‘L.A. Confidential’ Adds Another Critical Laurel

“L.A. Confidential” was voted best film of 1997 by the National Society of Film Critics, finishing ahead of “The Sweet Hereafter” and “Boogie Nights,” the 48-member group announced Sunday.

The results capped a sweep of major critics awards for “L.A. Confidential,” which had previously been chosen best picture by the National Board of Review, the New York Film Critics Circle and the Los Angeles Film Critics Assn.

The film also won for best director (Curtis Hanson) and best screenplay (Brian Helgeland & Hanson) in Sunday’s voting.

Julie Christie was named best actress for her work in “Afterglow” and Robert Duvall best actor for “The Apostle.” Runners-up in the two lead acting categories were Helena Bonham Carter (“The Wings of the Dove”) and Peter Fonda (“Ulee’s Gold”).

“Boogie Nights” won awards for two members of its ensemble cast, with Julianne Moore voted best supporting actress and Burt Reynolds best supporting actor.

In other categories, cinematographer Roger Deakins was cited for his work on “Kundun”; “La Promesse,” from Belgian filmmakers Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne, was named best foreign-language film; and Errol Morris’ “Fast, Cheap & Out of Control” was voted best nonfiction film.

The society awarded a special citation to director Charles Burnett’s “Nightjohn,” a Disney Channel film about slavery whose “exceptional quality and origin challenge strictures of the movie marketplace.”