Multiple critics associations announced their awards picks for 2011.  The awards race hasn’t really firmed up yet with The Artist winning the top prize from the New York Film Critics Online (NYFCO) and the Boston Film Critics Association (BFCA), The Descendants grabbing Best Picture from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA), and the San Francisco Film Critics (SFFC) honoring The Tree of Life.  The acting and directing catagories aren’t firming up either.  The only performer who is starting to emerge as a front-runner is Albert Brooks for Best Supporting Actor for Drive.  He was honored by the New York Film Critics, the NYFCO, and the BFCA.

On the one hand, it’s exciting that currently no film is dominating, but on the other hand, I think even from here we can see that Harvey Weinstein will probably be able to muscle The Artist to a Best Picture Oscar.  Hit the jump for the full list of winners from the NYFCO, BFCA, LAFCA, and SFCC.

Awards season is officially in full-swing, with this morning’s announcements of the Gotham Awards winners and the full list of nominees for the upcoming Independent Spirit Awards. Now it’s the critics’ turn, as the New York Critics Circle have unveiled their list for the best in film of 2011. The Artist took home the top two prizes (Best Picture and Director), solidifying its status as an Oscar frontrunner. Brad Pitt was named Best Actor for his work in Moneyball and The Tree of Life, with the former also taking the Best Screenplay prize for Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zaillian. As for Best Actress, the undeniably talented Meryl Streep took the honor for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady.

In the supporting categories, Albert Brooks was recognized for his dastardly role in Drive, while the prolific Jessica Chastain was named Best Supporting Actress for her work in The Tree of Life, The Help, and Take Shelter. While The Artist was already running into the Oscars with a good deal of steam, Moneyball‘s two wins give the film a much needed boost heading into the thick of awards season. Hit the jump to see the full list of winners.

The nominations for the 27th Annual Independent Spirit Awards were announced this morning with The Artist and Take Shelter each nabbing five nominations. In addition to The Artist and Take Shelter, Drive, 50/50, The Descendants, and Beginners will duke it out for the top prize. Absent from the Best Feature list is Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris, though the film was recognized in Best Supporting Male (Corey Stoll) and Best Cinematography. Also of note, Elizabeth Olsen and John Hawkes landed nominations for Best Actress and Best Supporting Male for Martha Marcy May Marlene, and Ryan Gosling and Woody Harrelson were both singled out in Best Actor for Drive and Rampart respectively.

Hit the jump to check out the full list of nominations. Recognizing the best in independent film, the awards will be handed out on February 25th, the day before the Oscars.

Ah, November. Leaves are falling, colder weather is here (depending on where you live), and the 2011 movie season is coming to a close. While angry shoppers and red Starbucks cups generally mean it’s time to start preparing for the many awkward/tense family encounters that are sure to come, it’s also time to start thinking Oscar. We’ve seen a few contenders throughout the year, but a plethora of heavyhitters will be opening over the next 5 weeks.

To aid in your Oscar polls (or to quench your curiosity) we’ve compiled a state of the race preview as of this lovely Thanksgiving week. Granted, a lot can change from now until February, but a good portion of the major players have already been screened and we’re starting to get a sense of how it could all play out. We’ll be examining all the major categories over the next four days, kicking things off with the infamously unpredictable Best Supporting Actor and Actress. Hit the jump to see where things stand.

Happy Saturday, folks. I’m writing to you this week surrounded by a mountain of used facial tissue (that’s right, I’m not endorsing Kleenex on the site without some sort of kick back…wait, dang it). Cold season has officially set in which means I’m on a daily regimen of Dayquil (which I have no problem endorsing), warm tea, and self-pity. In case you’re a longtime reader of the “Top 5″ and you’re wondering to yourself, “Wasn’t Jason just complaining about the summer heat?”, the answer is yes. Out of the 52 yearly weeks, I’m generally not complaining about the weather for approximately 2 or 3 of them. It’s sad, I know.

In this week’s “Top 5″ you can find our video interviews with the cast of A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, press conferences with Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and more from The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 junket, the red band trailer for Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum’s  21 Jump Street, a sit-down with the great Albert Brooks, and our coverage to date of this year’s American Film Market. Find a brief recap and link to each after the jump.

When you think of Albert Brooks, most don’t think “tough guy.”   But after his stellar performance as Bernie Rose in Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive, I think Brooks might have a lot of casting directors calling.  At least I hope they do.  Because I’d love to see Brooks take on more movie roles as he’s been very selective over the past decade.

Anyway, the other day I spoke to Brooks and we talked about a wide variety of subjects.  We discussed why he agreed to take on Drive and his response to the critical success.  We talked about just how much he improvised in Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver, the possibility of Defending Your Life coming to Blu-ray, his thoughts on Finding Nemo getting a 3D re-release, and the roles he turned down that he still thinks about.  Finally, I asked if he plans to direct another movie.  Hit the jump to read or listen to the interview.

Nicolas Winding Refn’s much buzzed-about Drive opened in theaters this past weekend, and I finally got to see the movie everyone’s been talking about. I loved it, and I absolutely think it’s one of the best films of the year. It’s like a John Hughes movie, except with more people getting stabbed in the eye with forks. Ryan Gosling and Albert Brooks give outstanding performances, and the music is fantastic. I was afraid the film may have been too overhyped for me to rightfully enjoy it as much as my peers, but my apprehension was quickly put to rest. Today, some red band stills from the film have been released. They’re pretty spoilery, so if you haven’t seen the movie yet I’d advise you to wait.

