2012 National Board of Review Awards – winners

The National Board of Review has announced the winners for its 2012 NBR Awards for the best films of the year.

Their choice for Best Film of the year was Kathryn Bigelow's Zero Dark Thirty. It was also winner for Best Director and Best Actress (Jessica Chastain).

“Zero Dark Thirty is a masterful film,” said Annie Schulhof, NBR President. “Kathryn Bigelow takes the viewer inside a definitive moment of our time in a visceral and unique way. It is exciting, provocative and deeply emotional.”

A select group of knowledgeable film enthusiasts and professionals, academics, young filmmakers and students, the National Board of Review viewed over 250 films this year including studio, independent, foreign-language, animated and documentary selections.  These screenings were frequently followed by in-depth discussions with filmmakers, directors, actors, producers, and screenwriters. Voting ballots were tabulated by the accounting firm of Lutz & Carr, LLP.

The National Board of Review honors diverse members of the film community at their annual Awards Gala, which also acts as a fundraiser for student grant philanthropy.  Hosted by Meredith Vieira, this year’s gala will take place on January 8, 2013 at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York City.


Complete list of winners for the 2012 National Board of Review Awards

Best Film
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty

Best Actor
Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook

Best Actress
Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty

Best Supporting Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio, Django Unchained

Best Supporting Actress
Ann Dowd, Compliance

Best Original Screenplay
Rian Johnson, Looper

Best Adapted Screenplay
David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook

Best Animated Feature
Wreck-It Ralph

Special Achievement in Filmmaking
Ben Affleck, Argo

Breakthrough Actor
Tom Holland, The Impossible

Breakthrough Actress
Quvenzhané Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Best Directorial Debut
Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Best Foreign Language Film
Amour

Best Documentary
Searching for Sugar Man

William K. Everson Film History Award
50 Years of Bond Films

Best Ensemble
Les Misérables

Spotlight Award
John Goodman, Argo, Flight, ParaNorman, Trouble with the Curve

NBR Freedom of Expression
The Central Park Five

NBR Freedom of Expression
Promised Land

Top Films (in alphabetical order)
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Les Miserables
Lincoln
Looper
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Promised Land
Silver Linings Playbook

Top 5 Foreign Language Films (In Alphabetical Order)
Barbara
The Intouchables
The Kid with a Bike
No
War Witch

Top 5 Documentaries (In Alphabetical Order)
Al Weiwei
Detropia
The Gatekeepers
The Invisible War
Only the Young

Top 10 Independent Films (In Alphabetical Order)
Arbitrage
Bernie
Compliance
End of Watch
Hello, I Must Be Going
Little Birds
Moonrise Kingdom
On the Road
Quartet
Sleepwalk with Me