Note: While the Golden Globes celebrate excellence in both film and television, for the purposes of this blog, I’ll only be focusing on the categories related to film. With one exception.
Ricky Gervais has been threatening that this will be his last time hosting The Golden Globes. He certainly tried to go out in a blaze of “Aw, fuck it.” His opening monologue included jabs at Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy and Jeffrey Epstein. He accused the Hollywood Foreign Press Association of being racist. And he even managed to work in a Sophie’s Choice joke. Poor Tom Hanks’ uncomfortable facial expressions were priceless. About the only decent joke (in all senses of the word) in Gervais’ monologue was this:
"Martin Scorsese — the greatest living director — made the news for his comments about Marvel. He said they’re not real cinema, and they remind him of theme parks. I agree. Although I don't know what he's doing hanging around theme parks. He's not big enough to go on the rides.”
Elton John and Bernie Taupin presented footage of competing film Rocketman. It was cool to see the songwriting duo appear together in public.
Parasite won Best Foreign Language Film. Director Bong Joon-ho said, “Once you overcome the one inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films. Just being nominated along with fellow, amazing international filmmakers was a huge honor. I think we use only one language: the cinema.” I couldn’t agree with this sentiment more. There are so many foreign films that I love and Parasite is the latest. I sometimes feel sad I can’t share certain films with my sister who refuses to read subtitles.
I’m glad to see Parasite honored. It’s easily one of the best films of the year. I hated Snowpiercer, but I am willing to admit when I am wrong about a director. Bong Joon-ho created a masterpiece with an all-around talented cast in Parasite. Pain and Glory is also good. Antonio Banderas gives one of his best performances as a doppelgänger of director Pedro Almodóvar. Sadly, I haven’t seen the rest of the movies in this category.
Ellen DeGeneres was awarded the Carol Burnett Award for excellence in television. Kate McKinnon presented her with the award. She said DeGeneres had given her “a road map for a way to be funny that is grounded in an expression of joy.” In her moving introduction, she also said that DeGeneres had made her feel that, as an LGBTQ person, she deserved to be on TV and to simply be alive. “She risked her entire life and her entire career in order to tell the truth, and she suffered greatly for it. Of course attitudes change, but only because brave people like Ellen jump into the fire to make them change. And if I hadn't seen her on TV, I would've thought 'I could never be on TV. They don't let LGBTQ people on TV.' And more than that, I would've gone on thinking that I was an alien and that I maybe didn't even have a right to be here.” That is the importance of representation.
Quentin Tarantino won Best Screenplay for Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood. He dedicated the award to his favorite screenwriter John Milius and to Milius’ favorite screenwriter Robert Bolt. “When you write it by yourself, you kind of don’t have anybody to thank,” Tarantino mused. “I did it.” However, he went on to thank his exceptional cast for bringing the script to life. I was disappointed in this win. Somehow, Once Upon a Time...just doesn’t feel complete to me, especially compared to other Tarantino films. I was rooting for Parasite or The Irishman to win. Even Tarantino said he couldn’t believe he beat Steve Zaillian for The Irishman.
Snubs in this category this year include:
Us by Jordan Peele My favorite movie of the year to dissect. It has endless symbolism and layers of meaning. I saw this twice the week it opened.
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood by Noah Harpster and Micah Fitzerman-Blue The frame story device was genius.
Rocketman by Lee Hall Again, the frame story device was brilliant as was the symbolism—John’s costume coming apart as he became more vulnerable.
Dolemite Is My Name by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski Two of the best bio pic writers in the biz keep impressing.
Jojo Rabbit by Taika Waititi Wacky and surreal comedy with heart.
Toy Story 4 by Andrew Stanton and Stephany Folsom A surprisingly touching story about finding one’s place in the world.
Ford v Ferrari by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, and Jason Keller A surprising, exciting, heartbreaking story.
Joker by Todd Phillips and Scott Silver A thrilling character study.
The Report by Scott Z. Burns A damning political drama.
I would take any of these two scripts over Once Upon A Time… and The Two Popes.
