Breaking all the golden rules

This year’s Golden Globes ceremony was dominated by James Cameron’s unstoppable ‘Avatar’ – and the jibes of comedian Ricky Gervais…

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Tue Jan 19 2010 - 00:00

This year's Golden Globes ceremony was dominated by James Cameron's unstoppable 'Avatar' – and the jibes of comedian Ricky Gervais. But not everyone was laughing, writes DONALD CLARKE

AS THE Golden Globes played out on Sunday night, two questions wormed their way about the brains of awards junkies. Firstly, could James Cameron's Avatarcontinue its seemingly unstoppable advance through statuette season? Secondly, how would pampered movie stars react to Ricky Gervais's sarcastic jibes? Well, it seems there is no stopping Avatar. The lengthy 3-D science fiction picture, already the second-biggest money earner of all time, picked up the award for best dramatic feature and Cameron won the gong for best director. The latter award could have caused Jim some embarrassment. Also nominated – and a strong contender – was Kathryn Bigelow, Cameron's ex-wife, for her Iraq War drama The Hurt Locker.

“Frankly I thought Kathryn was going to get this,” he said in admirably diplomatic fashion. “But make no mistake I am very grateful.”

The parallels with Cameron's Titanic– still a few million ahead of Avatar in the box-office charts – are very hard to resist. Both films were ruinously expensive and both attracted gloomy advance word from mysterious "insiders" before going on to triumph at the box-office and with awards juries. Last week, though already on release for a month, the film still managed to take nearly €500,000 in Ireland alone. It has grossed $1.6 billion worldwide already, behind Titanic's $1.8 billion.

As was the case with Titanic, the science fiction film made no impact on the acting and writing categories. Up in the Air, Jason Reitman's suave comedy, received the award for best screenplay. Jeff Bridges was a popular winner in the best dramatic actor race for his turn as an aging country singer in Crazy Heart. Sandra Bullock, currently the most bankable female star in Hollywood, won best dramatic actress for the sports drama The Blind Side.

Other actors going home with a Globe included Christoph Waltz for Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, the comedienne Mo'Nique for the searing drama Precious and (what would an awards ceremony be without her?) Meryl Streep for the romcom-biopic hybrid Julie & Julia.

In the television section, Mad Men, the highly praised show concerning advertising executives in 1960s New York, won best dramatic series and Glee, this season's teen sensation, triumphed in the best musical or comedy category.

Michael C Hall, undergoing treatment for cancer, received warm applause when he picked up his best dramatic actor Globe for the serial-killer shocker Dexter.

So what of Ricky? The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the somewhat shadowy body that organises the Globes, clearly felt they were being hip and dangerous by hiring a host known for his sardonic, withering wit. The exercise only proved that, for many American stars, it’s quite okay to exchange mildly self-deprecating gags on talk shows, but properly acerbic jibes may not be so welcome.

The Aussies and the Irish were on board. Both Colin Farrell and Mel Gibson happily laughed off introductions that alluded to their reported fondness for the odd alcoholic beverage. Jokes about NBC’s recent shabby treatment of chat show host Conan O’Brien also — despite (or perhaps because of) being broadcast on that very network – garnered quite a few hearty laughs.

But many of Gervais’s more cutting digs at celebrities were greeted with icy silence by the heavily botoxed throng within LA’s Beverly Hilton Hotel. The delicious low point came when, after a set-up that objected to the way stars get lazily identified with one particularly popular role, Gervais gaily introduced “Rachel from Friends and that bloke from 300”. Gerard Butler (Scottish, of course) attempted a smile. Jennifer Aniston most certainly did not. Gervais may not be hosting the Oscars any time soon. Mind you, it has been a while since the Globes were seen as the key predictor of what happens at the Academy Awards. Twenty years ago, when it was just about the only other ceremony to receive significant coverage, the Globes offered film fans a rare glimpse inside the minds of awards voters.

THESE DAYS, GONG SEASON IS so packed that the Globes are seen as just another date in a calendar that takes in the Writers Guild, the Producers Guild, the People’s Choice, the British Academy, the Golden Raspberries and another dozen red carpet events. While the professional bodies contain industry insiders who may actually have viewed all the films, the HFPA comprises (as the London Times recently revealed) about 90 largely obscure, often rather aged journalists, few of whom have a professional interest in cinema. Films such as It’s Complicated and (500) Days of Summer, both shortlisted in the Globes for best musical or comedy, have little chance of an Oscar nomination. Even The Hangover, which actually won that trophy, remains an Academy outsider.

This, perhaps, explains why a party atmosphere prevails at the Golden Globes. The acceptance speeches took place to the accompaniment of ambient chatter and guests cared little if they fluffed their lines.

One of the highlights of the show saw Felicity Huffman, an accomplished stage actor, take five or six attempts to get through an undemanding speech introducing HFPA president Philip Berk. Drew Barrymore, triumphant in the best dramatic TV actress race for Grey Gardens, delivered a sugary torrent of semi-lucid bilge that would have shamed a teenage gymkhana victor.

Weirder still were the events surrounding the award for best foreign language film. The introduction for Jacques Audiard's A Prophet, an unrelentingly brutal drama, described it as a film about a man who "finds his soul". Huh? Michael Haneke, winner for The White Ribbon, was summoned to the podium as "Michael Hanéky".

Still, for all the chaos, madness and unreliability of the Globes, there is no denying that Avatar is building up formidable awards momentum. Expect to see James Cameron retain his “King of the World” status at the Oscars on March 7th.

FILM

Best feature (drama) Avatar

Best feature (comedy) The Hangover

Actor (drama) Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart

Actress (drama) Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side

Actor (comedy or musical) Robert Downey Jr - Sherlock Holmes

Actress (comedy or musical) Meryl Streep - Julie Julia

Director (motion picture) James Cameron - Avatar

Supporting actor Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds

Supporting actress Mo’Nique - Precious

Screenplay (motion picture) Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner - Up in the Air

Foreign language film The White Ribbon