Even though 2014 has come and gone in a flash, these films have burned brightly enough to land on this list intact, undiluted, and positively throbbing with accomplishment.
If there could be anything said about the role of cinema in 2014, it would be, "bleh." It was a year filled with shoddy remakes and boring sequels. The brilliant Marvel and the arrogant Michael Bay dominated the box office, and Indies were few in numbers. It's safe to say that 2014 was just a rest stop for the upcoming explosion of superhero films and mega-franchises.
'Gone Girl' Tops 2014 Nevada Film Critics Society Awards
The mesmerizing, mystery thriller, Gone Girl, about a man whose wife has gone missing and the subsequent suspicions that point to him, was named Best Film of 2014 by The Nevada Film Critics Society. The movie also garnered Rosamund Pike the award for Best Actress. In other major categories, the chilling crime thriller, Nightcrawler received three awards. Jake Gyllenhaal was chosen Best Actor and Dan Gilroy won for Best Director and Best Screenplay.
JK Simmons beat out his competition as Best Supporting Actor and Jessica Chastain and Patricia Arquette tied for Best Supporting Actress. Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects went to Christopher Nolan's sci-fi fantasy adventure Interstellar.
Below is the complete list of winners in each category:
Best Film - 'Gone Girl' Best Actor - Jake Gyllenhaal 'Nightcrawler' Best Actress - Rosamund Pike 'Gone Girl' Best Supporting Actor - JK Simmons 'Whiplash' Best Supporting Actress - Tie - Jessica Chastain for 'A Most Violent Year' and Patricia Arquette for 'Boyhood' Best Youth Performance - Ellar Coltrane 'Boyhood' Best Director - Dan Gilroy 'Nightcrawler' Best Screenplay - Dan Gilroy 'Nightcrawler' Best Ensemble Cast - 'Guardians of the Galaxy' Best Documentary - 'Citizenfour' Best Animated Movie - 'Big Hero 6' Best Production Design - Adam Stockhausen -'The Grand Budapest Hotel' Best Cinematography - Hoyte van hoytema -'Interstellar' Best Visual Effects - 'Interstellar'
When it came to the movie going experience, 2013 was like every other year, in that it was filled with some great movies, and to put it bluntly, some really bad ones. Recollecting those that stood out as the cream of the crop, the following is my list of the ten best. I find it interesting that the majority of my choices were based on or inspired by a true story. Although very different in subject matter, each flick featured great performances, unforgettable characters and struck some sort of emotional chord, whether excitement, sympathy, sorrow, anger, or joy.
This year flew by as swiftly as a pop-up facial tissue leaves its box before another is pulled. In that interim, I’ve seen an array of films, good and bad, but certainly not all of them. Listed below is a selection of ten of the best the year had to offer, in no particular order, except perhaps the first one. That deserves to be in the Number One spot. –JM
The Nevada Film Critics Society's 2013 Awards for Achievement in Film
12 Years a Slave, based on an incredible true story of a free black man's fight for survival and freedom after he was abducted and sold into slavery, was named Best Film of 2013 by The Nevada Film Critics Society.
Alfonso Cauron won Best Director for Gravity, the intense story of a female astronaut who must find a way back to earth after being stranded in outer space during a NASA mission. The movie also won awards for Best Cinematography and Visual Effects.
In other major categories Matthew McConnaughey won Best Actor and Jared Leto won Best Supporting Actor for their work in Dallas Buyers Club. Meryl Street was named Best Actress for August: Osage County. The drama, about a gathering of a dysfunctional family where secrets, lies and heated arguments surface, also garnered the award for Best Ensemble Cast. Jennifer Lawrence won the award for Best Supporting Actress for American Hustle.
Below is the complete list of winners in each category:
Best Film - 12 Years A Slave
Best Actor - Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club)
Best Actress - Meryl Streep (August: Osage County)
Best Supporting Actor - Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club)
Best Supporting Actress - Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle)
Best Youth Performance - Sophie Nelisse (The Book Thief)
Best Director - Alfonso Cauron (Gravity)
Best Ensemble Cast - August: Osage County
Best Animated Movie - Frozen
Best Production Design - The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
I love all kinds of movies, in every genre, as long as they are finely acted, well done and hit some sort of chord with me. That said, true life, suspenseful covert operations, intense dramas, a delicate subject matter, magical fantasy adventures, charming comedy dramas, and harrowing stories of survival, make up what you will find in my eclectic list of best films for 2012.
As usual, if I didn’t see a particular film I could not include it here. Of those I DID see, here’s a 2012 end-of-the-world ranking, plus a few more that could not be squeezed into the top ten, but make a damn fine collective 11. Excluding directors, synopses are limited to ten words or less.
The Nevada Film Critics Society's 2012 Awards for Achievement in Film
"Argo", Ben Affleck's suspense filled political thriller about the rescue of six Americans during the 1980 hostage crisis in Iran has been named the best picture of 2012 by the Nevada Film Critics Society.
Affleck, who directed and starred in the film as CIA exfiltration expert Tony Mendez, tied as best director with Kathryn Bigelow for her work on the gripping, Zero Dark Thirty, which recounts the ten year mission of a female CIA agent determined to find and kill Al Queda terrorist leader, Osama Ben Laden.
In the other major categories, John Hawkes won best actor in the deeply moving The Sessions for his brilliant and sensitive portrayal of a severely disabled man who, as a virgin, decides to hire a sex surrogate so he can experience the joys of intimacy with a woman.
Helen Hunt, who co-starrred with Hawkes as his tender and caring sex surrogate in The Sessions and Jennifer Lawrence who starred as a troubled young widow in David O. Russell's endearing comedy drama Silver Linings Playbook tied for Best Actress.
Below is the complete list of winners in each category:
Best Film - Argo
Best Actor - John Hawkes (The Sessions)
Best Actress - TIE - Helen Hunt (The Sessions) and Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)
Best Supporting Actor - Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln)
Best Supporting Actress - Sally Field (Lincoln)
Best Youth Performance - Tom Holland (The Impossible)
Best Director - TIE - Ben Affleck (Argo) and Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty)
We invite members of the reviewing press whether in print, online, radio or television to become members of The Nevada Film Critics Society.
Before clicking on the application link please review our membership requirements and the NFCS rules. Nevada residents only.
We require that members provide a short bio so our visitors can know a little about our members. You should do this before filling out the application form.
Feel free to email us if you have any questions about NFCS or if you have any problems with the online form.
Once your application has been accepted we will provide instructions for submitting your review links.
