Alfonso Cuaron's "Roma" was named the best film of 2018 by the New York Film Critics Circle on Thursday, giving the much-lauded movie another awards-season laurel and furthering Netflix's momentum toward what many expect to be its first best picture Oscar nomination.
The critics' group also named Cuaron best director for his work on the black-and-white, Spanish-language film, which is currently in limited release and will be available for streaming on Netflix starting Dec. 14. Following a year in the life of a middle-class Mexican family and their beloved live-in nanny, "Roma" _ which draws from Cuaron's own childhood memories _ has earned rapturous reviews since in its initial outings at the Venice and Telluride film festivals earlier this fall.
In the acting categories, Ethan Hawke earned the best actor award for his performance as a pastor undergoing a spiritual crisis in the drama "First Reformed," Regina Hall was named best actress for the comedy "Support the Girls." Regina King drew the best supporting actress award for "If Beale Street Could Talk," and Richard E. Grant was named best supporting actor for "Can You Ever Forgive Me?"
Other films getting a boost in the awards season derby were "Eighth Grade," whose director, Bo Burnham, earned the honor for best first film; "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse," which was named best animated film; Hulu release "Minding the Gap," selected as best documentary; and Pavel Pawlikowski's "Cold War," which won best foreign language film.
The awards will be handed out in a ceremony on Jan. 7 in New York.
