Sent to you by khalil via Google Reader:
Colin Firth and Helena Bonham Carter lead British hopes at the Hollywood ceremony – and Hadley Freeman has all the latest
1.15am GMT: OK, can someone explain to me how Kelly Osbourne has become E!'s red carpet fashion correspondent? Is there not an internal contradiction in there somewhere? E!, listen to me - Kelly may be wearing a peroxide bouffant these days but she is no Joan Rivers. Bring back Joan!
1.11am GMT: Right folks, so here we are on the red carpet, let's look at some clothes.
Oh mine eyes, mine eyes! What the HELL is January Jones wearing, a woman who is going to get a reputation for the worst red carpet dresser of all time. So, at the Emmys she wore a dress that looked like a Smurf had an accident on her.
Tonight, she is wearing some vomitous Versace dress that appears to be made out of red Band-Aids. "I'm not wearing this for nothing," she simpers to E!'s Ryan Seacrest. That sound you heard in the background was January's dignity dying.
12.15am GMT: Greetings all, and welcome to the preview to tonight's Golden Globes liveblog. While I may not actually be on the red carpet in Los Angeles, I will be reporting to you live from my red sofa in New York. Truly, no expense is spared in the Guardian liveblog department. This is journalism in action, people! Suck on it, Woodward and Bernstein.
Oh, I do love the Golden Globes. So much more fun than the Oscars, because the nominees tend to be more what my cousin Catie calls "loosey goosey", or what I call "drunk". The usual explanation for this is that it's because there are so many more acting categories at the Globes than at the Oscars. Thus, at least half the nominees go there assuming they won't get the big nod later so they may as well get plastered tonight. Personally, I think it's because the Golden Globes are voted for by Hollywood's Foreign Press Association and the usually teetotal Californian celebrities use this as an excuse to get wasted. Getting drunk: it's so European, you know? Hopefully, someone will be as European as Jennifer Aniston was the other week at the People's Choice Awards.
A couple of drunk celebs would definitely be some compensation for the irritation that is Ricky Gervais, who will be hosting the proceedings with a guaranteed smirk.
So while we're waiting for smirking Ricky, let's discuss the nominees, looking at who should and shouldn't have been nominated, who should win and who probably will.
BEST PICTURE – Drama
Black Swan, The Fighter, Inception, The King's Speech, The Social Network.
I'm going to own up from the beginning and say I haven't seen The Fighter, mainly because I have seen The Wrestler, 8 Mile and Rocky, and therefore assumed I didn't need to. Also, I have a medical condition that makes it impossible for me to gaze upon Mark Wahlberg without shouting, "I'm picking up GOOD vibrations! She's giving me EXcitations!" so for the sake of fellow cinemagoers, I abstained. Thus, all predictions and opinions expressed herein should be taken with that cavil.
My only real problem with this slew of nominees is that Inception was nominated and 127 Hours was not. Hopefully we won't be talking about Inception much this evening and the only thing that needs to be said about that snorefest (a movie about sleep that puts you to sleep – brilliant! Content equals form!) was that South Park's parody of it was a billion times better than the movie, plagiarism issues aside.
Otherwise, The King's Speech, enjoyable though it is, is little more than a conventional genre film stuffed with some great actors. I would be very happy if Black Swan won but I reckon it will go to The Social Network. Fair enough, although I do think that film will look ridiculously dated in just a few years' time. If Hollywood really wanted to make a movie about a website that changed the world, surely they should have made one about Google. I'm not on Facebook and yet I manage to get by. But I literally cannot remember the last day when I did not use Google at some point.
BEST PICTURE – Musical or comedy
Alice in Wonderland, Burlesque, The Kids are All Right, Red, The Tourist
If The Kids Are All Right doesn't win this one, I'm throwing my laptop out the window. The Tourist?! Are you freaking kidding me, Foreign Press Association? The obvious omission here is True Grit, which is not a great film; it's not even a great Coen brothers film. But it is a hell of a lot better than The Tourist, aka The Snorist. Oh, I am on fire tonight.
BEST ACTOR – Drama
Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), Colin Firth (The King's Speech), James Franco (127 Hours), Ryan Gosling (Blue Valentine), Mark Wahlberg (The Fighter)
Well, it's got to be Colin, doesn't it? And fair enough, really, even if that nod would probably be as much for A Single Man as The King's Speech. He really is great in the latter, though, and without him that film would be nothing more than a bit of royalist propaganda.
James Franco may cause an upset, perhaps in compensation for 127 Hours' bewildering omission from Best Picture category, and also for his great performance this year in Howl. But I reckon the best of Franco is yet to come. The King's Speech is definitely Firth's bid for glory. Jesse Eisenberg would also be a pleasing winner, even if his recent interview with Conan O'Brien, in which he expanded at length about his addiction to adopting cats, suggested that his performance in The Social Network as a reclusive, socially awkward nerd did not tax his talent too greatly.
BEST ACTRESS – Drama
Halle Berry (Frankie and Alice), Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole), Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone), Natalie Portman (Black Swan), Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine)
Kidman? Oy vay. The critics love her, which is why she may – unbelievably – get an award tonight. But to quote Will Ferrell in Zoolander, I feel like I'm eating crazy pills here! The woman cannot act! She can't even move her face anymore these days!
