Thursday, March 29, 2018

THEATER: INVITING "LOBBY," COLD "FROZEN," OFF-KEY "ROCKTOPIA"

LOBBY HERO *** out of ****
FROZEN **
ROCKTOPIA *


LOBBY HERO *** out of ****
2ECOND STAGE AT THE HELEN HAYES THEATER

Kenneth Lonergan is a good playwright. His plays are shaggy and shambling and perhaps as flawed in modest ways as their characters. But they're alive -- plays like This Is Our Youth and Hold On To Me Darling and Lobby Hero and the rest are funny and engaging and bristling with the tension of everyday life.

In Lobby Hero, Jeff (Michael Cera) works in the lobby of a New York City apartment building. His boss William (Brian Tyree Henry) swings by each night to chat and check up on Jeff, encouraging the military washout to make something of his life. Jeff can't think much further than the end of his shift, but he is attracted to the pint-sized rookie cop Dawn (Bel Powley). She's partnered with the dickish veteran Bill (Chris Evans) who forces her to linger in the lobby while he dallies with the lady in 22-J.

With almost no fuss, Lonergan creates a compelling drama. William confides that his loser brother needs an alibi for a horrific crime the cops are pinning on him. A principled man, William hates lying but knows his brother is the perfect fall guy. And he's almost certain his brother had nothing to do with it. Almost. Dawn is trapped by an altercation with a drunk that led to the man's hospitalization. She needs the favorable testimony of Bill for the inquiry to follow...and Bill wants her to return the favor with favors. And Jeff? Well, Jeff has to decide if telling the truth is the right thing to do or just an easy way to win over Dawn.

2econd Stage was built on taking a second look at plays and this is a more satisfying revival than the Tony-nominated production of This Is Our Youth from 2015. I was lucky enough to see the original production of Lobby Hero, featuring a memorably quirky Glenn Fitzgerald Off Broadway. Here it is again, on Broadway this time, with Cera as a slightly more sad sack version of the same lonely lobby attendant.



The play is as delightful as I remember, offering up four colorful roles, lots of humor and proving a little more elegant in its construction than I recalled. (Everyone lies in ways large and small -- especially to themselves -- but Lonergan doesn't make a big deal of this.) Is it revealed as a masterpiece? No, but any show with four roles that can give four actors the chance to dig into parts as satisfying as these deserves to be revived again and again. David Rockwell's deceptively simple set design includes an open-air assemblage of walls and doors that allows the show to switch easily from inside to outside without calling attention to itself -- it's a set that admirably keeps the cast front and center from start to finish. That cast is ably led by the naturalistic direction of Trip Cullman, doing some of his best work.

Chris Evans is the headline here, making his Broadway debut. He has star power on film, from Captain America: Winter Soldier (the best of the recent Marvel movies) to Snowpiercer and other more offbeat projects. But can he conquer the stage? Easily. I don't know who to credit for his haircut and mustache but they alone makes you understand this is not a guy to trust. Yet it's not just his outward appearance that convinces -- that's not enough on stage, any more than a dashing figure means you can pull off a stalwart if conflicted hero on film. Evans convinces completely, making the whipsaw changes in this self-regarding, self-justifying cop very amusing and a little scary. It's one of the show's sneaky triumphs that we accept the contradictory Bill, who can be selfish and selfless in almost the same breath.

Yet, he's just part of the story. Brian Tyree Henry is exceptional as the no-nonsense William. His slow-burn over Jeff's nonsense, his anguish over his brother and his desire to stay true to his code without ignoring the realities of the world around him are a treat to behold. That's no surprise to anyone who has seen him in shows like The Brother/Sister Plays or Fortress Of Solitude and it's even less of a surprise to see his growing and impressive credits on film and TV.

Michael Cera proves his strong turn in This Is Our Youth was no fluke either. A very winning and quirky presence on film and TV, Cera is just as quietly charming on stage, from his dead-pan humor to his yearning for a little human sympathy.

But it's Bel Powley I'll remember most. She is sensational in the film The Diary of A Teenage Girl and back in 2011 she made a lovely Broadway debut in a sterling revival of Arcadia. Now here she is, so tiny and pugnacious and vulnerable and sweet and just a little too loud as the rookie Dawn.

Powley's eyes are racoon-sized as she swivels from hurt to anger to tender appreciation, ping-ponged this way and that by the mercurial untrustworthiness of a cop she desperately needs to believe in. Barking out some lines, mumbling others, painfully obvious as she tries to tamp down her pain or confusion -- Powley does it all here with terrific stage presence, great control of her voice and fully mining the inevitable moment when Dawn unleashes her anger.

And that's why you revive such a solid play by Lonergan. It doesn't suddenly reveal itself as a Major Work Of Drama, but it has riches that good actors can mine again and again. I'm not sure why Lonergan is a good playwright but a great filmmaker. After all, his strength is with words and characters, not visuals.  But I'd hate to lose him in either field and this impeccable revival is all the explanation you need.


FROZEN **
ST. JAMES THEATRE

Disney has a remarkable track record on Broadway. They've opened seven shows and five of them have been smash hits. Those five have been nominated for Best Musical, with The Lion King winning the top prize. And though they sometimes get it right, Disney has also proven willing to tinker and tinker again until they make a show better. Newsies was an experiment that leaped directly to Broadway. But The Hunchback Of Notre Dame has proven a harder nut to crack, getting mounted again and again all over the world but never getting the green-light for that final test. Aladdin needed two times at bat in regional theaters before they nailed it. And though The Little Mermaid has already come and gone on Broadway, they're still trying to make it work. (God knows the score needs no help -- it's terrific.) Now comes their eighth show -- and Frozen looks set to run for at least two years on the momentum of the film alone.

Better than anyone, Disney knows that theater doesn't have a formula. A great film like Tarzan or The Little Mermaid can prove very difficult to transfer to the stage. Sometimes being faithful pays off  for fans if not critics (Beauty and the Beast); sometimes a show can improve on a film (Newsies) and sometimes it has to go in an entirely new direction (Aladdin). Look at their work in theater and one thing is clear: Disney will take chances, Disney will tinker and Disney can be bold.

Unfortunately, none of that applies to Frozen. Perhaps the film was so successful they figured, why fix what ain't broke? Out of town, they reportedly considered a darker take on the story of two sisters who are separated by magic and misunderstanding. That's gone and what remains is a dutiful adaptation, with the same modest book, new songs weakening an already thin batch of tunes and the expensive yet somehow underwhelming sets recreating moments from the film rather than reimagining them. The story is by Jennifer Lee, who also wrote and co-directed the animated film. And the professional if not passionate direction is by Michael Grandage. Frozen will surely prove the first stop for parents with little girls who have already seen Wicked (and even those who haven't).  It won't get the cold shoulder from initial audiences but one doubts repeat business or word of mouth will be nearly as strong as expected.



Refreshingly, the princesses are front and center in Frozen and neither the main storyline nor the climactic action depend on guys: Frozen is girl power from beginning to end. Princess Elsa's power is a magical sort she can barely control. And when a spell gone awry almost kills her beloved younger sister Anna, the king and queen urge their gifted daughter to keep her powers tamped down. They lock her away from her sister, close the doors to the castle and hope for the best. But everyone knows your true nature can't be denied. When the parents die at sea, Elsa becomes the new ruler of their kingdom and unintentionally creates havoc with her icy skills: their land is plunged into an endless winter while Elsa flees to a mountain hide-away. Anna rushes after to save her, helped along by a magical snowman and a friendly guide. Oh, and they sing "Let It Go."

As with the film, the first 20 or so minutes of the show are the strongest. Two little girls play together late at night, with Elsa innocently urged on by Anna to display her powers. Near-tragedy is averted, Elsa is shut away and before you know it she's getting crowned Queen and Anna is meeting a really cute prince from the Southern Isles. The action here is elevated by the two best songs: the adorable "Do You Want To Build A Snowman?" and the blossoming romance number "Love Is An Open Door." The latter is head and shoulders above the rest of the songs by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and her husband Robert. In it, the goofily endearing Anna and the goofily endearing Prince Hans finish each other's sentences, top one another via a melody that continually ups the ante with key changes and otherwise captures people falling in love with the economy and precision of Rodgers and Hammerstein.

But it's fairly downhill from there, despite a game cast. The many problems of the film's book remain: the villain of the piece is a last-minute reveal that feels like a cheat. And this production reduces the role of the secondary villain (Robert Creighton), making Anna's mockery of his height seem petty and frankly out of place in a show that celebrates difference. (And his last-minute reversal to non-villain seems equally abrupt and unsatisfying.)

This adaptation might have easily revealed the villain sooner or at least made Hans more complex. And its weird fear of Elsa needed real fixing. Her mother is clearly the source of Elsa's magic. And they call on the Hidden Folk for help when that sorcery goes awry. So why exactly don't they ask for help in training Elsa to control it? At the very least, it would have been nice to try. Instead we have a timidly faithful reproduction of a flawed film.

That leaves the stage magic. One hoped there at least Frozen would shine. Instead the scenic and costume designs by Christopher Oram mostly disappoint. The costumes are fine (though I kept expecting the villagers to burst into songs from The Sound Of Music) and Elsa's quick-change when she bursts out of her shell garners cheers. But the real castle, the ice castle and the icy barriers that spring up during action scenes are thoroughly disappointing. Poor Elsa waves her hands around...and video projections dimly suggest the proscenium of the stage being iced over. At the climax those video projections...extend a few feet into the auditorium. The stakes on Broadway have been raised too high for that. You expect to be in a wintry wonderland the moment you step into the theater and that just doesn't happen.

Worst of all, the magical Hidden Folk are poorly conceived and executed on every level: they look like "primitive" cavemen and women, except for the tails that feel added on to suggest they're creatures rather than humans. Their leader has washboard abs, their hair is vaguely Rastafarian and it all seems more Clan of the Cave Bear than the (also poorly conceived) rock creatures of the film.

On the bright side, the cast is solid and makes the most of what they're given. The young Elsa and Anna along with the King and Queen score warmly. In much bigger roles, both John Riddle and Jelani Alladin are appealing as Hans and Kristof, competitors for Anna's heart. Kevin Del Aguila has fun with the most welcome addition to the score: the second act opener "Hygge." It doesn't quite land as the show stopper you want (body stockings for the playfully almost-nude chorus line are weirdly distracting) but it's a breath of fresh air anyway. And the show's decisions on how to portray the reindeer Sven (Andrew Pirozzi, who hopefully has a world-class chiropractor) and the snowman Olaf (Greg Hildreth) are spot-on. Sven is just a guy in a costume, but it works very well. And having Hildreth manipulate the puppet Olaf in full view is ideal. Even better, he captures the whimsy of Josh Gad's vocal performance without going as over-the-top. It's true in spirit, but Hildreth manages to put his own spin on the film's best element.

As the two sisters, our leads also do their best. Caissie Levy has the far less fun role of the tortured Elsa, though she does get to belt out that iron-plated hit "Let It Go" with iron lungs at the end of act one. But Patti Murin has the much better part of Anna and scores very nicely. Even though I caught her on an off night vocally (she had to cancel a performance due to bronchitis soon after), Murin was quite winning. Truly, there's nothing wrong with any performance or any element of this live action version of Frozen. There's just nothing terribly right about it either. Magic can be dangerous, but boy do you miss it when it's not there.


