The third film by Mel Gibson.

Credit where credit's due: Fox Searchlight says it will become the first MPAA member studio to release an NC-17 movie in more than six years when it distributes the unedited version of Bernardo Bertolucci's The Dreamers next month.

Good news indeed, and I hope it signals a trend of allowing movies to reach theater screens in this country without being subjected to the de facto censorship routine that the industry has imposed on itself.

In a completely not-startling development, the Online Film Critics Society, of which I am a member, has given its award for, well, basically for everything, to The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Rings led with awards in nine categories; of all the other films released last year, only Lost In Translation managed more than a single nod from the OFCS.

Yay Bill Murray and yay Naomi Watts. I'd have enjoyed seeing Sean Astin share in the love with a supporting actor award from this Rings-happy group, but it was not to be. In fact, the only categories The Return of the King was eligible for that it did not win were the four performance categories.

Here's the complete list.

2003 ONLINE FILM CRITICS SOCIETY AWARDS

Best Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Producers: Peter Jackson, Barrie M. Osborne & Fran Walsh)

Best Director: Peter Jackson - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Actor: Bill Murray - Lost in Translation
Best Actress: Naomi Watts - 21 Grams

Best Supporting Actor: Peter Sarsgaard - Shattered Glass

Best Supporting Actress: Shohreh Aghdashloo - House of Sand and Fog

Best Original Screenplay: Sofia Coppola - Lost in Translation

Best Adapted Screenplay:Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson & Fran Walsh - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Cinematography: Andrew Lesnie - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Original Score: Howard Shore - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Documentary: Capturing the Friedmans

Best Foreign Language Film: City of God

Breakthrough Filmmaker: Shari Springer Berman & Robert Pulcini - American Splendor

Breakthrough Performance: Keisha Castle-Hughes - Whale Rider

Best Animated Feature: Finding Nemo

Best Visual Effects: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Art Direction: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Costume Design: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Sound: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King