Missing Link won Best Animated Film in one of the most surprising upsets of the night. Granted, I haven’t seen Laika’s newest production. (It was in and out of theaters in no time this summer.) And I loved their last film, Kubo and the Two Strings. However, I strongly doubt, especially from the trailer, that Missing Link can hold a candle to either How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (a gorgeous film on the big screen) or Toy Story 4, both of which bring their series to satisfying conclusions. The Lion King didn’t deserve to be in this category as I don’t consider it to be animated. However, putting that aside, Missing Link will have a difficult time making me laugh as hard as the Timon and Pumba scenes in that remake. The only thing I see that Missing Link has going for it is that it’s not a sequel or a remake but a completely original property.
Laura Dern won Best Supporting Actress for Marriage Story. In her speech, she said, “I just want to say I feel so blessed to be part of a film that, yes, tells the story of a family finding their way for their child through the end of a marriage, but the global look that Noah takes at what divisiveness is and how we must all come together as one for the sake of something greater. Perhaps our planet, even. So thank you so much, Noah, for the most incredible ride ever. All my love. Thank you all.”
After all the buzz, I had figured J. Lo was the frontrunner to win. I was rooting for Annette Bening for The Report. Out of the nominees, her performance was my favorite. She’s powerful and her scenes with Adam Driver are electric.
Snubs in this category include:
Elisabeth Moss in Us That scene with the mirror!
Kaitlyn Dever in Booksmart The movie doesn’t work without its reluctant other half.
Bryce Dallas Howard in Rocketman as an emotionally abusive mother.
Any of the actresses in Parasite
Scarlett Johansson in Jojo Rabbit as the life affirming mother.
Elton John and Bernie Taupin won Best Original Song for “I’m Gonna Love Me Again” from Rocketman. Taylor Swift graciously stood and applauded. Taupin described his relationship with John as something rare in Hollywood: a fifty-two year old marriage. This is the first award the two of them have ever won together. As a Swiftie, I was rooting for “Beautiful Ghosts” to win but I’m also happy Elton and Bernie won. I’m greatly disappointed that the Oscars have already removed “Beautiful Ghosts” from the running.
Charlize Theron presented Tom Hanks with the Cecil B. DeMille Award. She said, “While Tom does give us the chance to see ourselves on screen, he also presents a vision of who we could be. He stands for all the qualities we aspire to, both onscreen and off. He gives us enough laughter to weather our storms.”
The ever humble Hanks said “Most of these people I would pay to see get their car washed.” He got choked up as he said, “A man is blessed with a family like that,” indicating his wife and children. He spoke about his influences, from his contemporaries to his predecessors.
He said, “A movie is made shot by shot. And at that moment what is required is everybody has to do their job to their perfection. They have to hit a mark, and they have to go there. Sometimes the movie rests on the shoulders of the makeup artists who put on Stella Skarsgard’s eyebrows. Sometimes it’s the focus puller that if it isn’t sharp, you don’t have it, and it shows up and you have to do it all over again. But it’s those moments as an actor where everybody I’ve ever worked with has helped me get to that place. Sometimes it’s three o’clock in the morning, and sometimes it’s 11 at night in which you just have to somehow put it all together, have faith in what the process is and go there.
A thousand years ago, in 1977, when I was an intern at the Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival, my first professional job, we all got yelled at by Dan Sullivan, the director. We had partied a little bit too much the night before, we were showing up for rehearsals, and he screamed at us, well he did actually scream at us. He said, "Hey, look, you guys, you guys, you actors, you know what your job is? You know what your job is? You have got to show up on time, and you have to know the text, and you have to have a head full of ideas. Otherwise I can't do my job." That was the greatest lesson a young actor could possibly ever get. First of all, the head full of ideas. Bring anything, try anything. They might not use it. If it stinks, they won't use it. Am I right, Marty Scorsese? If it's not good—boy, let's see the outtakes from that movie, by the way.
Knowing the text, and it's not just your lines, it's the whole thing, it's the red dot, it's the theme of the movie. You've got to know it. You might not be right in what the opinion that you bring to it, but you've got to come at it with some direction. And as Charlize might know, and some of the other people who've worked with us through the Playtone galaxy of stars, showing up on time is one of the greatest liberating acts you can give yourself in a movie. That means those people with radios in the ears don't need to knock on your door and say, "They're ready for you." You're actually already ready, and you have the liberty and you have the freedom of being there early enough to settle down because when the time comes, you have to hit the marks, and you have to go there.”
