The Los Angeles Film Critics Association on Sunday named One Battle After Another its 2025 Best Picture, honoring Paul Thomas Anderson as Best Director and recognizing a slate of performances and technical achievements across international, animated and experimental cinema. The Secret Agent was the runner-up and won Best Film Not in the English Language, while the critics also singled out careers and community cinema with a Career Achievement Award for Philip Kaufman and a Special Citation for Gardena Cinema’s Judy Kim. Acting prizes were awarded in gender-neutral categories, with Rose Byrne and Ethan Hawke taking lead honors and Stellan Skarsgård and Teyana Taylor winning supporting prizes. Several technical awards—cinematography, production design and editing—were given to a mix of established and emerging artists.
Key Takeaways
- Best Picture: One Battle After Another won LAFCA’s top prize; The Secret Agent was runner-up and won Best Film Not in the English Language.
- Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson won for One Battle After Another; Ryan Coogler was runner-up for Sinners.
- Acting: Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I’d Kick You) and Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon) won Best Lead Performance; Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value) and Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another) won Best Supporting Performance.
- Technical winners included Adolpho Veloso for Cinematography (Train Dreams), Hannah Beachler for Production Design (Sinners), and Ronald Bronstein & Josh Safdie for Editing (Marty Supreme).
- Animation: Little Amélie or the Character of Rain took Best Animation; KPop Demon Hunters was runner-up.
- Documentary: My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow won Best Documentary/Nonfiction; runner-up was The Perfect Neighbor.
- Special honors: Philip Kaufman received the Career Achievement Award; Judy Kim and Gardena Cinema received a Special Citation for community film preservation.
Background
The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) is a long-established critics group whose year-end awards are closely watched for both critical consensus and industry momentum. Historically, the organization’s Best Picture selection has sometimes presaged Academy recognition; last year’s LAFCA winner Anora later received an Oscar nomination and won the Academy Award for Best Picture. LAFCA’s membership comprises Los Angeles–based critics across print, broadcast and digital outlets; their annual ballot covers categories from directing and acting to technical crafts and experimental work.
In recent years LAFCA has adopted gender-neutral acting categories, a change now in its fourth year, which groups nominees and winners by role type rather than sex. The association also highlights non-English-language films, animation and experimental cinema with distinct prizes, reflecting a broader critical agenda that values diversity of form and origin. The 2025 awards continue that pattern, combining high-profile winners with recognition for smaller, community-oriented institutions like Gardena Cinema.
Main Event
The LAFCA vote announced on Sunday consolidated support around One Battle After Another, giving the film both Best Picture and Best Director honors for Paul Thomas Anderson. Voters also named The Secret Agent as runner-up for Best Picture and awarded it Best Film Not in the English Language, underscoring critical interest in its storytelling and craft. Acting honors were split across multiple titles: Rose Byrne and Ethan Hawke shared the Best Lead Performance award for different films, while Stellan Skarsgård and Teyana Taylor won Best Supporting Performance for Sentimental Value and One Battle After Another, respectively.
Technical categories highlighted distinctive visual and editorial work. Adolpho Veloso received Best Cinematography for Train Dreams, and Hannah Beachler won Best Production Design for Sinners, with Marty Supreme’s Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie taking Best Editing. Music and score recognition went to Kangding Ray for Sirāt, with Ludwig Göransson as runner-up for Sinners. The choices reflect both established names and critics’ appetite for formally adventurous cinema.
The awards also included a slate of specialty honors: Little Amélie or the Character of Rain won Best Animation over runner-up KPop Demon Hunters; My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow won Best Documentary/Nonfiction; and experimental cinema prizes were awarded to Albert Serra and filmmaker Thom Andersen in their respective Douglas Edwards categories. LAFCA additionally presented Eva Victor with the New Generation prize for Sorry, Baby, signaling attention to emerging filmmakers.
Analysis & Implications
LAFCA’s selection of One Battle After Another consolidates critical momentum for a film that combines auteur pedigree with strong actor-driven elements. Paul Thomas Anderson’s win strengthens his awards-season narrative, potentially boosting visibility among Academy voters who track critics’ prizes. However, critics’ awards do not guarantee Oscar success; LAFCA’s choices are influential but not determinative.
The group’s recognition of The Secret Agent as both runner-up for Best Picture and winner of Best Film Not in the English Language highlights the porous line between domestic and international cinema in critical discourse. Such dual recognition can raise a film’s profile for distributors and awards campaigns, particularly for titles that cross language and market boundaries. The varied technical winners also suggest a critics’ preference this year for distinctive craft contributions rather than only high-profile studio production values.
Gender-neutral acting categories continue to shape award season conversation by focusing attention on the performance itself rather than the performer’s gender. That change alters comparative dynamics—more performances compete in a single pool—so recognition may carry different signaling power for careers and campaigns. For indie venues and community cinemas, the Special Citation for Gardena Cinema underscores critics’ role in advocating for local exhibition and filmgoing infrastructure.
Comparison & Data
| Category | Winner | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|
| Best Picture | One Battle After Another | The Secret Agent |
| Best Director | Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another) | Ryan Coogler (Sinners) |
| Best Lead Performance | Rose Byrne; Ethan Hawke | Timothée Chalamet; Wagner Moura |
| Best Cinematography | Adolpho Veloso (Train Dreams) | Autumn Durald Arkapaw (Sinners) |
| Best Animation | Little Amélie or the Character of Rain | KPop Demon Hunters |
The table highlights winners compared with immediate runners-up in selected headline categories. LAFCA’s roster mixes auteur-driven picks (Anderson, Veloso) with critics’ endorsements of rising or international works (The Secret Agent, Little Amélie). This pattern—blend of established auteurs and less commercially visible films—is typical of critics groups and can shift festival and distribution priorities in the months after the announcement.
Reactions & Quotes
Officials and critics framed the awards as both a celebration of individual achievement and a defense of local cinematic institutions. LAFCA president Robert Abele praised Philip Kaufman’s career and the association’s decision to honor him with a Career Achievement Award.
“The L.A. Film Critics Association is immensely proud to be honoring this dyed-in-the-wool iconoclast.”
Robert Abele, LAFCA president
On the Gardena Cinema citation, the critics emphasized the theatre’s long-standing role in community exhibition and preservation.
“A historic 800-seat, single-screen movie palace that has operated as an independent cinema and beacon of community since 1976.”
LAFCA Special Citation statement
Filmmakers and industry observers noted the awards’ potential ripple effects for year-end lists and festival interest, while stressing that awards season remains unpredictable.
Unconfirmed
- Whether One Battle After Another will receive an Academy Award nomination later in the season remains unconfirmed and will depend on subsequent voting and campaign activity.
- Any box-office or streaming release changes prompted by LAFCA recognition are speculative until distributors announce concrete plans.
- The long-term impact of LAFCA’s gender-neutral acting categories on awards-season outcomes and industry hiring trends is not yet firmly established.
Bottom Line
LAFCA’s 2025 awards present One Battle After Another as critics’ top film of the year while distributing recognition across a wide array of international, independent and technical work. The ceremony balanced honors for high-profile filmmakers with support for community exhibition and experimental cinema, signaling critics’ continuing role as taste-makers and cultural advocates.
While these prizes can boost visibility and shape awards-season narratives, they are one of many indicators in a crowded campaign calendar. Observers should watch how distributors, festivals and other critics’ groups respond in the coming weeks to gauge whether LAFCA’s selections produce broader momentum into nomination season.
Sources
- The Hollywood Reporter (entertainment trade)