L.A. Film Critics pick ‘Amour’ as best film of 2012

 “Amour,” a French-language film by Austrian director Michael Haneke, was chosen as the year’s Best Picture this weekend by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. The poignant portrait of an elderly couple dealing with the realities of old age also won the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and is Austria’s official submission for Best Foreign Language Oscar at the 85th Academy Awards. The runner-up in this category was Paul Thomas Anderson’s “The Master,” starring Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Amy Adams. That film was honored by the L.A. Critics for Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Production Design. The slate of awards doled out by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association seems to have stalled the sweep that Kathryn Bigelow’s “Zero Dark Thirty” was enjoying from critics groups around the country. In another surprise, the L.A. Critics' vote for Best Actress resulted in a tie for 22-year-old Jennifer Lawrence for “Silver Linings Playbook” and 85-year-old Emmanuelle Riva for “Amour.” Curiously absent from mention in any of the categories was Steven Spielberg's acclaimed “Lincoln,” sure to be a favorite among Oscar voters.

 

Here is a complete list of the winners:

 

Best Picture: “Amour”

Runner-up: “The Master”

 

Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, “The Master”

Runner-up: Kathryn Bigelow, “Zero Dark Thirty”

 

Best Actress (TIE): Jennifer Lawrence, “Silver Linings Playbook;” Emmanuelle Riva, “Amour”

 

Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix, “The Master”

Runner-up: Denis Lavant, “Holy Motors”

 

Best Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, “The Master”

Runner-up: Anne Hathaway, “Les Misérables”

 

Best Supporting Actor: Dwight Henry, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”

Runner-up: Christoph Waltz, “Django Unchained”

 

Best Screenplay: Chris Terrio, “Argo”

Runner-up: David O. Russell, “Silver Linings Playbook”

 

Best Editing: Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg, “Zero Dark Thirty”

Runner-up: William Goldenberg, “Argo”

 

Best Animation: “Frankenweenie”

Runner-up: “It’s Such a Beautiful Day”

 

Best Foreign-Language Film: “Holy Motors”

Runner-up: “Footnote”

 

Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins, “Skyfall”

Runner-up: Mihai Malaimare Jr., “The Master”

 

Best Documentary: “The Gatekeepers”

Runner-up: “Searching for Sugar Man”

 

Best Music Score: Dan Romer and Benh Zeitlin, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”

Runner-up: Jonny Greenwood, “The Master”

 

Best Production Design: David Crank and Jack Fisk, “The Master”

Runner-up: Adam Stockhausen, “Moonrise Kingdom”

 

New Generation Award: Benh Zeitlin, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”

 

Career Achievement Award: Frederick Wiseman

 

Douglas Edwards Experimental/Indepen​dent Film/Video Award: “Leviathan”