ROCKTOPIA *
THE BROADWAY THEATRE

Honestly, I had no idea what to expect. I thought Rocktopia was just "classic rock songs backed by a full-ish orchestra," a show popping onto Broadway for a few weeks before heading back out on tour. I knew Pat Monahan from Train would be a guest star on a few songs and that Robin Zander of Cheap Trick and Dee Snider of Twisted Sister were booked to guest star later in the run. I didn't realize it was a spin on the successful touring acts Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Mannheim Steamroller. Those stadium-friendly shows combine souped-up covers and originals (mostly rock and classical for the first, mostly holiday songs and classical for the second) with splashy pyrotechnics and top-notch visual/audio pizazz. And I really wasn't prepared for mash-ups of classical music with Elton John, the tired observation that Beethoven was the rock star of his day or the giddy kitsch of hearing Queen's "We Are The Champions" being performed while a parade of heroes like Abraham Lincoln and Anne Frank are displayed on video screens. No, seriously, Anne Frank! It was silly, it was sad, it was by no means good but I won't forget it.

I want to say it's a cut-rate version of what TSO does on tour, but I don't really know, having never seen TSO on tour. I also want to say the idea that there's an audience for a mash-up of classical music and classic rock is deeply misguided. People who love classical music and opera are surely not waiting around to hear very poor versions of war horses like "Nessun Dorma." And people who love Led Zeppelin and the Who presumably don't pause Houses Of The Holy and say, "You know what I really want to hear right now? Puccini!" But I am wrong, as the grosses of TSO and Mannheim Steamroller can attest year after year. The same is apparently true for Rocktopia. The dude next to me sighed with pleasure when the opening strains of Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir" were heard and seemed just as happy in a way when Máiréad Nesbitt of Celtic Woman appeared on stage looking like a white witch and sawed away on her violin. (How does she keep her hair from getting tangled up with the strings and the bow?) And the show grossed an astonishing (to me) $800,000 on Broadway last week, which I would bet the house is less than their operating costs. People really DO want to hear Stravinsky's "The Rite Of Spring"...as long as it's followed by "Purple Haze." Who the hell knew? Well, co-creators Rob Evan and Randall Craig Fleischer, that's who. They and the audience really don't care if I and other critics sneer.



And sneer we must. Act One begins with the theme song from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, a tune snobs might refer to as "Also Sprach Zarathustra" by Strauss. That garnered one of the show's many moments of sheer nuttiness. Conductor and co-creator Fleischer comes out in the usual conductor's outfit, though it has a ratty, rock and roll vibe to it. He begins conducting the musicians...and the taped recordings clearly augmenting the show's sound. Hey, it's not the first Broadway show to do that but there is something hilariously off-key about a conductor leading machines in a fanfare. I'd like to think there's a moment in the show where Fleischer is conducting ONLY taped recordings but I don't believe it actually happened.

It doesn't get any better unless you have a taste for kitsch, in which case it most surely does get much better indeed. Act One's songs are backed by video projections that seem drawn entirely from public domain footage -- it looks like the videos randomly generated by karaoke machines when you sing in a bar -- beaches, deserts, rainbows and the like That gives us a two-fer of sorts: Handel's heartbreaking "Lasicia Ch'io Pianga" is sung while images of flowers opening to spring are displayed, making it seem as if one of the saddest songs ever written is a happy number about new love. In a remarkable coincidence, this 1705 number was being performed on Broadway in not one but TWO different Broadway shows, since Mark Rylance's Farinelli and the King was in its final week. That surely will never ever happen again in history.

I won't soon forget the finale, where Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" was mashed up to delirious, absurd effect with Beethoven's "Ode To Joy." But the best moments were human and unscripted.

The backup singers are recruited locally in each city and placed on a platform above the action. They are a ragtag group of people and seem so unrehearsed it gave their presence a compellingly random vibe. A guy on the right in the back row seemed to run out of steam and leaned on a rail to rest every once in a while. A cute young guy on the left looked as if he woke up from a dream, found himself suddenly on a Broadway stage and gamely tried to sing and boogie along with everyone else while wondering exactly what the hell was going on. In stark and wonderful contrast, the backup singer in the front row on the right (stage left) was a woman with blond hair and a bustier-style outfit that was music video ready. This gal is making the most of her moment. She was focused and in character the entire evening: every time you looked over at her she was pumping her fists and singing along and acting as if she'd never had more fun in her entire life. When a female singer onstage was vocalizing, this woman had a look of admiration and respect as if to say, "Wow, this person is amazing!" But deep down you knew she was really thinking, "I should be the one on stage and SHE should be up here and someday soon that's exactly what's going to happen!" I loved her.

Even better was the opening moment when co-creator Rob Evan came out to belt Styx's "Come Sail Away"...only to realize his microphone was dead. The audience --so primed to sing along you'd swear they were British -- delivered the words all the louder as he urged them on. A new mike was trotted out and he laughed off the flub, saying, "It's live theater!" and they cheered all the louder. Towards the end, Pat Monahan finished his lines from "Nessun Dorma." Yes, Pat Monahan of Train has a stab at opera. Why not? He finished, exhaled and smiled as if to say, "Hey! I got through it!" and you sort of had to smile along with him. It was sweet and genuine and real and of course it only lasted a moment.


THEATER OF 2018

Homelife/The Zoo Story (at Signature) *** out of ****
Escape To Margaritaville **
Broadway By The Year: 1947 and 1966 ***
Lobby Hero ***
Frozen **
Rocktopia *

Thanks for reading. Michael Giltz is the founder of BookFilter, a book lover’s best friend. Trying to decide what to read next?Head to BookFilter! Need a smart and easy gift? Head to BookFilter? Wondering what new titles came out this week in your favorite categories, like cookbooks and mystery and more? Head to BookFilter! It’s a website that lets you browse for books online the way you do in a physical bookstore, provides comprehensive info on new releases every week in every category and offers passionate personal recommendations every step of the way. It’s like a fall book preview or holiday gift guide — but every week in every category. He’s also the cohost of Showbiz Sandbox, a weekly pop culture podcast that reveals the industry take on entertainment news of the day and features top journalists and opinion makers as guests. It’s available for free on iTunes. Visit Michael Giltz at his website. Download his podcast of celebrity interviews and his radio show, also called Popsurfing and also available for free on iTunes.
Note: Michael Giltz is provided with free tickets to shows with the understanding that he will be writing a review. All productions are in New York City unless otherwise indicated.

Tuesday, March 27, 2018

THEATER: "BROADWAY BY THE YEAR(S)" TACKLES 1947 AND 1966

BROADWAY BY THE YEAR: 1947 AND 1966
THE TOWN HALL

The 18th season of Broadway By The Year shows this celebration of musical theater in fine fettle. Creator and impresario Scott Siegel has tweaked the format yet again. This season each show is celebrating two years from Broadway history. On March 26, Act One included songs from 1947 while Act Two focused on 1966.

Yet some things never change: the Monday night event features stars from Broadway and cabaret, young talent appearing in smaller shows and fresh-off-the-bus kids in the ensemble. You always see a favorite actor, hear a tune or two you never knew before and discover artists whose names you want to write down so you can catch whatever they do next. Happily, this strong outing delivered precisely that.

After the usual niceties (including Siegel's smattering of trivia about the year in question -- and who knew the Russians reached the moon first, albeit an unmanned mission!), he revealed Act One would focus primarily on that year's two big hits: Finian's Rainbow and Brigadoon. This suggested an almost Encores-like approach to the evening, but Broadway By The Year isn't quite doing that. Still, five songs from Finian and four from Brigadoon gave a healthy taste of those successes. Interspersed in the middle was the comic gem "The Gentleman Is A Dope" from a rare Rodgers and Hammerstein flop, Allegro. Act Two was more diverse, with ten songs from six different shows.

My quick take-away? I'd love to see a production of I Do! I Do! and I want to see more of Jenny Lee Stern and Tony Yazbeck in anything.

Siegel is always and admirably touting young talent. Tonight's ingénue was Mia Gerachis, who was given a generous three solos: "How Are Things In Glocca Morra?," "Where Am I Going?" and the question mark-free song "There's Gotta Be Something Better Than This." Gerachis has a fine voice, good enough to make clear why she's snagged attention. Yet she's performing every song and we're too aware of the choices she is making. The sound of her voice had precedent over the meaning of the words. It will take time and seasoning to see if Siegel's faith can be rewarded.

Loyalty to newcomers and fan favorites alike is a mainstay of BBTY, an essential element since you're cajoling stars of cabaret and Broadway to do yet another show on their night off essentially for the love of it. Hence the return of the popular Sal Viviano, who had two ballads but scored best in an acoustic duet on "There But For You Go I" with Eddie Korbich that the crowd went crazy for.

Korbich is a second banana type, the sort of talented pro who would have worked nonstop back in 1947. He goofed on "When I'm Not Near The Girl I Love," tossed off multiple accents and had the crowd singing along to "Go Home With Bonnie Jean," enjoyed some of the loudest applause of the night with that "look ma, no microphone!" duet with Viviano and ended with a solid "Father Of The Bride." Think Norbert Leo Butz.

In contrast, the broad and funny Lesli Margherita was too eager to please this night, underlining the jokes in "The Gentleman Is A Dope" and absolutely steam-rollering over them in the show-stopper "Gorgeous" from The Apple Tree. She began at over-the-top and then went higher and higher but the result was we never got to enjoy the fun. Margherita had left us far behind. She was good fun in Dames At Sea on Broadway and won an Olivier Award in the UK so I know she can and will do better.

Broadway star Betsy Wolfe however was fairly new to me. I wouldn't judge anyone on the anonymous girlfriend role she tackled in Bullets Over Broadway. And I missed her during Wolfe's run in Waitress. So this was my first chance to see her up close and it was a treat. Her lovely rendition of "Look To The Rainbow" was so gentle the pleased audience almost forgot to applaud. And she soared with the comic tune "You've Got Possibilities" from It's A Bird!...It's A Plane!...It's Superman! Wolfe made our host Siegel the object of her makeover intentions and it worked a charm.

I had no doubts about Tony Yazbeck, having seen him repeatedly to great effect on Broadway, especially a revival of On The Town. In Act One he had two big numbers. Yazbeck swung "Old Devil Moon" nicely and then brought down the curtain with a performance of "Almost Like Being In Love" that combined singing and tapping with pizazz -- his ability to tap and tap and tap and then go right into a big vocal moment without a pause for breath was especially impressive. If there was any problem with Act Two, it was the fact that Yazbeck only came back for the group finale "It's Today."

But Jenny Lee Stern satisfied when she opened the show, had the eleven o'clock number and made the entire evening worth it just for her performances alone. Resplendently pregnant, Stern introduced her child-to-be to the world of theater by making the kid a humorous partner in a performance of "Necessity." Stern's headpiece alone held your attention, but her terrific voice kept the humor rooted in her character's predicament. She one-upped that by nailing the dramatic high point of Mame where the title character sings "If He Walked Into My Life," giving Eydie Gormé's classic rendition a run for its money in the process.

