Milk and Quebec films lead Vancouver Film Critics Circle awards

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      Quebec films swept the Canadian categories while Milk led the Hollywood nominees at the ninth annual Vancouver Film Critics Circle awards, hosted by Terry David Mulligan, announced on Monday, January 12 at the Railway Club.

      C’est pas moi, je le jure! collected three of its four nominations for best Canadian film, best director (Philippe Falardeau), and best supporting actress (Suzanne Clément).

      Natar Ungalaaq of the Quebec Inuit film The Necessities of Life won best actor in a Canadian film. Ungalaaq said by statement that he wanted to tell the film’s story because his grandfather suffered during the Inuit tuberculosis epidemic that passed through Quebec in the early 20th century as depicted in the film.

      Beating out Hollywood’s Julianne Moore (Blindness) and Bollywood’s Preity Zinta (Heaven on Earth), Marianne Fortier won best actress in a Canadian film for Maman est chez le coiffeur.

      Real Time’s Randy Quaid also beat international competition (Gael Garcia Bernal and Mark Ruffalo in Blindness, a Canadian coproduction) for best supporting actor.

      Kari Skogland’s Fifty Dead Men Walking, about the Irish civil conflict in the 1980s, won the best British Columbia film award.

      Meanwhile, Milk won two of its four nominations: best actor (Sean Penn) and best film.

      Kate Winslet took best actress for Revolutionary Road/The Reader, which she won Golden Globe awards for as well. Also like the Golden Globes, the late Heath Ledger posthumously won best performance by an actor in a supporting role for The Dark Knight.

      David Fincher was named the best director for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

      The Germany/Italy/Turkey coproduction The Edge of Heaven beat Sweden’s Let the Right One In and France’s Tell No One for the best foreign language film.

      The late Oscar-nominated local producer  William Vince, who died of cancer in June 2008, was honoured with the Achievement Award for Contribution to the British Columbia Film Industry. Speakers included Rob Merilees and Dave Valleau from Infinity Features and Vince family representative Cam Watt. Don Woodman of the William Vince Foundation explained that the charitable organization was created in Vince’s memory in July 2008 to help youth in three areas: film, sports, and overcoming learning disabilities, such as dyslexia, which Vince himself had.

      BEST CANADIAN FILM
      C’est pas moi, je le jure!

      BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A CANADIAN FILM
      Natar Ungalaaq, The Necessities of Life

      BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A CANADIAN FILM
      Marianne Fortier, Maman est chez le coiffeur

      BEST PERFORMANCE BY A SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A CANADIAN
      FILM
      Randy Quaid, Real Time

      BEST PERFORMANCE BY A SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A CANADIAN
      FILM
      Suzanne Clément, C’est pas moi, je le jure!

      BEST DIRECTOR OF A CANADIAN FILM
      Philippe Falardeau, C’est pas moi, je le jure!

      BEST BRITISH COLUMBIA FILM
      Fifty Dead Men Walking

      BEST FILM
      Milk

      BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEAD ROLE
      Sean Penn, Milk

      BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEAD ROLE
      Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road/The Reader

      BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
      Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight

      BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
      Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married

      BEST DIRECTOR
      David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

      BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
      The Edge of Heaven

      ACHIEVEMENT AWARD FOR CONTRIBUTION TO THE BRITISH COLUMBIA FILM INDUSTRY
      William Vince

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