The film was praised for Field's direction, its screenplay and the performances (particularly those of Spacek, Wilkinson and Tomei). "In the Bedroom" was chosen by the American Film Institute as one of the top ten films of the year while Spacek's performance was named the best female performance of the year. The film received five Oscar nominations at the 74th Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Actress (for Spacek), Best Actor (for Wilkinson), Best Supporting Actress (for Tomei), and Best Adapted Screenplay, and also three nominations at the 59th Golden Globe Awards including for the Best Motion Picture – Drama, and winning Best Actress – Drama (for Spacek).