National Board of Review names 'Iwo Jima' best film of 2006
12-07-06, 12:24 AM
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National Board of Review names 'Iwo Jima' best film of 2006
National Board of Review names 'Iwo Jima' best film
First prize of awards season goes to Eastwood epic
By VARIETY STAFF, STEVEN ZEITCHIK, STEVEN ZEITCHIK
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clint Eastwood's 'Letters from Iwo Jima' has topped the National Board of Review's list of films for 2006.
Helen Mirren's perf in 'The Queen' was honored.
Forest Whitaker was lauded by NBR for 'The Last King of Scotland.'
NBR gave Warner Independent's 'The Painted Veil' the adopted screenplay prize and included pic in its top 10 list.
The kudos season kicked off Wednesday with a nod to Clint Eastwood and Warners as the helmer's Japanese-language "Letters From Iwo Jima" took the National Board of Review's prize for best picture.
NBR is a group made up of film educators and other professionals with no official ties to the biz. While its workings are not well known in Hollywood, an NBR nod can help set the tone for the awards season and top 10 lists that follow.
Martin Scorsese nabbed the director prize for his mob Warner Bros. drama "The Departed."
Searchlight's "Last King of Scotland" brought home the actor prize for Forest Whitaker, who portrays dictator Idi Amin. Helen Mirren scored the actress nod for her role as a conflicted Queen Elizabeth II in Miramax's "The Queen."
Pedro Almodovar's female-centric "Volver" won the prize for foreign film. Al Gore's environmental warning "An Inconvenient Truth" won for docu while Pixar's "Cars" nabbed the prize for animated feature.
It was a red-letter day for Warners, which in addition to Scorsese's nod made the top 10 list with "The Departed" and "Blood Diamond." And Warner Independent grabbed a spot on the list with "The Painted Veil." "Flags of Our Fathers" is a co-production between Par and Warners.
Fox Searchlight also turned in a stellar perf, landing three films in the top 10: "The History Boys," "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Notes on a Scandal," while Fox 2000's "Devil Wears Prada" also rated a spot.
All told, Fox and Warner Bros. units scored eight out of the 10 spots; Par Vantage's "Babel" and Par's "Flags of Our Fathers" were the only films that didn't come from one of the two companies.
Djimon Hounsou of "Blood Diamond" and Catherine O'Hara from "For Your Consideration" were the winners in the supporting acting categories.
Warners recently changed course with "Letters," announcing recently that it would move up the release from early 2007 to December to prep for an awards run.
It was a smooth year for the National Board of Review after a problem-riddled 2005 in which former members accused the group of acting in an exclusionary manner. Group was also caught in an embarrassing situation in which it had to postpone its awards announcements because it had sent out incomplete eligibility forms.
Other named winners this year include Ryan Gosling for breakthrough perf by an actor and Jennifer Hudson and Rinko Kikuchi sharing the nod for breakthrough actress.
Zach Helm won for original screenplay with "Stranger Than Fiction" and Ron Nyswaner for adapted with his "The Painted Veil." Jason Reitman won for best directorial debut for "Thank You for Smoking."
Other announced short lists include, in foreign, "Curse of the Golden Flower," "Days of Glory," "Pan's Labyrinth" and "Water"; and in docu, "51 Birch Street," "Iraq in Fragments," "Shut Up and Sing" and "Wordplay."
Group also listed top indie films. They were "Akeelah and the Bee," "Bobby," "Catch a Fire," "Copying Beethoven," "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints," "Half Nelson," "The Illusionist," "Lonesome Jim," "Sherrybaby," "10 Items or Less" and "Thank You for Smoking."
First prize of awards season goes to Eastwood epic
By VARIETY STAFF, STEVEN ZEITCHIK, STEVEN ZEITCHIK
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clint Eastwood's 'Letters from Iwo Jima' has topped the National Board of Review's list of films for 2006.
Helen Mirren's perf in 'The Queen' was honored.
Forest Whitaker was lauded by NBR for 'The Last King of Scotland.'
NBR gave Warner Independent's 'The Painted Veil' the adopted screenplay prize and included pic in its top 10 list.
The kudos season kicked off Wednesday with a nod to Clint Eastwood and Warners as the helmer's Japanese-language "Letters From Iwo Jima" took the National Board of Review's prize for best picture.
NBR is a group made up of film educators and other professionals with no official ties to the biz. While its workings are not well known in Hollywood, an NBR nod can help set the tone for the awards season and top 10 lists that follow.
