US TEASER FOR PERSONAL SHOPPER

Of all the surprise choices made by the official jury at Cannes earlier this year, the Best Director tie was likely one of the least shocking. One of the two recipients (the other being Graduation's Cristian Mungiu), Olivier Assayas, won for Personal Shopper, the polarizing ghost story starring Kristen Stewart, who particularly impressed critics at the festival. It's not the first trailer for the film (you can find that here), but it is the first created for the American market; Personal Shopper opens in the US on the 10th of March.

OFFICIAL TRAILER #1 FOR CERTAIN WOMEN

Kelly Reichardt returns with Certain Women, the latest drama from the acclaimed American writer-director. Since Sundance, the film has been making the festival rounds in healthy fashion through the year, including upcoming slots at NYFF and LFF. This is the first trailer for Certain Women, which stars Laura Dern, Lily Gladstone, Kristen Stewart and Michelle Williams. Out in the US on the 14th of October.

REVIEW - EQUALS (DRAKE DOREMUS)

The heralding of a talent of only limited proportion leads to Drake Doremus' Equals, a woefully misguided futuristic romance that aspires toward classic sci-fi status, but falters at a lowlier level altogether - average YA adaptation status. The meaningful glances, the wistful tone, the swift, swoony editing, all hangovers from Doremus' last disaster, Breathe In, applied here to a (slightly) different concept. In fact, this film is the superior option in this comparison, due to its possession of a passable aesthetic scheme and a variety of strong performances. And yet Doremus squanders all his best attributes in service of adolescent sap, ever too faithful to his film's overarching ideas to acknowledge the skilled work put into realizing them. Though Equals lacks any purpose behind its visual design (or, indeed, behind any elements of its design), the sets at least provide some pretty distraction from the endless string of narrative platitudes. And dear Kristen Stewart is once again wasted in a film unworthy of her abilities; ditto Jacki Weaver, ever a most compelling presence and easily the film's most interesting character. But evoking one's interest is not in Drake Doremus' concerns, not unless you're sold already by the promise of limp depictions of young love between two pallid drips. Equals is a charmless prospect, rendered almost entirely as such by its director's devotion to this charmlessness. Alas, no film ever achieved the classic status to which it aspired by going only half in, but if Equals fulfills its own vapid, derivative mandate fully, that's certainly not a good thing.

TRAILER FOR PERSONAL SHOPPER WITH KRISTEN STEWART

The reception to Olivier Assayas' Personal Shopper at Cannes has been wildly mixed - many critics liking the film, a few loving it, with a few dissenters too, and bountiful boos from other audience members. Much as I haven't been a fan of much of Assayas' output, and much as the above trailer is awkward and poorly put-together, I'm most intrigued by these initial responses, and by the concept of an alternative ghost story as presented here. Release dates are currently scheduled for the autumn in some territories in Western Europe, so don't expect Personal Shopper to arrive in the US and UK for some time yet.

REVIEW - THE HUNTSMAN: WINTER'S WAR (CEDRIC NICOLAS-TROYAN)

We Western audiences are accustomed to this by now, the sequel that never should have been. We receive them, with varying levels of willingness, countless times every year, apathetic to their mediocrity, quietly cursing them as they desecrate our memories of their predecessors. There's little to desecrate in 2012's Snow White and the Huntsman, though 2016's The Huntsman: Winter's War somehow achieves such a feat - of all the sequels that never should have been, this awful attempt after an already-bad film, itself an ill-advised update of a classic tale, and this an insulting extension from that, in a franchise with no promise, and needlessly jettisoning the first film's star, this sequel takes the cake. In essence alone, Winter's War is slut-shaming manifest as movie, sinking so low as to actually feature a Kristen Stewart body double for one pithy shot, before inexplicably ignoring her character for the remainder of the film, a film which yet includes every other leading cast member from the previous film. An Aussie, a Brit, a South African and an American embark on a tour of the accents of Britain, with wildly erratic results: kudos to Chris Hemsworth for his solid turn at Scottish, though poor Jessica Chastain's heinous effort may just have painted his in a flattering light. Who among the cast could justifiably shoulder the blame for such atrocious dialogue, though? Every last line seems to land with a horrible thud; if not every line, then at least almost. Amid sorry craftsmanship and a silly storyline, savour what few gems Winter's War has to offer: a subtly scene-stealing performance by Emily Blunt, and a genuine good laugh to be had from the film's little people. Alas, even in this regard, the film fails however, with just as many offensive statements as funny ones, and a continued refusal to actually cast little people in these roles. A curse on this film!

SPOTLIGHT WINS NATIONAL SOCIETY OF FILM CRITICS AWARD

The National Society of Film Critics shocked Oscar watchers today by announcing Tom McCarthy's Spotlight the best film of 2015. NSFC published its vote counts for its top three in each category, highlighting those unequivocal winners like Charlotte Rampling, Mark Rylance and Kristen Stewart in the acting categories, and the much closer races. Particularly tight was the Best Director race, while low figures in Best Actor go to show just how uncertain that category has been this year. There were welcome citations, like 2nd place for The Assassin's Lee Ping Bin in Cinematography, and less welcome ones, like Amy winning yet another Documentary prize with a no-show for The Look of Silence. Amy's win and Spotlight's were unusually mainstream picks for the normally arthouse-friendly society - last year, it chose Jean-Luc Godard's Goodbye to Language 3D. Have a look at all their picks for 2015 below:

Best Picture

1. Spotlight (Tom McCarthy) - 23
2. Carol (Todd Haynes) - 17
3. Mad Max: Fury Road (George Miller) - 13

Best Director
1. Todd Haynes (Carol) - 21
2. Tom McCarthy (Spotlight) - 21*
3. George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road) - 20

Best Actor

1. Michael B. Jordan (Creed) - 29
2. Rohrig Geza (Son of Saul) - 18
3. Tom Courtenay (45 Years) - 15

Best Actress

1. Charlotte Rampling (45 Years) - 57
2. Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn) - 30
3. Nina Hoss (Phoenix) - 22

Best Supporting Actor

1. Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies) - 56
2. Michael Shannon (99 Homes) - 16
3. Sylvester Stallone - (Creed) - 14

Best Supporting Actress

1. Kristen Stewart (Clouds of Sils Maria) - 53
2. Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina) - 23
3. Elizabeth Banks (Love & Mercy) - 17
=  Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs) - 17

Best Screenplay

1. Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer (Spotlight) - 21
2. Charlie Kaufman (Anomalisa) - 15
=  Adam McKay and Charles Randolph (The Big Short) - 15

Best Cinematography

1. Edward Lachman (Carol) - 25
2. Lee Ping Bin (The Assassin) - 22
3. John Seale (Mad Max: Fury Road) - 12

Best Non-Fiction Film
1. Amy (Asif Kapadia) - 23
2. In Jackson Heights (Frederick Wiseman) - 18
3. Seymour: An Introduction (Ethan Hawke) - 15

Best Foreign Language Film
1. Timbuktu (Abderrahmane Sissako) - 22
2. Phoenix (Christian Petzold) - 20
3. The Assassin (Hou Hsiao Hsien) - 16

Film Heritage Award
Association Chaplin (for supervising the digital restoration of Charlie Chaplin's Essanay Films)
The Criterion Collection and L'Immagine Ritrovata (for the restoration and packaging of the reconstructed version of The Apu Trilogy by Satyajit Ray)
Film Society of Lincoln Center, Michelle Materre and Jake Perlin (for the series Tell It Like It Is: Black Independents in New York, 1968-1986)

Special Citation
One Floor Below (Radu Muntean)

*Lower placement due to featuring on fewer ballots

INDIEWIRE'S 2015 CRITICS POLL RESULTS - MAD MAX: FURY ROAD IS FILM OF THE YEAR

Who'd have guessed that Mad Max: Fury Road would top another critics poll? Everybody. The many, many journalists on the IndieWire network have named George Miller's new film the best of 2015, and Miller the best director of the year too. Have a look at their picks below, with Best Film above the cut and other categories after:

Best Film

1. Mad Max: Fury Road

2. Carol

3. Spotlight

4. Inside Out

5. Phoenix

6. Brooklyn

7. Anomalisa

8. The Assassin

9. The Look of Silence

10. Son of Saul

11. Ex Machina

12. Clouds of Sils Maria

13. Tangerine

14. 45 Years

15. Room

16. The Duke of Burgundy

17. Timbuktu

18. Arabian Nights: Volume 1 - The Restless One / Arabian Nights: Volume 2 - The Desolate One / Arabian Nights: Volume 3 - The Enchanted One

19. Creed

20. Hard to Be a God

21. Taxi

22. Heaven Knows What

23. It Follows

24. The Tribe

25. Sicario

26. The Forbidden Room

27. In Jackson Heights

28. The Martian

29. Mistress America

30. Steve Jobs

31. The Mend

32. Jauja

33. The Diary of a Teenage Girl

34. Chi-Raq

35. Heart of a Dog

36. Horse Money

37. Magic Mike XXL

38. Amy

39. A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence

40. The Big Short

41. Eden

42. Experimenter

43. About Elly

44. The Revenant

45. The End of the Tour

46. Bridge of Spies

47. Queen of Earth

48. Li'l Quinquin

49. Mustang

50. Love & Mercy

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD TAKES BEST PICTURE AT BOSTON ONLINE FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION

Following strong showings at awards from major groups the NBR and the NYFCC, Mad Max: Fury Road looks to be staking an early claim on the critics section of the current awards season. It wins both Best Picture and Best Director from the Boston Online Film Critics Association, and sweeps up the association's tech awards too, winning Best Cinematography, Editing and Original Score. All the info, including a Best Picture top ten and winners in other categories, is below:

Best Picture

1. Mad Max: Fury Road

2. Creed

3. Brooklyn

4. Carol

5. Spotlight

6. Clouds of Sils Maria

7. Bridge of Spies

8. The Martian

9. Anomalisa

10. Tangerine

Best Director

George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Actor

Michael B. Jordan (Creed)

Best Actress

Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn)

Best Supporting Actor

Sylvester Stallone (Creed)

Best Supporting Actress

Kristen Stewart (Clouds of Sils Maria)

Best Screenplay

Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer (Spotlight)

Best Cinematography

John Seale (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Editing

Margaret Sixel (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Original Score

Tom Holkenborg (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Ensemble

Spotlight

Best Animated Film

Inside Out

Best Documentary

Amy

Best Foreign Language Film

Son of Saul

CAROL TAKES FOUR AWARDS AT NEW YORK FILM CRITICS CIRCLE AWARDS

Following yesterday's welcome little jolt at the National Board of Review, an equally welcome choice from the New York Film Critics Circle - Todd Haynes' Carol is the NYFCC's film of 2015, taking Best Director, Screenplay and Cinematography alongside top honours. It misses out on any acting prizes, however, with Saoirse Ronan and Kristen Stewart taking the female awards. Category reshuffling places Spotlight's Michael Keaton in lead in one of the bigger surprises of today's results. All details of runners-up are unofficial and unconfirmed by the NYFCC. Full details below:

Best Picture

Carol
Runner-up: Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Director

Todd Haynes (Carol)
Runner-up: George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Actor

Michael Keaton (Spotlight)
#1 Runner-up: Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight)
#2 Runner-up: Jacob Tremblay (Room)

Best Actress

Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn)
= Runner-up: Cate Blanchett (Carol)
= Runner-up: Charlize Theron (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Supporting Actor

Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies)

Best Supporting Actress

Kristen Stewart (Clouds of Sils Maria)
Runner-up: Mya Taylor (Tangerine)

Best Screenplay

Phyllis Nagy (Carol)
Runner-up: Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer (Spotlight)

Best Cinematographer

Edward Lachman (Carol)

Best Animated Film

Inside Out

Best Non-Fiction Film

In Jackson Heights

Best Foreign Film

Timbuktu

Best First Film

Nemes Laszlo (Son of Saul)

Special Award

William Becker and Janus Films

Ennio Morricone