What a civilised affair the Golden Globes were on Sunday evening (Monday afternoon our time). Ricky Gervais, hosting the awards for the third time, started the show with the quip “so, where were we”. Loved it.....
What a civilised affair the Golden Globes were on Sunday evening (Monday afternoon our time). Ricky Gervais, hosting the awards for the third time, started the show with the quip “so, where were we”. Loved it.
Unfortunately the Hollywood Foreign Press had Gervais on a short leash, only letting him on stage sporadically, which was a shame as he was in fine form. His performance was less awkward than 2011’s controversial show, which might have something to do with many of his potential victims not attending the award’s ceremony (such as Kim Kardashian and Justin Bieber). But he was still one of the funniest guys in the room.
There were attempts to prove there were no lingering hard feelings from last year’s roasting - Johnny Depp happily taking another ribbing, and embarrassing over reactions from some to show they didn’t take themselves too seriously, such as a laughing thumbs up Jodie Foster. Then there were those that took on Gervais. Not a good idea, unless you’re the articulate and charming Colin Firth.
The awards themselves unfolded without any major upsets or surprises. Let me know if you think otherwise!
Meryl Streep - Best Actress for her portrayal as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady - tick.
George Clooney - Best Actor for his sublime performance in The Descendants - tick.
Octavia Cook - Best Supporting Actress as domestic help in the feel-good film The Help - tick.
The Descendants - Best Drama - tick
The Artist - Best Comedy or Musical - tick.
A lovely moment was Christopher Plummer, 82, winning Best Supporting Actor for his role in Beginners. It was a popular win with the crowd, just as Martin Scorsese’s win for Best Director was warmly received. I’m a big fan of Hugo - it’s a magical and enchanting love letter to the art of filmmaking - but with 1920’s-set silent film The Artist also scoring several awards I wonder if is the THFP is this year under the spell of films that are a tribute to the early days of cinema?
The other award I felt was very much up for grabs was the Golden Globe award for Screenplay. This award could have easily gone to Alexander Payne for The Descendants, The Social Network’s Aaron Sorkin for Moneyball or George Clooney and his team for The Ides of March, but an in-form Woody Allen is hard to beat, and he scooped the award for his charming and delightfully fun Midnight in Paris.
The frocks were fabulous in their various shades of berry, red, green and blue, and it was nice to see black is also back! There was plenty of old style Hollywood glitz and glamour, with “fish tails” and bling sewn into gowns. The Golden Globes are not normally as formal as the Academy Awards, but on Sunday night many were dressed to Oscar’s standards; except perhaps Meryl Streep, but then as far as I’m concerned she can do whatever she wants.
One trend that didn’t work as well as others was “bridal chic”, the idea of turning up in a wedding dress. To be fair, a lot of these gown’s made in different hues of white or nude, were remarkable, but worn on the red carpet they did make a few (Jessica Biel especially) look like they’d turned up to the wrong party.
It was also hard not to notice how many of the more accomplished and successful actresses (and that’s a nice way of saying women 40 plus) still feel obliged to remove any evidence of living a life (read wrinkles) from their faces, and vacuum packed themselves into their dresses. I suppose hungry-looking and wax-like people are just part and parcel of life in Hollywood.
Winners of the 69th annual Golden Globe Awards:
- Picture, Drama: The Descendants.
- Picture, Musical or Comedy: The Artist.
- Actor, Drama: George Clooney, The Descendants.
- Actress, Drama: Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady.
- Director: Martin Scorsese, Hugo.
- Actor, Musical or Comedy: Jean Dujardin, The Artist.
- Actress, Musical or Comedy: Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn.
- Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, Beginners.
- Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, The Help.
- Foreign Language: A Separation.
- Animated Film: The Adventures of Tintin.
- Screenplay: Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris.
- Original Score: Ludovic Bource, The Artist.
- Original Song: Masterpiece (music and lyrics by Madonna, Julie Frost, Jimmy Harry), W.E.
Click here to find films featuring Colin Firth
Click here to find films featuring Michelle Williams
Click here to find films featuring Christopher Plummer
Click here to find films made by Woody Allen