lights, camera...party!

Houston's toughest critics invite movie fans and cinema snobs to fab film fête and awards show

Colin Farrell in The Banshees of Inisherin

The Banshees of Inisherin leads nominees for Best Picture.

Photo by Jonathan Hession / courtesy of Searchlight Pictures

Houston's film critics are set to hand out awards for the best movies of the year, and all local movie fans and film geeks are invited.

The Banshees of Inisherin and Everything Everywhere All at Once lead nominees for the Houston Film Critics Society’s 16th annual awards, to be held at 7 pm Saturday, February 18 at the Midtown Arts & Theater Center Houston (MATCH). Tickets are available here and start at $10.

Both films are nominated for nine honors, including Best Picture. Other films competing for the top award are Elvis, The Fabelmans, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, RRR, Tár, Till, Top Gun: Maverick, and Women Talking.

“As the industry continues to debate how we should experience the magic of film, moviemakers continue to imagine creative stories about compelling people,” says Doug Harris, HFCS president. “This year, the films we honor showcase a community daring to rethink, refresh and reinvent.”

Nominated as the year’s Best Actors are Austin Butler (Elvis), Tom Cruise (Top Gun: Maverick), Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin), Brendan Fraser (The Whale), and Jeremy Pope (The Inspection). Competing for Best Actress are Cate Blanchett (Tár), Viola Davis (The Woman King), Danielle Deadwyler (Till), Emma Thompson (Good Luck to You, Leo Grande), and Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once).

“The range of performances this year illustrate what actor and creator can deliver when they free themselves to imagine,” says Travis Leamons, HFCS secretary. “It’s difficult to remember a year where each performance could capture the final awards. The nominees are especially strong in 2022.”

An annual highlight of the ceremony will be the presentation of the Texas Independent Film Award, honoring the best of film made in the Lone Star State. This year’s nominees explore the choices of youth in Acid Test, a fascination with outer space in Apollo 10-1/2: A Space Age Childhood, the hopes of would-be parents in Conception, the natural beauty of the Lone Star State in Deep in the Heart: A Texas Wildlife Story, and the extraordinary life of a legendary athlete in Facing Nolan.

Here is the official rundown of nominees:

Best Picture

The Banshees of Inisherin

Elvis

Everything Everywhere All at Once

The Fabelmans

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio

RRR

Tár

Till

Top Gun: Maverick

Women Talking

Best Director

The Banshees of Inisherin, Martin McDonagh

Elvis, Baz Luhrmann

Everything Everywhere All at Once, Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert

The Fabelmans, Steven Spielberg

Tár, Todd Field

Women Talking, Sarah Polley

Best Actor – Leading Role

Austin Butler, Elvis

Tom Cruise, Top Gun: Maverick

Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin

Brendan Fraser, The Whale

Jeremy Pope, The Inspection

Best Actress – Leading Role

Cate Blanchett, Tár

Viola Davis, The Woman King

Danielle Deadwyler, Till

Emma Thompson, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande

Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Actor – Supporting Role

Brendan Gleeson, The Banshees of Inisherin

Barry Keoghan, The Banshees of Inisherin

Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Mark Rylance, Bones and All

Ben Whishaw, Women Talking

Best Actress – Supporting Role

Jessie Buckley, Women Talking

Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin

Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Stephanie Hsu, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Janelle Monáe, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Best Screenplay

The Banshees of Inisherin, Martin McDonagh

Everything Everywhere All at Once, Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert

The Fabelmans, Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner

Tár, Todd Field

Women Talking, Sarah Polley and Miriam Toews

Best Animated Feature

Apollo 10 1⁄2: A Space Age Childhood

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

Turning Red

Best Cinematography

Avatar: The Way of Water, Russell Carpenter

Babylon, Linus Sandgren

Nope, Hoyte Van Hoytema

The Fabelmans, Janusz Kamiński

Top Gun: Maverick, Claudio Miranda

Best Documentary

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

Bad Axe

Fire of Love

Good Night Oppy

Navalny

Best Foreign Language Feature

All Quiet on the Western Front

Argentina, 1985

Close

Decision to Leave

RRR

Best Original Score

Babylon, Justin Hurwitz

The Banshees of Inisherin, Carter Burwell

Empire of Light, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

The Fabelmans, John Williams

Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, Alexandre Desplat

Women Talking, Hildur Guðnadóttir

Best Original Song

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, “Lift Me Up,” Ludwig Göransson, Tems, Rihanna

