I’m Still Upset Annihilation Got Snubbed at the Golden Globes

The Golden Globes is airing this Sunday which is normally a fun affair but I was a little surprised that Annihilation, directed by Alex Garland of Ex Machina fame and starring acting powerhouses like Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Oscar Isaac, was not nominated for a single category. Not a one!

Yes, I know that the Globes is governed by a board of people who get high off the power they wield over celebrities’ careers. Yes, I know that awards don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things that shape culture or are even an indicator of anything actually being good (now is an excellent time to remind you that Ben Affleck won a Golden Globe for Best Director). But award shows like the Globes are basically the NBA playoffs to an art freak like me—and I’d like to see films, directors, and actors that I think are amazing get to play in the game.

The science fiction film, which comes out on Hulu tomorrow, stars Portman as Lena, a cellular biologist and former soldier, who’s teamed up with a group of four female specialists. They are sent into a mysterious area that is overtaken by a giant iridescent electromagnetic field known as “The Shimmer,” where the flora and fauna mutate in strange ways. Tasked with finding the source of this alien phenomenon, Lena and her team slowly succumb to The Shimmer’s penchant for mutation, encountering freaky creatures and fighting self-destruction.

Annihilation wasn’t primed for success from the beginning. For what seems like a couple of different reasons, namely that the premise was a bit too intellectual, Paramount decided to put very little into promoting the film and didn’t even give it a theatrical release outside of the U.S., Canada, and China, opting to roll it out on Netflix instead. Which basically condemned Annihilation to bomb hard. But if box office counted, where’s Avenger: Age of Ultron‘s nomination for Best Picture, huh? Or if intellectualism was something to be looked down upon why was Arrival nominated for two awards, a movie with a plot that I’m still unsure if I fully comprehend after watching it a little tipsy on a plane?

Annihilation gave us strong direction by Garland! An anchoring and emotional lead performance by one of the best actresses of our time! Trippily lush and seemingly extraterrestrial landscapes with creatures I’ve seen in both my nightmares and dreams! A story that explores how destruction, mutation, and annihilation doesn’t look inherently evil but can be as benign as cells replicating, changing you, building off you, suffocating and betraying you! The ultimate ambivalence of the universe toward human life! How we are all indelibly shaped by our past, constantly becoming done and undone by time!

That said, I’m looking forward to the cinematic equivalent of a lukewarm bowl of soup, A Star is Born, sweep up all the top prizes of the night.