Award Ceremony for February, 2006
Best Supporting Actor
Steve Buscemi as Seymour in Ghost World (2001)
Buscemi is always a strong performer. In Ghost World, he serves as the object of Thora Birch’s obsessions, simultaneously portraying a simplistic characature and a deeply complex individual. (And also manages to be funny a lot of the time.)
Best Supporting Actress
Rita Wilson as Anne Crane in Auto Focus (2002)
It takes a lot to stand out in a film as bad as Auto Focus. Not a lot is done right in that film, but Rita Wilson’s is able to instill Anne with a center that no one else in the film can muster. She alone comes off well and her performance deserved a better film to showcase it.
Best Director
Terry Zwigoff for Ghost World (2001)
Zwigoff’s odd portrayal of the world of Enid and Rebecca has an impressive level of consistancy, much like Unbreakable last month. Once the world view is established, it never strays until the end. (Which I think is intentional.) Regardless, no other director this month showed the kind of devotion to his vision that Zwigoff did.
Best Actor
Alec Guiness as Henry Holland in The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
No one compared to Alec Guiness when taking on a role like this. He inhabited the character as completely as anyone ever has. Mannerisms, cadence, and movement are all consistent from his first appearance to his last shuffle off the screen. Brilliant.
Best Actress
Irene Dunne as Terry McKay in Love Affair (1939)
A tough one, as Thora Birch was quite strong in Ghost World. But while Birch’s was a wonderful performance, Irene Dunne’s portrayal of the headstrong and willful Terry comes off as effortlessly natural and wildly entertaining to boot.
Best Documentary
Almost Home (2006)
I had said to myself that I would award ‘Best Documentary’ only if I saw more than one in a given month (there will be no wins by default). Well, I managed not to see any in January, but did catch two in February. While Empire of Dreams (2004) was an entertaining look at the making of the Star Wars Saga, it lacked real depth. Almost Home is able to make its subjects come across as the real people they are, as well as show the many sides of its subject matter, all the while keeping the viewer engaged and not the least bit bored.
Best Comedy
The Producers (2005)
There are a lot of little things that are wrong with The Producers. The other contender, The Lavender Hill Mob, is virtually flawless. But to me, the ultimate test of a comedy is how much it makes me laugh. Lavender Hill is a wonderful film, but The Producers had me laughing practically from start to finish.
Best Drama
All Creatures Great and Small (1975)
The power of James Herriot’s stories carries the emotional weight for All Creatures Great and Small. The performances are strong enough to hold the viewers interest and the Yorkshire countryside makes sure the view along the way is magnificent to look at.
And of course…
Worst Film
SpiderBabe (2003)