george and meryl win NY film critics circle awards

From Renata Espinoza on the web:

Clooney, Streep Win Top Honors at New York Film Critics Circle Awards

New York – It was a busy year for George Clooney, but one that is starting to pay off in the form of official accolades, as awards season for the films of 2009 gets underway.

Clooney took home best actor honors for "Up in the Air" and "Fantastic Mr. Fox" on Monday, Jan. 11, at the 2009 New York Film Critics Circle Awards.

Sporting a bushy salt-and-pepper beard, Clooney arrived with Italian TV host girlfriend Elisabetta Canalis.

"Up in the Air" stars Clooney as a man whose job it is to constantly fly around the country and fire people as he racks up the frequent flier miles, aiming to eventually collect one million.

Wes Anderson, Clooney's director in "Fantastic Mr. Fox," took home the award for best animated film.

Meryl Streep also had a busy year - she lent her voice to "Fantastic Mr. Fox" and starred in "It's Complicated" and "Julie & Julia" - won best actress for her role as legendary chef Julia Childs in "Julie & Julia." The film tells the parallel stories of Julia Childs' rise to fame in the sixties and Julie Powell, a contemporary blogger who achieves notoriety by cooking every recipe in Julia Childs' cookbook, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking."

Kathryn Bigelow, who directed Iraq war film "The Hurt Locker," which won best picture, also won the award for best director.

Best supporting actor honors went to Christoph Waltz for "Inglourious Basterds," and Mo'Nique won best supporting actress for her role as an abusive mother in "Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire."

The Film Critics Circle Awards, founded in 1935, have often signaled actors and films that will later go on to win Academy Awards. The group of film critics, which used to only include writers from New York's daily newspapers, now includes critics from national magazines, as well as a handful of West Coast journalists.