The Golden Globes set the agenda on Sunday with the primary award of the evening, which went to Teyana Taylor for “One Battle After One other” over what may very well be perceived as a extra starry win by fellow nominees Emily Blunt or Ariana Grande.
They caught with it for the remainder of the present, however ended the evening with the distinct feeling that the Globes’ tried makeover — which goals to be extra considered in what’s nominated and who wins — is complicated at finest.
Certain, it’s arduous to argue with Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle” being the large winner, with Globes for Anderson’s path and screenplay, Taylor’s supporting efficiency and Finest Movement Image – Musical or Comedy. And the identical may very well be mentioned for Chloe Zhao’s “Hamnet” profitable Finest Movement Image – Drama, some extent underlined by the robust and transferring speeches by Zhao and lead actress winner Jessie Buckley.
These had been completely credible movies to reward on this time of turmoil and trauma, emblematic of a roster of winners that caught with the favorites virtually all the time and by no means appeared to be attempting to award star energy, the best way the old-school Globes had been identified to do.
However after new possession dramatically overhauled the roster of voters in a determined try to realize a few of that credibility, you bought the sense that the brand new Globes and the ensuing telecast needed to have its cake and eat it, too – to have the present be as free, boozy and enjoyable because it typically was when the voters had been suspect and the stakes weren’t very excessive.
And it wasn’t that, besides in its most pressured and awkward moments.
Surrounding a superb group of winners was the inconsequential, three-year-old Finest Cinematic and Field Workplace Achievement award, a class that now appears to have grow to be a comfort prize for large motion pictures that aren’t going to win many different awards. (“Barbie” gained it, then “Depraved,” then “Sinners,” which was anticipated to do higher than it did.) And a brand new podcast class that was launched by a movie clip that basically mentioned “motion pictures are dying, so that is what we’ve gotta salute now.” And a standup comedy class that for 2 out of its three years has gone to Ricky Gervais, the man who’s finest identified for savaging the Globes when he hosted them prior to now. Additionally: fixed callouts to the Polymarket prediction market, a brand new Globes companion.
On an evening when most of the profitable movies had been well timed examinations of loss and brutality, the present tried to chop the opposite means and appeared foolish doing it.
After dropping their NBC deal to scandal and boycott, the Globes spent a few years developing with a brand new mannequin and a brand new crop of voters: Instead of 90-odd full- and part-time journalists primarily based in Los Angeles however writing for worldwide publications, the brand new Golden Globes are made up of 399 critics, virtually 90% of them primarily based outdoors the U.S.
There’s extra transparency round this group of voters, all of whom have their names, credit and bios obtainable on the Globes web site. However they’re worldwide film critics and journalists who don’t rely on L.A. junkets for his or her livelihood, so their votes usually go to critics’ favorites as an alternative of flicks that may draw the largest stars to the Beverly Hilton.
So within the Finest Movement Image – Drama class, an unprecedented three of the six nominees had been non-English-language movies, with “It Was Simply an Accident” (Iranian) “Sentimental Worth” (Norwegian) and “The Secret Agent” (Brazilian) all making the minimize; in Finest Movement Image – Musical or Comedy, the South Korean “No Different Alternative” and the French-language “Nouvelle Obscure” took two of the six slots.
The worldwide movies didn’t dominate Sunday’s listing of winners, other than “The Secret Agent” star Wagner Moura profitable Finest Drama Actor over Michael B. Jordan for “Sinners,” a slight upset that recalled final yr’s victory by one other Brazilian, Fernanda Torres, for Finest Drama Actress. (Word: The brand new Golden Globes roster of voters consists of a variety of South People, significantly a variety of Brazilians.)
However they had been just like final week’s Critics Alternative Awards within the movie classes and just like final September’s Emmy Awards within the TV classes. Nothing totally different, nothing actually stunning and, actually, not a lot cause to assume that this present, remade with this group of voters, is what CBS was searching for when it signed on to broadcast the present at a lowered price by 2029.
Nonetheless, the Globes telecast may have some repercussions as Oscar voters get able to forged their ballots this week. Jessie Buckley’s speech was heat and charming, making up for the truth that the present performed Stevie Marvel’s “Isn’t She Pretty” as she walked to the stage. (It’s a terrific tune, in fact, however whereas its title could also be correct, it’s additionally one of many least germane elements of her fierce, feral efficiency.)
“The Secret Agent” might nicely get just a few extra views from Oscar voters who will not be casting ballots within the Finest Worldwide Function Movie class; ditto “Sentimental Worth,” although one would hope each of these movies are in each conscientious voter’s viewing queue already.
Within the TV classes, in the meantime, there’s virtually no method to inform that many of the voters are primarily based outdoors the U.S., as a result of they regularly go for a similar issues because the Tv Academy voters: Within the 11 Globes TV classes that had been additionally offered on the Emmys, 9 went to the identical individuals or reveals that gained Emmys 4 and a half months in the past.
The winners had been deserving. The present was principally clunky and somewhat frantic. The surprises had been minimal.
When you’re the Globes, the place do you go from right here?