Martin Scorsese nabbed the director prize for his mob Warner Bros. drama "The Departed."
Searchlight's "Last King of Scotland" brought home the actor prize for Forest Whitaker, who portrays dictator Idi Amin. Helen Mirren scored the actress nod for her role as a conflicted Queen Elizabeth II in Miramax's "The Queen."
Pedro Almodovar's female-centric "Volver" won the prize for foreign film. Al Gore's environmental warning "An Inconvenient Truth" won for docu while Pixar's "Cars" nabbed the prize for animated feature.
It was a red-letter day for Warners, which in addition to Scorsese's nod made the top 10 list with "The Departed" and "Blood Diamond." And Warner Independent grabbed a spot on the list with "The Painted Veil." "Flags of Our Fathers" is a co-production between Par and Warners.
Fox Searchlight also turned in a stellar perf, landing three films in the top 10: "The History Boys," "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Notes on a Scandal," while Fox 2000's "Devil Wears Prada" also rated a spot.
All told, Fox and Warner Bros. units scored eight out of the 10 spots; Par Vantage's "Babel" and Par's "Flags of Our Fathers" were the only films that didn't come from one of the two companies.
Djimon Hounsou of "Blood Diamond" and Catherine O'Hara from "For Your Consideration" were the winners in the supporting acting categories.
Warners recently changed course with "Letters," announcing recently that it would move up the release from early 2007 to December to prep for an awards run.
It was a smooth year for the National Board of Review after a problem-riddled 2005 in which former members accused the group of acting in an exclusionary manner. Group was also caught in an embarrassing situation in which it had to postpone its awards announcements because it had sent out incomplete eligibility forms.
Other named winners this year include Ryan Gosling for breakthrough perf by an actor and Jennifer Hudson and Rinko Kikuchi sharing the nod for breakthrough actress.
Zach Helm won for original screenplay with "Stranger Than Fiction" and Ron Nyswaner for adapted with his "The Painted Veil." Jason Reitman won for best directorial debut for "Thank You for Smoking."
Other announced short lists include, in foreign, "Curse of the Golden Flower," "Days of Glory," "Pan's Labyrinth" and "Water"; and in docu, "51 Birch Street," "Iraq in Fragments," "Shut Up and Sing" and "Wordplay."
Group also listed top indie films. They were "Akeelah and the Bee," "Bobby," "Catch a Fire," "Copying Beethoven," "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints," "Half Nelson," "The Illusionist," "Lonesome Jim," "Sherrybaby," "10 Items or Less" and "Thank You for Smoking."
12-07-06, 01:42 AM
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DVD Talk Special Edition
Originally Posted by Joe Molotov
Clint Eastwood's got another WWII movie coming out this year?
12-07-06, 07:27 PM
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Here's the full list, including Shut Up & Sing as one of the top 5 documentaries!
http://www.nbrmp.org/awards/2006Winners.cfm
http://www.nbrmp.org/awards/2006Winners.cfm
12-07-06, 07:47 PM
#6
I've read many places saying this one is definitely better than Flags. I think this film's momentum may be large enough to land Watanabe an Oscar nod for Best Actor as he's supposed to be excellent.
12-08-06, 05:32 PM
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I personally am looking forward to "Letters from Iwo Jima" though I felt very underwhelmed and quite disappointed with "Flags of Our Fathers." I've read a lot about the Japanese soldiers' last stand and their internal conflicts between obligations towards the Emperor (inevitable death) and wanting to be with their loved ones.
12-09-06, 03:21 AM
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Really looking forward to Letters. I thought Flags was great. Is the wide release date Dec. 20th or is that just one or two theaters in New York and LA? On the Letters website (http://iwojimathemovie.warnerbros.co...framework.html) it simply states in theaters Dec. 20 and doesn't mention anything about a limited release before a wide release.
12-09-06, 11:22 PM
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I had been really excited to see Flags of our Fathers, but then I read the book (which was mired in mediocrity), read the average reviews, and just kind of lost interest and never made it to the theater to see the movie. I hope that Letters proves to be good.
12-10-06, 09:22 PM
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http://www.moviecitynews.com/awards/...ds/Boston.html
The Boston Film Critics chose The Departed as Best Film with United 93 as the runner-up.
Shut up and Sing tied for first place as best documentary!
The Boston Film Critics chose The Departed as Best Film with United 93 as the runner-up.
Shut up and Sing tied for first place as best documentary!
