ST. LOUIS FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION

Best Picture

·         The Artist

·         The Descendants

·         Drive

·         My Week with Marilyn

·         The Tree of Life

Best Director

·         David Fincher (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)

·         Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist)

·         Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life)

·         Alexander Payne (The Descendants)

·         Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

·         George Clooney (The Descendants)

·         Jean Dujardin (The Artist)

·         Michael Fassbender (Shame)

·         Ryan Gosling (Drive)

·         Gary Oldman (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy)

·         Brad Pitt (Moneyball)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role

·         Viola Davis (The Help)

·         Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)

·         Elizabeth Olsen (Martha Marcy May Marlene)

·         Saoirse Ronan (Hanna)

·         Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady)

·         Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role

·         Albert Brooks (Drive)

·         John Goodman (The Artist)

·         John Hawkes (Martha Marcy May Marlene)

·         Jonah Hill (Moneyball)

·         Alan Rickman (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role

·         Bérénice Bejo (The Artist)

·         Cate Blanchett (Hanna)

·         Jessica Chastain (The Tree of Life)

·         Octavia Spencer (The Help)

·         Shailene Woodley (The Descendants)

Best Original Screenplay

·         Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris)

·         David Farr and Seth Lochhead (Hanna)

·         Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist)

·         Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life)

·         Thomas McCarthy and Joe Tiboni (Win Win)

·         Will Reiser (50/50)

Best Adapted Screenplay

·         Hossein Amini and James Sallis (Drive)

·         Stan Chervin, Michael Lewis, Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zaillian (Moneyball)

·         Nat Faxon, Kaui Hart Hemmings, Alexander Payne and Jim Rash (The Descendants)

·         Jim Henson, Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller (The Muppets)

·         Kathryn Stockett and Tate Taylor (The Help)

Best Cinematography

·         Jeff Cronenweth (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)

·         Janusz Kaminski (War Horse)

·         Emmanuel Lubezki (The Tree of Life)

·         Guillaume Schiffman (The Artist)

·         Newton Thomas Sigel (Drive)

Best Visual Effects

·         Captain America: The First Avenger

·         Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

·         Rise of the Planet of the Apes

·         Super 8

·         The Tree of Life

Best Music

·         Christophe Beck and Bret McKenzie (The Muppets)

·         Ludovic Bource (The Artist)

·         Alexandre Desplat (The Tree of Life)

·         Cliff Martinez (Drive)

·         Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)

Best Animated Film

·         The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn

·         Kung Fu Panda 2

·         Puss in Boots

·         Rango

·         Rio

Best Documentary

·         Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey

·         Buck

·         Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop

·         The Interrupters

·         Tabloid

Best Foreign Language Film

·         13 Assassins

·         I Saw the Devil

·         Point Blank

·         TrollHunter

·         Winter in Wartime

Best Art-House or Festival Film (for excellence in art-house cinema, limited to films that played at film festivals or film series here or those that had a limited release here, playing one or two cinemas)

·         Beginners

·         Martha Marcy May Marlene

·         Tucker and Dale vs. Evil

·         We Need to Talk About Kevin

·         Win Win

Best Comedy

·         Bridesmaids

·         Crazy, Stupid, Love.

·         Midnight in Paris

·         The Muppets

·         Paul

·         Rango

Best Scene (favourite movie scene or sequence)

·         The Artist (dance scene finale)

·         Drive (the elevator beating scene)

·         Drive (opening get-away scene)

·         The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (opening credits)

·         Hanna (Hanna’s escape from captivity sequence)

·         Melancholia (the last scene)

Yet another critics' groups announces, and things are starting to become clearer. The Artist is heading forward full-steam, as is Drive. Hugo has taken a bit of a knock - was its success last week just a flash in the pan, or will it regain its composure? Indeed, St. Louis have ignored it completely - not a single nomination.

With six nominations in the leading categories, this leaves room for nominees like Ryan Gosling (would he have got in anyway, what with the love for Drive?) and Rooney Mara; The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which has been mostly left out until now, has picked up five nominations here, and most of them important ones, including Best Director. Surely this is just the start of its ascension to the top of the race? It's what I've been expecting for some time now. St. Louis' supporting category choices are rather unusual, with the first nominations of the season for John Goodman, Cate Blanchett and Alan Rickman. Remember when we all thought Alan Rickman was a surefire nominee? It could still happen. Cate Blanchett, though, may be stretch - this lot clearly likes Hanna.