2015 Critics' Choice Movie Awards

Michael Strahan seemed a little bit nervous throughout the 20th annual show in its first televised year, and the show itself was a little bumpy. Best Sportsmanship Award goes to Jennifer Aniston, snubbed by the Academy the same morning, she seemed giddy to see Emily Blunt win Best Actress in an Action Film and snuck a fan like photo with Blunt when she returned to the audience. Aniston grabbed a similar photo with her fellow nominee Julianne Moore and she seemed like she was having a ball. Emily Blunt and husband John Krasinski are the best couple. And not the cheesy kind but the fun, cool, real kind (not like Donnie and Jenny or Will and Jada). Krasinski happened to be backstage when Blunt won and he ran on stage to hug her as she started her acceptance speech.

While Ron Howard gave a wonderful acceptance speech for his lifetime achievement award and had beautiful sentiments for his wife, Kevin Costner went on too long and referred to Sean Connery and Gene Hackman as if they had passed away.

The attempts at comedy by the host and as written for the presenters was uneven. Some landed and some missed the mark somewhat pitifully. The showed opened with a Magic Mike like dance because apparently Michael Strahan is in the sequel. The bit Leslie Mann did to present Blunt's win by trying to get Josh Gad to serenade her with her favorite Olaf quote was great. An hour later when her husband Judd Apatow presented, he was the only one with risky humor. He managed to get in a quick Cosby/Wilt Chamberlain joke and say his wife wanted to screw a snowman.

When Jessica Chastain accepted the first ever MVP Award (she was in four different critically acclaimed films in 2014; they could have created the award for her in 2011 when she was in seven movies), she was the first to mention that it was Martin Luther King Jr's birthday. She quoted Dr King and asked that everyone speak out against all forms of discrimination. Common gave a wonderful, heartfelt speech for the best song win for "Glory" that was even better than the solid one he gave at the Golden Globes four days earlier.

The Oscars, the Golden Globes, the SAG Awards, they all have their own tone and signature feel. It was the Critics' Choice Awards first year out. They had some growing pains and struggled to find their wavelength. The good, A-list moments made it a far cry better than the People's Choice Awards (those have not even been watchable for years) and seemed better than the also rookie year the Hollywood Film Awards had, though both had very similar vibes.

Birdman led with five wins, Boyhood four and The Grand Budapest Hotel won three. It just so happens that those three films also received the most Oscar nominations the day of the Critics' Choice Movie Awards.

Julianne Moore pulled off the "name-all-your-fellow-nominees" hat trick genuinely and with a compliment in a word or two that described the characters that the actresses she shared her category with portrayed. She did it without notes, or awkward pauses. Many attempt this in their acceptances speeches but few really do it sincerely.

Some good fashion choices on the red, actually blue, carpet. Winners list follows the fashions.

BEST PICTURE Boyhood
BEST ACTOR Michael Keaton, Birdman
BEST ACTRESS Julianne Moore, Still Alice
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR JK Simmons, Whiplash
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS Ellar Coltrane, Boyhood
BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE Birdman
BEST DIRECTOR Richard Linklater, Boyhood
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY Alejandro G Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr and Armando Bo, Birdman
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY Emmanuel Lubezki, Birdman
BEST ART DIRECTION Adam Stockhausen and Anna Pinnock, The Grand Budapest Hotel
BEST EDITING Douglas Crise and Stephen Mirrione, Birdman
BEST COSTUME DESIGN Milena Canonero, The Grand Budapest Hotel
BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP Guardians of the Galaxy
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE The Lego Movie
BEST ACTION MOVIE Guardians of the Galaxy
BEST ACTOR IN AN ACTION MOVIE Bradley Cooper, American Sniper
BEST ACTRESS IN AN ACTION MOVIE Emily Blunt, Edge of Tomorrow
BEST COMEDY The Grand Budapest Hotel
BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY Michael Keaton, Birdman
BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY Jenny Slate, Obvious Child
BEST SCI-FI/HORROR MOVIE Interstellar
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM Force Majeure
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE Life Itself
BEST SONG "Glory" by Common and John Legend, Selma
BEST SCORE Antonio Sanchez,  Birdman