TONI ERDMANN WINS FIVE ICS AWARDS

We've slogged through awards season for a fairly dull three months now, almost, and it's likely to end with nothing short of crushing ignominy with this weekend's Oscars. Can't it just end now? The International Cinephile Society award nominations were worth that slog, and their actual awards now are equally worth it. Just stare at this bright spot until your eyes go blind.

Best Picture
1. Toni Erdmann
2. Elle
3. Moonlight
4. Things to Come
5. Manchester by the Sea
6. Silence
7. Julieta
8. Cemetery of Splendour
9. Certain Women
10. Jackie

Best Director
1. Maren Ade (Toni Erdmann)
2. Paul Verhoeven (Elle)

Best Actress
1. Isabelle Huppert (Elle)
2. Sandra Huller (Toni Erdmann)

Best Actor
1. Peter Simonischek (Toni Erdmann)
2. Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)

Best Supporting Actress
1. Lily Gladstone (Certain Women)
2. Sandrine Kiberlain (Being 17)

Best Supporting Actor
1. Andre Holland (Moonlight)
2. Tom Bennett (Love & Friendship)

Best Original Screenplay
1. Maren Ade (Toni Erdmann)
2. Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)

Best Adapted Screenplay
1. David Birke (Elle)
2. Whit Stillman (Love & Friendship)

Best Cinematography
1. David Gallego (Embrace of the Serpent)
2. Rodrigo Prieto (Elle)

Best Editing
1. Job ter Burg (Elle)
2. Joe Walker (Arrival)

Best Production Design
1. Ryu Seong Hee (The Handmaiden)
2. Dante Ferretti (Silence)

Best Score
1. Mica Levi (Jackie)
2. Cliff Martinez (The Neon Demon)

Best Ensemble
1. Moonlight
2. Certain Women

Best Animated Film
1. The Red Turtle
2. My Life as a Courgette

Best Documentary
1. Fire at Sea
2. No Home Movie

Best Film Not in the English Language
1. Toni Erdmann
2. Elle
3. Things to Come
4. Julieta
5. Cemetery of Splendour
6. Embrace of the Serpent
7. Being 17
8. Aquarius
9. Mountains May Depart
10. Cosmos
11. The Handmaiden

INTERNATIONAL CINEPHILE SOCIETY AWARDS: ELLE, MOONLIGHT & SILENCE LEAD

A corrective to the tedium of the majority of other awards groups' nominations, here are the International Cinephile Society's picks for 2016. Eight mentions is the maximum, with three films claiming the lead - Paul Verhoeven's Elle, Barry Jenkins' Moonlight and Martin Scorsese's Silence. See what happens when you leave it a little longer to make your year-end choices? And see what happens when you poll the opinions of people with taste and intelligence? Winners will be announced on the 19th of February.

Best Picture

Cemetery of Splendour

Certain Women

Elle

Jackie

Julieta

Manchester by the Sea

Moonlight

Silence

Things to Come

Toni Erdmann

Best Director

Maren Ade (Toni Erdmann)

Pedro Almodovar (Julieta)

Barry Jenkins (Moonlight)

Martin Scorsese (Silence)

Paul Verhoeven (Elle)

Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Cemetery of Splendour)

Best Actress

Sonia Braga (Aquarius)

Isabelle Huppert (Elle)

Sandra Huller (Toni Erdmann)

Natalie Portman (Jackie)

Zhao Tao (Mountains May Depart)

Best Actor

Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)

Adam Driver (Paterson)

Colin Farrell (The Lobster)

Andrew Garfield (Silence)

Jeong Jae Yeong (Right Now, Wrong Then)

Peter Simonischek (Toni Erdmann)

Best Supporting Actress

Viola Davis (Fences)

Lily Gladstone (Certain Women)

Sandrine Kiberlain (Being 17)

Nicole Kidman (Lion)

Nagasawa Masami (Our Little Sister)

Best Supporting Actor

Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)

Tom Bennett (Love & Friendship)

Alden Ehrenreich (Hail, Caesar!)

Andre Holland (Moonlight)

Ogata Issei (Silence)

Best Original Screenplay

Maren Ade (Toni Erdmann)

Efthymis Filippou and Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster)

Mia Hansen-Love (Things to Come)

Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea)

Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Cemetery of Splendour)

Best Adapted Screenplay

Pedro Almodovar (Julieta)

David Birke (Elle)

Jay Cocks and Martin Scorsese (Silence)

Barry Jenkins and Tarell Alvin McCraney (Moonlight)

Kelly Reichardt (Certain Women)

Whit Stillman (Love & Friendship)

Best Cinematography

Manuel Dacosse (Evolution)

Stephane Fontaine (Jackie)

David Gallego (Embrace of the Serpent)

James Laxton (Moonlight)

Rodrigo Prieto (Silence)

Best Editing

Joi McMillon and Nat Sanders (Moonlight)

Thelma Schoonmaker (Silence)

Sebastian Sepulveda (Jackie)

Job ter Burg (Elle)

Joe Walker (Arrival)

Best Production Design

Dante Ferretti (Silence)

Antxon Gomez (Julieta)

Jess Gonchor (Hail, Caesar!)