I'd love to see Michelle Williams win, but she won't because she has an orgasm in Blue Valentine and, apparently, that's a bad thing. Natalie Portman will surely get it, and not just for her brilliant performance. She lost some weight for Black Swan, you see, and in Hollywood that in itself is worth international acclaim.
BEST ACTOR – Musical or comedy
Johnny Depp (Alice in Wonderland), Johnny Depp (The Tourist), Paul Giametti (Barney's Version), Jake Gyllenhaal (Love and Other Drugs), Kevin Spacey (Casino Jack)
You know, there are some times in life when you feel like the world makes absolutely not a jot of sense. Looking at this list of nominees is one of those times. How on earth could Gyllenhaal be nominated for Disease Movie of the Week? Or Johnny Depp for The freaking Tourist? And most of all, why weren't Jeff Bridges or, in particular, Matt Damon for True Grit? Damon is really, really great in that film, giving a vanity-free, ego-free, genuinely funny performance, which is not something that can be said about pretty much anyone else on this list. So in conclusion, my reluctant vote goes to Paul Giametti, who is pretty good in Barney's Version, even if the film isn't, and, most of all, seems like a nice guy. Here, Paul, have an award.
BEST ACTRESS – Musical or comedy
Annette Bening (The Kids Are All Right), Anne Hathaway (Love and Other Drugs), Angelina Jolie (The Tourist), Julianne Moore (The Kids Are All Right), Emma Stone (Easy A)
OK, just looking at this list makes me cross. So to spare my blood pressure, I'll just say I'd be happy with either Julianne Moore or Annette Bening winning tonight, and I reckon it will be Bening.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale (The Fighter), Michael Douglas (Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps), Andrew Garfield (The Social Network), Jeremy Renner (The Town), Geoffrey Rush (The King's Speech)
Well, the critics seem to think that Bale will get it and, as I said earlier, I can't really comment on that beyond a non-caring shrug. I think it's a real shame that Guy Pearce wasn't nominated for The King's Speech as the Nazi-appeasing, Wallis-obsessed prince, but maybe that upset some people's preferred image of the British royalty as glorious demi-gods too much. Justin Timberlake for The Social Network is also a sad omission, and he has been unjustly overlooked in a lot of the coverage of the movie.
I really hope that Michael Douglas doesn't win this. While I am very pleased he has recovered from cancer, he shouldn't get a Golden Globe for doing so, not least because that seems like a pretty patronising response to fighting a life-threatening illness, and Douglas is better than that and a better actor than he was in that movie. The voters may well disagree. I'd love Andrew Garfield to win it and not just because I have an inappropriate old lady crush on him. OK, that is totally why I want him to win it.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams (The Fighter), Helena Bonham Carter (The King's Speech), Mila Kunis (Black Swan), Melissa Leo (The Fighter), Jackie Weaver (Animal Kingdom)
Mila Kunis instead of Barbara Hershey for Black Swan? Poor choice, Foreign Press Association. Oh well, in the absence of Hershey and her Mommie Dearest routine, I'm rooting for Helena, and I reckon she'll get it. Her brittle performance in The King's Speech was great, and plus, she's kinda awesome.
BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan), David Fincher (The Social Network), Tom Hooper (The King's Speech). Christopher Nolan (Inception), David O Russell (The Fighter)
Well, I'd prefer Aronofsky to get it as The Black Swan was a lot more imaginative and exciting than The Social Network, but Fincher may well get in there. It's probably between those two, and either would be acceptable. In terms of omissions, though, I'm not quite sure why Danny Boyle was left off here. Maybe they feel he had his fill from Slumdog Millionaire. Shame, because 127 Hours is not only a better film than Slumdog but it's a better film than many on this list.
BEST SCREENPLAY
127 Hours (Simon Beaufoy and Danny Boyle), Inception (Christopher Nolan), The Kids Are All Right (Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg), The King's Speech (David Seidler), The Social Network (Aaron Sorkin)
It should and will be Sorkin, and that's all there is to say.
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Despicable Me, How To Train Your Dragon, The Illusionist, Tangled, Toy Story 3
Toy Story. Duh.
BEST FOREIGN FILM
Biutiful, The Concert, The Edge, I Am Love, In A Better World
I'm ashamed to say that, of these, I've seen only I Am Love, so I'll leave you guys to duke this out among you.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Bound to You," Burlesque (performed by Christina Aguilera; written by Samuel Dixon, Christina Aguilera and Sia Furler)
"Coming Home," Country Strong (performed by Gwyneth Paltrow; written by Bob PiPiero, Tom Douglas, Hillary Lindsey, Troy Verges)
"I See the Light," Tangled (performed by Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi; written by Alan Menken & Glenn Slater)
"There's a Place For Us," The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (performed by Carrie Underwood; written by Carrie Underwood, David Hodges, Hillary Lindsey)
"You Haven't Seen the Last of Me Yet," Burlesque (performed by Cher; written by Diane Warren)
Oh God, please not that Gwyneth song. I can't take Gwyneth with a guitar. Gwynnie, please, go back home and write some more newsletters about how you and your friends spend your days.