Yet that was nothing compared to her thrilling performance of the title song from Cabaret. Sure, it's a masterpiece, but it's also been done brilliantly by numerous stars (not least Liza) and also been done to death. Overly familiar songs like this can be a double-edged sword. Not for Stern. She immediately claimed our attention with a peerless vocal, paced it beautifully, kept the character and story behind it in mind so the song made sense dramatically (even if we hadn't been watching a production of Cabaret leading up to this moment) and set off fireworks by the end. The only way Stern could have topped it would have been by giving birth on stage for an encore. That didn't happen but I wouldn't put it past her.

Happily, Siegel keeps giving birth to more shows at The Town Hall, Feinstein's at 54 Below (including a Sinatra tribute on April 5th) and other New York City venues, including another Broadway By The Year on May 21 and the season finale on June 18 both at The Town Hall.


THEATER OF 2018

Homelife/The Zoo Story (at Signature) *** out of ****
Escape To Margaritaville **
Broadway By The Year: 1947 and 1966 ***

Thanks for reading. Michael Giltz is the founder of BookFilter, a book lover’s best friend. Trying to decide what to read next?Head to BookFilter! Need a smart and easy gift? Head to BookFilter? Wondering what new titles came out this week in your favorite categories, like cookbooks and mystery and more? Head to BookFilter! It’s a website that lets you browse for books online the way you do in a physical bookstore, provides comprehensive info on new releases every week in every category and offers passionate personal recommendations every step of the way. It’s like a fall book preview or holiday gift guide — but every week in every category. He’s also the cohost of Showbiz Sandbox, a weekly pop culture podcast that reveals the industry take on entertainment news of the day and features top journalists and opinion makers as guests. It’s available for free on iTunes. Visit Michael Giltz at his website. Download his podcast of celebrity interviews and his radio show, also called Popsurfing and also available for free on iTunes.
Note: Michael Giltz is provided with free tickets to shows with the understanding that he will be writing a review. All productions are in New York City unless otherwise indicated.

Sunday, March 25, 2018

The 43rd Annual IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS FOR 2017

The 43st Annual IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS -- 2017

The IRAs are a mysterious but august film society that has voted on the best films of the year since 1976. Officially known as the New York Independent Film Critics Awards -- but lovingly nicknamed the IRAs -- it is more international and indie focused than the Oscars, more mercurial than the LA Film Critics and more loyal to their favorites than the Golden Globes. The IRAs are proud to announce their picks for the best movies released in New York City in 2017.

Note that caveat: though IRA members are now dispersed across the country, its roots are in New York City. For a film to be eligible it must pass one test and one test only -- a commercial release of at least one week in New York City. Streaming may upend that rule in some way soon. But this explains -- for example -- why the unjustly overlooked 2016 film The Founder copped two IRA awards voted on in March of 2018. Yes, it came out in LA in 2016 for Oscar consideration, but it wasn't released commercially in NYC until 2017. This Michael Keaton drama about the early days of the McDonald's restaurant chain came and went from theaters over a year ago. But you can catch it online or on DVD or on demand any time you want, just like virtually everything else on our list. So no excuses! 

The IRA goes to...

Best Picture: BPM
Best Director: Robin Campillo for BPM
Best Actor: Michael Keaton for The Founder
Best Actress: Daniela Vega for A Fantastic Woman (Una Mujer Fantástica)
Best Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe for The Florida Project
Best Supporting Actress: Lesley Manville for Phantom Thread
Best Nonfiction Film: Dawson City: Frozen Time
Best Screenplay:  Robert Siegel for The Founder
Best Cinematography: Alexis Zabe for The Florida Project
Best Production Design: Stephonik Youth for The Florida Project
Best Score/Use Of Music: Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never for Good Time
Best Editing: Robin Campillo, Stéphanie Léger and Anita Roth for BPM
Best Costumes: Pascaline Chavanne for Frantz
Sominex Award (The Movie That Put Us To Sleep): The Post
Dramamine Award (The Movie That Made Us Sick): mother!
Mechanical Actress: Emma Watson for Beauty and the Beast and The Circle
Mechanical Actor: James Franco for The Disaster Artist, et. al


This year featured an unprecedented infusion of new blood: John and David and Julia and Jim, to be exact. Four new members in one year is the most in decades and perhaps the most ever in IRA history. Would they fit in or simply be offended by sophomoric insults, crude comments unworthy of progressive sensibilities and faux Algonquin Circle stabs at wit? Would an eight+ hour evening at the IRAs seem more like 80 hours of hell, never to be repeated? Despite the delicious bundt cake courtesy of Andy? With John proffering up obscure titles some had never heard of (a classic IRA bona fide and no mean feat when members attend film festivals and haunt art houses) and David, Julia and Jim chalking up their own scathing comments, strategic balloting and caustic votes by the end of the night, the answer was clearly yes.

Eight different films received at least one IRA award, including: 

BPM
Dawson City: Frozen Time
A Fantastic Woman
The Florida Project
The Founder
Frantz
Good Time
Phantom Thread

But that only tells half the story. For example, Call Me By Your Name was a contender in seven different categories, coming within an agonizing one vote of tying the ultimate winner in Best Actor and coming in second three different times. So check out all the films that received nominations and you'll see a terrific cross-section of the best films of 2017.

We argue and campaign and grumble over winners we disagree with. Still, the point of the IRAs is to recommend films to each other worth checking out...and then impose an arbitrary deadline to create a false sense of urgency. Suddenly, you have to screen that Albanian documentary because the IRAs are mere days away! So here are the winners and nominees in every category. Almost all are available on DVD, streaming services or on demand with minimal fuss. So it's never been easier to see the best films of the year and we hope you dive deep into our favorites. You'll discover some gems and of course watch some that you passionately disagree with, but that's half the fun. 

And the IRA goes to...

BEST PICTURE

1. BPM -- 42 pts. (out of a possible 65 pts.)
2. The Florida Project -- 29 pts.
3. Call Me By Your Name -- 21 pts.
4. The Founder -- 14 pts.
5.  Land Of Mine -- 13 pts.

NOTE: This year thirteen ballots were submitted. With a top score for each film of 5 pts, the maximum any one film could achieve in any category was 65 pts.

The IRAs are voted on from Best Costumes up to Best Picture. So this award comes towards the end of the evening. Ultimately, you can justify any winner (BPM crushed the competition in the editing category -- it was obvious this would win!) and explain away any loss. The Florida Project scored impressive early wins (it really was eye-popping on a small budget, hence wins for Cinematography and Production Design) and Call Me By Your Name was a lurking presence all night ready to play spoiler right up to the final votes. But with 13 people voting, BPM appeared on the vast majority of ballots. Passionately embraced by many, admired by virtually everyone, this was a very popular winner.


BEST DIRECTOR

1. Robin Campillo for BPM -- 45 pts.
2. Sean Baker for The Florida Project -- 25 pts.
3. Luca Guadagnino for Call Me By Your Name -- 15 pts.
4. David Lowery for A Ghost Story -- 13 pts.
5. John Lee Hancock for The Founder -- 9 pts.

NOTE: While the IRA voters are not officially signatories to the International Code Of Auteurs, they do tend to link picture and director pretty strongly. That happened again this year. The Florida Project and Call Me By Your Name and perhaps The Founder were clearly contenders...until the Best Director Vote. BPM almost doubled the points of runner-up Sean Baker (whose film Tangerine won Best Picture just two years ago) with an impressive 45 pts. That appeared especially impressive because one year earlier we had a only eight voters submitting ballots which meant point totals were correspondingly smaller than this time around. Hence the call for new voters and the hefty jump in ballots to thirteen. In any case, nearly doubling the points of the runner-up is a huge statement. Campillo made a great film, of course, but he was also admired for his screenwriting contributions to films by director Laurent Cantet like The Class, Time Out and Heading South, not to mention Campillo's previous films Eastern Boys and an early directorial effort Les Revenants that inspired both French and US TV series called The Returned. That's a lot of goodwill to build upon with a breakout feature that also won the Cesar for Best Film but was wrongly ignored by the Oscars. With this decisive win, it seemed likely that BPM would take the top prize handily.


BEST ACTOR

1. Michael Keaton for The Founder -- 38 pts.
2. Timothée Chalamet for Call Me By Your Name -- 37 pts.
3. Nahuel Pérez Biscayart for BPM -- 33 pts.
4. Robert Pattinson for Good Time --14 pts.
5. Josh O'Connor for God's Own Country -- 12 pts.

NOTE: All year IRA voter Aaron had been touting The Founder. The film was given an Oscar qualifying run in LA in 2016 but was roundly ignored by critics, despite the director John Lee Hancock having a serious commercial record, Keaton coming off hot Oscar winners Birdman and Spotlight (both Best Picture winners) AND the film itself being about the birth of the fast food chain McDonald's. Didn't matter. With critics ignoring it, the film was dumped in January of 2017 and disappeared as fast as a Happy Meal tossed at a hungry tyke. OK, so it was an ultimately jaundiced view of capitalism where you slowly realize the hero of the film may not be a "bad guy" strictly speaking but that capitalism isn't concerned with good guys or bad guys or quality but just winners and losers and everyone likes a winner and the winner is the guy that makes the most money. So maybe it was never gonna be a triumph at the multiplex. ("Mom, where's Ronald McDonald? Where's the Hamburglar?") But tub-thumping by one member kept prodding others to check it out. Slowly they did and each time the verdict was the same: that's a really good film and Keaton's performance is about the best he's ever done. It was a nail-biter with fans of Call Me By Your Name touting the hot young talent Timothée Chalamet and the fact that everyone loved BPM and its lead. But Keaton prevailed with one of the closest votes of the evening.



BEST ACTRESS

1. Daniela Vega for A Fantastic Woman (Una Mujer Fantástica) -- 20 pts.
2. Danielle Macdonald for Patti Cake$-- 18 pts.
3. Cynthia Nixon for A Quiet Passion -- 17 pts.
4. (tie) Sally Hawkins for Maudie and The Shape Of Water --16 pts.
    (tie) Paula Beer for Frantz -- 16 pts.

NOTE: Ok, so this time the IRAs and Oscar are almost in accord. The Academy Awards named Una Mujer Fantástica the Best Foreign Film and the IRAs crowned the fantasic Daniela Vega as Best Actress. It will be interesting to see if Chilean cinema can find other projects for Vega that don't depend on her back story to power the project. (She also appeared on stage in a work about transgender people that ultimately ran for years.) Vega edged past Danielle Macdonald and her rapping abilities in Patti Cake$, as well as the best performance by a potential future Governor of New York courtesy of Cynthia Nixon. (She was about the only element of that film anyone liked.) And right behind them was Paula Beer in the respected French film Frantz by director Francois Ozon, a prolific talent who is actually making good movies again. Meanwhile, Sally Hawkins was at the center of a tug-of-war over The Shape Of Water. Some of the veteran IRA members really liked this film, prompting the worried question by others, "In the end, do we all become like Academy voters?" No insisted others, who thought Hawkins was terrific in the little-seen film Maudie (co-starring IRA favorite Ethan Hawke) but couldn't stand The Shape Of Water. Only the churlish would say any problems with the film were her fault but the IRAs do not lack for the churlish. Besides the snide youngsters should remember that just last year both IRA and the Oscars named Moonlight the best film of the year.


BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

1. Willem Dafoe for The Florida Project -- 35 pts.
2. Michael Stuhlbarg for Call Me By Your Name -- 31 pts.
3. Barry Keoghan for The Killing Of A Sacred Deer -- 13 pts.
4. Caleb Landry Jones for American Made and The Florida Project and Get Out and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri --12 pts.
5. (tie) Rob Morgan for Mudbound -- 11 pts.
    (tie) Arnaud Valois for BPM -- 11 pts.

NOTE: Two winners at the IRAs were nominated in the same category at the Academy Awards. But Oscar got it wrong both times, failing to honor either Willem Dafoe in The Florida Project (and otherwise ignoring that film entirely) or Lesley Manville in Phantom Thread. Of course, it's just an honor to be nominated! At this stage of the evening, The Florida Project had scored nominations and won three (or four, depending on how you count) of those seven, making it an early favorite to dominate the evening. However, BPM had been nominated in four categories and won Best Editing so it and The Founder and scrappy, always-the-bridesmaid Call Me By Your Name all demonstrated enough strength to make clear the night was far from over.
                                            

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1. Bria Vinaite for The Florida Project -- 26 pts. RESCINDED
2. Lesley Manville for Phantom Thread -- 24 pts.
3. Laurie Metcalfe for Lady Bird -- 22 pts.
4. Holly Hunter for The Big Sick --21 pts.
5. Allison Janney for I, Tonya -- 18 pts.

VOTE TO RESCIND -- By a majority vote, the top vote getter is replaced by the runner-up.

Lesley Manville for Phantom Thread is the official winner of Best Supporting Actress. More drama ensues than was ever seen on screen.

NOTE: The IRAs have the RESCIND option. After every winner is announced, an automatic vote to rescind is held. If a majority of members present vote to rescind, that award is rescinded and the runner-up is crowned the winner. Then a vote to rescind THAT winner is held and so on until the vote to rescind fails. This year, Bria Vinaite garnered the most points for her widely admired work as the desperate, train wreck of a mother in The Florida Project. Close behind was Lesley Manville in the generally disliked PTA film Phantom Thread. It was already clear that The Florida Project was a huge favorite and coming up was a potential win for Willem Dafoe in Best Supporting Actor. The feeling of a sweep -- those years where one film gobbles up awards in almost every category it can -- was strong. Maybe that explains the weird success of the vote to rescind. Most liked The Florida Project and most who did certainly thought Vinaite was great in it. Perhaps a combination of those debating if she was a lead or supporting performer as well as those who liked Manville AND those who hate to see one film dominate every award is the reason seven people voted to rescind. Manville was now the official winner. To the chagrin of some, the vote to rescind HER and crown Laurie Metcalf for her excellent work on Lady Bird fell short. Hoping for two successful Rescind votes in a row is a fool's errand and that gambit failed here, not for the first time.


BEST NONFICTION FILM

1. Dawson City: Frozen Time -- 30 pts.
2. The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman's Portrait Photography -- 17 pts.
3. (tie) In Transit -- 10 pts.
    (tie) Jane -- 10 pts.
    (tie) Risk -- 10 pts.

NOTE: The Best Nonfiction Film is a recent add to the IRAs. The explosion in documentary, experimental and other non-narrative films made it seem essential. On the other hand, nonfiction films had snagged the top prize before, including the landmark documentary Eyes On The Prize (which had a theatrical run before airing on PBS) and Bill Morrison's Decasia. Here is Morrison again, doing his usual magic with found footage of crumbling movie stock while telling the story of the gold rush town Dawson City, its many links to Hollywood and the discovery of a cache of silent film reels decades after the town's heyday had come and gone. Still the category was added in the hope it would encourage more viewing of documentaries. As of yet -- given the many ballots that didn't even include five nominees -- it seems to have merely put those films in a ghetto of their own, a la the Best Animated Film at the Oscars. Would Dawson City: Frozen Time have made our Top Five films if it hadn't already been honored in its own category? We'll never know.


BEST SCREENPLAY

1. Robert Siegel for The Founder -- 31 pts.
2. Robin Campillo and Philippe Mangeot for BPM -- 20 pts.
3. James Ivory for Call Me By Your Name -- 19 pts.
4. Sean Baker (ampersand) Chris Bergoch for The Florida Project --15 pts.
5. Emily V. Gordon (ampersand) Kumail Nanjiani for The Big Sick -- 11 pts.
 
NOTE: The John Lee Hancock film had two key assets: the lead performance by Michael Keaton and the subtle screenplay by Robert Siegel. In retrospect, the awards were parsed out very wisely, honoring different films for their strengths rather than letting the best movie of the year simply sweep aside all comers, which is always kind of boring, no matter how great any particular film might be. The Founder's win here is a great example of that.


BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

1. Alexis Zabe for The Florida Project -- 31 pts.
2. Sayombhu Mukdeeprom for Call Me By Your Name -- 22 pts.
3. Darius Khondji for The Lost City Of Z -- 15 pts.
4. Jeanne Lapoirie for BPM -- 13 pts.
5. Mikhail Krichman for Loveless -- 12 pts.


NOTE: We live in a golden age for cinematography so this category is often hotly contested. Not so, this year. Call Me By Your Name had cinematography that benefited greatly from both real estate porn and the visceral appeal of Chalamet and Hammer. The Lost City Of Z had the visual sweep of a Hollywood epic despite an indie budget. BPM was thrilling in its blurring of work and protest and life. And Loveless gave the bleakness of modern Russia an almost tactile feel. Despite a lot of impressive films, the marvelous work of The Florida Project (look ma, no phone!) was the clear favorite. The only real question was how much credit went to the cinematographer of record Alexis Zabe and how much goes to director Sean Baker, who is seen operating the camera in almost every still image one sees from the movie's set.


BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

1. Stephonik Youth for The Florida Project -- 29 pts.
2. Michael Corenblith for The Founder -- 28 pts.
3. Samuel Deshors for Call Me By Your Name -- 18 pts.
4. Paul D. Austerberry for The Shape Of Water -- 12 pts.
5. Harley Jessup for Coco -- 10 pts.

NOTE: Again, The Florida Project came out on top, though the spot-on work of The Founder came damn close. The story of McDonald's was period without being kitsch, while The Florida Project gave the run-down sections of Orlando the colorful magic of a world seen through a kid's eyes...without ignoring the poverty of their situation. The animated film Coco was a modestly controversial choice but hey -- those films don't design themselves just because they're animated!

BEST SCORE/USE OF MUSIC

1. Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never for Good Time -- 17 pts.
2. Jonny Greenwood for Phantom Thread -- 14 pts.
3. Philippe Rombi for Frantz -- 13 pts.
4. Jason Binnick and Jeremy Gasper  for Patti Cake$ --11 pts.
5. (tie) Daniel Hart for A Ghost Story --8 pts.
    (tie) Alexandre Desplat for The Shape Of Water --8 pts.

NOTE: The category of Best Score was recently renamed Best Score/Use Of Music to accommodate the endless ways in which films make use of music. You've got original scores like Phantom Thread. You've got original scores that employ a ticking clock in a rather modern fashion but then pull out a key piece of classical music at the film's high point, as in Dunkirk and its use of Elgar. You've got Call Me By Your Name, which uses an original score, period songs played prominently (like "Love My Way" by the Psychedelic Furs) alongside original new songs by Sufjan Stevens. You've got Frantz which has an original score and classical pieces performed by the characters. You've got Patti Cake$ which has a score, some original raps and some contemporary hip hop songs. You've got full-on musicals like The Greatest Showman and Coco. And you've got Baby Driver, which made clever use of setting action scenes to the beat of classic tunes both offbeat and familiar. Most of those films don't fall into a neat category of Best Score versus Best Use Of Pre-Existing Music. Hence the IRA decision to say, "Consider the many ways a film uses music and make your choice accordingly." Hey if it's 1968 and you think Kubrick's use of pre-existing pieces in 2001: A Space Odyssey is the best use of music, make your case. (You'd be right.) If you think Ennio Morricone's original score for Once Upon A Time In The West is better, fight back. If you prefer Yellow Submarine's perfect capturing of the Beatles and their vibe by showcasing classic tunes (and a few so-so originals), tell everyone else they're crazy. Short of creating two or three (or four?) music categories and finding out most can't name five worthy nominees for each, what are you gonna do? The winner this year? Good Time, which triumphed thanks to a terrific electronic score by the artist Oneohtrix Point Never, including an original song featuring Iggy Pop that was so spot-on I actually assumed it was a pre-existing Iggy classic I simply didn't know.

BEST EDITING

1. Robin Campillo, Stéphanie Léger and Anita Roth for BPM -- 37 pts.
2. (tie) Sean Baker for The Florida Project -- 17 pts.
    (tie) Tatiana S. Riegel for I, Tonya -- 17 pts.
4. Ronald Bronstein and Benny Safdie for Good Time -- 14 pts.
5. (tie) David Lowery for A Ghost Story -- 10 pts.
    (tie) Andrew Weisblum for mother! -- 10 pts.

NOTE: Documentaries often score highly in the editing category because they typically include a wealth of footage and the movie is "discovered" in the editing. Not so this year, which may reflect a weak year for documentaries. With BPM winning by a vote total more than double The Florida Project (and Call Me By Your Name and The Founder nowhere in sight), this was the early category that tea leaf readers could examine and see exactly where we'd end up come Best Picture and Director.


BEST COSTUME

1. Pascaline Chavanne for Frantz -- 25 pts.
2. Mark Bridges for Phantom Thread -- 21 pts.
3. Daniel Orlandi for The Founder -- 19 pts.
4. Fernando Rodriguez for The Florida Project --15 pts.
5. Holly Waddington for Lady Macbeth -- 14 pts.

NOTE: While the work on the Oscar-winning Phantom Thread was exquisite, the category is Best Costume, not Best Couture Collection, which may be why the subtler but still lovely work in Frantz narrowly won.

SOMINEX (The movie that put you to sleep)


1. The Post -- 20 pts.
2. Darkest Hour -- 14 pts.
3. The Florida Project -- 13 pts.
4. Professor Marston and the Wonder Women -- 10 pts.
5. Wonderstruck -- 9 pts.
             

DRAMAMINE (The film that made you sick)

1    1. mother! -- 14 pts.
2. Detroit -- 12 pts.
3. (tie) I, Tonya -- 10 pts.
    (tie) The Shape Of Water -- 10 pts.
    (tie) Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri -- 10 pts.


MECHANICAL ACTRESS

1. Emma Watson for Beauty and the Beast and The Circle -- 18 pts.
2. Robin Wright for Blade Runner 2049 and Justice League and Wonder Woman -- 17 pts.
3. Michelle Williams in All The Money In The World, The Greatest Showman, Wonderstruck -- 16 pts.
4. Meryl Streep for The Post -- 14 pts.
5. (tie) Jessica Chastain for Molly's Game and The Zookeeper's Wife -- 10 pts.
    (tie) Elizabeth Olsen for Ingrid Goes West and Wind River -- 10 pts.


