What happened today with the New York Film Critics Circle could be described many different ways. A post-awards verbal sparring on Twitter suggests that there’s a lot of enmity brewing in the venerable organization. Displeased with several selections, members are complaining about the votes, totals of which are prohibited by bylaw from being shared. As such, it’s hard to know exactly what happened, but we do know that American Hustle (which came away with the most prizes) was in a tight race with 12 Years a Slave for the prize. The reason why the two films were so competitive remains to be seen. David O. Russell’s film did come out the big winner, though. As did actors thought to be strong bets for Oscar, Cate Blanchett and Jared Leto, among others. There were notably few shocks in this list, though the utter failure of The Wolf of Wall Street to make an impact suggests the late showing issue may have prevented enough members from seeing it or it may just not be as good as people are claiming. (Commentary added 7:35pm 12/3/13)

Award Tallies

(3) American Hustle

The Awards

Best Picture

American Hustle

Best Director

Steve McQueen – 12 Years a Slave

Best Actor

Robert Redford – All Is Lost

Best Actress

Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine

Best Supporting Actor

Jared Leto – Dallas Buyers Club

Best Supporting Actress

Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle

Best Screenplay

American Hustle

Best Cinematography

Bruno Delbonnel – Inside Llewyn Davis

Best Foreign Film

Blue Is the Warmest Color

Best Animated Film

The Wind Rises

Best Non-Fiction Film

Stories We Tell

Best First Film

Ryan Coogler – Fruitvale Station

Special Award

Frederick Wiseman

New York Film Critics Circle Data

Year Founded: 1935
First Awards: 1935 (79)