Discuss.
Best Motion Picture — Drama: “Avatar”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture — Drama: Sandra Bullock, “The Blind Side”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture — Drama: Jeff Bridges, “Crazy Heart”
Best Motion Picture — Comedy or Musical: “The Hangover”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture — Comedy or Musical: Meryl Streep, “Julie & Julia”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture — Comedy or Musical: Robert Downey Jr., “Sherlock Holmes”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture: Mo’Nique, “Precious”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture: Christoph Waltz, “Inglourious Basterds”
Best Animated Feature Film: “Up”
Best Foreign Language Film: “The White Ribbon”
Best Director — Motion Picture: James Cameron, “Avatar”
Best Screenplay — Motion Picture: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, “Up in the Air”
Best Original Score — Motion Picture: Michael Giacchino, “Up”
Best Original Song — Motion Picture: “The Weary Kind,” “Crazy Heart”
Best Television Series — Drama: “Mad Men”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series — Drama: Julianna Margulies, “The Good Wife”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series — Drama: Michael C. Hall, “Dexter”
Best Television Series — Comedy: “Glee”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series — Comedy or Musical: Alec Baldwin, “30 Rock”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series — Comedy or Musical: Toni Collette, “United States of Tara”
Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: “Grey Gardens”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Drew Barrymore, “Grey Gardens”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Kevin Bacon, “Taking Chance”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Chloe Sevigny, “Big Love”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television: John Lithgow, “Dexter”
Cecil B. DeMille Award: Martin Scorsese
They ought to be a bit more stringent about what is or is not a “comedy.” Having a few gags isn’t sufficient; every movie has those.
I mean, I thought Sherlock Holmes was riotously entertaining, but not because it was funny.
Chloe Sevigny winning made me happy.
I was bummed that there was no love for The Hurt Locker, but it was to be expected, I guess. Other than that, Robert Downey Jr. was surprising to me, but I haven’t seen the movie so I can’t really comment…
@2 – Agreed! Chloe’s deserved awards for every season of Big Love. It’s about time.
Sandy Bullcock gives me the grip.
And Avatar won because it makes money which is really disappointing but nothing new.
“The Hangover” was stupid. And not in a good way.
I enjoyed Sherlock Holmes so much that I feel a little guilty about Robert Downey Jr. winning. However, his speech was entertaining enough that I’m still glad he won.
“I like a drink as much as the next man … unless the next man is Mel Gibson.”
(MEL GIBSON enters)
It was nice that a specific movie didn’t sweep many of the awards.
But seeing something like Avatar win Best Drama just makes me shake my head. Avatar was fun, but Best Drama?!
It was fun seeing George Lucas looking completely bored for several hours.
The Ricky Gervais highlight clip was an ass-load more entertaining and interesting than was Avatar. Still laughing.
Gervais was wonderful. and that clip (his staff?) put together so quickly is so good it makes the whole thing seem fun, which trust me it wasn’t.
We had Michael’s live “Drunkblog” up on Dlisted too. He was as unhappy as I when Jane Lynch of Glee didn’t win: “Yes, Jane lost against the trick who swallowed Vincent Gallo’s jizz load on screen as art!…Somebody slap that bitch!…The curtains in Marie Osmond’s doll room attacked Chloe…Why the fuck is Chloe acting like a flustered ostrich with a hot vagina?”
Michael has such dignity.
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“You’re entitled to be equipped to defend us,” Vice President Joe Biden told Law Enforcement agencies on July 28, 2009 when he made the announcement.
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Where’s the love comments for Quentin? An entertaining WWII (ya know, the GREAT WAR) flick from the greatest director of our generation. slog, c’mon, i’m stuck in the middle with you
I think Brad Pitt should’ve gotten the best actor in a drama award for Inglourious Basterds. I’m not a Brad Pitt fan, but his work in that movie was amazing. Kinda sad Tarantino didn’t take more awards home last night.
Fuck Blindsided forever and the racists who love it.
so let me get this straight…. Black woman struggling to pull herself out of abuse & poverty + good writing = no award. White woman condescending to save black man from poverty + “true story” = award.
yay hollywood!!!
I’m not wholly sure what a producer does, but I think the guy from Avatar should get that once the Oscars come around. Not the best movie, but pretty impressive that it got made in the first place.
Uh, fucking AVATAR won?!?!? What the fuck? The movie wasn’t great by any means. It wasn’t bad but AWARD WINNING?!?!?!?
