The UK’s leading film critics unveiled the winners of their annual Critics Circle Awards, which took place last night at London’s May Fair Hotel.
George Miller’s high-octane actioner Mad Max: Fury Road raced ahead of the competition, taking the awards for Film of the Year and Director of the Year. Miller’s film also shared in a third trophy, as leading man Tom Hardy was named British/Irish Actor of the Year for his body of work in 2015, also including his performances in Legend, The Revenant and London Road.
Equalling Mad Max’s tally of three wins was Andrew Haigh’s marital drama 45 Years, which the critics named British/Irish Film of the Year. It also won the night’s top acting prizes, as veteran stars Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay were named Actress and Actor of the Year.
It was a strong night for British talent, as Kate Winslet was named Supporting Actress of the Year for her work in Steve Jobs, while Mark Rylance took the Supporting Actor honour for Steven Spielberg’s Bridge of Spies.
Bringing the ceremony to a close, Judi Dench took to the stage to present Kenneth Branagh with the Dilys Powell Award for Excellence in Film. Branagh accepted the award from his recent stage partner in A Winter’s Tale, after verbal and visual tributes to his storied career as an actor and filmmaker.
The full list of winners for the 36th London Critics’ Circle Film Awards:
Film of the Year: Mad Max: Fury Road
British/Irish Film of the Year: 45 Years
Foreign Language Film of the Year: The Look of Silence
Documentart of the Year: Amy
Actor of the Year: Tom Courtenay — 45 Years
Actress of the Year: Charlotte Rampling — 45 Years
Supporting Actor of the Year: Mark Rylance — Bridge of Spies
Supporting Actress of the Year: Kate Winslet — Steve Jobs
Director of the Year: George Miller — Mad Max: Fury Road
Screenwriter of the Year: Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy — Spotlight
British/Irish Actor of the Year: Tom Hardy — Legend, London Road, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Revenant
British/Irish Actress of the Year: Saoirse Ronan — Brooklyn, Lost River
Young British/Irish Performer of the Year: Maisie Williams — The Falling
Philip French Award for Breakthrough British/Irish Filmmaker: John Maclean — Slow West
British/Irish Short Film of the Year: Stutterer — Benjamin Cleary
Technical Achievement Award: Ed Lachman, cinematography — Carol
Dilys Powell Award for Excellence in Film: Kenneth Branagh