Sam Mendes won Best Director for 1917. I consider this an upset. The movie doesn’t open until later this week, so I haven’ t had a chance to see it yet. And I love Sam Mendes as much as the next guy. I was a huge fan of American Beauty and I love the Bond films Skyfall and Spectre. Speaking of Tom Hanks, I also love Road to Perdition. (You need to see it if you haven’t) However, I can’t imagine that 1917 is as moving and original as Parasite or as awesome as The Irishman.
Snubs in this category include:
Marie Heller, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
There were several notable women mentioned as contenders for Best Director (Greta Gerwig for Little Women, Alma Har’el for Honey Boy) but this is the one I’m going to bat for. Heller is building quite an impressive filmography as the HFPA and the Academy openly ignore her. Each of her films is significantly different from the other. The fact that Scorsese made another three hour plus gangster epic surprises exactly no one. That Heller chose a biopic of Mister Rogers as her next project after the darkly comic Can You Ever Forgive Me? is more of a creative leap. Here’s hoping she gets her comeuppance soon. Similarly, I’m not sure Tarantino made me feel anything half as tender as A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood did. And he had three hours to get across whatever emotions he wanted to convey.
Jordan Peele, Us See my previous comments.
Anthony and Joe Russo, Avengers: Endgame They masterfully brought a twelve year saga to a close.
Taika Waititi, Jojo Rabbit He found the perfect tone for this darkly funny yet sweet film.
James Mangold, Ford v Ferrari Those amazing, suspenseful car races didn’t direct themselves.
Joker won Best Original Score. I don’t have strong feelings about this category. It would have been nice for Motherless Brooklyn to win something. Hildur Guðnadóttir became the first solo female to win Best Original Score.
Brad Pitt won Best Supporting Actor. I’d rather have seen Tom Hanks win for his gentle turn as Fred Rogers in A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood or Joe Pesci for The Irishman. In his acceptance speech, Pitt thanked Leonardo DiCaprio and said, “I would’ve shared the raft.” He also said, “If you see a chance to be kind to someone tomorrow, take it. I think we need it.” Pitt also won for Best Supporting Actor in 1996 for 12 Monkeys.
Snubs in this category include:
John Lithgow’s understated turn in Late Night
Robert Carlyle’s surprising and delightful cameo in Yesterday
Rob Brydon who’s a father figure to the main character in Blinded by the Light
Shia LaBeouf who tugs at your heartstrings in The Peanut Butter Falcon
Jamie Bell as faithful friend and songwriting partner Bernie Taupin in Rocketman
Bill Hader who is the surprising heart of It Chapter Two
Willem Dafoe who entertainingly chews the scenery in The Lighthouse
Sam Rockwell as a darkly funny Nazi who commits one kind act in Jojo Rabbit
Shia LaBeouf for his cathartic turn playing his own father in Honey Boy
Noah Jupe for the other most impressive child acting job I’ve seen all year in Honey Boy
Taron Egerton won Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical for Rocketman. It was his first nomination and win. He thanked Elton John for the music and for living a life less ordinary. I’m pretty satisfied with this win. I’d have been okay with Eddie Murphy winning for Dolemite Is My Name or Roman Griffin Davis for Jojo Rabbit.
Daniel Craig did not belong in this category. His performance was okay. I wasn’t bowled over by it. And his supposedly southern accent grated on my girlfriend’s nerves.
Snubs in this category include:
Himesh Patel in Yesterday, a true new talent
Viveik Kalra in Blinded by the Light, the heart of this film
Zack Gottsagen in The Peanut Butter Falcon, one of the year’s true discoveries
Awkwafina won Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical for The Farewell. It was her first nomination and win. She was the first person of Asian descent to win Best Actress in a Comedy.
“If I fall upon hard times, I can sell this,” she said. She dedicated the award to her family. “To my grandma, my best friend, the woman who raised me. I’d love to dedicate this to my dad, Wally. I told you I’d get a job, Dad. And to my mother, Tia, who I always hoped was watching from somewhere above. I hope that she’s watching now.” I’m glad to see Awkwafina recognized. She was one of my favorite things about the movies in 2018.