@18
The Oscars are gonna make you cry.
I think Avatar deserves whatever it gets, personally. 🙂
@19: I’ll be sobbing right there with Cato. It’ll be March 1998 all over again.
Cameron invented new technology to pull off Avatar-maybe the writing could have been better, but overall it was an amazing work. I was really disappointed that “Fantastic Mr. Fox” lost out to “Up.” I saw both, and by any measure “FMF” was the far superior film.
What on earth does “inventing new technology” have to do with making a good movie?
I don’t care about movies anymore. They’re all shit, every last one of them. I no longer believe it’s possible to make a worthwhile movie with a budget of more than one million dollars. TV is where the action is.
@16: Do you realize which film won the Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture award?
it’s ridiculous that a movie that came out in december 09 wins best picture of the year a month later.
@24, would it be less ridiculous if a movie that came out in December 09 won the award in 2011? Should movies from December just not be eligible, then?
Avatar? Give me a fucking break.
I am glad taht Christoph Waltz got recognition for Inglourious Basterds. Lord, he was fun.
anybody going to the “i’m with coco” rally tonight at westlake park?
Christoph Waltz was incredible in Inglourious Basterds. I hope he gets cast in every movie made in 2010.
@ 15,
Are you sure you don’t mean “The Blind Side?” The Sandra Bullock/football thing?
Because “Blindsided” is a documentary about a young boy losing his sight.
So, what was it about the Mel Gibson joke? I didn’t get it.
I only caught the final moments because I was watching grizzlies and wolves go at each other (and other animals) in Yellowstone. Nature red in tooth and claw.
As a huge fan of Stephen Bruton, ever since I saw him at the Tractor years ago, I was glad to hear Jeff Bridges mention him in his acceptance speech.
For best picture, I thought the Hollywood Foreign Press might not choose Avatar but I guess they were seduced by the aesthetics. It was visually stunning but the story was lame. Of the two BPNs I saw, I would’ve picked Up In The Air.
Once again, Hollywood chooses to vote their guilt, awarding a movie that easily assuages the Native American genocide. Hey, it’s ok now, because we can make movies in which we save the native people, instead of kill them. Yay us! Let’s give ourselves an award… (see: Crash vs. Brokeback Mountain).
Like it or not, Avatar has changed the way we will view movies in the future – it raised the bar. Notice it got best overall film – NOT best writing! Actually, I am sort of wondering why it wasn’t in the animated film category as 80% of the movie was CGI.
The Mel Gibson joke – he was arrested last year for drunk driving, and then going off on an anti-semetic tirade.
Is it just me or does it appear that Jeff Bridges WASN’T acting when he played The Big Lebowski?
Apparently, he IS Lebowski…who knew?
My favorite Globes viewing comment of the night came from my brother: “When they start thanking the stand-in, it’s time to switch the channel to “Funnniest Home Videos”…
And,
Separated at Birth: Paul McCartney, James Cameron and some old lesbian teaching women’s studies at Amherst…
Christoph Waltz was definitely the most well-deserved award of the evening.
and, and;
It’s both a tragedy and a delight when a disgustingly good looking person doesn’t age well…
Mel Gibson is living proof that alcoholism, intolerance and rampant Catholicism is a good way to turn yourself into a walking scrotum.
Precious was nominated in the Best Drama category and Invictus was not, but Lee Daniels was not nominated for Best Director while Clint Eastwood was. Hmm.
@33: The way we view films? You mean, in 3D? I hate to break this to you, but that tech’s been around for years.
Avatar didn’t need BEST writing, but it needed something decent to hang the tech on. And it didn’t. It was a hokey story with cheap characters, and despite what everyone claims about it being a “fun” film, it reeked of having an Important Message. See Cameron’s ridiculous acceptance speech about eco-awareness, blah blah.
The story Cameron had was OK for a first draft, as a starting point, but it should have never been filmed like that.
Pretty much bull all around. I’m so happy for Waltz though.
@40 – you are not “breaking it to me,” I am well aware of the technology – but seriously, google it, Cameron has invented new techniques that have brought 3D to a whole new level. I also think folks might want to keep in mind these are industry awards – not awards given out by academics or the terminally hip. Just saying.
Checking in on the Wiki entry, the only thing Cameron seems to have “invented” was the Fusion Digital Camera system, which he didn’t even use on Avatar first.
When was the last time we lauded a movie for its technical hardware? If we’re going to talk about the quality of the CG in the film, any animator will tell you that with a good base of skills, quality is only a matter of time and money. Most projects never get enough of either. To praise Cameron for this is just to say he managed to achieve something not because he had a vision, but because he had the pockets.
@41: What problem do you have with separating Cameron’s technical achievement and whatever things he achieved with Avatar as a *movie*?
Let’s say Gutenberg just invented the printing press — an amazing technical accomplishment. It doesn’t mean whatever he prints on it is Pulitzer material. (Yes, I know I’m messing up time periods here, and yes, I know he printed the Bible.)
What problem does everyone have that they need to automatically equate something that is popular as something that is undeserving of the attention?
The invention of the printing press led to a far more literate world because the people wanted and demanded books. The reinvention of 3D is leading to a boom in theater upgrading to play those films, and a soon-to-occur BOOM in home 3D players. Come on…you all know you will buy one.
40/Gloria: Avatar didn’t need BEST writing, but it needed something decent to hang the tech on. And it didn’t. It was a hokey story with cheap characters, and despite what everyone claims about it being a “fun” film, it reeked of having an Important Message.
Touché! Going in, I didn’t expect a great story but was surprised at just how weak it was. I also agree with you that it had an Important Message, but visually it was like a thrill ride (and I didn’t even see it in 3D) so it was fun in that respect.
@44: You’re not even arguing the same thing anymore. If you want to celebrate Cameron’s movie for having excellent qualities for a movie, then go ahead. But don’t confuse Best Picutre for Best Technical Achievement. They actually made a point of having separate awards for that — see the technical and scientific Oscars.
@45: I guess I sort of saw my thrill ride back in the 90s when I went on the Back to the Future ride at Universal. Damn, that was fun.
I really was expecting a spectacle, but it just didn’t click with me.
There is no set criteria for what makes a movie “best picture” worthy. Often those films are not also nominated for acting or writing awards, apparently the foreign press agreed with just about everyone else (minus urban hipsters and academics) when they walked out of the theater, they thought, “wow, that is the best picture I’ve seen this year!”
Also, these were the Golden Globes, not the Oscars, so the comment about separate scientific awards is irrelevant.
Wow, 2 Golden Globes for ‘Dexter’ after arguably its worst season. Granted, Hall and Lithgow were the two best parts of the show, but it was still pretty awful overall.
@47:
“There is no set criteria for what makes a movie ‘best picture’ worthy.”
If there is no set criteria, then why are you writing about Avatar’s technical advances as though such advances are part of the criteria? By the way, there is a set criteria: the movie has to get the most votes; and there is no criteria for disagreeing with those who vote for a movie you find unworthy.
“Also, these were the Golden Globes, not the Oscars, so the comment about separate scientific awards is irrelevant.”
Only if @46 had suggested that Avatar should have won the “scientific” Golden Globe, which she did not. She was only pointing to the existence of a “scientific” Oscar as evidence that some film authorities share her position that a film should not get a best picture award (Oscar, Golden Globe or otherwise) based primarily on technical achievement.
@41:
“I also think folks might want to keep in mind these are industry awards – not awards given out by academics or the terminally hip. Just saying.”
Right. And if you don’t like to eat McDonald’s you’re either an academic or terminally hip, right? People with good taste are so arrogant.
@44:
“What problem does everyone have that they need to automatically equate something that is popular as something that is undeserving of the attention?”
No, it’s not “automatic.” I’ll bet you most people critical here of Avatar liked the Dark Knight and the first two Spider Man movies. On the subject of James Cameron, I bet they liked Terminator as well.
51 is correct.
It’s also supposed to be “Best Drama”. If you require special effects to get dramatic, your film sucks as film. It was an amazing technological achievement, and I loved it for that, but … the story [read: the drama] sucked.
Let’s forget the technology for a minute – since my mention of it has thrown the thread off topic…..how about artistic vision? Special effects? Cinematography? Sound and score? Editing? I also thought that the women did a fine job on the acting – and before you all go off on that, keep in mind that the appreciation of any performance is subjective and I’m not saying the film deserved any acting awards.
Let’s all come back in 10 years and see whether or not Avatar turns out to be a groundbreaking film or not – and accept my “my bad” in advance in case it turns out my prediction is off base.
Let’s forget the technology for a minute – since my mention of it has thrown the thread off topic…..how about artistic vision? Special effects? Cinematography? Sound and score? Editing? I also thought that the women did a fine job on the acting – and before you all go off on that, keep in mind that the appreciation of any performance is subjective and I’m not saying the film deserved any acting awards.
Let’s all come back in 10 years and see whether or not Avatar turns out to be a groundbreaking film or not – and accept my “my bad” in advance in case it turns out my prediction is off base.
Let’s forget the technology for a minute – since my mention of it has thrown the thread off topic…..how about artistic vision? Special effects? Cinematography? Sound and score? Editing? I also thought that the women did a fine job on the acting – and before you all go off on that, keep in mind that the appreciation of any performance is subjective and I’m not saying the film deserved any acting awards.
Let’s all come back in 10 years and see whether or not Avatar turns out to be a groundbreaking film or not – and accept my “my bad” in advance in case it turns out my prediction is off base.
@30- Mel Gibson has a problem with alcohol. Remember when he got a DUI and slurringly blamed it on the world Jewish conspiracy?
J-Haxx – You forgot to mention the one thing that a movie desperately needs to be a drama: a plot. A storyline. Oh, and dialog.You know, the types of things that a screenwriter normally takes care of when they’re not James Cameron. Great artistic vision, cinematography, special effects – those are fine, but they do not make a great drama. They make a spectacle, which this movie no doubt was (and a fine one). Oh, and the score? Awful. In so many ways.Bad call.
@57 – this is getting silly. The movie had a plot. You may not like the plot, you may think the plot was thin, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t have one. Oh, and I think many a “best picture” winner did win because it was a spectacle.
The Hollywood Foreign Press eligible voters number fewer than 100. It’s not difficult to extrapolate that almost any winner in any category probably won a Globe by less than 6 or 7 votes if that. Unfortunately, winners get undeserved and unearned momentum when they do win; as a result many of the 5,500 or so moribund Academy voters are easily swayed to vote for the popular prom queen. Not to mention sheer numbers: compare the number of Academy voters who had anything to do with “Avatar” vis-à-vis the number of voters who worked on “The Hurt Locker”. That’s how “Crash” won – more voters had a hand in producing it. Not so many for that quaint little ‘gay’ cowboy movie.
@49, 51: Thanks. And right on all counts, at least for me. I’m a pretty big fan of several comic book movies, and vintage Cameron.
@58: “Oh, and I think many a ‘best picture’ winner did win because it was a spectacle.” So? It doesn’t mean any of us agree with those winners either. You presume a lot.
“[H]ow about artistic vision? Special effects? Cinematography? Sound and score? Editing?”
I don’t even remember what the score was like — Horner, from what I’ve known, has done pretty mediocre work since Titanic — and I’m one of those people who listen to movie scores for leisure. The closing song was a piece of cheese by a Celine Dion rip-off (which is just about the worst thing you can say about a singer).
The editing didn’t stick out to me, which is a good thing. Since you brought it up, I didn’t think the sound design was terrible or good, but I didn’t notice anything interesting either. I’m not one of those people who really notice cinematography either.
Acting was meh; the only person I was impressed with was perhaps Zoe Saldana, but I think she was the only one who was given any kind of major arc, besides Sam Worthington (who was pretty dull). I attribute it mostly to the writing, but I felt everyone had such basic characters that it would have taken a remarkable actor to make any of the roles pop.
What makes a role pop? I don’t really know — it’s sort of a gut feeling. And you don’t need amazing material to do it; I’m thinking of the French dairy farmer in Inglourious Basterds. It wasn’t a role like Brad Pitt’s, which basically screamed “LOOK AT ME”, but he did such a great job in his small part. It was just easy to watch and forget he was acting.
Hey, you asked.
I’m getting a funny feeling that the fact I can even say anything about all these things makes me look like I “overthought” the film. No, I walk out of the theatre just like anyone else and think “I liked that” or “I didn’t like that.” It’s still a feeling, still a sentiment. But there’s reasons for those feelings, and just because I can articulate them later doesn’t mean I’m constantly analyzing things at the expense of enjoying them.
@58: Oh, and right. “No plot”? That’s called dramatic exaggeration. Yes, there was a plot. Duh. Picking on the wording when it’s really very clear that it was just a device for emphasis — that people use every day! — just makes you sound all sore.
The Hollywood Foreign Press tends to vote for movies that do well overseas. Simpler plots with a lot of action translate better. Ergo, Golden Globes for movies like Avatar. That’s the Globes for ya.
Me, I’m just happy for Jeff Bridges. I think he’s one of the best actors in the business, and a really decent human being, too. Definitely the Famous Person I’d Most Like to Kick Back and Smoke a Bowl With.