Long time readers of this blog will know the time and energy I have spent on award shows. They will also know how over the years I have mourned their continual slip into irrelevancy. I mean, does anyone care about the last 5 Best Picture Oscar winners? Can anyone name them?
This brings us to this year's Golden Globe Awards. Often looked at as a precursor to the Oscars but also a look at TV, this year looks to be incredibly uninteresting for two reasons:
1. COVID prevented a number of high-profile movies from being released this year.
2. A lot of the television involves shows I don't watch.
I'm sorry that the second reason is more personal, but I can't do my usual critique of the nominees by pointing to low ratings. Streaming services are notorious for keeping their viewing numbers private, so it is impossible to tell if a show is popular with viewers or only with critics.
I am still curious and there are few suprise nominations here, so below are my thoughts about the awards tonight. I'm only going to comment in categories where I have seen at least one nominated program:
Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy
“Emily in Paris” (Netflix)
“The Flight Attendant” (HBO Max)
“The Great” (Hulu)
“Schitt’s Creek” (CBC)
“Ted Lasso” (Apple TV Plus)
SHOULD WIN: Ted Lasso
This show was such a delight and a surprise. Not perfect, but one filled with heart and optimism overcoming cynicism with a great performance by Jason Sudekis.
WILL WIN: Schitt's Creek
This is the critical darling and I don't see that changing.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama
Jason Bateman (“Ozark”)
Josh O’Connor (“The Crown”)
Bob Odenkirk (“Better Call Saul”)
Al Pacino (“Hunters”)
Matthew Rhys (“Perry Mason”)
-DON'T WATCH ANY
Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Cate Blanchett (“Mrs. America”)
Daisy Edgar-Jones (“Normal People”)
Shira Haas (“Unorthodox”)
Nicole Kidman (“The Undoing”)
Anya Taylor-Joy (“The Queen’s Gambit”)
-HAVEN'T SEEN ANY
Best Director – Motion Picture
Emerald Fennell, “Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features)
David Fincher, “Mank” (Netflix)
Regina King, “One Night in Miami” (Amazon Studios)
Aaron Sorkin, “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix)
Chloé Zhao, “Nomadland” (Searchlight Pictures)
SHOULD WIN: David Fincher
The movie was terrible, but it looked amazing.
WILL WIN: Regina King
Based on the critical reaction to this movie, I'll bet on this one.
Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
Maria Bakalova (“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”)
Kate Hudson (“Music”)
Michelle Pfeiffer (“French Exit”)
Rosamund Pike (“I Care a Lot”)
Anya Taylor-Joy (“Emma”)
-DIDN'T SEE ANY
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama
Riz Ahmed (“Sound of Metal”)
Chadwick Boseman (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”)
Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”)
Gary Oldman (“Mank”)
Tahar Rahim (“The Mauritanian”)
SHOULD AND WILL WIN: Chadwick Boseman
Boseman gives an amazing performance that serves as a capstone to a career cut too short.
Best Television Series – Drama
“The Crown” (Netflix)
“Lovecraft Country” (HBO Max)
“The Mandalorian” (Disney Plus)
“Ozark” (Netflix)
“Ratched” (Netflix)
SHOULD WIN: The Mandalorian
Easily this should win. It is as hit with Star Wars fanboys and with general audiences, with a season finale that is one of the most delightful things I have seen in many years. It should win for those last 15 minutes alone.
WILL WIN: The Crown
As this is the foreign press who is judging, I'm putting my money on something from across the pond.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama
Olivia Colman (“The Crown”)
Jodie Comer (“Killing Eve”)
Emma Corrin (“The Crown”)
Laura Linney (“Ozark”)
Sarah Paulson (“Ratched”)
-DIDN'T SEE ANY
Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Bryan Cranston (“Your Honor”)
Jeff Daniels (“The Comey Rule”)
Hugh Grant (“The Undoing”)
Ethan Hawke (“The Good Lord Bird”)
Mark Ruffalo (“I Know This Much Is True”)
-DIDN'T SEE ANY
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
Sacha Baron Cohen (“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”)
James Corden (“The Prom”)
Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Hamilton”)
Dev Patel (“The Personal History of David Copperfield”)
Andy Samberg (“Palm Springs”)
SHOULD WIN: Lin-Manuel Miranda
There is a reason that Hamilton has become such a big hit. Of the people nominated that I have seen, Miranda gives the best performance.
WILL WIN: Sacha Baron Cohen
My guess is that this will be his reward for doing his part in the overall political climate of 2020.
Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama
Viola Davis (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”)
Andra Day (“The United States vs. Billie Holiday”)
Vanessa Kirby (“Pieces of a Woman”)
Frances McDormand (“Nomadland”)
Carey Mulligan (“Promising Young Woman”)
SHOULD AND WILL WIN: Viola Davis
She is an amazing actress that can transform into whatever the role calls for, and in this case she is a force of nature
Best Motion Picture – Drama
“The Father” (Sony Pictures Classics)
“Mank” (Netflix)
“Nomadland” (Searchlight Pictures)
“Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features)
“The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix)
SHOULD WIN: None
I've only seen Mank and that is one of the worst movies of the year.