NOTE: The Mechanical awards are for actors relying on familiar tricks we've seen them personally use time and again or those tackling a role in a cliched manner. It's a moment for poisonous comments, getting revenge on movies and talent we once admired that have let us down or never fooled us in the first place but keep making moves we have to see. 
               

MECHANICAL ACTOR

1. James Franco for The Disaster Artist, Queen Of The Desert, et. al -- 24 pts.
2. (tie) Gary Oldman for Darkest Hour -- 18 pts.
    (tie) Mark Wahlberg for All The Money In The World and Daddy's Home 2 and Transformers: The Last Knight -- 4 pts.
4. Armie Hammer for Call Me By Your Name --15 pts.
5. Daniel Day-Lewis for Phantom Thread -- 13 pts.

THE 2017 FILMS HONORED BY THE IRAS IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER

American Made
The Big Sick
BPM
The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman's Portrait Photography
Call Me By Your Name
Coco
Dawson City: Frozen Time
Dunkirk
A Fantastic Woman
The Florida Project
The Founder
Frantz
Get Out
A Ghost Story
God's Own Country
Good Time
In Transit
I, Tonya
Jane
The Killing Of A Sacred Deer
Lady Bird
Lady Macbeth
Land Of Mine
The Lost City Of Z
Loveless
Maudie
mother!
Mudbound
Patti Cake$
Phantom Thread
A Quiet Passion
Risk
The Shape Of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri



WHO OR WHAT ARE THE IRAS? A HISTORY

The IRAs are a mysterious but august film society that has voted on the best films of the year since 1976. Officially known as the New York Independent Film Critics Awards -- but lovingly nicknamed the IRAs -- it is more international and indie focused than the Oscars, more mercurial than the LA Film Critics, more loyal to their favorites than the Golden Globes. The IRAs are proud to announce their picks for the best movies released in New York City in 2017.

The IRAs began when passionate film students and friends complained about the parade of annual awards shows, declaring, "We could do better!" What followed was an all-night, knock-down, drag-out fight to establish the very first winners of the IRAs. (One of the members is named Ira, but how his name became the name of the award is a story lost in the mist of time.) The IRAs has been profiled in The New Yorker so it is officially a New York institution, though no one has ever heard of it. Over the years, its rotating cast of voting members have included Oscar-winning writers, major directors, top studio execs, best-selling and critically acclaimed authors of books on movies, critics, screenwriters, budding playwrights, plain old film buffs and so on. 

Every year, the IRAs shine a light on some of the best films of the year. The secret reason the IRAs flourish is that its members are passionate film lovers. Many have careers involving the arts but it's not always easy to stay in the swim of things and keep on top of the flood of new releases every year, especially when the movies favored by IRA members are not always playing at your local multiplex for weeks at a time. The movies they appreciate tend to be harder to catch, playing in theaters only briefly before popping up (hopefully) on some streaming service or DVD if you miss it. Quite simply, the IRAs force them to stay committed to seeing new movies with the same fervor they felt in their college days when going to see a film was the only purpose in life, before jobs and family made claims on their time. So if you want to stay on top of great cinema every year or explore its history, there's no better place to start than the award winners of the IRAs. 

True, the IRAs have no more claim to pronounce the best films of the year than anyone else. But they've been doing it for decades so, hey, it's tradition! 


PAST IRA WINNERS

THE COMPLETE IRA MOVIE AWARD WINNERS

1975 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Barry Lyndon
Best Director: Claude Chabrol for La Rupture and Just Before Nightfall
Best Actor: Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest
Best Actress: Ellen Burstyn in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
Best Supporting Actor: François Perrier in Just Before Nightfall
Best Supporting Actress: Blythe Danner in Hearts Of The West
Best Screenplay: Tom Stoppard and Thomas Wiseman for The Romantic Englishwoman
Best Cinematography: John Alcott for Barry Lyndon



1976 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: (tie) Lipstick and The Marquise Of O
Best Director: Eric Rohmer for The Marquise Of O
Best Actor: Sean Connery in Robin And Marian
Best Actress: Sissy Spacek in Carrie
Best Supporting Actor: Jason Robards in All The President’s Men
Best Supporting Actress: Anne Bancroft in Lipstick
Best Screenplay: Alain Tanner and John Berger for Jonah Who Will Be 25 In The Year 2000
Best Cinematography: Nestor Almendros for The Marquise Of O



1977 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Annie Hall
Best Director: Wim Wenders for The American Friend
Best Actor: John Gielgud in Providence
Best Actress: Dianne Keaton in Annie Hall and Looking For Mr. Goodbar
Best Supporting Actor: G. D. Spradlin in One On One
Best Supporting Actress: Vanessa Redgrave in Julia
Best Screenplay: Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman for Annie Hall
Best Cinematography: Robby Müller for The American Friend


1978 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Days Of Heaven
Best Director: Terence Malick for Days Of Heaven
Best Actor: Jon Voight in Coming Home
Best Actress: Jane Fonda in Coming Home
Best Supporting Actor: Dom DeLuise in The End
Best Supporting Actress: Stephane Audran in Violette
Best Screenplay: Eric Rohmer for Perceval
Best Cinematography: Nestor Almendros for Days Of Heaven


1979 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Fedora
Best Director: Blake Edwards for 10
Best Actor: Clint Eastwood in Escape From Alcatraz
Best Actress: Hanna Schygulla in The Marriage Of Maria Braun
Best Supporting Actor: Denholm Elliott in Cuba and Saint Jack
Best Supporting Actress: Frances Sternhagen in Fedora and Starting Over
Best Screenplay: Billy Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond for Fedora
Best Cinematography: Tak Fujimoto for Last Embrace and Remember My Name
Best Music: Miklos Rozsa for Fedora and Last Embrace
Best Production Design: Dean Edward Mitzner for 1941


1980 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Big Red One
Best Director: Sam Fuller for The Big Red One
Best Actor: Lee Marvin for The Big Red One
Best Actress: Jodie Foster for Carny and Foxes
Best Supporting Actor: (tie) Joe Pesci in Raging Bull and Harry Dean Stanton in The Black Marble, The Long Riders, Private Benjamin and Wise Blood
Best Supporting Actress: Pamela Reed in The Long Riders and Melvin And Howard
Best Screenplay: Sam Fuller for The Big Red One
Best Cinematography: Jordan Cronenweth for Altered States
Best Music: Dana Kaproff for The Big Red One
Best Production Design: Tambi Larsen for Heaven’s Gate


1981 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Cutter’s Way
Best Director: Ivan Passer for Cutter’s Way
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges in Cutter’s Way
Best Actress: Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest
Best Supporting Actor: Jack Nicholson in Reds
Best Supporting Actress: Mona Washbouurne in Stevie
Best Screenplay: John Guare for Atlantic City
Best Cinematography: Jordan Cronenweth for Cutter’s Way
Best Music: Georges DeLerue for The Last Metro, Rich and Famous, True Confessions and The Woman Next Door
Best Production Design: Ken Adam for Pennies From Heaven
Best Costume Design: Shirley Russell for Reds


1982 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Victor/Victoria
Best Director: Blake Edwards for Victor/Victoria
Best Actor: Jack Lemmon in Missing
Best Actress: (tie) Julie Andrews in Victor/Victoria and Jessica Lange in Frances
Best Supporting Actor: Robert Preston in Victor/Victoria
Best Supporting Actress: Lesley Ann Warren in Victor/Victoria
Best Screenplay: Blake Edwards for Victor/Victoria
Best Cinematography: Xaver Schwartzenberger for Lola and Veronika Voss
Best Music: Henry Mancini and Leslie Bricusse for Victor/Victoria
Best Production Design: Rodger Maus for Victor/Victoria
Best Costume Design: Patricia Norris for Victor/Victoria


1983 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Berlin Alexanderplatz
Best Director: Andrzej Wajda for Danton
Best Actor: Eric Roberts for Star ’80
Best Actress: Shirley MacLaine for Terms Of Endearment
Best Supporting Actor: Jerry Lewis for The King Of Comedy
Best Supporting Actress: Jamie Lee Curtis for Trading Places
Best Screenplay: Bill Forsyth for Local Hero
Best Cinematography: Sven Nykvist for Star ’80
Best Music: Peer Raben for Berlin Alexanderplatz
Best Production Design: Fernando Scarfiotti for Scarface
Best Costume Design: Yvonne Sassinot DeNestle for Danton
Sominex Award: The Dresser
Dramamine Award: The Big Chill
Mechanical Actor: Matt Dillon for The Outsiders and Rumble Fish

Mechanical Actress: Nastassja Kinski for The Moon In The Gutter and Exposed


1984 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: (tie) L’Argent and Once Upon A Time In America
Best Director: Sergio Leone for Once Upon A Time In America
Best Actor: Clint Eastwood in Tightrope
Best Actress: Helen Mirren in Cal
Best Supporting Actor: Jean-Luc Godard in First Name: Carmen
Best Supporting Actress: Christine Lahti in Swing Shift
Best Screenplay: Franco Arcalli, Leonardo Benvenuti, Piero De Bernardi, Franco Ferrini, Sergio Leone, Enrico Medioli for Once Upon A Time In America
Best Cinematography: Robby Müller for Paris Texas and Repo Man
Best Music: Ennio Morricone for Once Upon A Time In America
Best Production Design: James Singelis for Once Upon A Time In America
Best Costume Design: Mic Cheminal for Entre Nous
Sominex Award: 
Dramamine Award: 
Mechanical Actor: 

Mechanical Actress: 

1985 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Prizzi’s Honor
Best Director: Martin Scorsese for After Hours
Best Actor: Jack Nicholson in Prizzi’s Honor
Best Actress: Mia Farrow in The Purple Rose Of Cairo
Best Supporting Actor: William Hickey in Prizzi’s Honor
Best Supporting Actress: Anjelica Huston in Prizzi’s Honor
Best Screenplay: Joseph Minion for After Hours
Best Cinematography: Andrzej Bartkowiak for Prizzi’s Honor
Best Music: Brian Gascoigne and Junior Hamrich for The Emerald Forest
Best Production Design: Jeffrey Townsend for After Hours
Best Costume Design: Ann Roth for The Jagged Edge and Sweet Dreams
Sominex Award: 
Dramamine Award: 
Mechanical Actor: 

Mechanical Actress: 

1986 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Eyes On The Prize
Best Director: David Lynch for Blue Velvet
Best Actor: (tie) Daniel Day-Lewis in My Beautiful Laundrette and Jeff Goldblum in The Fly
Best Actress: Laura Dern in Smooth Talk
Best Supporting Actor: Steve Buscemi in Parting Glances
Best Supporting Actress: Mary Stuart Masterson in At Close Range
Best Screenplay: Hanif Kureishi for My Beautiful Laundrette
Best Cinematography: Frederick Elmes for Blue Velvet
Best Music: (tie) George Delerue for Platoon and Herbie Hancock for Round Midnight
Best Production Design: Patricia Norris for Blue Velvet
Best Costume Design: Jenny Beaven and John Bright for A Room With A View
Sominex Award: Brighton Beach Memoirs
Dramamine Award: Crocodile Dundee
Mechanical Actor: Jon Cryer for Pretty In Pink

