AUSTIN MOVIE AWARDS

Our own Oscars revealed

Online voters pick 'No Country for Old Men' as the best film of 2007.

By Gary Dinges
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Sunday, February 24, 2008

The show will go on.

Bloated with commercials, sleep-inducing acceptance speeches and jokes that'll make your eyes roll till they hurt, the Oscars will be presented tonight on ABC. And we couldn't be happier.

But first we're handing out our own honors, the Austin Movie Awards. No ceremony. No statuettes. Just sloppy wet kisses for the best Hollywood — and Central Texas — had to offer during 2007.

Visitors to Austin360.com did all the heavy lifting, casting thousands of votes over the past two months. Their choices — drum roll, please — are below. (Some percentages don't add up to 100 because of rounding.)

Best Picture

Winner: 'No Country for Old Men' (42 percent)

Runner-up: 'There Will Be Blood' (24 percent)

The rest: 'Atonement' (10 percent); 'American Gangster' (9 percent); 'Into the Wild' (5 percent); 'Michael Clayton' (5 percent); 'Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street' (5 percent)

"Atonement" took home the Golden Globe, but it gets little love here. By choosing the Coen brothers' "No Country for Old Men," our voters show they have a thirst for lean storytelling and for blood — lots of it. Just in case you've got any doubts, check out the No. 2 pick, "There Will Be Blood." Scenes from both were filmed in Marfa. Hey, voters, your Texas pride is showing

Best Indie/Arthouse Feature

Winner: 'Juno' (64 percent)

Runner-up: 'Once' (11 percent)

The rest: 'Before the Devil Knows You're Dead' (5 percent); 'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly' (5 percent); 'A Mighty Heart' (4 percent); 'The Savages' (4 percent); 'I'm Not There' (3 percent); 'The King of Kong' (3 percent); 'The Lookout' (1 percent); 'Year of the Dog' (1 percent)

This one wasn't even close. Our voters did their part to keep Austin weird by choosing quirky "Juno" over "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" and other critically acclaimed flicks. And can you blame them? It made us laugh. It made us cry. It even offended a few folks. With a sixth of "Juno's" votes, runner-up "Once" is barely a contender.

Best Film Festival

Winner: Austin Film Festival (54 percent)

Runner-up: South by Southwest (35 percent)

The rest: Austin Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival (5 percent); Fantastic Fest (5 percent); Cine Las Americas (1 percent)

Last year's runner-up is this year's winner. See what makes the Austin Film Festival so special when it rolls into town Oct. 16-23. South by Southwest, the love-it-or-hate festival that runs March 7-15, takes second place.

Best Theater

Winner: Alamo South (28 percent)

Runner-up: Dobie (25 percent)

The rest: Alamo at the Ritz (9 percent); Alamo Village (8 percent); Alamo Lake Creek (7 percent); Regal Arbor (7 percent); AMC Barton Creek Square (2 percent); Paramount Theatre (2 percent); Regal Gateway (2 percent); Bullock Texas History Museum IMAX (1 percent); Cinemark Austin Southpark (1 percent); Cinemark Cedar Park (1 percent); Cinemark Hill Country Galleria (1 percent); Cinemark Round Rock (1 percent); Cinemark Round Rock Discount Movies (1 percent); Galaxy Highland (1 percent); Regal Metropolitan (1 percent); Regal Westgate (1 percent); Tinseltown Pflugerville (1 percent)

Alamo Drafthouse is keeping it in the family. The departure of the chain's original location — last year's No. 1 — opened the door for Alamo South to grab top honors. Situated in what was once a grocery store on South Lamar Boulevard, Alamo South kept us entertained as we waited ... and waited ... and waited for Alamo at the Ritz to open downtown last fall. The wait was worth it, as evidenced by the newcomer's strong showing, surpassing several established theaters. In fact, six Central Texas cinemas didn't get a single vote. That's got to sting.

