Toronto critics honour Tree Of Life with best film, director

Michael Shannon was named best actor for Take Shelter while Michelle William earned the corresponding actress prize for My Week With Marilyn. Canada’s Christopher Plummer won best supporting actor for Beginners and Jessica Chastain was named best supporting actress for Take Shelter.

Best screenplay went to Moneyball and Mysteries Of Lisbon was declared best foreign language film. Joe Cornish’s Attack The Block was named best first feature.

“With both Tree Of Life [pictured] and Take Shelter, our members chose to honour ambitious films that took bold risks,”TFCA president Brian D Johnson said. “These are both intimate dramas that play out on an apocalyptic canvas, and impart a sense of wonder and mystery.”

TFCA members voted at a Dec 11 meeting and the awards ceremony will take place on Jan 10, 2012 when the group will also reveal the winner of the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award, which carries a $15,000 cash prize. David Cronenberg will be on hand to present a special award.

The TFCA will also announce the winner of the third annual Jay Scott Prize for an emerging artist, which carries a $5,000 cheque, and present the Deluxe Student Film Award, which gives $5,000 in post-production services to a student filmmaker.

The full list of Toronto Film Critics Association Awards winners and runners-up:

BEST PICTURE
The Tree Of Life
Runners-up: The Artist, The Descendants

BEST ACTOR
Michael Shannon, Take Shelter
Runners-up: George Clooney, The Descendants and Michael Fassbender, Shame

BEST ACTRESS
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn
Runners-up: Elizabeth Olsen, Martha Marcy May Marlene and Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Runners-up: Albert Brooks, Drive and Patton Oswalt, YoungAdult

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Jessica Chastain, Take Shelter
Runners-up: Jessica Chastain, The Tree Of Life and Shailene Woodley, The Descendants

BEST DIRECTOR
Terrence Malick, The Tree Of Life

Runners-up: Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist and Nicolas Winding Refn, Drive

BEST SCREENPLAY
Moneyball, Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin
Runners-up: The Descendants, Alexander Payne and The Tree Of Life, Terrence Malick

BEST FIRST FEATURE
Attack The Block, Joe Cornish
Runners-up: Margin Call, JC Chandor and Martha Marcy May Marlene, Sean Durkin

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
The Adventures Of Tintin
Runners-up: Puss In Boots and Rango

BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
Mysteries Of Lisbon
Runners-up: Attenberg, Le Havre and A Separation

ALLAN KING DOCUMENTARY AWARD
Nostalgia For The Light
Runners-up: Into The Abyss and Project Nim

ROGERS CANADIAN FILM AWARD FINALLISTS
Café De Flore
A Dangerous Method
Monsieur Lazhar