I managed to see more new releases this year than I saw in any prior year writing for Swampflix (at least as far as I can tell, having started noting every movie that I see with the date I watched it just a few years ago). The issue is that sometimes I see movies that have some individual elements that are fantastic but aren’t enough to push that movie into the “best” of the year for me. For instance, I didn’t care for Infinity Pool very much—it was excellently made, perfectly sound edited, expertly cast—but still want to highlight that it deserves consideration in some field, even if I can’t consider it one of my favorites for the year. Cobweb was a fun movie that fell apart toward the end, but its lead child actor deserves special accolades for the performance that he turned in. There are also times when some of the most beautiful parts of a movie only become clearer later on, sometime after I wrote my review, and I want to make sure that I highlight a performance that had a bigger impact on me after I had more time to ruminate on the piece.

So, in order to make sure that I give out all the laurels that my limited internet presence allows, here are some of the standouts in every category. It’s based largely on the Academy ballot, but without the categories I’m not qualified (either because I didn’t see enough of them, like documentaries, or because I don’t have access to some relevant material, like best original screenplays, etc.) to judge. I also didn’t include Best Original Song because there’s really only one contender in my mind: ”Dear Alien (Who Art In Heaven)” from Asteroid City. I also fiddled with the Supporting Actor section to split it up between age groups rather than genders, both to ensure that nonbinary actor Quintessa Swindell had a seat at the table for their stellar performance in Master Gardener (another film that didn’t make my Top 20) and to highlight that this was an amazing year for children and young adult performers. Whether as uncannily unchildlike creeps in There’s Something Wrong with the Children, or the victims of terror as in Cobweb and M3GAN, a lot of young actors brought a lot to the table this year. Please enjoy these recommendations, and happy holidays!

1. Best Visual Effects
   1. M3GAN
   2. Asteroid City
   3. Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1
   4. No One Will Save You
2. Best Actor in a Leading Role
   1. Nicolas Cage – Dream Scenario
   2. John Boyega – They Cloned Tyrone
   3. Joaquin Phoenix – Beau is Afraid
   4. Zach Gilford – There’s Something Wrong with the Children
   5. Ed Norton – Asteroid City
   6. Paul Giamatti – The Holdovers
3. Best Actress in a Leading Role
   1. Margot Robbie – Barbie
   2. Julia Garner – The Royal Hotel
   3. Kaitlyn Dever – No One Will Save You
   4. Sandra Hüller – Anatomie d’une chute (Anatomy of a Fall)
   5. Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers
   6. Teyonah Parris – They Cloned Tyrone
   7. Greta Lee – Past Lives
4. Best Adult in a Supporting Role
   1. Dominic Sessa – The Holdovers
   2. Quintessa Swindell – Master Gardener
   3. Patti Lupone – Beau is Afraid
   4. Jeffrey Wright – Asteroid City
   5. Tilda Swinton – The Killer
   6. Ursula Yovich – The Royal Hotel
   7. America Ferrera – Barbie
   8. Mia Goth – Infinity Pool
   9. Antoine Reinartz – Anatomie d’une chute (Anatomy of a Fall)
5. Best Non-Adult/Young Adult Performer in a Lead or Supporting Role
   1. Woody Norman – Cobweb
   2. Brielle Guiza – There’s Something Wrong with the Children
   3. Jake Ryan – Asteroid City
   4. Armen Nahapetian – Beau is Afraid
   5. Violet McGraw – M3GAN
   6. Enzo Ferrada – La vaca que cantó una canción hacia el futuro (The Cow Who Sang a Song into the Future)
   7. Milo Machado Graner – Anatomie d’une chute (Anatomy of a Fall)
   8. Iman Vellani – The Marvels
6. Best Art Direction
   1. Moon Garden
   2. Enys Men
   3. Asteroid City
   4. Ang Pagbabalik ng Kwago (aka Leonor Will Never Die)
   5. Fumer fait tousser (Smoking Causes Coughing)
   6. Barbie
   7. Master Gardener
7. Best Cinematography
   1. Enys Men
   2. La vaca que cantó una canción hacia el futuro (The Cow Who Sang a Song into the Future)
   3. Infinity Pool
   4. Past Lives
   5. Moon Garden
   6. A Haunting in Venice
8. Best Costume Design
   1. The Holdovers
   2. Asteroid City
   3. They Cloned Tyrone
   4. No One Will Save You
   5. Cocaine Bear
9. Best Director
   1. Celine Song – Past Lives
   2. Francisca Alegria – La vaca que cantó una canción hacia el futuro (The Cow Who Sang a Song into the Future)
   3. Martika Ramirez Escobar – Ang Pagbabalik ng Kwago (aka Leonor Will Never Die)
   4. Brandon Cronenberg – Infinity Pool
   5. Brian Duffield – No One Will Save You
   6. Alexander Payne – The Holdovers
10. Best Film Editing
    1. Enys Men
    2. The Royal Hotel
    3. Infinity Pool
    4. Scream VI
    5. Anatomie d’une chute (Anatomy of a Fall)
    6. No One Will Save You

-Mark “Boomer” Redmond