of Review are not set in stone for Oscar wins as well. However, among the NBR's 10 nominees for best film of the year, one will usually find Oscar's golden horse buried in there somewhere. So to give you a small idea of where this year's Oscar season may be headed, I present to you the National Board of Review's best films of the year

Best Film: Up in the Air

Best Director: Clint Eastwood = Invictus

Best Actor: Morgan Freeman = Invictus, George Clooney = Up in the Air (TIE)

Best Actress: Carey Mulligan = An Education

Best Supporting Actor: Woody Harrelson = The Messenger

Best Supporting Actress: Anna Kendrick = Up in the Air

Best Adapted Screenplay: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner = Up in the Air

Best Original Screenplay: Joel & Ethan Coen = A Serious Man

Best Foreign Film: A Prophet

Best Documentary: The Cove

Best Animated Feature: Up

Best Ensemble Cast: It's Complicated

National Board of Review's Ten Best Films (they actually listed 11)

An Education

(500) Days of Summer

The Hurt Locker

Inglourious Basterds

Invictus

The Messenger

A Serious Man

Star Trek

Up

Up in the Air

Where the Wild Things Are

WHAT THIS MEANS:

This is very good news for Up in the Air. This Best Film win from the National Board of Review, along with 3 other wins for acting and writing, solidifies the film as one of the frontrunners this Oscar season. The same can be said of Invictus, which took home honors for Clint Eastwood's direction and Morgan Freeman's performance. Some things to notice from the NBR's Top Ten List (or 11) are the absences of Nine and Precious. Nine is supposedly one of the big films to see this holiday season. With a star-studded cast and a A-list director attached to the project, this is a film that has Oscar written all over it. Strange to see it left off the list. But it is even weirder to see Precious shut out of major honors, especially for the performances of Gabourey Sidibe and Mo'Nique. I have not seen Up in the Air or An Education yet to compare performances, but as of right now Sidibe and Mo'Nique have given the two best performances of the year. And the fact that Precious is left off the NBR's list for best film is outrageous because it is truly a very powerful and very well-made effort. However, I still think Precious will be there in the end. The power of Oprah and Tyler Perry combined is too great to cast aside what is a truly amazing film. I am not surprised by the absences of Avatar or The Lovely Bones on the list. No one has seen Avatar yet so it's impossible to put it on any best film list as of right now. And The Lovely Bones has been getting mixed reviews since it debuted in London, which means that critics simply don't know what to make of it. I applaud the appearances of (500) Days of Summer, Inglourious Basterds, Star Trek, Up, and Where the Wild Things Are on the list because it indicates a more audience-friendly selection rather than a conceited elitist perception from film historians and the like. The NBR is but the smallest of precursors to the Oscars. Lists will change over time as studios begin to launch their campaigns for the films they think could win come Oscar time. But for right now, the National Board of Review has spoken. And Up in the Air is the best of the year.