Hit the jump to check out the images. The film stars Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Ron Perlman, and Albert Brooks. Drive is in theaters everywhere right now, so there’s no excuse for you to not see it. Seriously, go.

With Drive getting released today, here’s my review from Comic-Con

Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive works across time and genre. It’s set in present-day Los Angeles, uses an 80s score and soundtrack, features a tragic 50s noir protagonist, and wraps everyone up in archetypical figures that manage to feel fresh through strong performances and gorgeous cinematography. It’s a film that confidently walks the line between alienating its audience with bold choices but it never strays so far into the obtuse or the strange that you lose the hard-boiled crime story simmering underneath. It constantly challenges the audience to look away with its intensity, its thoughtfulness, and its brutality, but it’s too damn entertaining to look away.

Six new character banners from director Nicolas Winding Refn’s (Bronson) crime drama Drive have landed online. Starring Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Albert Brooks, Christina Hendricks, Bryan Cranston, Ron Perlman, and Oscar Isaac, the film centers on a stunt driver (Gosling) who moonlights as a wheelman for hire. Matt screened the film at Comic-Con last month and loved it. Steve also loved it and I’m currently angry at both of them for having seen it already. So there.

Check out the new banners after the jump. Drive opens on September 16th at which point my vendetta with my Collider colleagues may finally come to an end.

How much did I love Drive?  I want to see it again more than some other films I haven’t seen this year.  I don’t know how much mainstream appeal it has but I honestly don’t care.  It’s a great movie and folks will either warm to it or not.  But for those who are offput by the violence or the fact that it’s not the cookie-cutter product they’ve come to expect, they’ll be missing out on excellent performances, taut drama, and killer action.

This new clip is only 43 seconds long and it briefly demonstrates all three.  Also, since this clip features Albert Brooks as mobster Bernie Rose, I want to reiterate what I said in my review: If FilmDistrict makes a serious push to get Brooks a Best Supporting Actor nomination, I think they’ve got a good chance at getting it.  But whether the flick gets some awards buzz or not, you still have to see it.  Hit the jump to check out the clip.  Drive opens September 16th.

Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive works across time and genre.  It’s set in present-day Los Angeles, uses an 80s score and soundtrack, features a tragic 50s noir protagonist, and wraps everyone up in archetypical figures that manage to feel fresh through strong performances and gorgeous cinematography.  It’s a film that confidently walks the line between alienating its audience with bold choices but it never strays so far into the obtuse or the strange that you lose the hard-boiled crime story simmering underneath.  It constantly challenges the audience to look away with its intensity, its thoughtfulness, and its brutality, but it’s too damn entertaining to look away.

FilmDistrict has released the red band trailer for Drive that premiered today at Comic-Con.  Matt raved about the trailer in his recap of the panel, and I wholeheartedly agree: a terrific tease for the film.  Everyone at Cannes and the LA Film Festival loved it.  It will screen again later tonight at Comic-Con, another place where I am not.  September 16 is the release date for us common folk.  Marking the days…

Ryan Gosling stars as a stunt driver who moonlights as a wheelman for criminals.  When he agrees to help the husband of his beautiful neighbor (Carey Mulligan), matters go awry and he must protect the neighbor and her son.  Christina Hendricks, Bryan Cranston, Ron Perlman, Oscar Isaac, and Albert Brooks also star in Drive, directed by Nicolas Winding Refn.  Watch the trailer after the jump.

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Drive will be remembered as one of the best films from 2011.  It will also go down as the film that truly introduced the world to director Nicholas Winding Refn.  To put it simple:  Drive is amazing.

Refn wastes absolutely no time in letting you know that the film you are about to watch will have a unique style of its own as the film opens with a bumping synth score as a neon pink cursive title font starts rolling over immediately striking shots of Ryan Gosling cruising around a moody looking Los Angeles.  Refn makes sure that you know from the start that you are going to be watching a film that is obsessed with being as cinematic as it possibly can.  You can hit the jump to read my full review.

Nicolas Winding Refn (Bronson) has earned the status as an exciting filmmaker to look out for, and he rounded up a terrific cast for his Hollywood debut in Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Christina Hendricks, Bryan Cranston, Ron Perlman, Oscar Isaac, and Albert Brooks.  (I am encouraged that the script by Hossein Amini (Killshot) convinced Brooks to shoot his live-action feature since 2003.)  The logline is promising, too — a novel yet natural entry point into the action genre: a Hollywood stunt driver (Gosling) moonlights as a getaway driver.

Drive will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival later this month in advance of a September 16 release.  The Cannes promotional material gave us our first look at the film with a two-minute clip.  The new Drive press kit assembled for the festival provides a new poster, a longer synopsis, and a bunch of new images.  Look for the poster, synopsis, and images after the break.

Earlier today, we reported that Megan Fox is in talks to join Judd Apatow’s Knocked Up spinoff, featuring Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann reprising their characters from that film. Now it looks like Albert Brooks may be joining the cast as well. Deadline reports that Brooks would play Rudd’s character’s father in the film that Apatow wrote and will direct.

No other plot details are known at this point, but Rudd and Mann stole nearly every scene together in Knocked Up and the pairing of Brooks and Apatow seems like a genius combination, so it’s safe to say that this project’s a bit anticipated. Though Apatow produces plenty, he’s only written and directed three flicks to date: The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up and Funny People. No word on when production is set to start, but with casting moving rather quickly, the film will most likely be rolling soon.