Over the weekend, the Houston Film Critics Society announced their picks for the best in film for 2017. The 34-member society, which includes yours truly, in addition to critics in Houston and San Antonio, Texas (and surrounding areas), held a ceremony in Houston to mark the event and celebrate all that is great about film from the last year.
2017 was an especially good year cinematically, offering us no shortage of films to pick through and discuss on our way to this year’s ceremony. In a time of great change and upheaval within the Hollywood system, fantastic films from diverse filmmakers were given their chance to shine—both with audiences and critics. Many of the awards given were matched later in the weekend at the Golden Globes, and have been matched elsewhere in the critical world throughout this year’s awards season.
Whether any of these winners will eventually take home the big awards at the Oscars later this year remains to be seen, but all of these winners are worthy of their acclaim in their own right. This year felt especially important, not only for the achievements in the cinematic arts, but also for Houston itself. Following the devastation from Hurricane Harvey, this year’s ceremony also felt like a celebration of Houston itself.
Of course, it is in times of crisis that heroes often emerge. One such hero, Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale, who opened his chain of mattress stores as dormitories for people displaced by the storm, was honored this year with a special Humanitarian Award—putting him in great company with this year’s other winners.
11th Annual Houston Film Critics Society Award Winners
Best Picture: Lady Bird
Best Director: Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird
Best Actor: James Franco, The Disaster Artist
Best Actress: Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water
Best Supporting Actor: Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Best Supporting Actress: Allison Janney, I, Tonya
Best Screenplay: Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird
Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins, Blade Runner 2049
Best Animated Film: Coco
Best Original Score: Alexandre Desplat, The Shape of Water
Best Original Song: “Remember Me”, Coco
Best Foreign Language Film: Thelma
Best Documentary Feature: Jane
Best Visual Effects: Blade Runner 2049
Best Poster: The Shape of Water
Texas Independent Film Award: A Ghost Story