Mechanical Actress: Meryl Streep for Heartburn


1987 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Housekeeping
Best Director: Bill Forsyth for Housekeeping
Best Actor: Gary Oldman in Prick Up Your Ears
Best Actress: Christine Lahti in Housekeeping
Best Supporting Actor: John Mahoney in Moonstruck and Tin Men
Best Supporting Actress: Vanessa Redgrave in Prick Up Your Ears
Best Screenplay: Bill Forsyth for Housekeeping
Best Cinematography: Phillippe Rousselot for Hope And Glory
Best Music: David Byrne, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Cong Su for The Last Emperor
Best Production Design: Santo Loquasto for Radio Days
Best Costume Design: Mary-Jane Reyner for Housekeeping
Sominex Award: Dark Eyes
Dramamine Award: Fatal Attraction
Mechanical Actor: Eddie Murphy for Beverly Hills Cop II

Mechanical Actress: Sean Young for No Way Out and Wall Street

1988 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Dead Ringers
Best Director: David Cronenberg for Dead Ringers
Best Actor: Jeremy Irons in Dead Ringers
Best Actress: Jodie Foster in The Accused
Best Supporting Actor: Divine in Hairspray
Best Supporting Actress: Claudia Karvan in High Tide
Best Screenplay: Christopher Hampton for Dangerous Liaisons
Best Cinematography: Vittorio Storaro for Tucker: The Man And His Dream
Best Music: George Fenton for Dangerous Liaisons
Best Production Design: Dean Tavoularis for Tucker: The Man And His Dream
Best Costume Design: Van Smith for Hairspray
Sominex Award: Wings Of Desire
Dramamine Award: Mississippi Burning (by acclamation!)
Mechanical Actor: William Hurt for Broadcast News

Mechanical Actress: Maria Conchita Alonso for Extreme Prejudice and The Running Man

1989 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Story Of Women
Best Director: Claude Chabrol for Story
Of Women

Best Actor: John Hurt in Scandal
Best Actress: Isabelle Huppert in Story Of Women
Best Supporting Actor: Ethan Hawke in Dad and Dead Poets Society
Best Supporting Actress: Anjelica Huston in Enemies: A Love Story
Best Screenplay: Blake Edwards for Skin Deep
Best Cinematography: Jeff Preiss for Let’s Get Lost
Best Music: Michael Kamen for The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti for The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen
Best Costume Design: Jane Robinson for Scandal
Sominex Award: Batman
Dramamine Award: Steel Magnolias
Mechanical Actor: Spike Lee for Do The Right Thing

Mechanical Actress: Roseanne Barr for She-Devil

1990 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: GoodFellas
Best Director: Martin Scorsese for GoodFellas
Best Actor: Michel Blanc in Monsieur Hire
Best Actress: Anjelica Huston in The Grifters
Best Supporting Actor: Joe Pesci in GoodFellas
Best Supporting Actress: Lorraine Bracco in GoodFellas
Best Screenplay: Craig Lucas for Longtime Companion
Best Cinematography: Oliver Stapleton for The Grifters
Best Music: Elmer Bernstein for The Grifters
Best Production Design: Dennis Gassner for The Grifters
Best Costume Design: Richard Bruno for The Grifters
Sominex Award: 
Dramamine Award: 
Mechanical Actor: 

Mechanical Actress: 

1991 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Man In The Moon
Best Director: Robert Mulligan for The Man In The Moon
Best Actor: River Phoenix in Dogfight and My Own Private Idaho
Best Actress: Judy Davis in Barton Fink, Impromptu, and Naked Lunch
Best Supporting Actor: Harvey Keitel in Bugsy, Mortal Thoughts, and Thelma & Louise
Best Supporting Actress: Juliette Lewis in Cape Fear
Best Screenplay: Michael Tolkin for The Rapture
Best Cinematography: Freddie Francis for Cape Fear and The Man In The Moon
Best Music: Ennio Morricone for Bugsy
Best Production Design: Dennis Gassner for Barton Fink and Bugsy
Best Costume Design: Albert Wolsky for Bugsy
Sominex Award: 
Dramamine Award: 
Mechanical Actor: 

Mechanical Actress: 

1992 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Raise The Red Lantern
Best Director: Robert Altman for The Player
Best Actor: Tim Robbins in Bob Roberts and The Player
Best Actress: Emma Thompson in Howards End
Best Supporting Actor: Jaye Davidson in The Crying Game
Best Supporting Actress: Judy Davis in Husbands And Wives
Best Screenplay: Michael Tolkin for The Player
Best Cinematography: Zhao Fei and Lun Yang for Raise The Red Lantern
Best Music: Lenny Niehaus for Unforgiven
Best Production Design: Marc Caro for Delicatessen
Best Costume Design: Alexander Julien for The Player
Sominex Award: A Few Good Men
Dramamine Award: Basic Instinct
Mechanical Actor: Michael Douglas in Basic Instinct
Mechanical Actress: ****


1993 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Six Degrees Of Separation
Best Director: Nancy Savoca for Household Saints
Best Actor: Dennis Quaid in Flesh And Bone
Best Actress: Stockard Channing in Six Degrees Of Separation
Best Supporting Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio in A Boy’s Life and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?
Best Supporting Actress: Regina Tourney in Like Water For Chocolate
Best Screenplay: Mike Leigh for Naked
Best Cinematography: Michael Balhaus for The Age Of Innocence
Best Music: Elmer Bernstein for The Age Of Innocence and The Cemetery Club
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti for The Age Of Innocence
Best Costume Design: Gabriella Pescucci for The Age Of Innocence
Sominex Award: Heaven And Earth
Dramamine Award: Falling Down
Mechanical Actor: Richard Gere in Sommersby
Mechanical Actress: Madonna in Body Of Evidence


1994 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Red
Best Director: Krzyzstof Kieslowski for Red and White
Best Actor: Terence Stamp in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
Best Actress: Linda Fiorentino in The Last Seduction
Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale in Little Women
Best Supporting Actress: Kristin Scott Thomas in Four Weddings and a Funeral
Best Screenplay: Steve Baranczek for The Last Seduction
Best Cinematography: Stephen Czapsky for Ed Wood
Best Music: Zbigniew Preissner for Red and White
Best Production Design: Dennis Gastner for The Hudsucker Proxy
Best Costume Design: Lizzie Gardiner and Tim Chappel for Priscilla, Queen of The Desert
Sominex Award: Wyatt Earp


1995 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Exotica
Best Director: Terry Zwigoff for Crumb
Best Actor: John Travolta in Get Shorty
Best Actress: (A three-way tie) Mia Kershner in Exotica; Alicia Silverstone in Clueless; Nicole Kidman in To Die For
Best Supporting Actor: Tim Roth in Rob Roy
Best Supporting Actress: Mare Winningham in Georgia
Best Screenplay: (tie) Atom Egoyan for Exotica and Buck Henry for To Die For
Best Cinematography: Newton Thomas Sigel for The Usual Suspects
Best Music: John Ottman for The Usual Suspects
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti for Casino
Best Costumes: Mona May for Clueless
Sominex Award: The Brothers McMullen
Dramamine Award: Braveheart
Mechanical Actor: Dennis Miller in The Net and the cast of The Brothers McMullen
Mechanical Actress: Annette Bening in The American President


1996 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: La Ceremonie
Best Director: Claude Chabrol for La Ceremonie
Best Actor: Ewen McGregor in Trainspotting
Best Actress: (tie) Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient and Emily Watson in Breaking The Waves
Best Supporting Actor: Ian Holm in Big Night
Best Supporting Actress: Mary Kay Place in Citizen Ruth and Manny and Lo
Best Screenplay: John Sayles for Lone Star
Best Cinematography: (tie) Darius Khondji for Stealing Beauty and Oliver Stapleton for Kansas City
Best Music: Tiffany Anders, Burt Bacharach, David Baerwald, Carole Bayer Sager, Ed Berghoff, Elvis Costello, Gerry Goffin, Louise Goffin, Tonio K, Larry Klein, J. Mascis, Joni Mitchell, Boyd Rice, David A. Stewart, and J. Mayo Williams for Grace Of My Heart
Best Production Design: Harley Jessup for James And The Giant Peach
Best Costume Design: Dona Granata for Kansas City
Sominex Award: The English Patient
Dramamine Award: A Time To Kill
Mechanical Actor: All the men in She’s The One
Mechanical Actress: Maxine Bahns in She’s The One


1997 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: (tie) Crash and Grosse Pointe Blank
Best Director: David Cronenberg for Crash
Best Actor: John Cusack for Grosse Pointe Blank
Best Actress: Julie Christie in Afterglow
Best Supporting Actor: Kevin Spacey in L. A. Confidential
Best Supporting Actress: Christina Ricci in The Ice Storm
Best Screenplay: Neil LaBute for In The Company Of Men
Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins for Kundun
Best Music: (tie) Eleni Karaindrou for Ulysses’ Gaze and Michael Nyman for Gattaca
Best Production Design: (tie) Dan Weil for The Fifth Element and Jan Roelfs for Gattaca
Best Costume Design: Denise Cronenberg for Crash
Sominex Award: The Pillow Book
Dramamine Award: Con Air
Mechanical Actor: Billy Zane in Titanic
Mechanical Actress: Elisabeth Shue in Deconstructing Harry and The Saint


1998 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Gods And Monsters
Best Director: (tie) Bill Condon for Gods And Monsters and Todd Solondz for Happiness
Best Actor: Ian McKellen in Gods And Monsters
Best Actress: Christina Ricci in The Opposite Of Sex
Best Supporting Actor: Dylan Baker in Happiness
Best Supporting Actress: Lisa Kudrow in The Opposite Of Sex
Best Screenplay: Bill Condon for Gods And Monsters
Best Cinematography: Maryse Alberti for Happiness and Velvet Goldmine
Best Music: Carter Burwell for Gods And Monsters
Best Production Design: Thérèse DePrez for Happiness
Best Costume Design: Bruce Finlayson for Gods And Monsters
Sominex Award: Dangerous Beauty
Dramamine Award: Stepmom
Mechanical Actor: Bruce Willis in Armageddon, The Siege and Mercury Rising
Mechanical Actress: Jena Malone in Stepmom


1999 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Fight Club
Best Director: (tie) David Fincher for Fight Club and Spike Jonze for Being John Malkovich
Best Actor: Terence Stamp in The Limey
Best Actress: (tie) Nicole Kidman in Eyes Wide Shut and Hillary Swank in Boys Don’t Cry
Best Supporting Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman in Magnolia and The Talented Mr. Ripley
Best Supporting Actress: Catherine Keener in Being John Malkovich
Best Screenplay: Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor for Election
Best Cinematography: Robert Richardson for Bringing Out The Dead and Snow Falling On Cedars
Best Music: Trey Parker and Marc Shaiman for South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut
Best Production Design: Owen Paterson for The Matrix
Best Costume Design: Michael Kaplan for Fight Club
Sominex Award: The World Is Not Enough
Dramamine Award: The Green Mile
Mechanical Actor: Kevin Spacey in American Beauty
Mechanical Actress: Annette Bening in American Beauty


