'The Artist' cleans up with four wins at the Critics Choice Awards

Now that we're mostly through all the regional awards, it's time to get to the heavy hitters. The Golden Globes are this weekend, the Indie Spirits next month, and we'll be getting the Academy Awards nominations in just a few days. But last night was the first televised event of the year as the Critics Choice Awards were broadcast on VH1, and some of my colleagues were in attendance those lucky bastards. 

I always consider the Critics Choice Awards the first true indicator of how things are going to play out at the Oscars, and this year was no different. The big winner last night was The Artist, the silent movie homage led all with four wins, including Best Picture and Best Director for Michael Hazanavicius. The film, generally considered a favorite at the Oscars, has been on a remarkable run over the last few weeks.  Picking up Best Actor for his role in The Descendants was George Clooney, beating out the likes of Michael Fassbender, Ryan Gosling, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Brad Pitt. Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer won for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress for The Help, along with Best Ensemble. Despite having the support of critics and audiences alike, The Help has been relatively quiet this awards season, but the tide may be turning on that now.

In some of the more unique categories, Drive won for Best Action Film, while Bridesmaids got some love as Best Comedy. Thomas Horn, the star of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, took home an award for Best Young Actor. I guess nobody there actually saw the movie.

Check out the full list of winners below....
Best Picture: "The Artist"

Best Director: Michel Hazanavicius, "The Artist"

Best Actor: George Clooney, "The Descendants"

Best Actress: Viola Davis, "The Help"

Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, "Beginners"

Best Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, "The Help"

Best Original Screenplay: Woody Allen, "Midnight in Paris"

Best Adapted Screenplay: Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin, "Moneyball"

Best Foreign Language Film: "A Separation"

Best Animated Feature: "Rango"

Best Documentary: "George Harrison: Living in the Material World"

Best Cinematography: "The Tree of Life" and "War Horse" (tie)

Best Art Direction: "Hugo"

Best Costume Design: "The Artist"

Best Film Editing: "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"

Best Makeup: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2"

Best Original Score: "The Artist"

Best Original Song: "Life's a Happy Song" from "The Muppets"

Best Sound: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2"

Best Visual Effects: "Rise of the Planet of the Apes"

Best Ensemble: "The Help"

Best Young Actor/Actress: Thomas Horn, "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close"

Best Comedy: "Bridesmaids"

Best Action Film: "Drive"

Joel Siegel Award: Sean Penn

Music and Film Award: Martin Scorsese