Drive, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy lead London Critics Circle nominations

Asghar Farhadi’s A Separation and Lynne Ramsay’s We Need To Talk About Kevin follow closely behind with 5 nominations each whilst Michel Hazanavicius’ The Artist and Steve McQueen’s Shame have received 4 apiece.

Competing in the Film Of The Year category will be The Artist, Drive, A Separation, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and The Tree Of Life.

The London Critics’ Circle Film Awards, which are voted for by over 120 critics, will take place on January 19 at the BFI Southbank.

For the second year running, the awards will be in aid of the BFI’s preservation of British films, in particular Hitchcock’s nine silent features, as part of the BFI’s ‘Rescue the Hitchcock 9’ campaign.

Chairman of the London Critics’ Circle, Jason Solomons said he was “proud of the breadth, intelligence and style of the choices the London critics have made, honouring the richness of world cinema and the fresh, cool takes on classic movie genres.”

“I’m also thrilled that a London movie such as Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and the magnetism of its central performance by London icon Gary Oldman has been rightfully recognised with so many nominations across different categories,” he added.

The nominations:

FILM OF THE YEAR

The Artist (Entertainment)
Drive (Icon)
A Separation (Artificial Eye)
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (StudioCanal)
The Tree of Life (Fox)

The Attenborough Award:

BRITISH FILM OF THE YEAR

The Guard (StudioCanal)
Kill List (StudioCanal)
Shame (Momentum)
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (StudioCanal)

We Need to Talk About Kevin (Artificial Eye)

FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM OF THE YEAR

Mysteries of Lisbon (New Wave)
Poetry (ICO/Arrow)
Le Quattro Volte (New Wave)
A Separation (Artificial Eye)
The Skin I Live In (Fox/Pathé)

DOCUMENTARY OF THE YEAR

Cave of Forgotten Dreams (Picturehouse)
Dreams of a Life (Dogwoof)
Pina (Artificial Eye)
Project Nim (Icon)
Senna (Universal)

DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR

Asghar Farhadi - A Separation (Artificial Eye)
Michel Hazanavicius - The Artist (Entertainment)
Terrence Malick - The Tree of Life (Fox)
Lynne Ramsay - We Need to Talk About Kevin (Artificial Eye)
Nicolas Winding Refn - Drive (Icon)

SCREENWRITER OF THE YEAR

Asghar Farhadi - A Separation (Artificial Eye)
Michel Hazanavicius - The Artist (Entertainment)
Kenneth Lonergan - Margaret (Fox)
Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (StudioCanal)
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon & Jim Rash - The Descendants (Fox)

The Virgin Atlantic Award:
BREAKTHROUGH BRITISH FILM-MAKER

Richard Ayoade - Submarine (StudioCanal)
Paddy Considine - Tyrannosaur (StudioCanal)
Joe Cornish - Attack the Block (StudioCanal)
Andrew Haigh - Weekend (Peccadillo)
John Michael McDonagh - The Guard (StudioCanal)

ACTOR OF THE YEAR

George Clooney - The Descendants (Fox)
Jean Dujardin - The Artist (Entertainment)
Michael Fassbender - Shame (Momentum)
Ryan Gosling - Drive (Icon)
Gary Oldman - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (StudioCanal)

ACTRESS OF THE YEAR

Kirsten Dunst -Melancholia (Artificial Eye)
Anna Paquin - Margaret (Fox)
Meryl Streep - The Iron Lady (Fox/Pathé)
Tilda Swinton - We Need to Talk About Kevin (Artificial Eye)
Michelle Williams - My Week With Marilyn (Entertainment)

SUPPORTING ACTOR OF THE YEAR

Simon Russell Beale - The Deep Blue Sea (Artificial Eye)
Kenneth Branagh - My Week With Marilyn (Entertainment)
Albert Brooks - Drive (Icon)
Christopher Plummer - Beginners (Universal)
Michael Smiley - Kill List (StudioCanal)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS OF THE YEAR

Sareh Bayat - A Separation (Artificial Eye)
Jessica Chastain - The Help (Disney)
Vanessa Redgrave - Coriolanus (Lionsgate)
Octavia Spencer - The Help (Disney)
Jacki Weaver - Animal Kingdom (StudioCanal)

BRITISH ACTOR OF THE YEAR

Tom Cullen - Weekend (Peccadillo)
Michael Fassbender -A Dangerous Method (Lionsgate), Shame (Momentum)
Brendan Gleeson - The Guard (StudioCanal)
Peter Mullan - Tyrannosaur (StudioCanal) War Horse (Disney)
Gary Oldman - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (StudioCanal)

The Moët & Chandon Award:

BRITISH ACTRESS OF THE YEAR

Olivia Colman - The Iron Lady (Fox/Pathé),Tyrannosaur (StudioCanal)
Carey Mulligan - Drive (Icon), Shame (Momentum)
Vanessa Redgrave - Anonymous (Sony), Coriolanus (Lionsgate)
Tilda Swinton - We Need to Talk About Kevin (Artificial Eye)
Rachel Weisz - The Deep Blue Sea (Artificial Eye)

YOUNG BRITISH PERFORMER OF THE YEAR

John Boyega - Attack the Block (StudioCanal)
Jeremy Irvine - War Horse (Disney)
Yasmin Paige - Submarine (StudioCanal)
Craig Roberts - Submarine (StudioCanal)
Saoirse Ronan - Hanna (Universal)

The Sky 3D Award:
TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT

Manuel Alberto Claro, cinematography - Melancholia (Artificial Eye)
Paul Davies, sound design - We Need to Talk About Kevin (Artificial Eye)
Maria Djurkovic, production design - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (StudioCanal) Dante Ferretti, production design - Hugo (Entertainment)
Alberto Iglesias, original score - The Skin I Live In (Fox/Pathé)
Chris King & Gregers Sall, editing - Senna (Universal)
Joe Letteri, visual effects - Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Fox)
Cliff Martinez, original score - Drive (Icon)
Robert Richardson, cinematography - Hugo (Entertainment)
Robbie Ryan, cinematography - Wuthering Heights (Artificial Eye)

The Dilys Powell Award:
EXCELLENCE IN FILM

Nicolas Roeg