in

Golden Globes bring madness and glamour into our households

goldenglobes_2015_tinandamy_1200_article_story_largeSunday, Jan. 11, was the 72nd Golden Globes, hosted at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. With this year’s Miss Golden Globes Greer Grammer handing out trophies, actors, directors, musicians, and writers alike arrived anxious for awards.

This being the last Golden Globes being hosted by the dynamic duo, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, the pair took their chances and drove it home with their condescending comedy by, as usual, making fun of everyone there.

Playing off of each other, and even making questionable comments on the touchy subject of the Bill Cosby allegations, these two made it a fabulous show to mark their end. However, there could have been more of Fey and Poehler, as they weren’t seen on screen too often after the first 15 minutes

The presenters of the awards all did an average job, but also seemed to strive a little too far for comedic purposes. With Jeremy Renner making a joke about Jennifer Lopez’s boobs (even though they were very much out in the open), and Ricky Gervais pronouncing Quvenzhane Wallis name wrong and proceeding to  bring up John Travolta’s famous mispronunciation of Idina Menzel’s name, it seemed a little too much, but hey, that’s show biz.

The Golden Globes this year was surprisingly welcoming to new candidates. Multiple actors and actresses, such as Joanne Froggatt, who won Best Supporting Actress in a Series/Miniseries for Downton Abbey, and The Theory of Everything’s Eddie Redmayne,  Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama, amongst other burgeoning TV and film stars, won on their first Golden Globe nominations.

Matt Bomer also took home a trophy after his first nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a TV series, Miniseries or TV Movie for The Normal Heart, a movie about the AIDS outbreak in 1981. Bomer lost 40 pounds for this role to show the deterioration of his body. Bomer was the only one to win for the film, despite many nominations. This resulted in Hollywood being criticized for being homophobic for failing to recognize the weight and importance of the story.

In contrast, others claimed awards they had deserved for years, such as Kevin Spacey, who won his first Golden Globe  for House of Cards, with this being his eighth nomination. He then went on to give an emotional speech with an anecdote about the late Stanley Kramer, reminding us of his beautiful work, and encouraging those in the industry to keep striving for greatness.

At all award shows, there is always that one section where you know the winner. This is how it was for Best Director of a Motion Picture. This award went to Richard Linklater, for his film Boyhood. This win for Linklater seemed obvious, as the film took 12 years to make, depicting a boys life as he became  a man through the trials of his family. Boyhood went on to win Best Motion Picture – Drama, and Patricia Arquette won Best Supporting Actress in a motion picture for the film. No one saw this win coming, as she was up against Jessica Chastain for A Most Violent Year, Keira Knightley for The Imitation Game, Emma Stone for Birdman, and Meryl Streep for Into the Woods.

There were also some surprise awards. The award for Best Animated Film was presumably going to go to either The Lego Movie or Big Hero 6, but it actually was awarded to How to Train your Dragon 2.

Of course the music of movies was touched upon, with Johann Johannsson winning Best Original Score for The Theory of Everything, and rapper Common and singer John Legend won Best Original Song in a Motion Picture for “Glory” in Selma.

During the evening, George Clooney was given the “Demille Award” which is given to those who have made “outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment.” A rather long clip was played before Clooney’s speech, showing many scenes from a plethora of his works. During Clooney’s speech, he not only brings up his “Je Suis Charlie” pin, but he also touched upon the works of the late Lauren Bacall and the late Robin Williams, honoring the two.

A rather large chunk of the evening focused on the issue of North Korea and the release of The Interview. Comedian and actress Margaret Cho dressed up as a North Korean soldier obsessed with American entertainment, as if to poke the bear (North Korea) even more. This bit received a large portion of negative feedback, and Cho even closed the show saying, “Show over. I host next year. Good Night,” which seemed a rather abrupt and idiotic way to end the evening.

However, a  touching speech on the matter came from Theo  Kingma, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association President, which organizes the Golden Globes. His speech included the threats from North Korea, as well as the recent shooting in Paris at the offices of a satirical weekly newspaper.

“We understand the importance of free expression as not only an integral part of the American fabric, but a beacon that is reflected across the globe,” Kingma said. “Together we will stand united against anyone who would repress free speech anywhere from North Korea to Paris.”

The big awards at the end of the evening, being “best motion picture- drama,” and “best motion picture- comedy or musical,” went to Boyhood and Grand Budapest Hotel respectively.

A big noticeable difference in the evening was the lack of the “In Memoriam” which we would usually find at all award shows. Whether it be the show ran too long, or there just wasn’t one prepared, the In Memoriam” being absent was noticed.

From Fey and Poehler punchlines, to first nomination winners, the Golden Globes featured the madness and glamour we crave from Hollywood.

Written by Morgan Lanyon

Morgan is a senior at Mt. Carmel High School. She is kept constantly busy with varsity field hockey, Hebrew school, swim team, and being the co-Editor in Chief of the MC Sun. She has a problem with watching too much TV, and eating an excessive amount of snacks. She knows the lyrics to practically every Billy Joel song, and doesn't care who knows. She also knows about most celebrities, and can answer your questions almost as fast as the internet.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *