'WALL-E' Voted Best Picture By Los Angeles Film Critics

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) announced their winners today and in a surprise turn the group voted to award Disney/Pixar’s WALL•E as their Best Picture of 2008 and astonishingly have The Dark Knight as their runner-up. I say the decision is a surprise only because WALL•E had basically been counted out for no reason other than it was an animated feature, but the LA crix have really bumped up against tradition and even including the “it will never be nominated because it’s a comic book movie” as their runner-up. A great day if you ask me, it shows some serious growth, but the surprises don’t stop there.

For Best Actress Sally Hawkins took the prize for Happy-Go-Lucky and we haven’t heard much of a peep about her since the film’s early October release. Heath Ledger took Supporting Actor with Eddie Marsan, also of Happy-Go-Lucky, coming in as the runner-up and Still Life edged out the Cannes Palm d’Or winner The Class for Best Foreign language film in a race that is sure to be close.

I’m not sure how Waltz with Bashir takes Best Animated film considering WALL•E won for Best Picture overall, but that is no surprise since the NBR’s best film of the year selection didn’t even make their top ten. No one ever said these lists were logical.

I have added the LAFCA’s winners and runners-up to “The Contenders” and will updating that section again tomorrow with the picks from the New York Film Critics and the Golden Globe nominees on Thursday morning, December 11.

Now here is the complete list of winners and runners-up:

PICTURE:WALL•E

Runner-up: The Dark Knight

DIRECTOR: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire

Runner-up: Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight

ACTRESS: Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky

Runner-up: Melissa Leo, Frozen River

ACTOR: Sean Penn, Milk

Runner-up: Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

SCREENPLAY: Mike Leigh, Happy-Go-Lucky

Runner-up: Charlie Kaufman, Synecdoche, New York

SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona and Elegy