LONDON — The brooding western “The Power of the Dog” was named best film as the British Academy Film Awards returned on Sunday with a live, black-tie ceremony after a pandemic-cut event in 2021.
New Zealand filmmaker Jane Campion was nominated for Best Director for the film, becoming only the third woman to win the award in the awards’ 75-year history.
The science-fiction epic “Dune” won five awards and the main acting trophies went to Hollywood star Will Smith and British artist Joanna Scanlan, as an event that has served to address a historical lack of diversity, including talent. A wide range of diseases have been recognized – including the deaf before it. Troy Kotsur in Starring Winner for “CODA”.
Last year’s event was held largely online, with only the hosts and presenters in attendance. This year, stars including Benedict Cumberbatch and Lady Gaga gathered at London’s Royal Albert Hall in the shadow of Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine.
First:Jane Campion says criticism of Sam Elliott’s ‘Power of the Dog’ is ‘a bit sexist’
British Film Academy President Krishnendu Majumdar opened the show hosted by Rebel Wilson with a message of support for Ukraine.
“We stand with those who are bravely fighting for their country and we share their hope of a return to peace,” he said.
Then came the glitz, in which 85-year-old diva Shirley Bassey and a live orchestra performed “Diamonds Are Forever” to mark the 60th anniversary of the James Bond films.
“Bond is turning 60, and his girlfriend is turning 25,” joked host Wilson, who reduced his usual bawdy material to the evening TV broadcast of the ceremony on the BBC.
Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune”, a space epic set on a desert planet, took home five trophies out of its 11 nominations: visual effects, production design, sound, Greg Fraser’s cinematography and Hans Zimmer’s score.
“The Power of the Dog,” set in 1920s Montana and starring Cumberbatch as a ranch owner, was nominated in eight categories and won two big awards: Best Picture and Best Director. Campion is the second female winner in two years after Chloe Zhao’s “Nomad” in 2021.
Cumberbatch lost to Smith, who was named Best Actor for his performance as the father of Serena and Venus Williams in “King Richard”.
Scanlan was a surprise best-actress winner, beating out contenders including Gaga to win for “After Love,” Alim Khan’s first feature about a woman who makes a life-changing discovery after her husband’s death. Is.
“Some stories have amazing endings, don’t they?” A disbelieving Scanlan asked.
Kenneth Branagh’s semi-autobiographical “Belfast”, a childhood story overshadowed by Northern Ireland’s violent “Trouble”, was named Best British Film.
Ariana Debos won the Best Supporting Actress award for her performance as Anita in the musical “West Side Story”. The supporting actor award went to Oscar-nominated Kotsur for “Koda”, in which he played the deaf father of a hearing daughter.
“Have you probably considered a deaf James Bond?” He asked in his speech, gave in sign language.
Lashana Lynch, who made a splash as a double-0 agent in “No Time to Die”, took home the Rising Star Award, the only category chosen by public vote. She thanked “the women of this country who taught me what it was like to be a black woman in this industry. I thank you for laying the foundation for people like me.”
The Bond thriller also won the award for Best Editing.
Japanese director Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Oscar-nominated play “Drive My Car” was named best film, not in English. “Encanto,” the story of a Colombian clan with magical powers, was named Best Animated Feature, and 1960s Harlem musical extraordinaire “Summer of Soul” won Best Documentary.
Sean Heder won the Adapted Screenplay Award for “CODA”. Best Original Screenplay went to Paul Thomas Anderson for the coming-of-age story “Liquorice Pizza”.
The British Awards are usually held a week or two before the Academy Awards and have become an important awards-season staging post. This year’s Oscars is on March 27.
The British Film Academy has expanded its voting membership and shaken up its rules in recent years in an effort to address an apparent lack of diversity in nominations. In 2020, for the seventh year in a row, no female was nominated for Best Director, and all 20 nominees in the leading and supporting cast categories were white.
The winners are:
film: “Dog Power”
British film: “Belfast”
the director: Jane Campion, “The Power of the Dog”
Actor: Will Smith, “King Richard”
Actress: Joanna Scanlan, “After Love”
supporting Actor: Troy Kotsur, “CODA”
supporting Actress: Ariana Debos, “West Side Story”
rising star: lashana lynchoe
British Debut: Director James Samuel for ‘The Harder They Fall’
Original Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson, “Licorice Pizza”
Adapted Screenplay: Cyan Header, “Coda”
The film is not in the English language: “drive my car”
musical score: Hans Zimmer, “Dune”
Cinematography: Greg Fraser, “Dune”
Editing: “No Time To Die”
production design: “Doon”
costume design: “Cruella”
Sound: “Doon”
Casting: “Western Story”
Visual Effects: “Doon”
Makeup and Hair: “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”
animated film: “Attraction”
British short film: “Black Cop”
British Short Animation: “Don’t feed the pigeons”
Documentation: “Heat of the Soul”
