Paving the way for a Foreign Language Film nod at The Oscars, Amour dominated the National Society of Film Critics awards, grabbing Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress for 85-year-old Emmanuelle Riva.

Amour is a 2012 French-language drama film written and directed by Haneke, starring Jean-Louis Trintignant, Emmanuelle Riva and Isabelle Huppert. An honest,  unflinching look at the power and endurance of love, Amour is a sad, mournful film; beautifully shot and tenderly acted. Fully deserving of the accolades gleaned so far.

Here are the other winners, and runners up (or losers, if you want to be churlish)

BEST ACTOR

1. Daniel Day Lewis, Lincoln

2. Denis Lavant, Holy Motors

2. Joaquin Phoenix, The Master

BEST ACTRESS

1. Emmanuelle Riva, Amour

2. Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

3. Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

1. Matthew McConaughey, Magic Mike

2. Tommy Lee Jones, Lincoln

3. Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1. Amy Adams, The Master

2. Sally Field, Lincoln

3. Anne Hathaway, Les Miserables

BEST PICTURE

1. Amour

2. The Master

3. Zero Dark Thirty

BEST DIRECTOR

1. Michael Haneke, Amour

2. Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty

2. Paul Thomas Anderson, The Master

BEST DOCUMENTARY

1. The Gatekeepers

2. This Is Not a Film

3. Searching for Sugar Man

BEST SCREENPLAY

1. Lincoln, Tony Kushner

2. The Master, P.T. Anderson

3. Silver Linings Playbook, David O. Russell

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

1. The Master, Mihai Malaimare, Jr.

2. Skyfall, Roger Deakins (30)

3. Zero Dark Thirty, Greig Fraser (21)