The Globes are over and done with (and perhaps best left that way), but let’s take a look at how Team HitFix did with our predictions in any case.
Guy Lodge was the only one of us to correctly guess “12 Years a Slave” for the Best Picture – Drama prize. Greg and I were figuring on “Gravity.” But we all agreed Alfonso Cuarón would be crowned Best Director for his space epic and indeed he was.
In the acting ranks, Guy and I figured on “12 Years a Slave” star Chiwetel Ejiofor landing the drama win for lead actor, but of course, we were wrong (seeing as the HFPA only gave that film the one prize on the evening). Greg nailed it, though, guessing Matthew McConaughey. On the comedy/musical side of that line, however, our guesses were all over the place. Guy figured on Bruce Dern. Greg went out on a limb for Joaquin Phoenix. But I was correct in placing a bet on the movie star: Leonardo DiCaprio. (Though in fairness, it was a last-minute switch; I had been anticipating Dern along with Guy.)
As for leading ladies, we all knew Cate Blanchett was going to win in drama for her sure-to-be-Oscar-winning work in “Blue Jasmine,” but I chased a flight of fancy that Meryl Streep would win in the comedy field, despite the fact that HFPA didn’t much like “August: Osage County.” Big mistake and I should have stuck with that initial hunch, Amy Adams, as Guy and Greg did; the HFPA loved “American Hustle” and it was her time, after all.
Speaking of which, we all figured they would love David O. Russell’s film enough to hand it the screenplay prize, so none of us saw Spike Jonze and “Her” coming on that score.
Circling around to the supporting ranks, we all correctly pegged Jared Leto to win for “Dallas Buyers Club,” a runaway train at this point. But Guy kept figuring on “12 Years a Slave” with his Lupita Nyong’o bet. Greg and I went with eventual winner Jennifer Lawrence.
No surprise to any of us that “Frozen” would win Best Animated Feature, but we weren’t so together in solidarity for its original song prospects. Greg figured on “Let it Go,” while Guy thought HFPA would give “Inside Llewyn Davis” the prize for “Please Mr. Kennedy.” But my bet was that superstars U2 would grace the stage for “Ordinary Love” from “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom,” and so they did.
Sticking with music, Guy was the smart one to pick “All is Lost” as Greg figured on “Gravity” and I was thinking Hans Zimmer would take it for “12 Years a Slave.” We also had completely different ideas on Best Foreign Film, Greg opting for “The Hunt,” Guy betting on critical darling “Blue is the Warmest Color” and me going out on a limb for “The Great Beauty” (which paid off).
So what were the final tallies? Drumroll please…
Gregory Ellwood: 8/14
Guy Lodge: 8/14
Kristopher Tapley: 9/14
Whew. By the skin of my teeth. (And by the way, Dan Fienberg went 5/11 on the always mercurial TV side of things.)
How did you do on your Golden Globe predictions? Tell us in the comments section.