I’ve talked a lot of crap about the Golden Globes in the past, how they’re run by a shadowy cabal of foreign journalists who work for publications no one’s heard of and have closed membership, and generally choose nominees based on who throws the best parties, but after this year, I may have to rescind my criticism. Aside from bringing back Ricky Gervais to host (guaranteeing it will be more watchable than the Billy Crystal-hosted Oscars), they released their nominations today, and dare I say they’re pleasantly surprising. 50/50 finally got some recognition as a best picture of the year, and Brendan Gleeson got a nomination for The Guard. Even *I* had almost forgotten how awesome The Guard was.
That said, I have no idea how My Week with Marilyn is considered a comedy (mainly because I haven’t seen it — don’t all these movies come out next week?) and anyone who nominates The Iron Lady for anything should be forced to watch it three times in a row. That’s punishment enough. It’s like the iron maiden, but the pain is crushing boredom.
Also, why does Moneyball get a screenplay nomination again? Was it for that touching scene where Billy Beane’s daughter sings him a song from a jean commercial? Brilliant writing, that. It highlighted nicely the father-daughter relationship that was totally superfluous. So okay, I suppose that ‘great’ in the headline was a stretch, but it was still nice to see 50/50 and The Guard get recognized.
Hopefully next year they add a “Best Actor in a Spandex Suit” so Andy Serkis can win.
Best Picture, Comedy/Musical:
The Artist
Bridesmaids
Midnight in Paris
My Week with Marilyn
50/50
Best Picture, Drama:
The Help
The Descendants
Hugo
The Ides of March
Moneyball
Warhorse
Best Actress, Comedy:
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn
Charlize Theron, Young Adult
Kristin Wiig, Bridesmaids
Kate Winslet, Carnage
Jodie Foster, Carnage
Best Actor, Comedy
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Owen Wilson, Midnight in Paris
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 50/50
Brendan Gleeson, The Guard
Ryan Gosling, Crazy, Stupid, Love
Best Actress, Drama:
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Tilda Swinton, We Need to Talk About Kevin
Best Actor, Drama:
George Clooney, The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio, J. Edgar
Brad Pitt, Moneyball
Ryan Gosling, The Ides of March
Michael Fassbender, Shame
Best Director:
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
George Clooney, Ides of March
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Best Supporting Actress:
Octavia Spencer, The Help
Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
Shailene Woodley, The Descendants
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Best Supporting Actor:
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
Albert Brooks, Drive
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Viggo Mortensen, A Dangerous Method
TV Series, Drama:
American Horror Story
Boardwalk Empire
Boss
Game of Thrones
Homeland
TV Series, Comedy:
Enlightened
Episodes
Glee
Modern Family
New Girl
TV Actress, Comedy:
Laura Dern, Enlightenment
Zooey Deschanel, New Girl
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Laura Linney, The Big C
Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation
TV Actress, Drama:
Claire Danes, Homeland
Mireille Enos, The Killing
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Madeleine Stowe, Revenge
Callie Thorne, Necessary Roughness
TV Actor, Drama:
Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Kelsey Grammar, Boss
Jeremy Irons, The Borgias
Damian Lewis, Homeland
TV Actor, Comedy
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
David Duchovny, Californication
Johnny Galecki, The Big Bang Theory
Thomas Jane, Hung
Matt LeBlanc, Episodes
Best Screenplay
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, The Descendants
George Clooney, Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon, The Ides of March
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zaillian, Moneyball
Best Foreign Language Film
The Flowers of War
In the Land of Blood and Honey
The Kid With a Bike
A Separation
The Skin I Live In
Best Animated Feature
The Adventures of Tintin
Arthur Christmas
Cars 2
Puss in Boots
Rango
Best Original Score
Ludovic Bource, The Artist
Trent Reznor and Attivus Ross, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Howard Shore, Hugo
John Williams, War Horse
Abel Korzeniowski, W.E.
Best Original Song
“Lay Your Head Down,” Albert Nobbs
“Hello Hello,” Gnomeo and Juliet
“The Living Proof,” The Help
“The Keeper,” Machine Gun Preacher
“Masterpiece,” W.E.
[via Videogum]