Director Peter Jackson had a lot to celebrate this weekend as his top-grossing film The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring scored the Best Movie prize at the inaugural American Film Institute (AFI) awards. The first in a series of Academy Awards predictors, the sci-fi flick now seems poised for Oscar gold come March.
While Frodo himself, actor Elijah Wood, was celebrating the win, executive producer Robert Shaye declined to toast the film’s success too early. “I am a little superstitious,” he said. “If you look at something too hard it just slips away.” But, he admitted the film would get a least one Oscar vote – his own. “Well, I am a member of the Academy and I am going to vote for it.”
Veteran actress Sissy Spacek took home Best Actress honours for the gut-wrenching drama In The Bedroom. “This film is so close to my heart,” declared the Carrie star, one of the few big winners on hand to pick up her trophy. “It was a real labour of love for all those who worked on it… What a wonderful honour.”
Heart-throb Denzel Washington was named Best Actor for his portrayal of a crooked cop in Training Day, but was not present on Saturday night. Director Robert Altman, honoured as Best Director for Gosford Park, also gave the ceremony a miss.
“You can find Altman’s and Denzel’s awards at my house,” joked Samuel L Jackson, who accepted the prize for Denzel.
While winners Gene Hackman, Jennifer Connelly and James Gandolfini all had other plans on Saturday night, Tinseltown beauty and future Bond babe Halle Berry – a nominee for Monster’s Ball – was on the scene. Her co-star Billy Bob Thornton was also among the Beverly Hills Hotel attendees, as was director Ridley Scott, whose Black Hawk Down scored five nods but failed to pick up a single trophy.
Nominees for the AFI awards, which also celebrate the best in TV, were chosen by two 13-member committees made up of industry professionals and voted on by a 100-member jury composed of industry watchers and critics.
The three-hour ceremony aired live on US network on CBS.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