WILL WIN: Promising Young Woman
A movie critic recently came under fire for his criticism of this movie, so my guess is that the Hollywood Foreign Press is afraid of what will happen if they do not give this movie a win.
Best Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture
Sacha Baron Cohen (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”)
Daniel Kaluuya (“Judas and the Black Messiah”)
Jared Leto (“The Little Things”)
Bill Murray (“On the Rocks”)
Leslie Odom, Jr. (“One Night in Miami”)
SHOULD WIN: Jared Leto
His performance in this movie Is perfectly creepy and ambiguous and it does what a supporting role should do: set up the characters to complete their arcs.
WILL WIN: Leslie Odom Jr.
For this and Hamilton I think he will win.
Best Original Score – Motion Picture
“The Midnight Sky” (Netflix) – Alexandre Desplat
“Tenet” (Warner Bros.) – Ludwig Göransson
“News of the World” (Universal Pictures) – James Newton Howard
“Mank” (Netflix) – Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross
“Soul” (Pixar) – Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste
-I'll be honest: even though I saw most of the movies on this list, I could not recognize the music from any of them.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy
Lily Collins (“Emily in Paris”)
Kaley Cuoco (“The Flight Attendant”)
Elle Fanning (“The Great”)
Jane Levy (“Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist”)
Catherine O’Hara (“Schitt’s Creek”)
SHOULD WIN: Kaley Cuoco
I stopped watching this show, but the first few episodes showed more nuance and intensity than I'm used to for this actress.
WILL WIN: Catherine O'Hara
This is the critical darling and I don't see that changing.
Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
“Normal People” (Hulu/BBC)
“The Queen’s Gambit” (Netflix)
“Small Axe” (Amazon Studios/BBC)
“The Undoing” (HBO)
“Unorthodox” (Netflix)
-DIDN'T SEE ANY
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
John Boyega (“Small Axe”)
Brendan Gleeson (“The Comey Rule”)
Dan Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”)
Jim Parsons (“Hollywood”)
Donald Sutherland (“The Undoing”)
-DIDN'T SEE ANY
Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” (Amazon Studios)
“Hamilton” (Walt Disney Pictures)
“Palm Springs” (Neon)
“Music” (Vertical Entertainment)
“The Prom” (Netflix)
SHOULD AND WILL WIN: Hamilton
This was the best movie to come out this year. Perhaps I am being optimistic, but the hype behind this show still endures, so that might be enough for the critics to give it the win.
Best Actress in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture
Glenn Close (“Hillbilly Elegy”)
Olivia Colman (“The Father”)
Jodie Foster (“The Mauritanian”)
Amanda Seyfried (“Mank”)
Helena Zengel (“News of the World”)
SHOULD WIN: Glenn Close
She was best actress of the year for this fantastic and powerful and authentic performance.
WILL WIN: Olivia Coleman
I know that critics savaged Hillbilly Elegy so I don't think it will win anything, so I guessed at another winner.
Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language
“Another Round” (Samuel Goldwyn Films)
“La Llorona” (Shudder)
“The Life Ahead” (Netflix)
“Minari” (A24)
“Two of Us” (Magnolia Pictures)
-DIDN'T SEE ANY
Best Screenplay – Motion Picture
Emerald Fennell – “Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features)
Jack Fincher – “Mank” (Netflix)
Aaron Sorkin – “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix)
Florian Zeller, Christopher Hampton – “The Father” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Chloe Zhao – “Nomadland” (Searchlight Pictures)
-I ONLY SAW MANK, BUT IT WAS TERRIBLE, SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT WILL WIN HERE.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy
Don Cheadle (“Black Monday”)
Nicholas Hoult (“The Great”)
Eugene Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”)
Jason Sudeikis (“Ted Lasso”)
Ramy Youssef (“Ramy”)
SHOULD WIN: Ted Lasso
As I said, Sudekis was fantastic and it was a real breakout role for him as a leading man to carry a series.
WILL WIN: Eugene Levy
This is the critical darling and I don't see that changing.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Gillian Anderson (“The Crown”)
Helena Bonham Carter (“The Crown”)
Julia Garner (“Ozark”)
Annie Murphy (“Schitt’s Creek”)
Cynthia Nixon (“Ratched”)
-DIDN'T SEE ANY
Best Original Song – Motion Picture
“Fight for You” from “Judas and the Black Messiah” (Warner Bros.) – H.E.R., Dernst Emile II, Tiara Thomas
“Hear My Voice” from “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix) – Daniel Pemberton, Celeste
“Io Si (Seen)” from “The Life Ahead” (Netflix) – Diane Warren, Laura Pausini, Niccolò Agliardi
“Speak Now” from “One Night in Miami” (Amazon Studios) – Leslie Odom Jr, Sam Ashworth
“Tigress & Tweed” from “The United States vs. Billie Holliday” (Hulu) – Andra Day, Raphael Saadiq
-DIDN'T SEE ANY
Best Motion Picture – Animated
“The Croods: A New Age” (Universal Pictures)
“Onward” (Walt Disney Pictures)
“Over the Moon” (Netflix)
“Soul” (Walt Disney Pictures)
“Wolfwalkers” (Cartoon Saloon)
SHOULD AND WILL WIN: Soul
Not one of PIXAR's best, but it was better than Onward, which is the only other movie nominated that I saw.
Thoughts?
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