Oklahoma-made 'Killers of the Flower Moon' named best movie of 2023 by New York Film Critics

Martin Scorsese's Oklahoma-made cinematic epic "Killers of the Flower Moon" has been named the best film of 2023 by the New York Film Critics Circle.

The group announced the winners of its annual critics award Thursday. "Killers of the Flower Moon" star Lily Gladstone was named best actress.

Founded in 1935, the New York Film Critics Circle is the oldest critics group in the country, and its membership includes critics from daily and weekly newspapers, magazines and qualifying online publications. The organization meets every December in New York to vote on awards for the previous calendar year’s films.

"Killers of the Flower Moon" is Scorsese's third movie to win the best film award from the group, after 1990's "GoodFellas" and 2019's "The Irishman," according to The Associated Press. Scorsese is a lifelong New Yorker.

The New York Film Critics Circle's honors are often viewed as harbingers of the Oscar nominations, which will be announced on Jan. 23 ahead of the 96th Academy Awards ceremony on March 10. 

Another fact-based historic epic, "Oppenheimer," the blockbuster drama about J. Robert Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project, also proved a favorite of the New York film critics, winning best director for Christopher Nolan and best cinematography for Hoyte van Hoytema.

The New York Film Critics Circle's annual Gala Awards dinner is set for Jan. 3 at Tao Downtown.

What is 'Killers of the Flower Moon' about? 

Since it was released in theaters Oct. 20, "Killers of the Flower Moon" has put on global movie screens a dark and often-overlooked chapter of Oklahoma history: The 1920s "Reign of Terror," a series of brutal murders of oil-rich Osage Nation citizens.

Filmed in and around Osage County in 2021, Scorsese's 3 1/2-hour fact-based drama is adapted from David Grann's 2017 best-seller “Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI."   

An Apple Original Films project with a reported $200 million budget, "Killers of the Flower Moon" focuses on Mollie Kyle Burkhart (Gladstone, who is NiMíiPuu, or Nez Perce, and Siksikaitsitapi, or Blackfeet), a real-life Osage woman who, along with her family, was marked for death in a vicious scheme to swindle away her oil money.

Also an executive producer on the film, Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio portrays Mollie's treacherous husband, Ernest Burkhart, who gets caught between his love for his wife and the ruthless schemes of his powerful uncle, William K. Hale (Academy Award winner Robert De Niro).

What other honors has 'Killers of the Flower Moon' won so far?

The cinematic awards season is just getting started, but Scorsese's Oklahoma-made crime thriller already has emerged as a strong contender.

"Killers of the Flower Moon" also was honored in New York on Monday, receiving the Gotham Historical Icon & Creator Tribute at the 33rd annual Gotham Awards Ceremony.

Billed as "the first major awards show of the awards season," this year's Gotham Awards also happened to be the first major awards show since the extended Screen Actors Guild strike ended, which brought plenty of star power to the ceremony at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.

The "Killers of the Flower Moon" tribute drew headlines after presenter and cast member De Niro announced from the Gotham Awards stage that part of the introduction of his speech was edited out without his prior knowledge or permission.

In January, "Killers of the Flower Moon" also will receive the Vanguard Award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival in Palm Springs, California. 

The Vanguard Award is a group honor distinguishing a film's cast and director in recognition of their collective work on an exceptional film project. The award will be presented to Scorsese, DiCaprio and Gladstone, who are all expected to be in attendance. 

The Palm Springs International Film Awards will take place on Jan. 4 at the Palm Springs Convention Center, with the festival running through Jan. 15.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: 'Killers of the Flower Moon' named best film by New York Film Critics