1. An Education: Nick Hornby's sensitive adaptation of journlaist Lynn Barber's excellent memoir of her first boyfriend.
2. Tales From The Golden Age: Portmanteau film with five stories about the horrific final 15 years of the Ceausescu regime in Romania.
3. Fantastic Mr Fox: Wes Anderson’s take on Roald Dahl is full of quirky magic — with a sly George Clooney voicing Mr Fox.
4. Bright Star: Jane Campion's imaginative portrayal of the Keats/Brawne love affair.
5. Disney's A Christmas Carol: Starring Jim Carrey as Scrooge.

Critics' Choice

Fay Maschler

quote With a single dessert and just two glasses of wine our bill was kept in check - but the effort of doing so was not much fun quote

Babbo Film

Andrew O'Hagan

quote This is a film with beautiful performances and a visual style that urges you towards reflection quote

Bright Star Theatre

Henry Hitchings

quote Although the first half of Kwei-Armah’s production is pacy, funny and intelligent, the energy level then drops off quote

Seize The Day

Reader reviews

Film

Squiz, Islington

quote I loved this film from start to finish. Take the girlfriend, tell your mum - I'd see it again tomorrow and will buy the dvd. quote

An Education Theatre

Joe, London

quote I saw this last night and can't remember the last time I was so moved in the theatre. quote

This Much Is True Restaurants

Hiroshi Sugiyama

quote I have been to many of London's so-called best Japanese restaurants and none have been as good as the food that I've had at Aqua Kyoto quote

Aqua Kyoto

Mirren reigns supreme

By Valentine Low, Evening Standard 08.01.07

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Mirren: crowned best actress by New York critics

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The Prime Minister managed to make it, as did The Last King of Scotland - but The Queen was unavoidably detained.

Helen Mirren was one of the stars honoured at the New York Film Critics' Circle awards ceremony last night when she was named best actress for her performance in the Stephen Frears movie, The Queen.

She was unable to attend, but Michael Sheen, who played the Prime Minister in th film, was at the ceremony.

Forest Whitaker, named best actor for his performance as Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland - scripted by Peter Morgan, as was The Queen - was one of the first stars to turn up for the show at New York's Supper Club.

Martin Scorsese was honoured as best director for The Departed. The awards, are seen as a forerunner for the Oscars and three of the stars from the film - Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Wahlberg - were there to see him receive his award. As Mark Wahlberg said: "If a guy like Marty calls, you show up. I hope it's his year (for the Oscar). I'm going to vote for him; he's my guy!"

Robin Williams was present to accept the award for Happy Feet as best animated film, bringing the house down when he deadpanned: "I accept this on behalf of all gay penguins."

The best film award went to United 93, the story of the hijacked 9/11 plane which crashed in Pennsylvania after the passengers tried to storm the cabin.

Director Paul Greengrass said that winning the New York critics' award had an especial significance for him: "If anyone would hold this movie to account, it's the city of New York."

The main winners
Best film: United 93
Best director: Martin Scorsese, The Departed
Best screenplay: Peter Morgan, The Queen
Best actress: Helen Mirren, The Queen
Best actor: Forest Whitaker, The Last King Of Scotland
Supporting actress: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
Supporting actor: Jackie Earle Haley, Little Children
Cinematography: Guillermo Navarro, Pan's Labyrinth
Animated film: Happy Feet
Best foreign film: Army Of Shadows