National Board of Review (NBR) winners: ‘Licorice Pizza,’ ‘Tragedy of Macbeth,’ Rachel Zegler

Licorice Pizza, Paul Thomas Anderson’s ode to 1970s crushes and and Southern California was named Best Film by the National Board of Review today, where Anderson also picked up Best Director and stars Cooper Hoffman and Alana Haim shared the Breakthrough Performance award.

The Tragedy of Macbeth and King Richard were double winners with Joel Coen taking adapted screenplay for the Shakespeare adaptation and Bruno Delbonnel winning for his stark black and white cinematography. The film also landed on the group’s top 10 list. King Richard won two major acting prizes, for Will Smith in Best Actor and Aunjanue Ellis in Supporting Actress, as well as a top 10 film placement. Very late-breaker West Side Story earned newcomer Rachel Zegler the Best Actress win. At 20 years of age, Zegler is the youngest NBR Best Actress winner in their history. Belfast‘s Ciarán Hinds was named Best Supporting Actor. A Hero was another double winner, as Best Foreign Language Film and Best Original Screenplay for director Asghar Farhadi.

Here is the complete list of National Board of Review (NBR) winners for 2021. The org’s awards gala, originally set for January 11, is now scheduled to take place on March 15.

• Best Film: LICORICE PIZZA
• Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, LICORICE PIZZA
• Best Actor: Will Smith, KING RICHARD
• Best Actress: Rachel Zegler, WEST SIDE STORY
• Best Supporting Actor: Ciarán Hinds, BELFAST
• Best Supporting Actress: Aunjanue Ellis, KING RICHARD
• Best Original Screenplay: Asghar Farhadi, A HERO
• Best Adapted Screenplay: Joel Coen, THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH
• Breakthrough Performance: Alana Haim & Cooper Hoffman, LICORICE PIZZA
• Best Directorial Debut: Michael Sarnoski, PIG
• Best Animated Feature: ENCANTO
• Best Foreign Language Film: A HERO
• Best Documentary: SUMMER OF SOUL (…OR, WHEN THE REVOLUTION COULD NOT BE TELEVISED)
• Best Ensemble: THE HARDER THEY FALL
• Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Bruno Delbonnel, THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH
• NBR Freedom of Expression Award: FLEE

Top Films (in alphabetical order)
Belfast
Don’t Look Up
Dune
King Richard
The Last Duel
Nightmare Alley
Red Rocket
The Tragedy of Macbeth
West Side Story

Top 5 Foreign Language Films (in alphabetical order)
Benedetta
Lamb
Lingui, The Sacred Bonds
Titane
The Worst Person in the World

Top 5 Documentaries (in alphabetical order)
Ascension
Attica
Flee
The Rescue
Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain

Top 10 Independent Films (in alphabetical order)
The Card Counter
C’mon C’mon
CODA
The Green Knight
Holler
Jockey
Old Henry
Pig
Shiva Baby
The Souvenir Part II