2000 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: L’ Humanite
Best Director: (tie) Terence Davies for The House Of Mirth and Jim Jarmusch for Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai
Best Actor: Forrest Whitaker in Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai
Best Actress: (tie) Severine Caneele in L’ Humanite and Michelle Yeoh in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Best Supporting Actor: Jack Black in High Fidelity and Jesus’s Son
Best Supporting Actress: Lupe Ontiveros in Chuck And Buck
Best Screenplay: Kenneth Lonnergan for You Can Count On Me
Best Cinematography: Remi Adefarasin for The House Of Mirth
Best Music: RZA for Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai
Best Production Design: Gideon Ponte for American Psycho and Hamlet
Best Costume Design: Monica Howe for The House Of Mirth
Sominex Award: Mission Impossible 2
Dramamine Award: The Replacements (aka The Scabs)
Mechanical Actor: Ian Holm in Joe Gould’s Secret
Mechanical Actress: Charlize Theron in Reindeer Games


2001 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Werckmeister Harmonies
Best Director: Bela Tarr for The Werckmeister Harmonies
Best Actor: John Cameron Mitchell for Hedwig And The Angry Inch
Best Actress: Naomi Watts in Mulholland Drive
Best Supporting Actor: Steve Buscemi in Ghost World
Best Supporting Actress: Scarlett Johansson in Ghost World and The Man Who Wasn’t There
Best Screenplay: Daniel Clowes and Terry Zwigoff for Ghost World
Best Cinematography: (tie) Peter Deming for From Hell and Mulholland Drive and Christopher Doyle and Mark Lee Ping-bin for In The Mood For Love
Best Music: Mihály Vig for The Werckmeister Harmonies
Best Production Design: Edward T. McAvoy for Ghost World
Best Costume Design: Mary Zophres for Ghost World
Sominex Award:
Dramamine Award:
Mechanical Actor:
Mechanical Actress:


2002 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: (tie) Far From Heaven and The Son’s Room
Best Director: (tie) Todd Haynes for Far From Heaven and Aleksandr Sokurov for Russian Ark
Best Actor: Greg Kinnear in Auto Focus
Best Actress: (tie) Emmanuelle Devos in Read My Lips and Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven and Samantha Morton in Minority Report and Morvern Callar
Best Supporting Actor: Eddie Izzard in The Cat’s Meow
Best Supporting Actress: Patricia Clarkson in Far From Heaven
Best Screenplay: Bill Condon for Chicago
Best Cinematography: Tilman Büttner for Russian Ark
Best Music: Elmer Bernstein for Far From Heaven
Best Production Design: Mark Friedberg for Far From Heaven
Best Costume Design: Sandy Powell for Far From Heaven and Gangs Of New York
Sominex Award: Naqoyqatsi
Dramamine Award: Bowling For Dollars
Mechanical Actor: Anthony Hopkins in Red Dragon
Mechanical Actress: Catherine Keener in Lovely And Amazing


2003 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Decasia
Best Director: Bill Morrison for Decasia
Best Actor: Johnny Depp in Pirates Of The Caribbean
Best Actress: Hope Davis in American Splendor and The Secret Lives Of Dentists
Best Supporting Actor: Max Pirkis in Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World
Best Supporting Actress: Ludivine Sagnier in Swimming Pool
Best Screenplay: Shari Springer Bergman and Robert Pulcini for American Splendor
Best Cinematography: Peter Suschitzky for Spider
Best Music: Michael Gordon for Decasia
Best Production Design: Andrew Laws for Down With Love
Best Costume Design: Daniel Orlandi for Down With Love
Sominex Award:
Dramamine Award: In My Skin
Mechanical Actor: Anthony Hopkins in The Human Stain
Mechanical Actress: Nicole Kidman in The Human Stain


2004 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Kinsey
Best Director: Bill Condon for Kinsey
Best Actor: Ethan Hawke in Before Sunset
Best Actress: Laura Linney in Kinsey and P.S.
Best Supporting Actor: Peter Sarsgaard in Kinsey
Best Supporting Actress: Kirsten Dunst in Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
Best Screenplay: Bill Condon for Kinsey
Best Cinematography: Christopher Doyle for Hero, Last Life In The Universe and Days Of Being Wild
Best Music: Alberto Iglesias for Bad Education
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti for The Aviator
Best Costume Design: Emi Wada for Hero and House Of The Flying Daggers
Sominex Award: The Village
Dramamine Award: The Passion Of The Christ
Mechanical Actor: Cate Blanchett in The Aviator
Mechanical Actress: Anthony Hopkins in Alexander


2005 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Mysterious Skin
Best Director: Gregg Araki for Mysterious Skin
Best Actor: Joseph Gordon-Leavitt in Mysterious Skin
Best Actress: Maria Bello in A History Of Violence
Best Supporting Actor: Paddy Constantine in My Summer Of Love
Best Supporting Actress: Catherine Keener in Capote
Best Screenplay: Gregg Araki for Mysterious Skin
Best Cinematography: Robert Elswit for Good Night And Good Luck and Syriana
Best Music: Howard Shore for A History Of Violence
Best Production Design: William Chang Suk Ping for 2046
Best Costume Design: William Chang Suk Ping for 2046
Sominex Award: Saraband
Dramamine Award: Crash
Mechanical Actor: Tom Cruise for War Of The Worlds
Mechanical Actress: Dakota Fanning for War Of The Worlds

Complete coverage of the 2005 IRAs here.

2006 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: L’Enfant
Best Director: Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne for L’Enfant
Best Actor: Ryan Gosling in Half Nelson
Best Actress: Maggie Cheung in Clean
Best Supporting Actor: Anthony Mackie in Half Nelson
Best Supporting Actress: Carmen Maura in Volver
Best Screenplay: (tie) Guillermo Del Toro for Pan’s Labyrinth and Jean- Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne for L’Enfant
Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki for Children Of Men
Best Production Design: Eugenio Caballero for Pan’s Labyrinth
Best Music: Philip Glass for Notes On A Scandal and The Illusionist
Best Costume Design: Sharon Davis for Dreamgirls
Sominex Award: The Da Vinci Code
Dramamine Award: Babel
Mechanical Actor: Robert Downey, Jr. in Fur and A Scanner Darkly
Mechanical Actress: Julianne Moore in Children Of Men

Complete coverage of the 2006 IRAs here.


2007 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Best Director: Andrew Dominik for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Best Actor: Casey Affleck in The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford and Gone Baby Gone
Best Actress: Marina Hands in Lady Chatterley
Best Supporting Actor: Paul Schneider in The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford and Lars And The Real Girl
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan in Gone Baby Gone
Best Screenplay: Corneliu Porumboiu for 12:08 East Of Bucharest
Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, In The Valley Of Elah and No Country For Old Men
Best Production Design: Patricia Norris for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Best Music: Nick Cave and Warren Ellis for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Best Costume Design: Patricia Norris for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Sominex Award: Youth Without Youth
Dramamine Award: Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead
Mechanical Actor: John Travolta in Hairspray
Mechanical Actress: Meryl Streep in Lions For Lambs and Rendition

Complete coverage of the 2007 IRAs here.


2008 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Edge Of Heaven
Best Director: Fatih Akin - The Edge Of Heaven
Best Actor: Michael Shannon - Shotgun Stories
Best Actress: Anamaria Marinca - 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
Best Supporting Actor: Emile Hirsch - Milk
Best Supporting Actress: Hanna Schygulla - The Edge Of Heaven
Best Screenplay: Fatih Akin - The Edge Of Heaven
Best Cinematography: Jody Shapiro - My Winnipeg
Best Production Design: Rejean Labrie - My Winnipeg
Best Music: Carter Burwell for In Bruges and Burn After Reading
Best Costumes: Danny Glicker - Milk
Sominex: The Happening
Dramamine: The Reader
Mechanical Actor: Mark Wahlberg for The Happening
Mechanical Actress: Meryl Streep for Doubt

Complete coverage of the 2008 IRAs here.


2009 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Hunger
Best Director: Olivier Assayas - Summer Hours
Best Actor: Sharlto Copley - District 9
Best Actress: Catalina Saavedra - The Maid
Best Supporting Actor: Liam Cunningham - Hunger
Best Supporting Actress: Anna Faris - Observe And Report
Best Screenplay: Olivier Assayas - Summer Hours
Best Cinematography: Sean Bobbitt - Hunger
Best Production Design: Philip Ivey - District 9
Best Music: Marvin Hamlisch - The Informant!
Best Costumes: Janet Patterson - Bright Star
Sominex: Public Enemies
Dramamine: Anti-Christ
Mechanical Actor: Peter Sarsgaard for An Education
Mechanical Actress: Hilary Swank for Amelia

2010 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Director: Jacques Audiard - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Actor: Edgar Ramirez - Carlos
Best Actress: Tilda Swinton - I Am Love
Best Supporting Actor: Niels Arestrup - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Supporting Actress: Dale Dickey - Winter's Bone
Best Screenplay: Thomas Bidegain and Jacques Audiard - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Cinematography: Yorick Le Saux - I Am Love
Best Production Design: Francesca Balestra Di Mottola - I Am Love
Best Music: John Adams - I Am Love
Best Costumes: Antonella Cannarozzi - I Am Love
Sominex: Cairo Time
Dramamine: Black Swan
Mechanical Actor: Vincent Cassel for Black Swan
Mechanical Actress: Natalie Portman for Black Swan
The Governor Scott Walker Award For Achievement In Political Thuggery: Waiting For "Superman"

Complete coverage of the 2010 IRAs here.


2011 IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS
Best Picture: The Tree Of Life
Best Director: Terrence Malick - The Tree Of Life
Best Actor: Peyman Moadi - A Separation
Best Actress: Leila Hatami - A Separation
Best Supporting Actor: Hunter McCracken - The Tree Of Life
Best Supporting Actress: Sareh Bayet - A Separation
Best Screenplay: Ashgar Farhadi - A Separation
Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki - The Tree Of Life
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti - Hugo
Best Score: Alberto Iglesias - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and The Skin I Live In
Best Editing: Hank Corwin, Jay Rabinowitz, Daniel Rezende, Billy Weber, Mark Yoshikawa - The Tree Of Life
Best Costumes: Jacqueline Durran - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Sominex Award (The Movie That Put Us To Sleep): Midnight In Paris
Dramamine Award (The Movie That Made Us Sick): The Help
Mechanical Actress: Meryl Streep - The Iron Lady
Mechanical Actor: Owen Wilson - Midnight In Paris

Complete coverage of the 2011 IRAs here.


