"Capote" was named best picture Saturday by the National Society of Film Critics in a hard-fought contest that saw it prevail over David Cronenberg's "A History of Violence" by 12 votes to 11 on the group's sixth ballot. Wong Kar-wai's "2046" came in third in the balloting. In Cronenberg was named best director, Philip Seymour Hoffman was named best actor, Ed Harris was chosen best supporting actor in "A History of Violence". Reese Witherspoon took best actress for "Walk the Line," and Amy Adams was chosen best supporting actress for "Junebug".
The Director's Guild of America embraced three new directors and two established ones Thursday when it unveiled its nominees for outstanding directorial achievement of 2005. George Clooney ("Good Night, and Good Luck"), Paul Haggis ("Crash"), Bennett Miller ("Capote"), Ang Lee ("Brokeback Mountain") and Steven Spielberg ("Munich") all scored nominations. Spielberg has won three times before, Lee has won once.
The ensemble cast of "Brokeback Mountain" and its actors Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal and Michelle Williams all received nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Awards last Wednesday. Also scoring well were "Capote", "Crash", "Good Night, and Good Luck" and "Hustle and Flow". The Writers Guild Awards followed similar paths. The nominees for original screenplay were "Cinderella Man," "Crash," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "The Squid and the Whale" and "The 40 Year-Old Virgin." Nominees for adapted screenplay were "Brokeback Mountain," "Capote," "The Constant Gardener," "A History of Violence" and "Syriana".
