With the National Board of Review, er, fans, there has to be a reason why Paul Thomas Anderson and “Licorice Pizza” did so well today. It’s certainly not because they’re from MGM since Annie Schulhof otherwise ignored that studio’s other movies including Lady Gaga in “House of Gucci” or Jennifer Hudson and “Respect.” I’m sure in time it will turn out that Schulhof is related to one of the “Pizza” producers.
The NBR also went big for “King Richard,” no surprise that’s Warner Bros. But Schulhof also gave A24 Studios several awards — she’s got a board member, David Laub, connected to that studio. He’s listed on a 2021 mentorship website as “a distribution executive for film and television studio A24, where he works in all aspects of film distribution including acquisitions, marketing, publicity, and exhibition.’ So getting five nominations from the NBR ain’t hard, know what I mean?
Otherwise, Schulhof spread the love to get tables sold for her January 11th event. But she doesn’t like Sony Pictures Classics, so no love for Pedro Almodovar’s “Parallel Mothers” or Penelope Cruz. And nothing for Amazon’s “Being the Ricardos.” Netflix also I guess didn’t capitulate to Schulhof, because except for “Don’t Look Up” being included in the top 10 also-rans there’s nothing for “Power of the Dog,” Jane Campion, “Tick Tick Boom” with Andrew Garfield or Aaron Sorkin and so on. Obviously these people are not playing NBR ball. LOL.
The National Board of Review, if you don’t know, is a fan based group that pays $600 or more in membership and an equal amount to attend the annual gala. They have nothing to do with journalism or film criticism.
Below is a full list of the 2021 award recipients, announced by the National Board of Review:
Best Film: LICORICE PIZZA
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, LICORICE PIZZA
Best Actor: Will Smith, KING RICHARD
Best Actress: Rachel Zegler, WEST SIDE STORY
Best Supporting Actor: Ciarán Hinds, BELFAST
Best Supporting Actress: Aunjanue Ellis, KING RICHARD
Best Original Screenplay: Asghar Farhadi, A HERO
Best Adapted Screenplay: Joel Coen, THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH (A24)
Breakthrough Performance: Alana Haim & Cooper Hoffman, LICORICE PIZZA
Best Directorial Debut: Michael Sarnoski, PIG
Best Animated Feature: ENCANTO
Best Foreign Language Film: A HERO
Best Documentary: SUMMER OF SOUL (…OR, WHEN THE REVOLUTION COULD NOT BE TELEVISED)
Best Ensemble: THE HARDER THEY FALL
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Bruno Delbonnel, THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH (A24)
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: FLEE
Top Films (in alphabetical order)
Belfast
Don’t Look Up
Dune
King Richard
The Last Duel
Nightmare Alley
Red Rocket (A24)
The Tragedy of Macbeth (A24)
West Side Story
Top 5 Foreign Language Films (in alphabetical order)
Benedetta
Lamb (A24)
Lingui, The Sacred Bonds
Titane
The Worst Person in the World
Top 5 Documentaries (in alphabetical order)
Ascension
Attica
Flee
The Rescue
Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain
Top 10 Independent Films (in alphabetical order)
The Card Counter
C’mon C’mon (A24)
CODA
The Green Knight (A24)
Holler
Jockey
Old Henry
Pig
Shiva Baby
The Souvenir Part II (A24)
