Update: Well, now it's a little clearer what Mann was talking about — according to The Hollywood Reporter's sources, the jury wanted to give "The Master" the Golden Lion as well, but were told that they couldn't give one film more than two major awards. After some deliberation, it was decided to give "Pieta" the top prize, and "The Master" the two others. It all sounds like a bit of a clusterfuck, frankly, but it's not going to hurt the film's Oscar chances one bit…
Most of the press have long since departed Venice for Toronto, or at least other parts of the world, but before the Lido clears out entirely, there's the business of handing out some awards. It's been a competitive year, certainly, but one with a few hotly tipped pictures, and when jury president Michael Mann took to the stage, he made clear that nothing would sweep the board; only one award per film would be given, something of the norm at film festivals. As it turns out, he was fibbing…
The big prize, the Golden Lion, was one widely predicted by many prognosticators (including in our own review of the film), Kim Ki-Duk's brutal mother-son revenge movie "Pieta," which went down a storm at the critic's screening we attended at the festival. Its biggest competition was probably Paul Thomas Anderson's "The Master" and that didn't do too badly either, picking up Best Director (originally announced that way, then swapped over with the Special Jury Prize, and then seemingly swapped back again — it's been a bit of a disaster all around…), and Best Actor, shared between Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman, making it a movie that won two awards. Damn your poker face, Mann!
As for Best Director (or the Silver Lion), when the confusion was cleared up, it was awarded to Ulrich Seidl, for his controversial, throughly enjoyable (sort of) "Paradise: Faith," while Best Actress went to the young star of Israeli film "Fill The Void," Hadas Yaron. Meanwhile, Italian film "It Was The Son" (which we didn't see) also picked up two awards, winning the Best Young Actor prize for Fabrizio Falco, who also appeared in "Dormant Beauty," and for technical achievement, curiously awarded to director Daniele Cipri (the award generally goes to below-the-line talent, although Cipri does serve as his own DoP, we believe). Meanwhile, Olivier Assayas' very good "Something in the Air" picked up Best Screenplay, and Wang Bing's "Three Sisters" came top in the Orrizonti sidebar.
You can read the full list of awards below, and the mind-bogglingly large list of side awards and offshoots (Courtesy of In Contention) on the next page, and catch up with our complete reviews from Venice here. All in all, a pretty good start to awards season for "The Master," even if it missed out on the top prize…
Golden Lion (Best Picture)
"Pieta," Kim-Ki Duk
Silver Lion (Best Director)
Paul Thomas Anderson – "The Master"
Volpi Cup – Best Actor
Joaquin Phoenix & Philip Seymour Hoffman – "The Master"
Volpi Cup – Best Actress
Hadas Yaron – "Fill The Void"
Special Jury Award
Ulrich Seidl – "Paradise: Faith"
Mastroianni Award – Best Young Actor
Fabrizio Falco – "Dormant Beauty," "It Was The Son"
Best Screenplay
Olivier Assayas – "Something In The Air"
Technical Achievement
Daniele Cipri – "Il Stato E Figlio,"
Luigi De Laurentiis Award (Best First Feature)
"Kuf: Mold," Ali Aydin
Orrizonti: Best Feature
"Three Sisters," Wang Bing
Orrizonti: Jury Prize
"Tango Libre," Frederic Fonteyne
FIPRESCI Award (Competition)
"The Master," Paul Thomas Anderson
FIPRESCI Award (Orizzonti/Critics' Week)
"The Interval," Leonardo Di Constanzo
SIGNIS Award
"To the Wonder," Terrence Malick
SIGNIS Award (Special Mention)
"Fill the Void," Rama Burshtein
Audience Award (Critics' Week)
"Eat Sleep Die," Gabriela Pilcher
Label Europa Cinemas Award
"Crawl," Herve Lasgouttes
Leoncino d'Oro Agiscuola Award
"Pieta," Kim Ki-duk
Leoncino d'Oro Agiscuola Award (Cinema for UNICEF mention)
"It Was the Son," Daniele Cipri
Pasinetti Award
"The Interval," Leonardo Di Constanzo
Pasinetti Award (Documentary)
"The Human Cargo," Daniele Vicari
Pasinetti Award (Best Actor)
Valerio Mastandrea, "Gli Equilibristi"
Pasinetti Award (Special)
"Clarisse," Liliana Cavani
Brian Award
"Dormant Beauty," Marco Bellocchio
Queer Lion Award
"The Weight," Jeon Kyu-Hwan
Arca CinemaGiovani Award (Best Film of Venezia 69)
"The Fifth Season," Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodworth
Arca CinemaGiovani Award (Best Italian Film)
"The Ideal City," Luigi Lo Casco
Biografilm Lancia Award
"The Human Cargo," Daniele Vicari; "Bad 25," Spike Lee
CICT-UNESCO Enrico Fulchignoni Award
"The Interval," Leonardo Di Costanzo
CICAE Award
"Wadjda," Haifaa Al Mansour
CinemaAvvenire Award (Best Film of Venezia 69)
"Paradise: Faith," Ulrich Seidl
CinemAvvenire Award (Diversity)
"Wadjda," Haifaa Al Mansour
FEDIC Award
"The Interval," Leonardo Di Costanzo
FEDIC Award (Special Mention)
"Bellas Mariposas," Salvatore Mereu
Mimmo Rotella Foundation Award
"Something in the Air," Olivier Assayas
Future Film Festival Digital Award
"Bad 25," Spike Lee
Future Film Festival Digital Award (Special Mention)
"Spring Breakers," Harmony Korine
P. Nazareno Taddei Award
"Pieta," Kim Ki-duk
P. Nazareno Taddei Award (Special Mention)
"Thy Womb," Brillante Mendoza
Magic Lantern Award
"The Interval," Leonardo Di Costanzo
Open Award
"The Company You Keep," Robert Redford
La Navicella-Venezia Cinema Award
"Thy Womb," Brillante Mendoza
Lina Mangiacapre Award
"Queen of Montreuil," Solveig Anspach
AIF-FORFILMFEST Award
"The Interval," Leonardo Di Costanzo
Mouse d'Oro Award
"Pieta," Kim Ki-duk
Mouse d'Argento Award
"Anton's Right Here," Lyubov Arkus
UK-Italy Creative Industries Award
"The Interval," Leonardo Di Costanzo
Gillo Pontecorvo-Arcobaleno Latino Award
Laura Delli Colli
Christopher D. Smithers Foundation Award
"Low Tide," Roberto Minervini
Interfilm Award
"Wadjda," Haifaa Al Mansour
Giovani Giurati del Vittorio Veneto Film Festival Award
"The Company You Keep," Robert Redford
Giovani Giurati del Vittorio Veneto Film Festival Award (Special Mention)
Toni Servillo
Primio Cinematografico Award
"Terramatta," Costanza Quatriglio
Green Drop Award
"The Fifth Season," Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodworth