New York Film Critics Circle: Jane Campion wins Best Director; Lady Gaga, Best Actress

by KM, Movie Lightbox

The New York Film Critics Circle has selected the films for their annual awards honoring excellence in U.S. and World Cinema. Drive My Car, a Japanese drama film directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi which had its premiere at the 74th Cannes Film Festival and won the Best Screenplay prize, has been named as the Best Film of 2021.

The Power of the Dog, a western drama film directed by Jane Campion dominates with three prizes - Best Director, Best Actor for Benedict Cumberbatch and Best Supporting Actor for Kodi Smit-McPhee. Lady Gaga pulled off a surprise win in the Best Actress category for her performance in House of Gucci. For Non-Fiction films, the animated documentary Flee took home the award.

The New York Film Critics Circle membership includes critics from New York-based publications, online and print. Every year in December, the group meets in New York to vote on awards for the calendar year’s films. In 2020, the Best Film went to First Cow by Kelly Reichardt.

Below is the full list of 2021 NYFCC Winners:

Best Film : Drive My Car

Best Director: Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog

Best Actor: Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog

Best Actress: Lady Gaga, House of Gucci

Best Supporting Actor: Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog

Best Supporting Actress: Kathryn Hunter, The Tragedy of Macbeth

Best Screenplay: Licorice Pizza

Best Cinematography: West Side Story

Best Foreign Language Film: The Worst Person in the World

Best Non-Fiction Film: Flee

Best Animated Film: The Mitchells vs. the Machines

Best First Film: The Lost Daughter

Special Awards:

Maya Cade for the creation of the Black Film Archive.

Diane Weyermann, posthumous award for supporting daring and impactful filmmaking at Sundance and Participant.

Marshall Fine for his years of service as NYFCC’s General Manager and decades on the NY film scene.

Image courtesy of Netflix