OK, so... as uncomfortable as it may be to acknowledge it now, the critics used to really love Woody Allen. And I don't mean they excused the middling quality of his work and touted it as greatness as they have done for the past 30 years, I mean they really loved him. So begins a period of Allen-worship in the Critics Consensus Awards, as Annie Hall wins three 1977 awards including Best Picture (don't worry, he won't dominate entirely over the next decade or two, but he'll certainly feature often). Spare a thought for Robert Altman's brilliant 3 Women, for which both Shelley Duvall (in Leading) and Sissy Spacek (in Supporting) placed second (Duvall actually placed joint first with Diane Keaton, but there are methods for solving tie-breaks which put Keaton out in front). This is only the second year out of the nine to date in which fewer than five films won awards, following 1975 when Nashville made that impossible; no more than five have yet won in this seven-category era, though that'll soon change. All the 1977 winners are below!
Best Picture
Annie Hall (Woody Allen, Charles H. Joffe and Jack Rollins)
Best Director
Luis Bunuel (That Obscure Object of Desire)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Diane Keaton (Annie Hall)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
John Travolta (Saturday Night Fever)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Vanessa Redgrave (Julia)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Maximilian Schell (Julia)
Best Screenplay
Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman (Annie Hall)
Image Credit: MovieStillsDB