It must be Award Season...

December means Christmas and End of the Year Top Ten lists from movie critics. They're starting to trickle in, and the first two major ones have revealed a few surprises. Mainly

AFI's Top Ten List
Babel
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
The Devil Wears Prada
Dreamgirls
Half Nelson
Happy Feet
Inside Man
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
United 93

Broadcast Film Critics Association's Top Ten List
Babel
Blood Diamond
The Departed
Dreamgirls
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Children
Little Miss Sunshine
Notes on a Scandal
The Queen
United 93

New York Film Critics Circle Awards
Best Picture: United 93
Best Actor: Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland
Best Actress: Helen Mirren, The Queen
Best Director: Martin Scorsese, The Departed
Best Foreign Film: Army of Shadows
Best Screenplay: Peter Morgan, The Queen
Best Supporting Actor: Jackie Earle Haley, Little Children
Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
Best Cinematographer: Guillermo Navarro, Pan's Labyrinth
Best Non-Fiction Film: Deliver Us From Evil
Best First Film: Ryan Fleck, Half Nelson
Best Animated Film: Happy Feet

L.A. Film Critics Association Awards
Picture: "Letters From Iwo Jima"
Runner-up: "The Queen"

Director: Paul Greengrass, "United 93"
Runner-up: Clint Eastwood, "Flags of Our Fathers" and "Letters From Iwo Jima"

Actor: Sacha Baron Cohen, "Borat" and Forest Whitaker, "The Last King of Scotland" (tie) (no runner-up)

Actress: Helen Mirren, "The Queen"
Runner-up: Penelope Cruz, "Volver"

Supporting actor: Michael Sheen, "The Queen"
Runner-up: Sergi Lopez, "Pan's Labyrinth"

Supporting actress: Luminita Gheorghiu, "The Death of Mr. Lazarescu"
Runner-up: Jennifer Hudson, "Dreamgirls"

Screenplay: Peter Morgan, "The Queen"
Runner-up: Michael Arndt, "Little Miss Sunshine"

Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, "Children of Men"
Runner-up: Tom Stern, "Flags of Our Fathers" and "Letters From Iwo Jima"

Production design: Eugenio Caballero, "Pan's Labyrinth"
Runner-up: Jim Clay and Geoffrey Kirkland, "Children of Men"

Music: Alexandre Desplat, "The Queen" and "The Painted Veil"
Runner-up: Thomas Newman, "The Good German" and "Little Children"

Foreign-language film: "The Lives of Others"
Runner-up: "Volver"

Documentary/non-fiction film: "An Inconvenient Truth"
Runner-up: "Darwin's Nightmare"

Animation: "Happy Feet"
Runner-up: "Cars"

Douglas Edwards experimental/independent film/video award: "Old Joy" (Kelly Reichardt) and "In Between Days" (So Yong Kim)

New generation award: Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris (directors) and Michael Arndt (screenwriter), "Little Miss Sunshine"

Washington, DC Area Film Critics Association Awards
Best Film: United 93
Best Actor: Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland
Best Actress: Helen Mirren, The Queen
Best Director: Martin Scorsese, The Departed
Best Original Screenplay: Michael Arndt, Little Miss Sunshine
Best Adapted Screenplay: Jason Reitman, Thank You For Smoking
Best Supporting Actor: Djimon Hounsou, Blood Diamond
Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls'
Best Animated Feature: Happy Feet
Best Documentary: An Inconvenient Truth
Best Foreign-Language Film: Pan's Labyrinth
Best Acting Ensemble: The Little Miss Sunshine
Best Breakthrough Performance: Jennifer Hudson
Best Art Direction: Marie-Antoinette

Kind of pissed that THE DEPARTED hasn't been racking up the big trophies as of yet (while I haven't seen it, THE QUEEN doesn't look that mind-bogglingly great or socially/artistically challenging, which THE DEPARTED was). I'm glad to see that LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA is becoming a force late in the game, similar to what MILLION DOLLAR BABY did a few years ago. And don't worry kids, I'll post my year-end wrap-up in January, and yes, you will explode in the pants.