“Birdman,” Alejandro G. Inarritu’s mystical New York theater fable, nabbed the top prize for best feature film last night at the 2014 Gotham Independent Film Awards at Cipriani’s Wall Street.
Only hours earlier, the New York Film Critics gave that honor to Richard Linklater’s “Boyhood,” which did not go home empty handed last night. “Boyhood” received the Gotham Award as audience favorite and beat out 14 other feature and documentary films with viewers voting online.
Top acting prizes last night went to Michael Keaton for his portrayal as a washed up superhero in “Birdman” and Julianne Moore for her stunning performance as a 50ish University professor stricken with Alzheimer’s in “Still Alice.”
The Gothams are not necessarily good predictors of the Oscars; last year they gave the terrific Coen Brothers film “Inside Llewyn Davis” the top prize for best feature film. The film later on didn’t even get an Oscar nomination. The little gold man instead went home with Steve McQueen for “12 Years a Slave.”
The Gotham did get it right this year for best documentary, which they awarded to Laura Poitras for “Citizenfour,” also the best documentary choice by the New York Film Critics Circle. The Edward Snowden documentary – if not the person – will definitely be going to the Oscars.
Steve Carrell, Mark Ruffalo and Channing Tatum, the leads in Bennett Miller’s “Foxcatcher,” received a special jury award jointly, although only Carrell showed to pick up his glass sculpture.
Special tributes also went to Tilda Swinton, director Bennett Miller, and Netflix’s Ted Sarandos.
The Gotham’s kick off the awards race and are a good starting place for actors and filmmakers to practice their speeches. It’s also a great boozy party that draws A-listers like Scarlett Johansson, Meryl Streep, John Hamm, Miles Teller, Steve Carrell, Michael Keaton, Julianne Moore and Catherine Keener.
Check out the complete list of winners below.
BEST FEATURE:
- WINNER: “BIRDMAN or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance).”
- “Boyhood”
- “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
- “Love Is Strange”
- “Under the Skin”
AUDIENCE AWARD:
- WINNER: *“BOYHOOD”
- “Actress”
- “Birdman” “
- “Citizenfour”
- “Coherence”
- “Dear White People”
- “A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night”
- “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
- “It Felt Like Love”
- “Life Itself”
- “Love Is Strange”
- “Manakamana”
- “Nightcrawler”
- “Point and Shoot”
- “Under the Skin”
BINGHAM RAY BREAKTHROUGH DIRECTOR AWARD :
- WINNER: *ANA LILY AMIRPOUR for “A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night”
- James Ward Byrkit for “Coherence”
- Dan Gilroy for “Nightcrawler”
- Eliza Hittman for “It Felt Like Love”
- Justin Simien for “Dear White People”
BEST ACTOR :
- WINNER: *MICHAEL KEATON in “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)”
- Bill Hader in “The Skeleton Twins”
- Ethan Hawke in “Boyhood”
- Oscar Isaac in “A Most Violent Year”
- Miles Teller in “Whiplash”
BEST ACTRESS:
- WINNER: *JULIANNE MOORE in “Still Alice”
- Patricia Arquette in “Boyhood”
- Gugu Mbatha-Raw in “Beyond the Lights”
- Scarlett Johansson in “Under the Skin”
- Mia Wasikowska in “Tracks”
Special Gotham Jury Award:
- WINNER: Steve Carell, Mark Ruffalo, Channing Tatum, “Foxcatcher” ensemble
Best Documentary:
- WINNER: *“CITIZENFOUR”
- “Actress”
- “Life Itself”
- “Manakamana”
- “Point and Shoot”
Breakthrough Actor :
- WINNER: *TESSA THOMPSON in “Dear White People”
- Riz Ahmed in “Nightcrawler”
- Macon Blair in “Blue Ruin”
- Ellar Coltrane in “Boyhood”
- Joey King in “Wish I Was Here”
- Jenny Slate in “Obvious Child”
Spotlight on Women Filmmakers Live the Dream Grant:
- WINNER: *Chloé ZHAO, director, “Songs My Brothers Taught Me”
- Garrett Bradley, director, “Below Dreams”
- Claire Carré, director, “Embers”
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