The Independent Spirit Awards were held today. I usually pay no attention to them in terms of results, but they are one of the more fun awards shows, as they take place in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica, and everyone gets loaded and gets all their nerves out before the Oscars the following day.
I’ve got little to say or add to this, so I’ll just run through the results, and then get back to typing up my giant Oscar article that’ll go up tomorrow morning.
Here are your Spirit Awards results:
Best Feature
Anomalisa
Beasts of No Nation
Carol
Spotlight
Tangerine
Winner: Spotlight
Did anyone not think that was a slam dunk?
Best Director
Sean Baker, Tangerine
Cary Joji Fukunaka, Beasts of No Nation
Charlie Kaufman & Duke Johnson, Anomalisa
David Robert Mitchell, It Follows
Todd Haynes, Carol
Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
Winner: Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
That was not a given, but seemed the obvious choice, linking up with Picture.
I kinda hoped they’d go with Baker, since I know people loved Tangerine and how wildly fresh and innovative it was.
Best Male Lead
Christopher Abbott, James White
Abraham Attah, Beasts of No Nation
Ben Mendelsohn, Mississippi Grind
Jason Segal, The End of the Tour
Koudous Seihon, Mediterranea
Winner: Abraham Attah, Beasts of No Nation
Not surprised. Made the most sense, especially given how the narrative has gone post-nominations.
Best Female Lead
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Bel Powley, The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Brie Larson, Room
Rooney Mara, Carol
Kitana Kiki Rodriguez, Tangerine
Winner: Brie Larson, Room
Of course. I don’t think anyone would argue she had perhaps the most difficult role of any actress this year, emotionally.
Best Supporting Male
Kevin Corrigan, Results
Paul Dano, Love & Mercy
Idris Elba, Beasts of No Nation
Richard Jenkins, Bone Tomahawk
Michael Shannon, 99 Homes
Winner: Idris Elba, Beasts of No Nation
If I had to pick the biggest lock of the night, this would have been it.
No love for Love & Mercy. Oh well.
Best Supporting Female
Robin Bartlett, H.
Marin Ireland, Glass Chin
Jennifer Jason Leigh, Anomalisa
Cynthia Nixon, James White
Mya Taylor, Tangerine
Winner: Mya Taylor, Tangerine
Oh hell yeah. This was an easy choice. Watch the film and you’ll see why she was the choice. I’m pretty sure I watched this film the day the nominations came out, and I would have (and probably did) call her the winner that day.
Best Screenplay
Anomalisa
Bone Tomahawk
Carol
The End of the Tour
Spotlight
Winner: Spotlight
Well fucking really.
Best Editing
Heaven Knows What
It Follows
Manos Sucias
Room
Spotlight
Winner: Spotlight
Makes sense.
Best Cinematography
Beasts of No Nation
Carol
It Follows
Meadowland
Songs My Brothers Taught Me
Winner: Carol
It was nominated for the Cinematography Oscar. That was the choice.
Best First Feature
The Diary of a Teenage Girl
James White
Manos Sucias
Mediterranea
Songs My Brothers Taught Me
Winner: The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Good for her. Really liked that film.
Best First Screenplay
The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
Mediterranea
The Mend
Room
Winner: Room
Still kind of hoped Me and Earl and the Dying Girl won. But I can be very okay with this having won.
Best International Film
Embrace of the Serpent
Girlhood
Mustang
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting Existence
Son of Saul
Winner: Son of Saul
No shit.
John Cassavetes Award
Advantageous
Christmas, Again
Heaven Knows What
Krisha
Out of My Hand
Winner: Krisha
Okay.
Best Documentary
Best of Enemies
Heart of a Dog
The Look of Silence
The Russian Woodpecker
(T)error
Winner: The Look of Silence
It was nominated. Of course.
– – – – – – – – – –
So those are your Spirit Awards. No real surprises. Thought maybe Fukunaga would have won Director. But otherwise, they always tend to pick the Oscar nominees. It’s weird how they deliberately try not to be a part of the Oscar frenzy, yet their voting looks as though they want to fit in with the Oscar frenzy. Plus I’m never quite sure what counts as an independent and what doesn’t with them. It’s either stuff that’s all over the Oscars or stuff no one has ever or will ever hear of.
But I guess that’s the life of an independent movie.