The one everyone is rooting for is, of course, You Haven't Seen the Last of Me, because everyone wants to hear Cher sing and see what Cher is wearing. Am I right or am I right?
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Inception (Hans Zimmer), The King's Speech (Alexander Desplat), The Social Network (Trent Reznor and Atticus Rose), Alice in Wonderland (Danny Elfman), 127 Hours (AR Rahman)
Tough one, actually. I always love an Elfman score, and I salute Danny Boyle's wisdom in continuing to work with AR Rahman after teaming up with him for Slumdog Millionaire. But my personal choice would be for Trent Reznor (duuuude!) and Atticus Rose's gloomy, tension-filled music for The Social Network. I bet they'll give it to Hans Zimmer for Inception, though.
BEST TV SERIES – Drama
Boardwalk Empire, Dexter, The Good Wife, Mad Men, The Walking Dead
I'm not going to talk about Mad Men tonight because a Guardian journalist raving about Mad Men is like a French man wearing a beret – too much of a cliché to stomach. So all I'll say is it surely will win, and deservedly so, though I'd be happy with The Good Wife, too.
BEST TV SERIES – Musical or comedy
30 Rock, The Big Bang Theory, The Big C, Glee, Modern Family, Nurse Jackie
This is without a doubt Glee's year. Gleek out, people.
BEST ACTOR – Drama
Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Michael C Hall (Dexter), Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Hugh Laurie (House MD)
Look, I love Steve Buscemi as much as the next fan of weird-looking actors, but he should not win this. That show is lame and, good as Buscemi is, he has been better elsewhere. Anyway, this is all academic as Hamm is surely going to walk this one.
BEST ACTRESS – Drama
Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men), Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife), Piper Perabo (Covert Affairs), Katey Sagal (Sons of Anarchy), Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer)
I love Elisabeth Moss – well, I love her character on the show, anyway. The Scientologist Moss, perhaps, not so much. But this one will probably go to Margulies, as it should.
BEST ACTOR – Musical or comedy
Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Steve Carell (The Office), Thomas Jane (Hung). Matthew Morrison (Glee), Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory)
Baldwin just gets better and better in 30 Rock but I think they'll give this one to Matthew Morrison. Baldwin probably doesn't have any room left on his mantelpiece for another award, anyway.
BEST ACTRESS – Musical or comedy
Toni Collette (United States of Tara), Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie), Tina Fey (30 Rock), Laura Linney (The Big C), Lea Michele (Glee)
At last – a list of nominees I can totally get behind. No idea on this one, really. Fey, maybe? Or Linney? Either one would be acceptable.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR – TV series, miniseries or made-for-TV movie
Scott Caan, (Hawaii Five-o), Chris Colfer (Glee), Chris Noth (The Good Wife), David Strathairn (Temple Grandin), Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family)
Maybe one day people will explain to me the appeal of Chris Noth because even after watching each episode of Sex and the City at least seven times, occasionally dipping into Law & Order and a recent addiction to The Good Wife, I do not get it. I like all of those shows (well, "like" might be a bit strong for Law & Order) not because of Noth but in spite of him. Anyway, Chris Colfer is adorable on Glee but my heart belongs to Eric Stonestreet on this one. He is just ace on Modern Family, which is, itself, ace.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS – TV series, miniseries or made-for-TV movie
Hope Davis (Special Relationship), Jane Lynch (Glee), Kelly Macdonald (Boardwalk Empire), Julia Stile (Dexter), Sofia Vergara (Modern Family)
Jane Lynch Jane Lynch Jane Lynch. Hey! Did I mention Jane Lynch? That woman deserves awards every day of the week and Sunday, too. Jane Lynch!
BEST ACTOR – miniseries or made-for-TV movie
Idris Elba (Luther), Ian MacShane (Pillars of the Earth), Al Pacino (You Don't Know Jack) Dennis Quaid (The Special Relationship), Edgar Ramirez (Carlos)
I'm guessing they'll give it to Edgar Ramirez. But as this is a British newspaper website, one is duty bound to root for the British actor and, as I don't want to vote for Ian MacShane, I guess I'm Team Idris.
BEST ACTRESS - miniseries or made-for-TV movie
Hayley Atwell (Pillars of the Earth), Claire Danes (Temple Grandin), Judi Dench (Return to Cranford), Romola Garai (Emma), Jennifer Love Hewitt (The Client List)
Jesus, Mary and Joseph – Jennifer Love Hewitt? For that piece of crap? That show was absolutely the nadir of Hewitt's career and, as all Hewittologists will appreciate, that really is saying something. This one is up in the air so I'll just randomly guess, er, Garai? Yeah, give it to Romola Garai.
Right, I'm going to make some popcorn now and so should you. Let's rejoin at 1am GMT, when hopefully there will be some famous people wearing expensive clothes on the red carpet that we can look at and discuss.
Things you can do from here:
- Subscribe to The Guardian World News using Google Reader
- Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites