Golden Globe Nominee Round-up (Movie Edition)

So this morning (meaning 12:00 pm), I bounded for my computer (meaning groggily reached for it from my bed) and examined the nominees for the upcoming 2010 Golden Globe awards. I honestly don't know why I get excited about these, because every year I am always very unfortunately reminded that the Golden Globes are really sort of ridiculous. Honestly, The Hollywood Foreign Press has to be the only institution that would actually nominate Sandra Bullock for not one, but TWO performances in what looked like slightly above mediocre films, but I'll get to that in a moment. Let's start with the big ones. As a disclaimer, it’s always very difficult to predict the Golden Globes because people always inevitably are REALLY predicting the Oscars, and the Golden Globes tend to be all over the place whereas the Oscars have a noticeable trend. As another disclaimer, I have not seen many of these films as I do not have access to a movie theater that would show these films.

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Up in the Air

Not a WHOLE lot of surprises here. I’d be lying if I said a small part of me wasn’t holding a glimmer of hope for Bright Star, but then again, Pride & Prejudice was not nominated for Best Picture in 2005. Anyhow, The only surprise for me is Inglourious Basterds. I know that movie got very good reviews, but I suppose I always considered it more of a comedy than a drama. This gives me all the more reason to go see it, I suppose.
WILL WIN: Either Precious or Up in the Air
COULD WIN: The Hurt Locker

BEST MOTION PICTURE – MUSICAL OR COMEDY
(500) Days of Summer
The Hangover
It’s Complicated
Julie & Julia
Nine

This category always baffles me in the sense that I have never been able to fully understand its purpose. Why not make one category? That way, we won’t have to actually say the sentence “The Hangover got nominated for Best Picture.” This is like last year when James Franco got nominated for Pineapple Express and NOT Milk? Huh? Plus it’s always a horribly uneven category, as there are plenty of musicals that are not comedies at all, for example, NINE as opposed to THE HANGOVER. Seriously, I do not understand this category.
WILL WIN: Nine
COULD WIN: (500) Days of Summer, It’s Complicated


BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR – DRAMA
Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart
George Clooney – Up in the Air
Colin Firth – A Single Man
Morgan Freeman – Invictus
Tobey Maguire – Brothers

I don’t have many thoughts on this category, nothing terribly surprising. All these actors have been getting a lot of praise for their performances. Jeff Bridges is sort of taking everyone by storm with this Crazy Heart movie, so that’s exciting. I sort of hope George Clooney wins cuz god knows he’ll be drunk by the time he has to make his speech and I know we’d all enjoy that. He was drunk a few years ago when he won Supporting Actor, and that was the first award of the night.
WILL WIN: (tentatively) Jeff Bridges
COULD WIN: Colin Firth, George Clooney, Morgan Freeman

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS – DRAMA
Emily Blunt – The Young Victoria
Sandra Bullock – The Blind Side
Helen Mirren – The Last Station
Carey Mulligan – An Education
Gabourey ‘Gabby’ Sidibe – Precious

Now here is where I have a bone to pick with you, HFPA. Sandra Bullock? Seriously? I admit, I did not see the Blind Side, mainly because IT LOOKED HORRIBLE. I refuse, REFUSE to believe that anything Sandra Bullock does in that movie even comes close to Abbie Cornish’s crying scene in Bright Star. It’s one thing to not nominate her, but quite another to nominate Sandra effing Bullock in her place. I was all for her Oscar nomination a few years ago in Crash, she was great in that, but The Blind Side? Come on. And as much as I love Emily Blunt (and I really do, she’s one of my faves) I’m sort of surprised to see her there too. That movie looks almost like a parody of British period dramas.
WILL WIN: Carey Mulligan
COULD WIN: Gabby Sidibe

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR – MUSICAL OR COMEDY
Matt Damon – The Informant!
Daniel Day-Lewis – Nine
Robert Downey Jr. – Sherlock Holmes
Joseph Gordon-Levitt – (500) Days of Summer
Michael Stuhlbarg – A Serious Man

To be honest I really don’t give a shit about this category. I’m just tickled by the fact that there are two hyphenated named gentlemen in it.
WILL WIN: DDL
COULD WIN: JGL

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS – MUSICAL OR COMEDY
Sandra Bullock – The Proposal
Marion Cotillard – Nine
Julia Roberts – Duplicity
Meryl Streep – It’s Complicated
Meryl Streep – Julie & Julia

I would really like to know which member of the HFPA is sleeping with Sandra Bullock. How few actresses were in comedies this year that you seriously had to pull that one out of your ass? All I remember about Duplicity is that it’s that movie where Clive Owen is a spy that looked exactly like that OTHER movie where Clive Owen was a spy.
WILL WIN: Meryl Streep
COULD WIN: The other Meryl Streep or Marion Cotillard

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Matt Damon – Invictus
Woody Harrelson – The Messenger
Christopher Plummer – The Last Station
Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz – Inglourious Basterds

Again, not a lot going on in this category. All are very predictable nominees, although I kind of assumed Plummer would go for lead, it’s hard to think that Leo Tolstoy on any level would be a supporting role. Whatevs.
WILL WIN: Christoph Waltz
COULD WIN – Matt Damon, Christopher Plummer

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Penelope Cruz – Nine
Vera Farmiga – Up in the Air
Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air
Mo’Nique – Precious
Julianne Moore – A Single Man

FINALLY. A category in which no part of it makes me want to scream! This is seriously my dream list of nominees for this. I was so worried that they would bow out and only nominate one of the Up in the Air ladies, but no! Both! Vera Farmiga is LONG overdue in terms of awards recognition, she is such an underrated actress, and I am SO glad they are recognizing Anna Kendrick. Between her, Carey Mulligan, and Gabby Sidibe, I feel like this is such a year for breakout young actresses. Awesome. And of course, I’m glad whenever Penelope gets nominated for anything.
WILL WIN: Mo’Nique
COULD WIN: Honestly this is such a close race that they all are sort of dark horses, aside from Mo’Nique of course, who I cannot imagine won’t win.

BEST DIRECTOR
Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker
James Cameron – Avatar
Clint Eastwood – Invictus
Jason Reitman – Up in the Air
Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds

All I can say is, thank GOD this category is no longer a sausage-fest. Kathryn Bigelow, please make aspiring female directors proud, as our only other bets (Jane Campion and Lone Scherflig) have been tossed aside. Side note: Where the eff is Lee Daniels?
WILL WIN: Jason Reitman
COULD WIN: Clint Eastwood, Kathryn Bigelow


Other thoughts: I am super sad that nobody from Bright Star got recognized, but there is still hope for the Oscars. They always throw curveballs, so hopefully Abbie Cornish will get her due there. I'm also really glad to see that Where the Wild Things Are did not get nominated for anything. What a horribly overrated movie.