Emma Thompson honoured for Mary Poppins film

Thompson recently took part in a Bafta 'Life in Pictures' event

Britain's Emma Thompson has been named the year's best film actress by the influential National Board of Review.

The two-time Oscar winner was honoured for her role as author PL Travers in Saving Mr Banks, a dramatisation of the making of Disney's Mary Poppins.

Her, about a man who falls in love with a computer's voice, won best film.

Spike Jonze's quirky romance was also awarded the best director prize by the New York-based collective of film historians, student and academics.

The National Board of Review (NBR) is one of the first groups to name its picks in what is shaping up to be an unpredictable film awards season.

Earlier this week, the Gotham Independent Awards gave its best film prize to the Coen brothers' musical drama Inside Llewyn Davis, while the New York Film Critics Circle favoured 1970s crime yarn American Hustle.

Her sees Joaquin Phoenix fall for a heard but not seen Scarlett Johansson

Nebraska, about an elderly father and his middle-aged son taking a 750-mile road trip, saw Bruce Dern and Will Forte named best actor and best supporting actor respectively.

Octavia Spencer was named best supporting actress for true-life drama Fruitvale Station, which also saw its director Ryan Coogler and lead actor Michael B Jordan honoured.

Gravity's ground-breaking special effects saw the space saga recognised with a creative innovation award, while Hugh Jackman thriller Prisoners received the best ensemble prize.

The NBR also released its Top 10 of the year, a list that includes such other Oscar-tipped titles as 12 Years a Slave, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and The Wolf of Wall Street.

The latter film received the best adapted screenplay prize, with an additional honour going to director Martin Scorsese and star Leonardo DiCaprio for their "career collaboration".

Inside Llewyn Davis was recognised in the best original screenplay category, while Sarah Polley's family portrait Stories We Tell was crowned best documentary.

The winners will have the opportunity to collect their prizes at the NBR's annual awards gala, to be held in New York on 7 January.

The awards season continues this weekend with the European Film Awards in Berlin on Saturday and the British Independent Film Awards in London on Sunday.