14th Dorian Film Awards (Film)
GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics has named A24’s fantastical and affecting family relationship drama Everything Everywhere All at Once 2022’s Film of the Year—and then some—in its 14th Dorian Film Awards. Everything creative duo Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert co-won both director and best screenplay honors, star Michelle Yeoh seized best performance, Ke Huy Quan edged out two of his costars for supporting performance, while the time-and-reality-warping box office champ also nabbed LGBTQ Film and Visually Striking Film wins.No need to feel sad for Quan’s Everything cast mate Stephanie Hsu—the group of over 400 entertainment critics, journalists and media icons named the breakout actress Rising Star of the Year.
GALECA’s Dorian Award voters chose writer-director Charlotte Wells’ father-daughter tearjerker Aftersun as best Unsung Film, a category meant for “an exceptional movie worthy of greater attention.” A24’s roll didn’t stop there—the studio’s stop-motion charmer Marcel the Shell with Shoes On walked off with Animated Film, and its cheeky horror prequel Pearl, headlining co-writer Mia Goth as an ax-wielding wannabe in 1918 Texas, scored (the not always complementary) Campiest Flick honors.
Two Dorians went to All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, director Laura Poitras’ searing Neon tragidoc involving famed photographer—and recovering Oxy-Contin addict—Nan Goldin. The film, taking both best documentary and LGBTQ documentary, follows the bisexual Goldin in her mission to shame members of the Sackler family pharma dynasty for willfully helping fuel America’s opioid crisis.
Non-English Language Film of the Year: RRR, the rollicking, spectacular—and song-filled—historical adventure about two passionate South Indian rebels determined to push British colonials from their homeland in the 1920s.
As for the group’s special accolades, Yeoh—currently seen in the re-release of the movie that made her an international star, 2000’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon—was GALECA’s latest pick for Wilde Artist of the Year. The honor, named in homage to Oscar Wilde, goes to a “truly groundbreaking force in film, theater and/or television.” Previous recipients include such entertainment firebrands as Pedro Almodóvar, Todd Haynes, Kate McKinnon, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ryan Murphy, Dolly Parton, Jordan Peele and Joey Soloway.
The big-hearted, ebullient nonbinary actor-singer Janelle Monáe, costar of last year’s popular big-screen lark Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (for which they received a Dorian nomination), was named LGBTQIA+ Film Trailblazer. Past Trailblazers (either film or TV) include director Isabel Sandoval, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez and Almodóvar.
The group will announce the recipient of its Timeless Star career achievement honor at a later date.
In a special vote in their film ballots, GALECA’s members were asked to name an LGBTQ-themed theatrical release of 2022 that they felt deserved more attention (streaming platform releases such as Hulu’s Fire Island and Netflix’s Do Revenge were not considered but will be eligible for the next Dorian TV Awards). The group’s 10 Best Unsung LGBTQ Film Films of 2022, in alphabetical order: Anais in Love, Benediction, Close, Firebird, Girl Picture, Great Freedom, Peter von Kant, Please Baby Please, Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies and We’re All Going to the World’s Fair.
“Pushing through a pandemic, plus frightening attacks on not just America’s democracy but its citizens of color and anyone who isn’t straight—we’ve all had to deal with a lot lately,” said GALECA Executive Director John Griffiths. “But how great is that the movies are back, from big, exciting blockbuster to personal and quirky stories that hit home for all types of cinema fans? No matter what’s going on in the mind of a certain Florida governor and his ilk, the best movies, and TV too, will only continue to reflect what’s going on in the real world—and parallel ones too. Looking at our nominees and winners, you can let out a nice, deep breath.”