2012 IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS
Best Picture: Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
Best Director: Nuri Bilge Ceylan - Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
Best Actor: Jean-Louis Trintignant - Amour
Best Actress: Rachel Weisz - The Deep Blue Sea
Best Supporting Actor: Taner Birsel - Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
Best Supporting Actress: Cecile De France - The Kid With A Bike
Best Screenplay: Ebru Ceylan and Nuri Bilge Ceylan and Ercan Kesal - Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
Best Cinematography: Gokhan Tiryaki - Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
Best Production Design: Arvinder Grewal - Cosmopolis
Best Score: Dan Romer and Benh Zeitlin - Beasts Of The Southern Wild
Best Editing: Todd Woody Richman and Tyler H. Walk - How To Survive A Plague
Best Costumes: Kari Perkins - Bernie
Sominex Award (The Movie That Put Us To Sleep): (tie) Les Miserables and Beasts Of The Southern Wild
Dramamine Award (The Movie That Made Us Sick): The Intouchables
Mechanical Actress: Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables
Mechanical Actor: Russell Crowe - Les Miserables

Complete coverage of the 2012 IRAs here.


2013 IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS
Best Picture: Laurence Anyways
Best Director: Xavier Dolan for Laurence Anyways and I Killed My Mother
Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix for Her
Best Actress: Hadas Yaron for Fill The Void
Best Supporting Actor: Daniel Bruhl for The Fifth Estate and Rush
Best Supporting Actress: Nathalie Baye for Laurence Anyways
Best Screenplay: Sarah Polley for Stories We Tell
Best Cinematography: Asaf Sudri for Fill The Void
Best Production Design: K.K. Barrett for Her
Best Score: (tie) Alex Ebert for All Is Lost and Arcade Fire for Her
Best Editing: Mike Munn for Stories We Tell
Best Costumes: Francois Barbeau, Xavier Dolan for Laurence Anyways
Sominex Award (The Movie That Put Us To Sleep): Faust
Dramamine Award (The Movie That Made Us Sick): The Great Gatsby
Mechanical Actress: Meryl Streep for August: Osage County
Mechanical Actor: Jared Leto for Dallas Buyers Club 

Complete coverage of the 2013 IRAs here. 


2014 IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS
Best Picture: Nightcrawler
Best Director: Dan Gilroy for Nightcrawler
Best Actor: Jake Gyllenhaal for Nightcrawler
Best Actress: Essie Davis for The Babadook
Best Supporting Actor: Ethan Hawke for Boyhood
Best Supporting Actress: Agata Kulesza for Ida
Best Screenplay:  Dan Gilroy for Nightcrawler
Best Cinematography: Robert Elswit for Nightcrawler and Inherent Vice
Best Production Design: Suzie Davies for Mr. Turner
Best Score: Mica Levi for Under The Skin
Best Editing: (tie) Simon Njoo for The Babadook; Jay Cassidy, Stuart Levy and Conor O'Neill for Foxcatcher
Best Costumes: (tie) Kasia Walicka-Maimone for Foxcatcher and A Most Violent Year (but not St. Vincent);       Jacqueline Durran for Mr. Turner
Sominex Award (The Movie That Put Us To Sleep): The Monuments Men
Dramamine Award (The Movie That Made Us Sick): The Imitation Game
Mechanical Actress: Lilla Crawford for Into The Woods
Mechanical Actor: The Entire Cast of The Monuments Men 

Complete coverage of the 2014 IRAs here. 


2015 IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS
Best Picture: Tangerine
Best Director: Miroslav Slaboshpytski for The Tribe
Best Actor: Jason Segel for The End Of The Tour 
Best Actress: (tie) Anne Dorval for Mommy
                   (tie) Kitana Kiki Rodriguez for Tangerine
Best Supporting Actor: Alexander Skarsgård for The Diary Of A Teenage Girl
Best Supporting Actress: Mya Taylor for Tangerine by acclamation
Best Nonfiction Film: In Jackson Heights 
Best Screenplay:  Donald Margulies for The End Of The Tour
Best Cinematography: Sean Baker and Radium Cheung for Tangerine
Best Production Design: (tie) Judy Becker for Carol
                                    (tie) Colin Gibson for Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Score: (tie) Junkie XL for Mad Max: Fury Road
                 (tie) Atticus Ross and Brian Wilson for Love And Mercy 
Best Editing: Sean Baker for Tangerine
Best Costumes: Shih-Ching Tsou for Tangerine
Sominex Award (The Movie That Put Us To Sleep): The Assassin
       Dramamine Award (The Movie That Made Us Sick): Chi-Raq
Mechanical Actress: Eddie Redmayne for The Danish Girl
Mechanical Actor: John Cusack for Chi-Raq and Love And Mercy

Complete coverage of the 2015 IRAs here.

2016 IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS

Best Picture: Moonlight
Best Director: Barry Jenkins for Moonlight
Best Actor: Antonythasan Jesuthasan for Dheepan
Best Actress: Annette Bening for 20th Century Women
Best Supporting Actor: Ralph Fiennes for A Bigger Splash and Hail, Caesar!
Best Supporting Actress: Linda Emond for Indignation
Best Nonfiction Film: O.J.: Made In America
Best Screenplay: Taylor Sheridan for Hell Or High Water
Best Cinematography: James Laxton for Moonlight
Best Production Design: (tie) Craig Lathrop for The Witch
                                            (tie) Ryan Warren Smith for Green Room
Best Score: Nicholas Britell for Moonlight
Best Editing: Andrey Paperniy for Under The Sun
Best Costumes: Madeline Fontaine for Jackie
Sominex Award (The Movie That Put Us To Sleep): Girl On A Train
       Dramamine Award (The Movie That Made Us Sick): Nocturnal Animals
Mechanical Actress: Nicole Kidman for Lion
Mechanical Actor: Aaron Taylor-Johnson for Nocturnal Animals

Complete coverage of the 2016 IRAs here.

2017 IRA FILM AWARD WINNERS

Best Picture: BPM
Best Director: Robin Campillo for BPM
Best Actor: Michael Keaton for The Founder
Best Actress: Daniela Vega for A Fantastic Woman (Una Mujer Fantástica)
Best Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe for The Florida Project
Best Supporting Actress: Lesley Manville for Phantom Thread
Best Nonfiction Film: Dawson City: Frozen Time
Best Screenplay:  Robert Siegel for The Founder
Best Cinematography: Alexis Zabe for The Florida Project
Best Production Design: Stephonik Youth for The Florida Project
Best Score: Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never for Good Time
Best Editing: Robin Campillo, Stéphanie Léger and Anita Roth for BPM
Best Costumes: Pascaline Chavanne for Frantz
Sominex Award (The Movie That Put Us To Sleep): The Post
Dramamine Award (The Movie That Made Us Sick): mother!
Mechanical Actress: Emma Watson for Beauty and the Beast and The Circle
Mechanical Actor: James Franco for The Disaster Artist, et. al

Complete coverage of the 2017 IRAs here.



IRA BEST PICTURE WINNERS

Barry Lyndon (1975)
Lipstick and The Marquise Of O (tie) (1976)
Annie Hall (1977)
Days Of Heaven (1978)
Fedora (1979)

The Big Red One (1980)
Cutter’s Way (1981)
Victor/Victoria (1982)
Berlin Alexanderplatz (1983)
L’Argent and Once Upon A Time In America (tie) (1984)
Prizzi’s Honor (1985)
Eyes On The Prize (1986)
Housekeeping (1987)
Dead Ringers (1988)
Story Of Women (1989)

GoodFellas (1990)
The Man In The Moon (1991)
Raise The Red Lantern (1992)
Six Degrees Of Separation (1993)
Red (1994)
Exotica (1995)
La Ceremonie (1996)
Crash (the David Cronenberg film) and Grosse Pointe Blank (tie) (1997)
Gods And Monsters (1998)
Fight Club (1999)

L’ Humanite (2000)
The Werckmeister Harmonies (2001)
Far From Heaven and The Son’s Room (tie) (2002)
Decasia (2003)
Kinsey (2004)
Mysterious Skin (2005)
L’Enfant (2006)
The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford (2007)
The Edge Of Heaven (2008)
Hunger (2009)
A Prophet/Un Prophete (2010)

The Tree Of Life (2011)
Once Upon A Time In Anatolia (2012)
Laurence Anyways (2013)
Nightcrawler (2014)
Tangerine (2015)
Moonlight (2016)
BPM (2017)



THE IRA AWARDS: THE TOP 100 FILMS OF THE 1940S

1. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941)
2. Letter From An Unknown Woman (Max Ophüls, 1948)
3. The Magnificent Ambersons (Orson Welles, 1942)
4. Notorious (Alfred Hitchcock, 1946)
5. The Big Sleep (Howard Hawks, 1946)
6. Shadow Of A Doubt (Alfred Hitchcock, 1943)
7. Red River (Howard Hawks, 1948)
8. It's A Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)
9. To Have And Have Not (Howard Hawks, 1944)
10. The Palm Beach Story (Preston Sturges, 1942)

See the complete list of the Top 100 Films Of The 1940s here.

THE IRA AWARDS: THE TOP 100 FILMS OF THE 1950s

1. The Earrings of Madame de… (Max Ophüls, 1953)
2. Touch of Evil (Orson Welles, 1958)
3. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958)
4. Rear Window (Alfred Hitchcock, 1954) 
5. The Searchers (John Ford, 1956) 
6. In a Lonely Place (Nicholas Ray, 1950) 
7. Anatomy of a Murder (Otto Preminger, 1959) 
8. Tokyo Story (Yasujiro Ozu, 1953) 
9. North by Northwest (Alfred Hitchcock, 1959) 
10. Pickpocket (Robert Bresson, 1959) 

See the complete list of the Top 100 Films Of The 1950s here. 



THE IRA AWARDS: THE TOP 100 FILMS OF THE 1960s

1. Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960)
2. The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)
3. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (John Ford, 1962)
4. 2001: A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, 1968)
5. Chimes At Midnight (Orson Welles, 1965)
6. Once Upon A Time In The West (Sergio Leone, 1968) 
7. The Birds (Alfred Hitchcock, 1963) 
8. Marnie (Alfred Hitchcock, 1964) 
9. When A Woman Ascends The Stairs (Mikio Naruse, 1960)
10. Contempt (Jean-Luc Godard, 1963)....

See the complete list here.


THE IRA AWARDS: THE BEST FILMS OF THE 2000s (voted in 2010)

1. The Son/Le Fils (Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne, 2002)
2. Zodiac (David Fincher, 2007)
3. Yi Yi (Edward Yang, 2000)
4. The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford (Andrew Dominik, 2007)
5. The Edge Of Heaven (Fatih Akin, 2007) (tie)
    In The Mood For Love 
(Kar Wai Wong, 2000) (tie)
7. The Heart Of The World 
(Guy Maddin, 2001)
8. Mysterious Skin 
(Gregg Araki, 2004) (tie)
    Bus 174 
(José Padilha and Felipe Lacerda, 2002) (tie)
10. The Death Of Mr. Lazarescu (Cristi Puiu, 2005) (tie)
      Head-On (Fatih Akin, 2004) (tie)
      Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki, 2001) (tie)


THE IRA AWARDS: THE TOP 100 FILMS OF ALL TIME

1. The Rules Of The Game (Jean Renoir, 1939)
2. The Magnificent Ambersons (Orson Welles, 1942)
3. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941)
4. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958)
5. The Searchers (John Ford, 1956)
6. Letter From An Unknown Woman (Max Ophüls, 1948)
7. The Big Sleep (Howard Hawks, 1946)
8. Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960)
9. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (John Ford, 1962)
10. The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)

See the complete list of the Top 100 Films Of All Time here.