National Board of Review Reveals Their Choices for the Best Movies of 2009

After the 108 members of the National Board of Review screened 300 films (including 181 narratives), Jason Reitman's Up in the Air was voted by the group as the '2009 Best Film of the Year'. With this win, Reitman's third feature film picks up even more steam as we head further into the awards season. Last year's NBR winner, Slumdog Millionaire, went on to earn 8 Oscars including Best Picture.

National Board of Review Award Winners

Best Film: Up in the Air
Best Director: Clint Eastwood, Invictus
Best Actor(s): George Clooney in Up in the Air and Morgan Freeman in Invictus
Best Actress: Carey Mulligan, An Education
Best Supporting Actor: Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
Best Supporting Actress: Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air
Best Foreign Language Film: A Prophet
Best Documentary: The Cove
Best Animated Feature: Up
Best Ensemble Cast: It's Complicated
Breakthrough Performance by an Actor: Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker
Breakthrough Performance by an Actress: Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
Spotlight Award for Best Directorial Debut: Duncan Jones, Moon, Oren Moverman, The Messenger and Marc Webb, (500) Days of Summer
Best Original Screenplay: Joel and Ethan Coen, A Serious Man
Best Adapted Screenplay: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, Up In The Air
Special Filmmaking Achievement Award: Wes Anderson, The Fantastic Mr Fox

10 Best Films (in alphabetical order)
An Education
(500) Days of Summer
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Invictus
The Messenger
A Serious Man
Star Trek
Up
Where the Wild Things Are

5 Best Foreign-Language Films (in alphabetical order)
The Maid
Revanche
Song of Sparrows
Three Monkeys
The White Ribbon

Top 10 Top Ten Independent Films (in alphabetical order)
Amreeka
District 9
Goodbye Solo
Humpday
In the Loop
Julia
Me and Orson Welles
Moon
Sugar
Two Lovers

Source: National Board of Review