The National Board of Review has named Killers of the Flower Moon, the film based on David Grann’s book, the best picture of 2023, Variety reports.
Grann’s nonfiction book, published in 2017 by Doubleday, tells the story of the FBI’s investigation of a series of murders in the 1920s that targeted Osage people in Oklahoma. In a starred review, a critic for Kirkus wrote of the book, which was a finalist for the National Book Award, “Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.”
The film adaptation was directed by Martin Scorsese, and stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone, and Jesse Plemons. It was a hit with critics, and a box office success, having grossed more than $150 million worldwide.
The movie won additional prizes from the National Board of Review, including best director (Scorsese), best actress (Gladstone), and outstanding achievement in cinematography (Rodrigo Prieto).
Another literary adaptation, Poor Things, based on the 1992 novel by Alasdair Gray, won two National Board of Review awards: best supporting actor (Mark Ruffalo) and best adapted screenplay (Tony McNamara).
Killers of the Flower Moon and Poor Things made the National Board of Review’s list of the nine best films of the year, alongside two other literary adaptations: Oppenheimer, based on American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, and Ferrari, based on Enzo Ferrari: The Man, the Cars, the Races, the Machine by Brock Yates.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
