Critics’ Choice Awards: will this gala be a good thermometer for the announcement of Oscar 2023 nominees?

It’s unusual for a genre film to win a top prize in Hollywood. In this case, the Critics’ Choice Awardsawarded by one of the most prestigious Hollywood critics associations, chose “Everything Everywhere All At Once” as Best Film, a film about the multiverse [sí, una más] starring Michelle Yeoh.

For the same film, critics awarded filmmakers Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for Best Director, as well as Ke Huy Quan for Best Supporting Actor. But it’s not always the film that takes the top honor that captures the attention. Thus, the moment of the night occurred when Brendan Fraser picked up the Best Actor award for “The Whale,” in which he plays Charlie, a morbidly obese English teacher trying to rebuild his relationship with his wife. his teenage daughter. The actor was so moved that he cried.

“I want you to know that you too can have the strength to stand up and go towards the light, good things will happen,” he said in reference to his character and to those who live in similar circumstances in real life, but the phrase could also be about itself. Influential like few others in current action cinema, Fraser went through a dark period and has recently experienced a renaissance.

Cate Blanchett was awarded Best Actress for the leading role in “Tár”, which follows a composer and conductor in a time of crisis and which has already won the performer other awards. She, like Fraser, are Oscar favorites in their respective categories.

The Critics Choice Awards boast of being the award that best predicts Oscar nominations. True or not, what real effect can these results have on the Academy Award? Considering that the voting ends this Tuesday the 17th, the effect is rather insufficient to influence this first stage. The Golden Globes may have had more impact, although this is debatable due to accusations of abuse and discrimination at the gala, which has already lost its luster of yesteryear.

Already with the announcement of Oscar nominees next week, the award may be relevant again to “guide” the voter, but it is not the only one to consider. From the announcement of nominees to the final ceremony, there are more awards from other guilds, such as actors, directors, and writers. Specific categories that usually have “the fixed ones” as their members overlap with the Academy. But the surprise factor persists and that is why this season captivates so much.

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Some justice. “Better Call Saul” won the award for Best Drama Series, while its actors Bob Odenkirk and Giancarlo Esposito took statuettes for Best Actor in a Drama and Best Supporting Actor in a Drama. There was also fair recognition for Zendaya for Best Actress in a Drama for “Euphoria,” while Jennifer Coolidge won Best Supporting Actress in a Drama for “The White Lotus.”

In comedy, “Abbott Elementary” stands out, which had already triumphed at the last Emmy, now taking the award for Best Comedy Series. Other recognized series were “The Bear”, about a restaurant with complicated labor relations, and “The Dropout”, about the con artist Elizabeth Holmes.