The 2025 Matt Awards

Longtime friends and followers of this blog know that every year I present what are known as The Matt Awards. These started in 1998 (for the 1997 year in film), and have continued on annually ever since. These are awards for the movies that I've watched and enjoyed. They're a sort of antidote to the often disappointing Academy Award nominees and outcomes.

Typically, I would post a list of the nominees then, a few weeks later, post the winners. This year, since we're so late into awards season (and the Oscar are in just four days), I'm going to combine them into one post. I'll list the nominees, then list the winner of each category.

So, without further adieu, here are the nominees and winners for the 2025 Matt Awards, honoring my favorite in cinema from 2024...

Best Picture

Ghostlight
Memoir of a Snail
My Old Ass
Thelma
The Wild Robot

Winner

Thelma

Best Director

Edward Bergen, for Conclave
Robert Eggers, for Nosferatu
Luca Guadagnino, for Challengers
Josh Margolin, for Thelma
Alex Thompson, for Ghostlight

Winner

Edward Bergen, for Conclave

Best Actor

Harris Dickinson, for Babygirl
Colman Domingo, for Sing Sing
Raplh Fiennes, for Conclave
Hugh Grant, for Heretic
Keith Kupferer, for Ghostlight

Winner

Keith Kupferer, for Ghostlight

Best Actress

Carolyn Bracken, for Oddity
Nicole Kidman, for Babygirl
Marianne Jean-Baptiste, for Hard Truths
June Squibb, for Thelma
Zendaya, for Challengers

Winner

June Squibb, for Thelma

Best Supporting Actor

Antonio Banderas, for Babygirl
Ralph Ineson, for Nosferatu
Clarence Maclin, for Sing Sing
Richard Roundtree, for Thelma
David Webber, for Hard Truths

Winner (tie)

Clarence Maclin, for Sing Sing
David Webber, for Hard Truths

Best Supporting Actress

Michele Austin, for Hard Truths
Dolly de Leon, for Ghostlight
Tara Mallen, for Ghostlight
Yoko Narahashi, for Touch
Aubrey Plaza, for My Old Ass

Winner

Michele Austin, for Hard Truths

Best Screenplay

Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar, for Sing Sing
Adam Elliot, for Memoir of a Snail
Josh Margolin, for Thelma
Kelly O'Sullivan, for Ghostlight
Peter Straughan, for Conclave

Winner

Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar, for Sing Sing

Best Editing

Cameron Cairnes & Colin Cairnes, for Late Night with the Devil
Marco Costa, for Challengers
Brian Philip Davis, for Oddity
Nick Emerson, for Conclave
Louise Ford, for Nosferatu

Winner

Nick Emerson, for Conclave

Best Cinematography

Andres Arochi, for Longlegs
Jarin Blaschke, for Nosferatu
Luke Dyra, for Ghostlight
Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, for Challengers
Phedon Papamichael, for A Complete Unknown

Winner

Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, for Challengers

Best Score

Robin Carolan, for Nosferatu
Cristobal Tapia de Veer, for Babygirl
Tyler Hilton, for My Old Ass
Elvis Perkins, for Longlegs
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, for Challengers

Winner

Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, for Challengers

Best Production Design

Suzie Davies, for Conclave
Craig Lathrop, for Nosferatu
Mark Scruton, for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Otello Stolfo, for Late Night with the Devil
Patrice Vermette, for Dune: Part Two

Winner

Craig Lathrop, for Nosferatu

Best Special Effects

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Deadpool & Wolverine
Dune: Part Two
Late Night with the Devil
A Quiet Place: Day One

Winner

Late Night with the Devil

Best Stunt work

Abigail
The Beekeeper
Dune: Part Two
The Fall Guy
A Quiet Place: Day One

Winner

The Fall Guy

Best Horror Film

Abigail
Late Night with the Devil
Longlegs
Nosferatu
Oddity

Winner

Oddity

For those keeping track, there were 14 categories. Here is a breakdown  of how many awards there were for each winning film.

Challengers - 2 wins (5 nominations)
Conclave - 2 wins (5 nominations)
Hard Truths - 2 wins (3 nominations)
Sing Sing - 2 wins (3 nominations)
Thelma - 2 wins (5 nominations)
Ghostlight - 1 win (7 nominations)
Nosferatu - 1 win (7 nominations)
The Fall Guy - 1 win (1 nomination)
Late Night with the Devil - 1 win (4 nominations)
Oddity - 1 win (4 nominations)

Those of you who listen to the podcast I do with Ashley, may have noticed that the # 1 movie of the year I mentioned there is different than the Best Picture winner announced here. This rarely happens, but allow me to explain.

Sometimes, a movie really works for me, but it can be greater than the sum of its parts. In the case of My Old Ass (my top 2024 movie from the podcast), the movie itself is solid, but individually, it gets swamped by the work of others. Meanwhile, Thelma has a lot of components that really make it what it is, and that kind of thing stands out more in the context of award nominations. Make sense? Hopefully so.

Anyhow, that's it. That's this year's Matt Awards. It provides recognition for several movies that haven't even been part of the conversation during this year's awards season. And of course it provides a look into what my favorite movies of the year are.

Thank you for indulging me.

What are some of your favorite movies of 2024?