The surprising winner of the Gotham Awards. The favorite without awards, “The Green Border” too

During the nightly Gotham Awards gala, called the “New York Oscars”, the biggest surprise was the complete omission of the Palme d'Or winner in Cannes, “Anora” by Sean Baker, who was considered the favorite with four nominations and was considered the favorite with four nominations. Instead, the Best Picture was chosen for “A Different Man” by Aaron Schimberg with a bravura performance by Sebastian Stan in the main role.

We were secretly counting on the Gotham Award for Agnieszka Holland for “The Green Frontier”, which was very well received overseas, in the International Film category, but the winner was the Indian “All Shades of Light” by Payal Kapadia. Earlier, the picture won the Grand Prix in Cannes, which was received with great surprise. The reviews expressed the opinion that the jury wanted to honor the fact that for the first time in 30 years a film with India.

The awarding of the Gotham Awards has been considered the official beginning of the Oscar season for years.

“A Different Man” may not be as successful a film as the above-mentioned “Anora” by Sean Baker, but it was also widely talked about this year.

First of all, the film was presented in the Main Competition at the Berlinale International Film Festival, where the main actor, Sebastian Stan, received the Silver Bear for the best male role. In turn, in the Catalan city of Sitges, in Spainwhere the International Fantastic Film Festival takes place, Aaron Schimberg received the award for best screenplay. And this one is truly memorable.

The hero played by Sebastian Stan (for a large part of the performance with a facial prosthetic) is an aspiring actor disfigured by a congenital disease. Unable to cope with his repulsive appearance, he volunteers for an experimental treatment that miraculously works. With a new look, the hero breaks away from his old identity and begins life as Guy, a handsome real estate agent.

But physical beauty does not always mean happiness, as the hero quickly learns. Guy meets a man named Oswald (played by Adam Pearson, an actor suffering from von Recklinghausen's genetic disease, also known as neurofibromatosis), whom he considers a happier, more successful version of himself, despite his external ugliness. As the film progresses, it turns into a Kaufman-style comedy – Oswald has been cast as the lead in a play written by Guy's neighbor (Renate Reinsve) and based on his life story. As if that wasn't enough, Guy falls in love with its author, but to his surprise, she prefers the disfigured Oswald.

Shot on 16mm by renowned cinematographer Wyatt Garfield, the film has the colors and texture of 1970s New York indie cinema and the absurdist humor of Woody Allen films from that era. In the finale, the director transforms our hero into a copy of Allen, which further enhances the tragicomic tone of the story.

This intriguing picture, touching on the topic of our identity, authenticity and the nature of beauty – external and internal, contains many fascinating ideas and important questions that, although veering towards surrealism, still provoke reflection.

The Gotham Awards are American film awards given annually to creators of independent productions made outside major studios – hence the name “Oscars of independent cinema”.

Gotham Award nominees are selected by panels of critics, journalists, festival programmers and film curators. A separate jury – writers, directors, actors, producers, editors, and people directly involved in film production – selects the final award winners.

Usually, winning productions are included on the list of titles nominated for Oscar in the main category – Best Film. This was the case last year, when the award went to the painting “Previous Life”. Two years ago, the winner was the film that later won the most important Oscar – “Everything, Everywhere at Once”. It was similar four years ago, when the award was won by the painting “Nomadland”.

Yesterday's gala was the culmination of the 34th edition of Gotham Awards. This time, however, the director of the award-winning film “A Different Man” was so surprised by the verdict that he had to apologize for not having a prepared speech. – I thought that, considering the other nominees, it would be hubris and stupidity just to write it, explained Aaron Schimberg, thanking his team, the critics awarding the award and people from the film industry.

“A Different Man”, dir. Aaron Schimberg (A24)

Best Leading Actor Performance

Colman Domingo “Sing Sing” (A24)

Best Supporting Actor Performance

Clarence Maclin “Sing Sing” (A24)

RaMell Ross “Nickel Boys” (Amazon MGM Studios)

Best International Film

“All Shades of Light”, dir. Payal Kapadia

Best Feature Documentary

“We don't want another land”, dir. Basel Adra, Rachel Szor (Antipode Films)

“His Three Daughters”, Azazel Jacobs (Netflix)

Vera Drew, “The People's Joker” (Altered Innocence)

Brandon Wilson, “Nickel Boys” (Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM Studios)