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio, “Ciao Papa,” Alexandre Desplat, Guillermo del Toro, and Roeban Katz

RRR, “Naatu Naatu,” Kala Bhairava, M. M. Keeravani, and Rahul Sipligunj

Till, “Stand Up,” Jazmine Sullivan and Dermset “D’Mile” Emile II

Top Gun: Maverick, “Hold My Hand,” Lady Gaga, BloodPop, and Benjamin Rice

Best Visual Effects

Avatar: The Way of Water

The Batman

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

RRR

Top Gun: Maverick

Best Stunt Coordination Team

The Batman

Everything Everywhere All at Once

RRR

Top Gun: Maverick

The Woman King

Best Ensemble Cast

The Banshees of Inisherin

Everything Everywhere All at Once

The Fabelmans

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Women Talking

Texas Independent Film Award

Acid Test

Apollo 10 1⁄2: A Space Age Childhood

Conception

Deep in the Heart: A Texas Wildlife Story

Facing Nolan

----

(Full disclosure: Craig D. Lindsey is a member of the Houston Film Critics Society.)

Movie Review

New movie Friendship pairs Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd in a bizarre bromance

Photo courtesy of A24

Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd in Friendship.

Comedian Tim Robinson has gained a cult following thanks to series like Detroiters and I Think You Should Leave, in which his brand of cringe comedy is on full display. The former Saturday Night Live writer/performer has had a few small movie roles over the years, but he’s now getting his first starring role in the off-kilter Friendship.

Robinson plays Craig, a mild-mannered suburbanite with a wife, Tami (Kate Mara), and son, Steven (Jack Dylan Grazer). Craig has a boring life that involves little more than going to his middle manager job while wearing the same clothes day after day, anticipating the next Marvel movie, and helping Tami out with her at-home floral business.

He gets a jolt of energy when Austin (Paul Rudd) moves into the neighborhood. The two men seem to hit it off, with Austin — a weatherman at a local TV channel — even taking Craig on a couple of impromptu adventures. But when Craig commits a couple of faux pas at a group gathering at Austin’s house, their bond starts to fracture.

Even though the film is written and directed by Andrew DeYoung, it’s clear that Robinson had a big influence on the style of comedy it features. There are no big set pieces with a slew of jokes coming one after another. Instead, the film forces the audience to try to vibe with the very particular type of wavelength it’s giving off, one that could almost be called anti-comedy for the way the laughs come out of left field.

The 100-minute film is full of random comedic moments, like Steven kissing Tami on the lips, Craig being obsessed with his plain brown clothes, a group sing-along, and more. More often than not, it’s the way Craig reacts to both normal and abnormal situations that gets the laughs. The character is needy and oblivious, two traits that combine to make many of his actions cringeworthy.

Perhaps most importantly for this type of movie, many things in the story go unexplained or don’t make sense. Seemingly crucial elements are brought up only to fade away just as quickly, while other parts that appeared to be throwaway sections get callbacks later in the film. DeYoung and Robinson are determined to keep the audience on their toes the entire time, never knowing what to expect next.

Robinson has the perfect face for a story like this, one that’s bland enough to blend into the background but memorable enough to sell the jokes. His demeanor is also excellent, never becoming too expressive, even when he gets angry. With long hair, a mustache, and a certain swagger, Rudd is a great complement to Robinson. Only in a film like this would an everyman like Rudd be considered the suave and cool one.

There will be some that will see Friendship and come away wondering what the hell they just watched. But anyone who goes in knowing that they’re about to witness a comedy that challenges their sensibilities will likely have a great time.

---

Friendship is now playing in select theaters.

movies film

lights, camera...party!

Houston's toughest critics invite movie fans and cinema snobs to fab film fête and awards show

Movie Review

New movie Friendship pairs Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd in a bizarre bromance

Massive, German-inspired beer garden coming to new Energy Corridor project

Houstonians will get the royal treatment at this lively new steakhouse

4 fresh new restaurants now open in suburban Houston