GOLDEN GLOBES RECAP
The red carpet is starting to roll out, starting with the Golden Globes last night. Let's look at the biggest winners of the night!
In case you missed it, check out my newsletter’s 2022 WRAPPED here:
2022 TOP 20 LIST COMING NEXT WEEK!!!!!!!!!
The Golden Globes, an awards show that seemingly reappeared out of thin air, happened last night. In a lot of ways, it’s just like any other awards shows – glitzy red carpet outfits, awards for the biggest movies (and TV) of the year, teary-eyed celebrity speeches, the works. But the Globes also told a different story this year. One of dramatically lower viewership, controversy following the show’s cancellation last year, and loads of celebrity no-shows.
As you may recall, the Globes weren’t an official ceremony last year. In 2021, the LA Times released a damning Exposé of the Globes, revealing that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) contained no Black members and had engaged in unethical conduct and suspect financial practices. This sparked an industry-wide boycott of the show, which is why there was no ceremony last year.
2023 was meant to be the comeback year for the Globe, especially following expansive reforms implemented by the HFPA, including banning members from accepting gifts and the addition of 103 internationally based voters. The HFPA, which was acquired by Eldridge Industries and turned into a for-profit entity, now has a voting pool that is 52 percent female and 51.5 percent racially and ethnically diverse.
What does that mean for the show this year? Let’s dig into the comeback:
Winners
Like I wrote about last year, the awards circuit will typically reward the same movies over and over across the shows spanning the spring. Two reasons. Firstly, voters are swayed heavily by word-of-mouth and success stories. Movies can gain momentum as they accelerate through the season – voters will latch onto certain ones, which then win awards, which then inspire future voters to vote for the same movies. There’s a sense of inertia, which means we can use these to predict shows like the Oscars.
It becomes slightly harder to parse it all out with the Globes because they separate awards into two categories: Drama and Musical/Comedy. Each not only has their own best picture, but their own acting awards as well. But it’s clear that certain movies and actors are positioned to do really well this season.
Everything, Everywhere, All at Once is certainly one of those movies. Taking home Best comedic actress (Michelle Yeoh) and supporting actor (Ke Huay Quan) is enormous for such a small production that came out so long ago! I think Ke Huay Quan especially has supporting actor awards in the bag for the rest of the season.
The leading best Picture candidates are starting to emerge as well. The Fabelmans, Spielberg’s deeply personal newest piece, took home best Drama and best Director.
The Banshees of Inisherin, about a dying friendship in Ireland, pulled best Musical/Comedy, best comedic actor for Colin Farrell, and best screenplay. Both are certain to clean up as the weeks go by (and deservedly so – I loved them both).
And there are plenty of individual winners that I was happy to see. Best original song went to Telugu-movie RRR’s Nattu Nattu, another big win for South Asian cinema! (Although I had hoped it would take home the best foreign film award). Austin Butler (Elvis) and Cate Blanchett (Tár) seem even more locked in for wins in the big acting categories following their respective Golden Globes for Drama performances. There are nominees I was sad to see lose, but there really wasn’t an award given last night that disappointed me.
I’ve paid less attention to TV but there are some gems in the stories there as well. Abbott Elementary’s win for best Comedic TV Series alongside Quita Brunson’s best actress win are gems in and of themselves.
You can see the full list of winners here.
Losers: The Awards Shows
Film awards feel like a dying entity. Who is really paying attention to these anymore? Media is so accessible by all standards and there’s no longer any real correlation between awards performance and commercial performance.
Besides, there’s a growing perspective that Hollywood will always prefer snobbish elite ‘art’ over what people actually like. Every so often the two coalesce – I think movies like EEAAO and Elvis winning awards (and Top Gun: Maverick if it does well on the circuit) can help challenge those. But the divide is real and part of the reason that people just don’t care about the awards anymore.
I alternate between wanting nothing to do with the Awards circuit and watching it fanatically. It’ll always be fun to root for my favorite art from the year and I’m still a believer in how the awards can constantly expose people to new art (as well as boost people’s careers!). But I see and appreciate both sides!
WEEKEND STREAMING RECOMMENDATION
The Banshees of Inisherin (2022) dir. Martin McDonagh. Available on HBO Max
Two lifelong friends find themselves at an impasse when one abruptly ends their relationship, with alarming consequences for both of them. Wow. More to come in my 2022 review, but this movie is phenomenal, certainly one of the best I’ve seen this year and in a long time. Somehow the saddest and also the funniest movie I’ve seen all year (seriously — I laughed out loud the whole time). I think this is a perfect example of how awards can amplify art that you otherwise never would’ve encountered — I hope this continues to clean up as it did at the Globes.
See you all again next week. Until then, please get in touch if you have any thoughts or suggestions you’d like to share. If you want to keep up with what I’m watching, follow me on Letterboxd @atharv_gupta.
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