Thursday, December 11, 2008

Golden Snubs.

The Hollywood Foreign Press had no doubt snubbing last knight's milk or something corny like that... as they announced their nominees for the 66th annual Golden Globe Awards and proved just how brilliantly insane they can get sometimes.
Bringing back to the spotlight films that were considered dead for award consideration (Both Kate Winslet pictures in "Best Drama"!) and featuring what might be the craziest Best Supporting Actor nominees ever, they always put a smile on your face, while they are a kick in the liver for others.

Motion Picture Nominees

Best Picture, Drama

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
"Frost/Nixon"
"The Reader"
"Revolutionary Road"
"Slumdog Millionaire"

Best Picture Comedy/Musical
"Burn After Reading"
"Happy Go Lucky"
"In Bruges"
"Mamma Mia"
"Vicky Cristina Barcelona"

Director
Danny Boyle, "Slumdog Millionaire"
Stephen Daldry, "The Reader"
David Fincher, "Ben Button"
Ron Howard, "Frost/Nixon"
Sam Mendes, "Revolutionary Road"

Actor, Drama
Leo DiCaprio, "Revolutionary Road"
Frank Langella, "Frost/Nixon"
Sean Penn, "Milk"
Brad Pitt, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
Mickey Rourke, "The Wrestler"

Actress, Drama
Anne Hathaway, "Rachel Getting Married"
Angelina Joie, "Changeling"
Meryl Streep, "Doubt"
Kristin Scott Thomas, "I’ve Loved you So Long"
Kate Winslet, "Revolutionary Road"

Supporting Actor
Tom Cruise, "Tropic Thunder"
Robert Downey Jr. "Tropic Tunder"
Ralph Fiennes, "The Duchess"
Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Doubt"
Heath Ledger, "The Dark Knight"

Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, "Doubt"
Penelope Cruz, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"
Viola Davis, "Doubt"
Marisa Tomei, "The Wrestler"
Kate Winslet, "The Reader"

Actor, Comedy
Javier Bardem, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"
Colin Farrel, "In Bruges"
James Franco, "Pineapple Express"
Brendan Gleason, "In Bruges"
Dustin Hoffman, "Last Chance Harvey"

Actress, Comedy
Rebecca Hall, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"
Sally Hawkins, "Happy-Go-Lucky"
Frances McDormand, "Burn After Reading"
Meryl Streep, "Mamma Mia"
Emma Thompson, "Last Chance Harvey"

Foreign Language Film
"The Baader Meinhof Complex" (Germany)
"Everlasting Moments" (Sweden)
"Gomorrah" (Italy)
"I’ve Loved You So Long" (France)
"Waltz with Bashir" (Israel)

Animated Feature
"Bolt"
"Kung Fu Panda"
"Wall-E"

Screenplay
"Slumdog Millionaire"
"The Reader"
"Frost/Nixon"
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
"Doubt"

Score
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
"Changeling"
"Defiance"
"Slumdog Millionaire"
"Frost/Nixon"

Song
Down to Earth, "Wall-E"
Gran Torino, "Gran Torino"
I thought I Lost You, "Bolt"
Once in a Lifetime, "Cadillac Records"
The Wrestler, "The Wrestler"

The HFPA always makes sure their nominations announcement is sort of a prelude to the fratboy-ish nature of the actual ceremony.
This year they made Brooke Shields name Tom Cruise as a nominee for "Best Supporting Actor" which made the entire room burst out in laughter and gave Brooke an awkward smirk.
Other great moments included when James Franco was nominated for the least expected of his roles, the TV guy from E! predicting Cruise's nod and when "In Bruges" made a sudden appearance (it is a very good movie after all and Colin Farrell was superb).
Now the actual nominations were felt like a splash of cold water especially when "The Dark Knight" and "Milk" were not nominated for Best Picture and received exactly one nomination each.
It won't be long now 'til fanboys condemn the HFPA of hating comic books (forgetting that they have nominated the previous Batman films) and others start accusing them of homophobia (forgetting that in its year "Brokeback Mountain" won in the major categories).
The fact that they nominated Heath Ledger and Sean Penn means they saw, but they didn't love. Actually by taking a look at Best Supporting Actor you might actually say Ledger is a lock, although Ralph Fiennes was the best thing in "The Duchess".
Moving on, it was great to see Kate get the boost she needed. It was weird how they snubbed "Sex and the City" which they adored during its TV run and I'm ecstatic about the "Happy-Go-Lucky" love. Sally Hawkins pretty much has this in the bag.
Yay Penélope again and apparently they loved Woody Allen's film, sadly not enough to nominate him as well (the Oscar nod for Best Screenplay looks more promising now).
Overall it's an eclectic mix of nominees, including snubs and the very deserving ones.
After last year's sad press conference am I the only one childishly excited that the Globes are back?

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