Well this year's Golden Globes are over and done. While a lot of the evening was used making up for what should have happened last year (ie recognition for Steven Speilberg and Rumer Willis), I was happy to see that the rest of the evening was speant awarding the new.
I don't have as many complaints about the ceremony as usual. I guess I can't complain if I were to compare it to last year's poorly executed press conference. But I really think that NBC should hire better red carpet correspondents, like people who actually know names, nominations, and can ask non-cliche questions.
Of course the big winner of the night is Slumdog Millionaire having won four awards. The Wrestler got two and everything else just got one. Surprises were a little fewer than normal but included Colin Farrell beating Dustin Hoffman, Mickey Rourke justfully beating Sean Penn, and Kate Winslet winning not one but two awards! I guess all good things come to those who wait, and after you wait, it will come twice as big.
So I got 10 out of 14 predictions correct, my best score in four years. The only website to beat me this year was Award Circuit who got 12. The winners are in bold below as well as analysis
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Best Drama Picture The Curious Case oF Benjamin Button Frost/Nixon The Reader Revolutionary Road Slumdog Millionaire |
My Prediction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button After Slumdog won its previous three awards, I knew it would win this, but I feel my unusual reasoning for picking Ben Button was justified. So Slumdog continues its best picture sweep, and this will likely be the first time in five years that the Globe best picture winner will actually become the Oscar best picture winner. I can't see anything stopping Slumdog now. |
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Best Comedy or Musical Picture Burn After Reading In Bruges Happy-Go-Lucky Mama Mia! Vicky Cristina Barcelona |
My Prediction: Vicky Cristina Barcelona I guess it was somewhat of a weak year for musicals and comedies. Therefore I knew that they would take the easy solution by awarding the Woody Allen comedy. None of these films have any Oscar hopes, so this really means nothing. |
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Best Drama Actor Leonardo Dicaprio (Revolutionary Road) Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon) Sean Penn (Milk) Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler) |
My Prediction: Mickey Rourke Yes!!! This made me so happy. I'm starting to become a big fan of Mickey Rourke. While Sean Penn decided to insult the HFPA again by being off somewhere else, Rourke gave a gracious and warming acceptance speech, and you can tell everybody there loved him. I knew it was going to happen that Rourke would eventually push Penn out of the way to become the Oscar frontrunner. I'm so glad. |
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Best Comedy or Musical Actor Javier Bardem (Vicky Cristina Barcelona) Colin Farrell (In Bruges) James Franco (Pineapple Express) Brendan Gleeson (In Bruges) Dustin Hoffman (Last Chance Harvey) |
My Prediction: Dustin Hoffman This was sort of a shocker, but I think deserving. I thought Farrell was great in In Bruges and totally deserves this award in his previously-unrewarded career, especially since Dustin Hoffman already has enough Globes under his belt. But of course, none of these men are getting Oscar nominations, so it really means nothing. |
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Best Drama Actress Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married) Angelina Jolie (Changeling) Meryl Streep (Doubt) Kristen Scott Thomas (I've Loved You So Long) Kate Winslet (Revolutionary Road) |
My Prediction: Kate Winslet After Kate won supporting, I was certain she wasn't going to win this one too, and then she did! The great Kate finally won two Globes in one night after five previous nominations. This is why I believe in karma. So now the question remains, which Oscar will Kate win? Lead, supporting, neither or both? I really don't know. |
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Best Comedy or Musical Actress Rebecca Hall (Vicky Christina Barcelona) Sally Hawkins (Happy-Go-Lucky) Frances McDormand (Burn After Reading) Meryl Streep (Mama Mia!) Emma Thompson (Last Chance Harvey) |
My Prediction: Sally Hawkins Sometimes the best moments are when a winner is truly surprised and grateful at a win, and Hawkins as well as Winslet was exemplary of that. If Oscar ballots weren't due tomorrow I bet a lot more people would be putting her on their list. So now her Oscar nomination is still a question mark, but I bet people are gunning for her now. |
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Best Supporting Actor Tom Cruise (Tropic Thunder) Robert Downey Jr. (Tropic Thunder) Ralph Fiennes (The Duchess) Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt) Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight) |
My Prediction: Heath Ledger Once again, I love how humbled the audience was after awarding this great fallen talent. And it was a nice touch to show an acting clip of Heath, the only acting clip the whole night. I'm very happy with the deserving awards sweep that Heath has been getting. |
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Best Supporting Actress Amy Adams (Doubt) Penelope Cruz (Vicky Christina Barcelona) Viola Davis (Doubt) Marisa Tomei (The Wrestler) Kate Winslet (The Reader) |
My Prediction: Penelope Cruz This is the category I thought Kate would lose, yet she won it. Since Kate has won the Globe and the BFCA for supporting, is she once again the supporting frontrunner? Is she the lead actress frontrunner? I don't know if there's ever been a year where an actor had almost exact likelihood of winning Oscars in both the lead and supporting races. |
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Best Director Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire) Stephen Daldry (The Reader) David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon) Sam Mendes (Revolutionary Road) |
My Prediction: Danny Boyle So Boyle continues his winning streak (and Ron Howard continues his Golden Globes losing streak). Although I thought Boyle did a great job, I was hoping this year's directing Oscar winner was going to be somebody a little more overdue like we had six of the last seven years, but I guess none were available this year. |
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Best Screenplay The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Doubt Frost/Nixon The Reader Slumdog Millionaire |
My Prediction: Slumdog Millionaire Slumdog has swept the screenplay categories so far and I assume it will continue to do so. However, with no original screenplays in this list, this doesn't answer any questions on who will win the Oscar for original... Oh, what am I saying? Milk will win it. |
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Best Score Changeling The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Defiance Frost/Nixon Slumdog Millionaire |
My Prediction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button I guess Slumdog will win this category at the Oscars too since it has been sweeping. However, I was hoping this year would go to one of the many overdue composers like Alexandre Desplat, Thomas Newman, James Newton Howard, or Danny Elfman. Too bad. |
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Best Song Bolt "I Thought I Lost You" Cadillac Records "Once in a Lifetime" Gran Torino "Gran Torino" Wall-E "Down to Earth" The Wrestler "The Wrestler" |
My Prediction: The Wrestler So Bruce Springsteen has swept this category so far, but I'm not so sure about the Oscars since they can be unpredictable in the song category. And Springsteen already has an Oscar, while guys like Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman don't. |
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Best Animated Film Bolt Kung-Fu Panda Wall-E |
My Prediction: Wall-E What needs to be said, really? Wall-E will win the Oscar. |
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Best Foreign Language Film The Baadar Meinhof Complex (Germany) Everlasting Moments (Sweden/Denmark) Gomorrah (Italy) I've Loved You So Long (France) Waltz With Bashir (Israel) |
My Prediction: Waltz With Bashir I knew that with all the turmoil going on in the middle-east, the Israeli film Waltz With Bashir will get more than enough sympathy votes to win this award here and at the Oscars. |