Ryu Seong Hee (The Handmaiden)

David Wasco (La La Land)

Best Score

Anne Dudley (Elle)

Alberto Iglesias (Julieta)

Mica Levi (Jackie)

Cliff Martinez (The Neon Demon)

Laurent Perez del Mar (The Red Turtle)

Best Ensemble

Certain Women

Elle

Julieta

The Lobster

Moonlight

Best Animated Film

Kubo and the Two Strings

My Life as a Courgette

The Red Turtle

Your Name.

Zootopia

Best Documentary

Cameraperson
Fire at Sea

Francofonia

No Home Movie

O.J.: Made in America

Best Film Not in the English Language

Aquarius

Being 17

Cemetery of Splendour

Cosmos

Elle

Embrace of the Serpent

The Handmaiden

Julieta

Mountains May Depart

Things to Come

Toni Erdmann

Best Picture Not Released in 2016

Brothers of the Night

The Death of Louis XIV

Despite the Night

Happy Times Will Come Soon

The Lost City of Z

Nocturama

The Ornithologist

Personal Shopper

A Quiet Passion

Sieranevada

Slack Bay

The Son of Joseph

Staying Vertical

Sweet Dreams

Yourself and Yours

CAROL WINS FIVE INTERNATIONAL CINEPHILE SOCIETY AWARDS

Trust the International Cinephile Society to correct all of awards season's mistakes. A variety of brilliant films and brilliant artists wins their 2015 awards, with Todd Haynes' Carol claiming five prizes including top awards Best Picture and Director. It's the perfect tonic to an imperfect season. Have a look at their equally impressive nominations here, and their first and second places for each category (plus further rankings for select awards) below.

Best Picture

1. Carol

2. The Assassin

3. Mad Max: Fury Road

4. Clouds of Sils Maria

5. 45 Years

6. Inside Out

7. Li'l Quinquin

8. The Duke of Burgundy

9. A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence

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

11. Tangerine

Best Director

1. Todd Haynes (Carol)

2. Hou Hsiao Hsien (The Assassin)

Best Actor

1. Gaspard Ulliel (Saint Laurent)

2. Rohrig Geza (Son of Saul)

Best Actress

1. Rooney Mara (Carol)

2. Charlotte Rampling (45 Years)

Best Supporting Actor

1. Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina)

2. Walton Goggins (The Hateful Eight)

Best Supporting Actress

1. Kristen Stewart (Clouds of Sils Maria)

2. Mya Taylor (Tangerine)

Best Original Screenplay

1. Olivier Assayas (Clouds of Sils Maria)

2. Jessica Hausner (Amour Fou)

Best Adapted Screenplay

1. Phyllis Nagy (Carol)

2. Andrew Haigh (45 Years)

Best Cinematography

1. Lee Ping Bin (The Assassin)

2. Edward Lachman (Carol)

Best Editing

1. Margaret Sixel (Mad Max: Fury Road)

2. Matyas Fekete (The Duke of Burgundy)

Best Production Design

1. Huang Wen Ying (The Assassin)

2. Judy Becker (Carol)

Best Score

1. Carter Burwell (Carol)

2. Rich Vreeland (It Follows)

Best Ensemble

1. Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem

2. Spotlight

Best Animated Film

1. Inside Out

2. When Marnie Was There

Best Documentary

1. Heart of a Dog

2. In Jackson Heights

Best Picture Not in the English Language

1. The Assassin

2. Li'l Quinquin

3. A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence

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

5. Jauja

6. Son of Saul

7. Amour Fou

8. Phoenix

9. Hard to Be a God

10. Saint Laurent

11. La Sapienza

CAROL LEADS INTERNATIONAL CINEPHILE SOCIETY NOMINATIONS

The International Cinephile Society has announced its nominees for achievements in film for 2015, and they've more than rectified the mistakes of other awards groups this season. Three female-led films top the nomination count, with Carol scoring ten mentions and both The Assassin and Mad Max: Fury Road scoring seven each - three of my favourite films of the year too! And the list of personal delights continues through every single category, including richly deserved tech nods for Hard to Be a God and Jauja, appearances from Tangerine in main categories and The Duke of Burgundy and Saint Laurent in select categories, again all richly deserved citations, and a considerably more diverse slate overall than any of this year's major groups. Keep a close eye on the 16 films nominated for the Best Picture Not Released in 2016 award: half of last year's list appear on this year's ICS lineup in at least one category. Winners are due to be announced on the 21st of February. Check it all out below:

Best Picture

45 Years

Arabian Nights: Volume 1 – The Restless One / Arabian Nights: Volume 2 – The Desolate One / Arabian Nights: Volume 3 – The Enchanted One

The Assassin

Carol
Clouds of Sils Maria

The Duke of Burgundy

Inside Out

Li’l Quinquin

Mad Max: Fury Road

A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence

Tangerine

Best Director

Sean Baker (Tangerine)

Bruno Dumont (Li’l Quinquin)

Todd Haynes (Carol)

Hou Hsiao Hsien (The Assassin)

George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Actor

Christopher Abbott (James White)

Samuel L. Jackson (The Hateful Eight)

Röhrig Géza (Son of Saul)

Jacob Tremblay (Room)

Gaspard Ulliel (Saint Laurent)

Best Actress

Juliette Binoche (Clouds of Sils Maria)

Cate Blanchett (Carol)

Nina Hoss (Phoenix)

Rooney Mara (Carol)

Charlotte Rampling (45 Years)

Best Supporting Actor

Helmut Berger (Saint Laurent)

Emory Cohen (Brooklyn)

Benicio del Toro (Sicario)

Walton Goggins (The Hateful Eight)

Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina)

Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies)

Best Supporting Actress

Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight)

Cynthia Nixon (James White)

Erica Rivas (Wild Tales)

Kristen Stewart (Clouds of Sils Maria)

Mya Taylor (Tangerine)

Best Original Screenplay

Roy Andersson (A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence)

Olivier Assayas (Clouds of Sils Maria)

Josh Cooley, Ronnie del Carmen, Pete Docter and Meg LeFauve (Inside Out)

Bruno Dumont (Li’l Quinquin)

Jessica Hausner (Amour Fou)

Best Adapted Screenplay

Ah Cheng, Chu T’ien Wen, Hou Hsiao Hsien and Hsieh Hai Meng (The Assassin)

Andrew Haigh (45 Years)

Charlie Kaufman (Anomalisa)

Nick Lathouris, Brendan McCarthy and George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Phyllis Nagy (Carol)

Best Cinematography

Vladimir Ilin and Yuriy Klimenko (Hard to Be a God)

Edward Lachman (Carol)

Lee Ping Bin (The Assassin)

Emmanuel Lubekzi (The Revenant)

Timo Salminen (Jauja)

John Seale (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Editing

Matyas Fekete (The Duke of Burgundy)

Affonso Gonçalves (Carol)

Huang Chih Chia and Liao Ching Song (The Assassin)

Julio Perez (It Follows)

Margaret Sixel (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Best Production Design

Judy Becker (Carol)

Colin Gibson (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Huang Wen Ying (The Assassin)

Sergei Kokovkin, Georgiy Kropachyov and Elena Zhukova (Hard to Be a God)

Thomas E. Sanders (Crimson Peak)

Katia Wyszkop (Saint Laurent)

Best Score

Faris Badwan and Rachel Zeffira (The Duke of Burgundy)

Carter Burwell (Carol)

Tom Holkenborg (Mad Max: Fury Road)

Ennio Morricone (The Hateful Eight)

Rich Vreeland (It Follows)

Best Ensemble

Brooklyn

Carol

Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem

The Hateful Eight

Li’l Quinquin

Spotlight

Best Animated Film

Anomalisa

Inside Out

Shaun the Sheep Movie

When Marnie Was There

World of Tomorrow

Best Documentary

Amy

Heart of a Dog

In Jackson Heights

The Look of Silence

The Pearl Button

Best Picture Not in the English Language

Amour Fou

Arabian Nights: Volume 1 – The Restless One / Arabian Nights: Volume 2 – The Desolate One / Arabian Nights: Volume 3 – The Enchanted One

The Assassin

Hard to Be a God

Jauja

Li’l Quinquin

Phoenix

A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence

Saint Laurent

La Sapienza

Son of Saul

Honourable Mentions

Horse Money

Mustang

Timbuktu

The Tribe

Best Picture Not Released in 2015

Aferim!

Blood of My Blood

Cemetery of Splendour

Closet Monster

Embrace of the Serpent

In the Shadow of Women

Knight of Cups

The Lobster

Mia Madre

Mountains May Depart

My Golden Days

No Home Movie

Right Now, Wrong Then

Sunset Song

The Treasure

The Witch