With awards season in full swing we find ourselves giving Hollywood a pat on the back for a great year in movies and television with the 67th Golden Globes Awards Ceremony. However, as with any awards program, the best movies and television shows do not always walk away with the awards (think Taylor Swift vs. Beyonce at the Video Music Awards, as much as I may hate to admit it, Kayne was right).
The first, and probably the biggest, gaff this year, was giving James Cameron’s Avatar the Globe for best drama. Yes, the visuals were stunning. And yes, the movie may revolutionize filmmaking. But that alone does not warrant the best picture award. Avatar had more holes in the plot than unpleasant holiday dinners this season. Besides the lazy writing and bad dialogue, the character development left a lot to be desired (exactly why does this character have a change of heart??). My pick for the Best Picture Globe would have been The Hurt Locker. Left off of the list was the Coen Brother’s picture, A Serious Man, which was one of my favorite movies of the year.
My second problem with this year’s Globes was the pick for best Musical or Comedy, which was The Hangover. Although the movie was funny, and the highest grossing rated R comedy of all time, I thought that it did not have the heart or the laughs that (500) Days of Summer. The later film also had the stylistic vision that is refreshing in a comedy, somewhat of an Annie Hall for our generation.
As for best lead actors and actresses, I had two problems with the Globe winners. First, Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side should not have won. The Globe should have gone to Carey Mulligan for An Education, which was probably the best breakout performance from a young actor in years. I also prefer Michael Stuhlbarg’s performance in A Serious Man to Robert Downey Jr. in Sherlock Holmes.
The Best Screenplay Globe went to Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner for Up in the Air. I think this was more a pick for the subject matter, the economic crisis, than the quality of the script. Inglorious Basterds by Quentin Tarantino would have been a much better pick. The dialogue, especially of the first scene, will be a classic for years to come.
The one pick I agree with was Christopher Waltz’s Best Supporting Actor Globe for his performance as Hans Landa in Inglorious Basterds. I believe he gave the strongest performance of the year and he gave probably one of the best villains of the decade, if not in all of Tarantino’s movies.
Hopefully the Oscars will pick up the ball.
Alex Rich
alex-rich@uiowa.edu
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