The British Academy of Film and Television Arts, better known as BAFTA, brought the glitz and the glamour to London's Royal Festival Hall last night. The 2023 BAFTAs celebrated an illustrious year of movie-making and, inevitably, many are tipping the winners as a bellwether for the forthcoming Academy Awards on March 12th.
The ceremony was presented by first-timer Richard E. Grant, on memorably dry form as ever. It was a big night for the critically acclaimed black comedy The Banshees of Inisherin, which scooped the trophies for Outstanding British Film (curious, given the distinctly Irish nature of the production), Best Original Screenplay for writer-director Martin McDonagh and a twofer of Supporting Actor/Actress trophies for Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan.
It's the latest in a long line of wins for Banshees, which has now capitalised on its earlier Golden Globes success and is next poised to do well at the Oscars. Banshees is back at Cineworld from March 6th, so if you missed out the first time, click here for more details.
The biggest upsets? No McDonagh for Best Director or popular choice Colin Farrell for Best Actor – respectively, those awards went to German helmer Edward Berger for his adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, and Austin Butler for Elvis.
If Butler was something of a shoo-in, propelled by an extensive publicity campaign and a sense of awe regarding his transformative performance, then Berger's win appears to have taken many by surprise.
In fact, All Quiet on the Western Front, the nihilistic and visceral take on Erich Maria Remarque's landmark World War I novel, dominated the evening, winning an impressive seven BAFTAs including the top prize, Best Film. It also grabbed Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Not in the English Language and Best Original Score.
Also upsetting the applecart (well, depending on one's point of view): Cate Blanchett grabbing the Best Actress trophy for TÁR in lieu of Michelle Yeoh for Everything Everywhere All At Once. This is Blanchett's fourth BAFTA win so based on her previous track record, it shouldn't have come as that much of a shock. Don't forget to catch TÁR in Cineworld again for a limited time from March 6th – click here for tickets.
Even so, Everything Everywhere has won hearts and minds the world over as the weird little indie upstart that's put big-budget Hollywood in its place, and it was perhaps expected that a wave of goodwill would propel Yeoh to the prize. In fact, Everything Everywhere had a muted evening with Barry Keoghan winning over Ke Huy Quan and Kerry Condon over Jamie Lee Curtis.
Everything Everywhere did, however, win Best Editing, vindication for those astonishing micro-montages that cut together an infinitesimal number of Michelle Yeoh characters from across the multiverse. The movie is back on Cineworld screens on March 7th so click here to book your tickets.
Avatar: The Way of Water was probably destined to walk away with Best Special Visual Effects – James Cameron's Pandoran labour of love is teeming with all manner of immersive visual detail that pushes the boundaries of seamless CGI. On the technical side, it was disheartening to see Top Gun: Maverick, the movie Steven Spielberg now credits with saving the theatrical industry, come away with nothing, but its reputation with audiences is hardly compromised.
Elsewhere, writer-director Charlotte Wells triumphantly claimed Outstanding British Debut for Aftersun. This piercing and haunting study of memory has been universally lauded and Wells' BAFTA success cements her as a perceptive filmmaker to watch. Don't forget that Aftersun is screening at selected Cineworlds across the country from March 7th – click here to book your tickets.
The full list of BAFTA winners can be found here. So, will Banshees score the elusive Best Picture at the forthcoming Oscars? Is Colin Farrell destined to battle Austin Butler to the podium? And will Cate Blanchett ultimately give way to Michelle Yeoh?
With the 95th Academy Awards getting underway on March 12th, tweet us your hot tips and frontrunners @Cineworld.
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