The Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association have named "Boyhood" the best film of the year, the movie picking up its fifth critics prize.

The Richard Linklater drama that was shot over the span of 12 years also won the Best Director award, as well as the Best Supporting Actress award for Patricia Arquette. Ellar Coltrane won the award for Best Youth Performance for his portrayal as Mason in "Boyhood."

"Birdman" also picked up a substantial amount of awards, including Best Actor for Michael Keaton and Best Screenplay for Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr. and Armando Bo. Additionally, the film won the Best Cinematography award for Emmanuel Lubezki while Stephen Mirrione and Douglas Crise won the Best Editing award for their immaculate work on "Birdman."

The cast of "Birdman" also won the Best Ensemble award and looks like it could repeat at the SAG Awards, especially since it is winning most of the Ensemble prizes.

Julianne Moore picked up her first critics award for her work on "Still Alice." Moore is the presumed front-runner in the Best Actress race, but she has been lagging behind Marion Cotillard, who has picked up more critics' awards and looks like the biggest threat to Moore in the category at the moment.

J.K. Simmons picked up another award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal in "Whiplash" and continues to be the clear favorite.

The Swedish Academy Award entry "Force Majeure" took its first prize in the Best Foreign Film category. The win is yet another loss for "Ida" and it seems this will be one of the most unpredictable categories of the year.

"Life Itself" won the Best Documentary award while "The LEGO Movie" took another Best Animated Feature prize.

"Gone Girl" took home its first critics award for Best Adapted Screenplay. The film has been a box office hit and scored great reviews. However, it has been ignored throughout the awards season and seems like a dark horse at the moment.

The Washington Critics have become one of the most reliable critics groups in recent years, as it has been able to predict five Best Pictures. Of their last 10 Best Picture winners, eight have gone on to get nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. "Boyhood" looks like it will be another Best Picture contender come January when Oscar nominations are announced.

However, the Washington D.C critics were clearly divided between "Boyhood" and "Birdman." While "Birdman" lost the Best Picture category, the film still managed to take home five awards and cement itself as a clear threat.

From these awards, it could also be noted that the race will likely be a competition between "Birdman" and "Boyhood." This is bad news for "The Imitation Game," "A Most Violent Year," "Selma," "Gone Girl" and "Foxcatcher," which have not really generated awards from the critics.

However, it is important to note that sometimes what critics like does not transfer over to the Academy. In 2010, "The Social Network" was the clear runaway hit with the critics but, at the Academy Awards and BAFTAs, "The King's Speech" was the ultimate winner. In 2013, "Zero Dark Thirty" was a huge hit but, due to controversy, the movie ultimately failed to generate the Oscar and instead "Argo" won.

Complete List of Winners

Best Film: "Boyhood"

Best Director: Richard Linklater ("Boyhood")

Best Actor: Michael Keaton ("Birdman" or ("The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance"))

Best Actress: Julianne Moore ("Still Alice")

Best Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons ("Whiplash")

Best Supporting Actress: Patricia Arquette ("Boyhood")

Best Acting Ensemble: "Birdman" or ("The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance")

Best Youth Performance: Ellar Coltrane ("Boyhood")

Best Adapted Screenplay: Gillian Flynn ("Gone Girl")

Best Original Screenplay: Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr., Armando Bo ("Birdman" or ("The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance"))

Best Animated Feature: "The LEGO Movie"

Best Documentary: "Life Itself"

Best Foreign Language Film: "Force Majeure"

Best Art Direction: Production Designer: Adam Stockhausen, Set Decorator: Anna Pinnock ("The Grand Budapest Hotel")

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, ASC, AMC ("Birdman" or ("The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance"))

Best Editing: Douglas Crise, Stephen Mirrione, ACE ("Birdman" or ("The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance"))

Best Original Score: Mica Levi (Under the Skin)

The Joe Barber Award for Best Portrayal of Washington, DC: "Captain America: The Winter Soldier"

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