The New York Times Critic Circle selected “First Cow.” The Los Angeles Film Critics Association picked “Small Axe.” And now the National Board of Review has finally weighed in by announcing that Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods” is their selection for Best Film, Best Director, and Best Ensemble of 2020.
READ MORE: “Nomadland” wins Best Feature and Audience Award at the Gotham Awards [Winners List]
“Sound of Metal’s” Riz Ahmed took Best Actor while “Promising Young Woman’s” Carey Mulligan won Best Actress. Ahmed’s co-star Paul Raci took the Supporting Actor honor while Youn Yuh-jung won Supporting Actress for “Minari.” Sidney Flanigan won Breakthrough Performance for “Never Rarely Sometimes Always.”
“La Llorona” was a surprise winner for Best Foreign Language Film while “Time” took another Best Documentary win.
Surprising snubs among the nominees as well as NBR’s Top 10 lists for Film and Independent Film include “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Mank,” “Shirley” and “Palm Springs,” among others.
And it should be noted that the inclusion of “Miss Americana” in the top 5 documentaries is what we would describe as a “choice.”
A complete list of the NBR’s selections are as follows:
Best Film
DA 5 BLOODS
Best Director
Spike Lee, DA 5 BLOODS
Best Actor
Riz Ahmed, SOUND OF METAL
Best Actress
Carey Mulligan, PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN
Best Supporting Actor
Paul Raci, SOUND OF METAL
Best Supporting Actress
Youn Yuh-jung, MINARI
Best Adapted Screenplay
Paul Greengrass & Luke Davies, NEWS OF THE WORLD
Best Original Screenplay
Lee Isaac Chung, MINARI
Breakthrough Performance
Sidney Flanigan, NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS
Best Directorial Debut
Channing Godfrey Peoples, MISS JUNETEENTH
Best Animated Feature
SOUL
Best Foreign Language Film
LA LLORONA
Best Documentary
TIME
NBR Icon Award
Chadwick Boseman
NBR Freedom of Expression Award
ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI
NBR Spotlight Award
Radha Blank for writing, directing, producing and starring in THE FORTY-YEAR-OLD VERSION
Best Ensemble
DA 5 BLOODS
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography
Joshua James Richards, NOMADLAND
Top Films
(in alphabetical order)
First Cow
The Forty-Year-Old Version
Judas and the Black Messiah
The Midnight Sky
Minari
News of the World
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Soul
Sound of Metal
Top 5 Foreign Language Films
(in alphabetical order)
Apples
Collective
Dear Comrades
The Mole Agent
Night of the Kings
Top 5 Documentaries
(in alphabetical order)
All In: The Fight for Democracy
Boys State
Dick Johnson is Dead
Miss Americana
The Truffle Hunters
Top 10 Independent Films
(in alphabetical order)
The Climb
Driveways
Farewell Amor
Miss Juneteenth
The Nest
Never Rarely Sometimes Always
The Outpost
Relic
Saint Frances
Wolfwalkers
