After starting out as a scrappy little show and subject to some awkward teen years, the Critics Choice Awards have matured into their third decade. The 31st Annual Critics Choice Awards will air live on E! on Jan. 4, recognizing the best in film and television for the year. Comedian Chelsea Handler will be back as host, as she has ably handled duties for the previous five years.
The film awards, selected by nearly 575 voting members of the CCA, are often a strong indicator of what lies ahead at the Oscars. Take this year: after missing out at both the Golden Globes and SAG Awards, “Anora” took the top prize at the Critics Choice Awards — a feat it repeated shortly thereafter at the Academy Awards. Similarly, three of the acting winners went on to triumph at the show.
So it stands to reason that the films being pegged for Oscar glory are likely to show up at Critics Choice, especially considering there are 10 best picture slots. Films looking likely to fill the quota include “Hamnet,” “One Battle After Another,” “Sentimental Value,” “Sinners” and “Wicked: For Good.” Other films that have yet to be widely seen but are heavily favored include “Avatar: Fire and Ash” and “Marty Supreme” and, still in the mix, are “Bugonia,” “Frankenstein,” “Jay Kelly” and “Train Dreams.”
What’s fascinating is the amount of foreign-language films that have received critical acclaim and could factor into the race. While Joachim Trier’s family drama “Sentimental Value” is looking certain as a best pic nominee, there are several other movies that are gaining momentum, including Jafar Panahi’s “It Was Just an Accident,” which won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival this year, besting “Sentimental Value.” Its selection as France’s entry in the international feature Oscar race pushed Richard Linklater’s “Nouvelle Vague” out of contention in that category, but that film — about the making of “Breathless” — might just break into best picture on its own. Also building buzz are South Korea’s “No Other Choice,” from Park Chan-wook, Tunisia’s “The Voice of Hind Rijab” by Kaouther Ben Hania, and Brazil’s “The Secret Agent,” from Kleber Mendonça Filho.
This is not to say that the Critics Choice Awards are bound to any other voting organization — they often surprise with their selections. Just this year, they named “Wicked” helmer Jon M. Chu best director after he failed to be recognized in the category by the Academy. Chu even bested four directors who were nominated, including Sean Baker, who won the director Oscar and saw “Anora” win best pic, screenplay, editing and actress. The CCA’s animated winner wasn’t the wildly popular “Inside Out 2” or eventual Oscar winner “Flow” but “The Wild Robot.” And in editing, they awarded “Challengers” — a film that didn’t even score an Oscar nod in the category.
Perhaps the way the Critics Choice Awards show their own identity the most is in the additional categories and increased nomination slots. Acting categories are open to as many as six nominees, and they include awards for ensemble and best young actor/actress. They also have a category for best comedy film, allowing even more movies a shot at glory.
And really, the more the merrier, as films of all genres and scopes are celebrated and it’s refreshing to see love spread between so many films.