Monday 11 January 2016

Golden Globes 2016: Winners and Losers


The Golden Globes have been and gone for another year! There were some highs (Stallone winning for Creed pulled at the heartstrings) and some lows (Kirsten Dunst was robbed!), making this your typical ceremony that is filled with shocks, snubs and the occasional flub. Here are some thoughts and comments on the winners and losers from the 2016 Globes.


All aboard the Leo train - next stop, Oscar Town


It might not have been the biggest shock of the night, but Leonardo DiCaprio's Best Actor (Drama) win for his role in The Revenant was possibly the most satisfying award handed out.

It's not his first Golden Globe (he previously won for The Aviator and The Wolf of Wall Street), but the standing ovation Leo received following the announcement was telling; he's the guy in the room that everyone knows is long overdue the Oscar. What's more, it's for a role that is genuinely one of the best we've seen from him.

With comparatively weak competition in his category (could Matt Damon upset the applecart? More on that later), Leo looks set to receive the lauded golden statuette in just a few short weeks - thrilling move fans, industry figures and the Internet at large.


The Revenant moves to the top of the pile


Best Director, Best Actor (Drama) and Best Motion Picture (Drama) - it was a fantastic evening for The Revenant with three wins from four nominations, and all this on the same weekend that it opened nationwide in the United States and here in Australia to boot.

Despite clinging to the lowest Rotten Tomatoes score from the bunch, The Revenant outshone more favoured contenders like Spotlight and Carol to take home the coveted Best Motion Picture (Drama) win, setting up a potential second straight Oscar success for Alejandro Iñárritu (who also scored the win for Best Director). Could the survive-at-all-costs tale romp home to sweep the board at the Academy Awards? A cheeky sweetener in the form of a Best Cinematography nomination wouldn't go amiss either if you ask me. Whilst I'm certain it won't have it all its own way, it was interesting to see The Revenant move so rapidly to the top of a pile that, previously, had looked so muddled.

Be sure to check back later in the week to read my full length review of The Revenant.


Are you 'avin a laff? 


Another talking point going into the evening was The Martian's controversial inclusion in the Comedy or Musical category, so I'm going to set the record straight on this one - is The Martian a comedy? No, not really. Is it still the funniest film from the pool of films it was up against? Absolutely. Spy and Joy were mixed at best, and I've yet to see The Big Short (it opens here on Thursday). Trainwreck was probably the funniest actual comedy in this category, but there was so many good vibes surrounding The Martian that it's hard to disagree with the HFPA's decision.

It was left to Matt Damon to have the last laugh backstage - asked to comment on the category his film was placed in, Damon cheerfully remarked that The Martian was in fact "a musical". Can we expect Damon's cheesy grin to carry across to Oscar night? With the Globe under his belt, it's a safe bet that he'll be at least nominated for Best Actor, even if the final honours will go to someone in a more dramatic role like DiCaprio. 


Heavy hitters head home empty handed 


Just a few short hours ago, the list of Oscar frontrunners was long enough to stretch from here to the Moon and back. As is usually the case, we've now got a much firmer grasp of who we can expect to triumph and who will sadly go home empty handed because, well, they also missed out at the Globes. The Big Short, Carol, Spotlight and Mad Max: Fury Road all trailed home without a single win, despite being strong favourites in the Best Director, Best Actress (Drama) and Best Actor in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) categories.

The biggest shock in this selection was The Big Short - I was certain that Steve Carrell or Christian Bale would at least lock in one win in their category, whilst the double-whammy of Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara in Best Actress (Drama) failed to connect with the HFPA voters. It's a shame, because both of these films and their performances have been earning a lot of adulation - but on the night, it looks like the wind just wasn't blowing their way.


Too little Ricky 


I know he's not everyone's cup of tea, but does anyone else feel like Gervais was underused as host? The opening monologue he served up probably wasn't his best effort, but he did get one or two really great gags in there - but from that point on, his appearances on stage were few and far between. It was nice to have him back, even if Tina and Amy have more universal appeal and a broader sense of humour. I certainly wouldn't object to seeing Gervais return once more next year.

So that's that, the weird and wacky affair that is the Golden Globes have wrapped for another year - there's a lot I didn't mention in this wrap-up, but feel free to chat about anything I missed in the comments! Thanks for reading.

2 comments:

  1. I really hope Leo parlays this win into Oscar. And I loved the back and forth between Ricky Gervais and Mel Gibson.

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    Replies
    1. It's looking more and more likely - I don't think anyone else in his category is even close to stealing the win.

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