James Bond spectacular Skyfall has won Best Film at this year's Evening Standard Awards.
Best Actor went to Toby Jones for Berberian Sound Studio, one of the films that impressed our critics at last year's Edinburgh International Film Festival, while Andrea Riseborough was named Best Actress for Shadow Dancer.
Best Documentary went to The Imposter and Best Newcomer to Sally E Hosaini for another film where people might not be quite what they appear, My Brother The Devil. Ben Wheatley received the Peter Sellers Award for Comedy for Sightseers and the Editors' Award went to Sacha Baron Cohen in recognition of his several impressive recent films. Malcolm Campbell won Best Screenplay for What Richard Did and there was also an award for Anna Karenina for Best Technical Achievement.
If you're a fan of independent film, you may wonder how it is that most of the big awards ignore all the great small movies out there. The truth is that when it comes to nomination, selection and shortlisting among large bodies of critics or industry professionals, number of viewers counts, but the Evening Standard Awards are among those prepared to make the extra effort and explore a greater diversity of film. This makes their choices worth checking if you're on the lookout for something a bit different.