GALECA: THE SOCIETY OF LGBTQ ENTERTAINMENT CRITICS
14TH DORIAN FILM AWARDS WINNERS LIST
Film of the Year
Aftersun (A24)
The Banshees of Inisherin (Searchlight)
* Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
The Fabelmans (Universal)
Tár (Focus Features)
LGBTQ Film of the Year
Benediction (Roadside Attractions)
Bros (Universal)
* Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
The Inspection (A24)
Tár (Focus Features)
Director of the Year
Todd Field, Tár (Focus Features)
* Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin (Searchlight)
Sarah Polley, Women Talking (United Artists)
Charlotte Wells, Aftersun (A24)
Screenplay of the Year
Todd Field, Tár (Focus Features)
* Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin (Searchlight)
Sarah Polley, Women Talking (United Artists)
Charlotte Wells, Aftersun (A24)
Non-English Language Film of the Year
All Quiet on the Western Front (Netflix, Amusement Park)
Close (A24)
Decision to Leave (Mubi, CJ Entertainment)
EO (Sideshow, Janus Films)
* RRR (DVV Entertainment, Variance Films)
Unsung Film of the Year
To an exceptional movie worthy of greater attention
* Aftersun (A24)
After Yang (A24)
Benediction (Roadside Attractions)
The Eternal Daughter (A24)
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande (Searchlight)
The Menu (Searchlight)
Emily the Criminal (Vertical/Roadside Attractions)
Film Performance of the Year
Cate Blanchett, Tár (Focus Features)
Austin Butler, Elvis (Warner Bros.)
Viola Davis, The Woman King (Sony)
Danielle Deadwyler, Till (United Artists)
Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin (Searchlight)
Brendan Fraser, The Whale (A24)
Mia Goth, Pearl (A24)
Paul Mescal, Aftersun (A24)
Jeremy Pope, The Inspection (A24)
* Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
Supporting Film Performance of the Year
Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Disney, Marvel)
Hong Chau, The Whale (A24)
Jaime Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
Dolly De Leon, Triangle of Sadness (Neon)
Nina Hoss, Tár (Focus Features)
Stephanie Hsu, Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
Barry Keoghan, The Banshees of Inisherin (Searchlight)
Janelle Monáe, Glass Onion: Knives Out (Netflix)
Keke Palmer, Nope (Universal)
* Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
Documentary of the Year
* All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (Neon)
Fire of Love (Neon, National Geographic)
Good Night Oppy (Amazon Studios)
Moonage Daydream (Neon)
Navalny (Warner Bros.)
LGBTQ Documentary of the Year
* All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (Neon)
Framing Agnes (Kino Lorber)
Moonage Daydream (Neon)
Nelly & Nadine (Wolfe Releasing)
Sirens (Oscilloscope)
Animated Film of the Year
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (Netflix)
* Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (A24)
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (DreamWorks, Universal)
Turning Red (Disney, Pixar)
Wendell & Wild (Netflix)
Film Music of the Year
Babylon – score by Justin Hurvitz (Paramount)
Elvis – score and music production by Elliott Wheeler; the music of Elvis Presley; various artists (Warner Bros.)
RRR – score by M.M. Keeravani (DVV Entertainment, Variance Films)
* Tár – score and curation by Hildur Guðnadóttir (Focus Features)
Women Talking – score by Hildur Guðnadóttir (United Artists)
Visually Striking Film of the Year
Avatar: The Way of Water (20th Century)
Babylon (Paramount)
* Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)
Nope (Universal)
RRR (DVV Entertainment, Variance Films)
Campiest Flick of the Year
Babylon (Paramount)
Bodies Bodies Bodies (A24)
Elvis (Warner Bros.)
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (Netflix)
* Pearl (A24)
RRR (DVV Entertainment, Variance Films)
Rising Star Award
Austin Butler
Frankie Corio
* Stephanie Hsu
Gabriel LaBelle
Jenna Ortega
Jeremy Pope
Wilde Artist Award
To a truly groundbreaking force in film, theater and/or television
Cate Blanchett
Billy Eichner
Janelle Monáe
Keke Palmer
* Michelle Yeoh
GALECA LGBTQIA+ Film Trailblazer Award
* Janelle Monáe
In ‘Close’ two 13-year old boys have formed a very strong, and close friendship, perhaps too close as they start getting teased and bullied at school. It gets to be too much for one of them so he decides it’s time to start hanging out with other boys, but the consequence changes their lives as well as the lives of their parents and all involved. Gustav de Waele and Eden Dambrine give superb, and devastating, performances, and Dhont’s script (he co-wrote with Angelo Tijssens) will leave you in tears. There was not a dry eye in the house at the premiere where the film deservedly received a 20 minute standing ovation. In his speech once the clapping came to a stop, Dhont said that he had always wanted to do this film for all the friends he lost when he was younger, friends who could not be who they were. He also praised his two leading young stars, de Waele and Dambrine, for their magnificent performances. He could not be so right, they both were superb.
