Commencing this decade with its first major awards show, The 77th Annual Golden Globes Awards Ceremony was a shockingly pleasant surprise. Unlike it’s barbaric host, the night smoothly went by with a relatively deserving set of winners, and the occasional upset. Yet we have to talk about the elephant in the room first, Ricky Gervais. Nothing screams “get off this stage you pathetic loser” more than an incisively vulgar comic, who aimlessly jokes about major political issues without acknowledging his own inner hypocrisy. When looking at his retrospective career, the only project really worth noting of his entire filmography is Muppets Most Wanted; a film where his character was overshadowed by a maniacal Russian Kermit the Frog doppelganger. Plus, Ricky is incredibly transphobic and a genuine prick, so I’m glad that this was his final time hosting.
Though the positives outweigh the negatives by a long shot. The biggest surprise of the night was Laika’s Missing Link winning Best Animated Feature. With Disney having a 60% chance of winning, and the rest of the nominees being either a sequel or remake of a pre-existing property, Missing Link was the lone wolf of the pack. Beautifully crafted by hand, the film unfortunately financially flopped in April of last year, largely due to the enormous giant that was Avengers: Endgame. Thankfully, all is right with the world. The HFPA chose craftsmanship over consumerism, and gave the award to a company that drastically needs attention and aid. Laika was dying up till today. Now I have faith that one of the greatest animation houses to ever exist, will now continue to create more wonderfully vibrant pieces of art.
Other pleasant surprises include Rocketman’s two deserving accolades for Best Actor and Best Original Song, Awkwafina’s rightfully honored Best Actress title, and Laura Dern’s now Golden Globe winning performance as a snarky lawyer in Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story. Though Adam Driver losing against a clown, Bong Joon-Ho missing the mark for best director, and The Irishman not winning anything at the end of the day (which includes Best Supporting Actor, Screenplay, Director, and Picture), the alternate winners still delivered with passionate speeches and delightful shout outs. Except for you Joaquin. Maybe next time, low down on the booze.
All in all, this year’s ceremony was attractively exquisite. The future revival of a dying animation house, the deserved win of a beautiful realized South Korean political thriller, and the genuine emotional tear-jerking speech from Tom Hanks; this year’s show was an absolute winner! With the exception of it’s barbaric host, The Golden Globes did more than what it should have, and served its viewers with a pleasant evening of drunk celebrities and applaudable recognition. Also, either Awkwafina, Sacha Baron Cohen, or the Salma Hayek and Tiffany Haddish duo should host next year!
On The Clock 