Michael Fassbender received a Best Supporting Actor nomination for "Prometheus."

Credit: 20th Century Fox

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The London Film Critics' Circle joined their American counterparts today in announcing their nominations, and I think they did rather a good job. Then again, I would say that: I'm one of the voters. And it's pretty clear which films we responded to most as a collective: Paul Thomas Anderson's "The Master" and Michael Haneke's "Amour" handily lead the field with seven nominations each, including a trio of acting nods apiece.

A number of US critics' favorites, however, fell short: "Lincoln" was confined to the acting categories alone, while "Zero Dark Thirty" managed nods for Best Director, Screenplay and Actress, but just missed out in the Film of the Year category, which was filled out with "Argo," "Beasts of the Southern Wild" and "Life of Pi." (It's perhaps coincidental but nonetheless interesting that both are dramas centered very much on US political concerns -- are Brits simply less invested? It'll be interesting to see how BAFTA respond.) 

Local hopeful "Les Miserables," meanwhile, could only manage a place in the secondary British Film of the Year field, though Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway and Samantha Barks (in the Young Performer category) were all mentioned. 

As the robust showing for "Amour" demonstrates, the London crowd are friendlier than most to foreign-language film, as "Once Upon a Time in Anatolia" helmer Nuri Bilge Ceylan was nominated alongside Haneke in the Director of the Year category, while "The Hunt" leading man Mads Mikkelsen (though, to my disappointment, no Denis Lavant) cracked the Actor of the Year lineup.

Other unusual picks I'm proud to have had a hand in include Michael Fassbender's Supporting Actor nod for "Prometheus," Isabelle Huppert in the corresponding category for "Amour," "Tabu" in a sterling foreign-language field, and a Young Performer bid for the hugely promising Irish newcomer Jack Reynor in the little-seen "What Richard Did." Plus, days after its dismaying Academy shut-out, the makeup work in "Holy Motors" received a mention in the mixed-discipline lineup for Technical Achievement of the Year, selected by the Circle's smaller awards committee.  

The winners will be announced at a ceremony at London's Mayfair Hotel on January 20. Full list of nominees below, plus everything else at The Circuit.

Film of the Year
"Amour"
"Argo"
"Beasts of the Southern Wild"
"Life of Pi"
"The Master"

Foreign Language Film of the Year
"Amour"
"Holy Motors"
"Once Upon a Time in Anatolia"
"Rust and Bone"
"Tabu"

British Film of the Year
"Berberian Sound Studio"
"The Imposter"
"Les Miserables"
"Sightseers"
"Skyfall"

Documentary of the Year
"The Imposter"
"London: The Modern Babylon"
"Nostalgia for the Light"
"The Queen of Versailles"
"Searching for Sugar Man"

Director of the Year
Michael Haneke, "Amour"
Ang Lee, "Life of Pi"
Paul Thomas Anderson, "The Master"
Nuri Bilge Ceylan, "Once Upon a Time in Anatolia"
Kathryn Bigelow, "Zero Dark Thirty"

Actor of the Year
Daniel Day-Lewis, "Lincoln"
Hugh Jackman, "Les Miserables"
Mads Mikkelsen, "The Hunt"
Joaquin Phoenix, "The Master"
Jean-Louis Trintignant, "Amour"

Actress of the Year
Jessica Chastain, "Zero Dark Thirty"
Marion Cotillard, "Rust and Bone"
Helen Hunt, "The Sessions"
Jennifer Lawrence, "Silver Linings Playbook"
Emmanuelle Riva, "Amour"

British Actor of the Year
Daniel Craig, "Skyfall"
Charlie Creed-Miles, "Wild Bill"
Daniel Day-Lewis, "Lincoln"
Toby Jones, "Berberian Sound Studio"
Steve Oram, "Sightseers"

British Actress of the Year
Emily Blunt, "Looper" and "Your Sister's Sister"
Judi Dench, "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" and "Skyfall"
Alice Lowe, "Sightseers"
Helen Mirren, "Hitchcock"
Andrea Riseborough, "Shadow Dancer"

Supporting Actor of the Year
Alan Arkin, "Argo"
Javier Bardem, "Skyfall"
Michael Fassbender, "Prometheus"
Philip Seymour Hoffman, "The Master"
Tommy Lee Jones, "Lincoln"

Supporting Actress of the Year
Amy Adams, "The Master"
Judi Dench, "Skyfall"
Sally Field, "Lincoln"
Anne Hathaway, "Les Miserables"
Isabelle Huppert, "Amour"

Screenwriter of the Year
Michael Haneke, "Amour"
Chris Terrio, "Argo"
Quentin Tarantino, "Django Unchained"
Paul Thomas Anderson, "The Master"
Mark Boal, "Zero Dark Thirty"

Breathrough British Filmmaker of the Year
Ben Drew (writer/director), "Ill Manors"
Bart Layton (director), "The Imposter"
Sally El Hosaini (writer/director), "My Brother the Devil"
Steve Oram and Alice Lowe (writers), "Sightseers"
Dexter Fletcher (co-writer/director), "Wild Bill"

Young British Performer of the Year
Samantha Barks, "Les Miserables"
Fady Elsayed, "My Brother the Devil"
Tom Holland, "The Impossible"
Will Poulter, "Wild Bill"
Jack Reynor, "What Richard Did"

Technical Achievement of the Year
Jacqueline Durran (costume design), "Anna Karenina"
William Goldenberg (film editing), "Argo"
Ben Richardson (cinematography), "Beasts of the Southern Wild"
Joakim Sundstrom and Stevie Haywood (sound design), "Berberian Sound Studio"
Bernard Floch (makeup), "Holy Motors"
Claudio Miranda (cinematography), "Life of Pi"
Bill Westenhofer (visual effects), "Life of Pi"
Jack Fisk and David Crank (production design), "The Master"
David Raedeker (cinematography), "My Brother the Devil"
Alexandre Desplat (music), "Rust and Bone"

Guy Lodge
Critic

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Guy Lodge is a South African-born critic and sometime screenwriter. In addition to his work at In Contention, he is a freelance contributor to Variety, Time Out, Empire and The Guardian. He lives well beyond his means in London.