AceShowbiz -

Winners of the 2012 National Society of Film Critics Awards have been announced. Lars von Trier's sci-fi drama "Melancholia" has marked its first major U.S. award by grabbing the top prize of Best Picture. Its lead actress, Kirsten Dunst, was also named the Best Actress at the award show. As for the Best Actor, Brad Pitt nabbed the prize through his roles in both "Moneyball" and "The Tree of Life".

Though claiming the Best Picture award, "Melancholia" couldn't bring Lars von Trier in winning the coveted Best Director prize. He lost the title to Terrence Malick for his works in "Tree of Life", which also won the most awards, including Best Cinematography for Emmanuel Lubezki.

Albert Brooks was honored with Best Supporting Actor award for his role in "Drive", while Jessica Chastain was chosen as the Best Supporting Actress for her roles in "Tree of Life", "Take Shelter" and "The Help". Iranian drama "A Separation", meanwhile, won the prizes for Best Screenplay and Best Foreign Language Film.

The National Society of Film Critics consists of 58 members from big newspapers in Los Angeles, Boston, New York, Chicago and other cities. They include Time, The New Yorker, Newsweek, The Village Voice and The Boston Phoenix among others.

The 2012 National Society of Film Critics Awards winners:

• Best Picture: "Melancholia"
• Best Actor: Brad Pitt - "Moneyball", "The Tree of Life"
• Best Actress: Kirsten Dunst - "Melancholia"
• Best Supporting Actor: Albert Brooks - "Drive"
• Best Supporting Actress: Jessica Chastain - "The Tree of Life", "Take Shelter", "The Help"
• Best Director: Terrence Malick - "The Tree of Life"
• Best Nonfiction: "Cave of Forgotten Dreams" - Werner Herzog
• Best Screenplay: "A Separation" - Asghar Farhadi
• Best Foreign Language Film: "A Separation" - Asghar Farhadi
• Best Cinematography: "The Tree of Life" - Emanuel Lubezki