This was one of my favorite categories this year. I was so glad to see Beanie Feldstein nominated for Booksmart and Emma Thompson nominated for Late Night. My major disappointment is that Jillian Bell was not nominated for Brittany Runs a Marathon which was one of my favorite performances of the year.
Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood won Best Comedy or Musical even though I consider it to be neither. Same with Knives Out which is a mystery/drama. The following films are all funnier than either of these movies and more deserving to be in this category:
Booksmart The funniest duo on screen this year. I was in love from the trailer.
The Peanut Butter Falcon I don’t want to ruin this for you. Just watch it. Trust me.
Brittany Runs a Marathon This is Jillian Bell’s coming out party. She’s simply amazing.
Blinded by the Light This tribute to Bruce Springsteen is full of humor and heart.
Yesterday A smart, fun, love letter to the Beatles with a great cast.
Long Shot Seth Rogen and Charlize Theron make rom-coms fun again.
JoJo Rabbit is one of the best comedies of the year. You can find my review of it here. Rocketman was an amazing biopic that used Elton John’s songs in ways that weren’t obvious and pandering. You can find my review of it here. Dolemite Is My Name is a fun and entertaining biopic that kicks off Eddie Murphy’s comeback. All three would have been worthy of a Globe.
Joaquin Phoenix won Best Actor in a Drama for The Joker. He told his fellow actors that he felt honored to be mentioned with them. He thanked the HFPA for serving a vegan meal and acknowledging the link between animal agriculture and climate change. He also encouraged the audience to do more than just vote and donate where issues like the fires in Australia, global warming, politics, etc were concerned and to take real action instead. I’m pretty satisfied with this win. I would have been satisfied with Christian Bale winning for Ford v Ferrari as well.
Snubs in this category include:
Matt Damon for Ford v Ferrari as a fast talking, fast driving charmer
Robert Downey Jr. for Avengers: Endgame, “Proof that Tony Stark has a heart.”
Ed Norton for Motherless Brooklyn as a detective saddled with Tourettes
Kang-ho Song for Parasite as a scheming father who’ll do anything to help his family
Renee Zellweger won Best Actress in a Drama for Judy. It was her fourth win and seventh nomination. She said, “It’s the journey that matters and the work that matters.” She talked about how many people have come up to her to share their memories of Judy Garland and what it has meant to her and taught her. “And the conversations that I have had with people internationally who just want express their love for Judy Garland, and tell about the great personal significance of her legacy and her humanity has been a great reminder that the choices that we make matter, what we make matters, and how we choose to honor each other in our lifetimes can matter a great deal down the road. Thank you so much, everybody." I’m satisfied with this win. Zellweger was amazing as Judy Garland.
Snubs in this category include:
Lupita Nyong’o for Us
The women in Parasite
1917 won Best Drama in the night’s final upset. Again, how this movie can touch The Irishman is beyond me. I can understand that people may not be ready to give a comic book movie Best Picture yet. I feel like The Two Popes took the slot of other more deserving films.
The Irishman is a masterpiece. You can find my review of it here. Marriage Story is one of Noah Baumbach’s strongest films. Joker was a striking character piece and conversation starter. 1917 won’t open in my neck of the woods until Friday. The Two Popes seems like a weak pick in a year full of strong movies.
Movies that should have taken The Two Popes’ slot include :
Avengers: Endgame Marvel wrapped up a 12-year saga beautifully.
Us This symbolic horror film has infinite layers of meaning.
Ford v Ferrari Damon and Bale bring depth to one of the year’s most exciting films.
A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood Tom Hanks brings to life the gentle spirit of Fred Rogers.
The Report A necessary drama about government corruption
Motherless Brooklyn Ed Norton gives a powerful performance
We will find out in a few days what this all means for The Oscars when the nominees are announced. What I love about the Globes is that there are more categories and thus a chance to honor more performances. Best Actor and Best Actress get reduced to five slots for The Oscars. 1917 seems to be a surprise spoiler. Will it get as much love from the Academy? Will Tarantino finally win Best Director and/or Picture? Subscribe to the newsletter and like the Facebook page for the answers to these and other burning questions.