After long delays, extended deadlines, and courtroom drama worthy of a Law & Order episode, awards season finally gets underway tonight with the Golden Globes (8pm NBC). I’ve been sampling and binging shows and movies for weeks, taking to my sources friends in LA and New York, and scouring the web for any insight from inside the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the group putting on tonight’s party.
The overwhelming consensus is: there is no consensus for any single show or movie to sweep. There are favorites; Schitt’s Creek will likely ride its Emmy wave to Golden Globe Glory. But it’s no sure thing.
Movie Madness
Nomadland has been the favorite since it screened at the Toronto International Film Festival. I’ve been talking it up for months, and given that Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom was inexplicably snubbed in this category, I think Nomadland is the winner. The Trial of the Chicago 7 is most people’s upset pic, but I think the film with the best chance of an upset is Promising Young Woman.
Viola Davis (Ma Rainey) and Frances McDormand (Nomadland) both gave performances that still stick with me months after seeing them, and it’s a pick ’em for who will win Best Actress Drama. I would say they could split the vote and a third contender could slip in. But there’s only 87 voters this year, so I think it’s one of the two favorites.
For Best Actor Drama it’s Chadwick Boseman (Ma Rainey) in a walk. Amazing performance from a talent taken from us way too soon. PP In the Supporting categories, I like Glenn Close for Hillbilly Elegy, though I’m rooting for a slightly tipsy Olivia Coleman to win for The Father and give a slightly boozy acceptance speech.
The Music or Comedy movie category is as wide open as they come. Borat Subsequent Moviefilm is socially relevant and the type of film the HFPA loves to reward. But they also like to make as many celebrities as possible happy, so the star-studded The Prom could sweep in and take it.
Maria Bakalova played Borat’s attention starved daughter in Subsequent Moviefilm perfectly, and HFPA loves to recognize new talent first, so she’s my pick in the Actress category. But, Rosamund Pike’s performance in I Care A Lot is getting a lot of buzz since it dropped on Netflix and she could grab the Globe.
For the guys, I like Dev Patel in The Personal History of David Copperfield, but they may show some love to Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda.
In the Animated Feature it’s Soul. I refuse to make a surprise pick. I would bet on Soul against the field.
Tele Visions
On the small screen (can my 65″ TV really be called ‘small?’), there are a lot of familiar faces, but newcomer Lovecraft Country is the buzzy fave in the Drama category. The Crown seems to be getting a bit on and I have no idea what The Mandalorian is doing here. My upset special here is a farewell Globe for Ozark.
For Actress, Oliva Coleman is nominated here as well, and I’ll take as many ecstatic, booze-fueled speeches I can get from her. But Ozark’s farewell tour could give the statue to Laura Linney, and I wouldn’t be mad about it.
No idea who’s going to be called for Actor. My personal choice is Matthew Rhys as Perry Mason, but it took until the last season of The Americans for anyone to notice his under-the-radar performances, so I’m not hopeful. It’ll likely be Al Pacino for Hunters. Good performance in a show that ultimately left me unsatisfied and scratching my head.
For Comedy, I think it’s Schitt’s Creek again. But the HFPA may make Ted Lasso this year’s surprise darling.
In the Acting categories, my non-Creek choices are Kaley Cuoco (The Flight Attendant) and Don Cheadle (Black Monday).
Golden Girls
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are back to host the show. We’ll see how they do without their friends and frenemies sitting right in front of them. Hopefully there will still be a production assistant in charge of keeping their champagne glasses filled.
The Critic’s Cocktail Recommendation
I’m having a Long Island Iced Tea. It’s the only tea that may ever come close to pleasing Ted Lasso.
Cheers!
Critic's Cocktail 