Thursday, March 28, 2024

NY Film Critics Trump National Board of Fans, Er, Review

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The New York Film Critics Circle will vote and announce their awards this year on December 3rd. Smartly, they’ve decided to move ahead of the ridiculous National Board of Review, a group of fans who pay $600 a year or more to see movies and throw a party. The New York Film Critics last year made the move to go first, thus blunting the annoying NBR.

Recently, the Oscars took their cue from the NYFCC and moved their nominations announcement ahead of the Golden Globes. These moves were all necessary so that actual film groups could establish authority in what has become a crazy atmosphere of politicking to get celebrities to come either to televised events (Globes) or expensive ticket galas (NBR).

I’ve written a lot about the hijinks of Annie Schulhof and the NBR, their lack of expertise, their friendships with certain studios, and their focused interest on certain celebrities. Alas, they have no George Clooney movie this year. But Schulhof’s interest in Warner Bros. combined with Clooney having produced “Argo,” means the Ben Affleck thriller is a shoo-in for lots of NBR attention. What will the NBR do about Clint Eastwood? His “Trouble with the Curve” tanked. But the group is slavishly devoted to him. NBR nominations and long lists of “winners” are the source of endless amusement, so December 5th can’t come fast enough!

Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News, where he created the Fox411 column. His movie reviews are carried by Rotten Tomatoes, and he is a member of both the movie and TV branches of the Critics Choice Awards. His articles have appeared in dozens of publications over the years including New York Magazine, where he wrote the Intelligencer column in the mid 90s and covered the OJ Simpson trial, and Fox News (when it wasn't so crazy) where he covered Michael Jackson. He is also the writer and co-producer of "Only the Strong Survive," a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals, directed by DA Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus.
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