Best Actor

Winner: Daniel Day-Lewis, 'There Will Be Blood' (55 percent)

Runner-up: Josh Brolin, 'No Country for Old Men' (14 percent)

The rest: Denzel Washington, 'American Gangster' (10 percent); Viggo Mortensen, 'Eastern Promises' (7 percent); George Clooney, 'Michael Clayton' (5 percent); James McAvoy, 'Atonement' (4 percent); Philip Seymour Hoffman, 'The Savages' (3 percent); Tom Hanks, 'Charlie Wilson's War' (3 percent)

The bloodlust continues. Daniel Day-Lewis was good enough for a Golden Globe, and he's good enough for you, too. The star of "There Will Be Blood" is the runaway favorite here. Josh Brolin, who keeps up his Austin ties, clawed his way into the runner-up spot.

Best Actress

Winner: Ellen Page, 'Juno' (56 percent)

Runner-up: Marion Cotillard, 'La Vie en Rose' (13 percent)

The rest: Julie Christie, 'Away from Her' (11 percent); Cate Blanchett, 'Elizabeth: The Golden Age' (7 percent); Angelina Jolie, 'A Mighty Heart (6 percent); Keira Knightley, 'Atonement' (6 percent); Helena Bonham Carter, 'Sweeney Todd' (1 percent)

Barely known Canadian starlet Ellen Page unseated name-brand actresses in this category, snagging more votes than her competitors combined. Look for Page this summer, wandering the streets of Central Texas as she films "Whip It," Drew Barrymore's directorial debut.

Best Film with Austin Ties

Winner: 'Shotgun Stories' by Jeff Nichols (38 percent)

Runner-up: 'Grindhouse' by Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez (28 percent)

The rest: 'Body of War' by Ellen Spiro (16 percent); 'The Wendell Baker Story' by Andrew and Luke Wilson (11 percent); 'The Unforeseen' by Laura Dunn (7 percent); 'The Creek Runs Red' by Bradley Beesley (1 percent)

"Shotgun Stories" was Austinite Jeff Nichols' feature debut. And, judging by those whom the writer-director beat — cough, cough Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez — he's got a bright future in show biz. The story of an extra-nasty family feud was good enough to take some serious hardware home from the Austin Film Festival, as well as several other competitions.

Best Popcorn

Winner: Dobie (41 percent)

Runner-up: Alamo South (14 percent)

The rest: Regal Arbor (8 percent); Alamo Lake Creek (5 percent); Alamo Village (5 percent); Regal Gateway (4 percent); Regal Westgate (4 percent); AMC Barton Creek Square (3 percent); Cinemark Austin Southpark (3 percent); Alamo at the Ritz (2 percent); Regal Metropolitan (2 percent); Cinemark Hill Country Galleria (1 percent); Cinemark Round Rock (1 percent); Cinemark Round Rock Discount Movies (1 percent); Galaxy Highland (1 percent); Millennium (1 percent); Starplex (1 percent); Tinseltown Pflugerville (1 percent)

The Dobie is a two-time winner in this category. We bet it's because they still use real butter. Then again, so does runner-up Alamo Drafthouse South. And just a note to those of you who keep trying to vote for the Bullock Texas History Museum IMAX: They don't serve popcorn. Maybe you're sneaking in Pop Secret? We're not really sure, but it's extra funny when you consider seven Central Texas theaters didn't even register.

Best Nontraditional Venue for Movie Screenings

Winner: Deep Eddy Splash Party Movie Nights (41 percent)

Runner-up: Alamo Rolling Roadshow (22 percent)

The rest: Movies in the Park (19 percent); Spider House (5 percent); Texas Union (5 percent); The Belmont (4 percent); Beerland (2 percent); Jo's (2 percent); Rounders (1 percent)

Beating the heat on a sultry summer night is easy. Just head to Deep Eddy Pool, where you can take a dip — and catch a flick — on Saturdays. If water's not your thing, bring a picnic meal and camp out on the lawn. There's even a refreshment stand.

Best Place to Rent a Movie

Winner: Vulcan Video (46 percent)

Runner-up: I Luv Video (27 percent)

The rest: Waterloo Video (19 percent); Encore Records, Video & Apparel (4 percent); TapeLenders (4 percent)

There's something about Vulcan Video that keeps us coming back. Is it the knowledgeable clerks? The vast selection of current hits and obscure classics? The strange people you'll inevitably see? Yes, yes, and yes. Equally quirky I Luv Video scores high marks, too.