Promising young woman
The Nashville-based professional critics group, the Music City Film Critics’ Association, has voted, and this year’s winners represent a diverse list of films released in a most unusual year. The Best Picture of 2020 award is Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman, which also earned Carey Mulligan the MCFCA Best Actress award.
Aaron Sorkin’s The Trail of the Chicago 7 won awards in the Screenplay, Supporting Actor and Editing categories. Critics recognized the late Chadwick Boseman for his role in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.
In a particularly satisfying twist, the association presented Nashville native William Tyler with the Jim Ridley Award. The award — named in honor of the late editor and film critic Jim Ridley, who died in 2016 — honors a Nashville artist or film that best represents our city. Tyler composed the score for Kelly Reichardt’s devastatingly beautiful drama, First Cow. Wrote scene editor D. Patrick Rodgers in last year’s Best of Nashville issue: “Using meditative finger-picking guitars — and a bit of dulcimer — the musician has created a placid, evocative backdrop for the story of friendship and struggle of Reichardt in the Pacific Northwest of the 19th century.” William, you make us so proud.
Here is the full list of rewards.
Best Picture: Promising young woman
Best Director: Chloe Zhao, Nomadland
Best actor: Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s black background
Best Actress: Carey Mulligan, promising young woman
Best Supporting Actor: Sacha Baron Cohen, The trial of the Chicago 7
Best Supporting Actress (tie): Maria Bakalova, Borat Next Film; Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari
Best Actor Ensemble (tie): Black Bottom by Ma Rainey; One night in Miami
Best Animated Film: Soul
Best Foreign Language Film: Another round
Best Documentary: The social dilemma
Best Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, The Chicago Trial 7
Best song: “Speak Now” by Sam Ashworth, Leslie Odom Jr., One Night in Miami
Best score: Ludwig Goransson, Principle
Best Cinematography: Joshua James Richard, Nomadland
Best Editing (tie): Andy Canny, The Invisible Man; Alan Baumgarten, The Trial of the Chicago 7
Best Production Design: Donald Graham Burt, Mank
The Jim Ridley Award: William Tyler, composer, First Cow