THB #442: Oscargasm '23 - NYFFC Votes!

The first significant award of the season, from the The New York Film Critics Circle, happened today.

How significant? Well, the reality is that the New York and Los Angeles critics can influence who gets nominated for Oscars, in no small part by bringing attention to performances and occasionally a film that hasn’t gotten as much attention as some of the more highly promoted films.

The supported Colin Farrell early last season, Drive My Car in 2021… they gave affirmation to the wave of Moonlight in 2016 (though they didn’t vote it Best Picture, instead going with La La Land).

We in this chatterbox community have argued over the nature of both NYFCC and LAFCA for many years. Are they trying to be contrary? Do they want to be seen as an influencer? Why the hell are they giving out awards for the year in November?

I don’t feel like getting into any of these fights today.

National Society of Film Critics is the most prestigious of the critics awards… and the least helpful. They vote after the 1st of the new year and isn’t worrying about anything other than the movies. But NYFCC and LAFCA are valuable and important and whatever their quirks, the build the conversation about the films in contention.

Sidebar - As I am writing this, NYFCC just awarded Franz Rogowski for the film, Passages… that’s Ira Sach’s latest. No chance of an Oscar nomination at all. But if more people watch an Ira Sachs film - there are 10 features and he is a director worth diving into - this is a win for cinema.

As the voting ends, the Awards Weight Guessing Community will begin buzzing in the hive. What does it all mean?!?!?!

To the Oscars, very little.