IN the end of year awards made by the major US critics' groups in the past week, Fargo has been the only American film among the front runners with Secrets & Lies, Breaking The Waves and Shine. Already named film of the year by the National Board of Review (as reported here last week), Shine took the best actor award for Geoffrey Rush from the New York, Los Angeles and Boston critics' circles.
The New York critics voted Fargo best film of the year, with Milos Forman's The People Vs. Larry Flynt and Breaking The Waves in second and third places. Breaking The Waves also took their awards for best director (Lars von Trier), actress (Emily Watson) and cinematography (Robby Muller). In the best supporting actor categories, the New York critics opted for Harry Belafonte (Kansas City) and Courtney Love (Larry Flynt).
They gave best foreign language film to the Iranian The White Balloon, best screenplay to Albert Brooks and Monica Johnson for Mother, best first film to Stanley Tucci and Campbell Scott for Big Night, and an award for distinguished reissue to Hitchcock's masterpiece, Vertigo.
Secrets & Lies swept three major awards from the Los Angeles critics best film, director (Mike Leigh) and actress (Brenda Blethyn), while Fargo, which was their runner up choice in all three of those categories, was voted best screenplay. Barbara Hershey was named best supporting actress for The Portrait Of A Lady, while best supporting actor went to young Edward Norton for Primal Fear, Larry Flynt and Everyone Says I Love You.
The LA critics shared the best cinematography award between Chris Menges (for Michael Collins) and John Seale (The English Patient). Claude Chabrol's La Ceremonie took the foreign language film award, followed by Gianni Amelio's L'america, and best documentary went to When We Were Kings, dealing with the famous rumble in the jungle" involving Mohammed Ali and George Foreman.
Trainspotting was named best picture and runner up best screenplay by the Boston Society of Film Critics, with Mike Leigh and Brenda Bletyhn again named best director and actress for Secrets & Lies. Courtney Love was named supporting actress for Larry Flynt, while Edward Norton was named supporting actor again a hat trick for him after his awards from the New York critics and the National Board of Review. The Boston critics voted Big Night best screenplay and best new director. John Seale won for cinematography again and Ma Saison Preferee for foreign language film.
FOLLOWING the success If the Fr Ted comedy master class earlier this year, Galway Film Centre is running a year long course in television comedy script writing, which has received the backing of the National Training Committee for Film and Television and FADS. The course, Writing For Sitcom, seeks to attract writers who have had some success in writing comedy for television, film, radio, print or performance (stand up), The resident tutors will be Billy McGrath, who is also the course director and Sean Hardie. For further information, contact Fiona Kilkelly, Galway Film Centre, Monivea Road, Galway. Tel (091) 770748: fax 770746.
THREE Oscar winning actors Paul Newman, Susan Sarandon and Gene Hackman take the starring roles in Robert Benton's new production, The Magic Hour, which also features Stockard Channing and Reese Witherspoon. Ian Holm takes over from Donald Sutherland in the leading role of the new Atom Egoyan film, The Sweet Hereafter, based on the novel by Russell Banks.
Shooting in Spain next month, Live Flesh is the first film from Pedro Almodovar since his return to form with The Flower Of My Secret. A thriller, Live Flesh will star two of Spain's hottest young actors, Javier Bardem and Jorge Sanz. Almodovar's future plans include an untitled western and Manolette, a Spanish bullfighting project.
Betty Thomas, who directed the very witty Brady Bunch Movie, is set to direct the remake of Doctor Do little with Eddie Murphy in the title role. And, perish the thought, Murphy is also set to star in a sequel to the dire but commercially lucrative The Nutty Professor.
