Probably not — but maybe! Waltz With Bashir took top honors at the National Society of Film Critics Awards in New York over the weekend, the first time the organization has ever selected an animated movie as the year’s best. But Pixar’s Vulture-endorsed Wall-E nearly earned the same distinction after leading on the first ballot; NSFC members were allowed to vote by proxy in the first round, but only those in attendance at Saturday’s ceremony at Sardi’s could participate in the second, in which Wall-E tied for second place with Happy-Go-Lucky (whose helmer, Mike Leigh, won Best Director). Sean Penn and Sally Hawkins scored acting awards, though not without competition — single votes were cast for JCVD’s Jean-Claude Van Damme and, hilariously, EVE, Wall-E’s iPod-faced love interest.
So what of EVE’s Academy Awards chances? The Best Actress field is fairly competitive this year, with real-life, non-computer-generated humans Meryl Streep, Kate Winslet, Anne Hathaway, Sally Hawkins, Cate Blanchett, Angelina Jolie, Melissa Leo, and Kristin Scott Thomas all battling for five measly slots — so if we were in charge of EVE’s Oscar campaign, we’d definitely push her for supporting. Still, though, if Brad Pitt’s face is eligible for a lead nomination, then why not?
Upsets at the National Society of Film Critics Awards! ‘Bashir’ bumps off ‘Wall-E’! [Gold Derby/LAT]