Some glitz,glam and goofs at the Golden Globes

The Golden Globes,that prelude to the Oscars and afterthought to the Emmys, did their little dance on the catwalk last night,with some surprising results.

While a good number of the usual suspects received their trophies(it's pretty much a given that any movie awards show this season will pay tribute to Heath Ledger),a few folks were shocked and awe struck such as Kate Winslet for her double wins as Best Supporting Actress for The Reader and again in the Best Actress(Drama)category for Revolutionary Road.

The best thing that can happen at any awards show is that element of the unexpected,particularly when it honors those who truly deserve it or gives a struggling to step into the spotlight performer have a moment to shine. Let's look at some of the good,bad and "Hell to the YES!" moments from this year's Globes:



GREAT WINS

I have to confess that I was a little late tuning into the show(technical difficulties on the homefront)but when I got the chance,the first thing that popped onto my TV screen was Anna Paquin,beaming as she accepted a Best Actress in the TV Drama category for True Blood. That was a promising sign of things to come.

I was also happy to see Mad Men get another win,for Best TV Drama and newcomer Sally Hawkins get her first Golden Globe for Happy-Go-Lucky,a indie Brit film about a woman making the best out of her less than charming life.



My personal pick for best acceptance speech was Mickey Rourke's,as he took the Best Actor in Drama for The Wrestler. He may be on all of the Worst Dressed lists,but it's truly refreshing to see such a down to earth,naturally offbeat guy like that take the stage and get the hard earned props that he deserves.

With the Globe win tucked under his belt,an Oscar nomination is soon to follow. I sincerely hope that he wins that one as well and gets to share a touching moment with his director,Darren Aronosky,similar to that special gesture of respect between the two of them last night:





FROM SLUMDOG TO TOP DOG

The best success story of the night belonged to Slumdog Millionaire,which won four awards for Screenplay,Score,Director(Danny Boyle)and Best Drama. This bodes well for the film come Academy Awards time.

Note to Academy voters: please keep in mind these names: Dev Patel,Freida Pinto and Anil Kapoor. They are the three main actors in this film and should be recognized as the key components to it's excellence. They deserve to be NOMINATED,people! Try not to screw this one up,okay?

OH,PLEASE! YOU KNOW THAT WAS FUNNY

Sascha Baron Cohen,aka Borat,presented the Best Comedy Film award(to Vicky Christina Barcelona,a movie I'll rant about in a moment)and made a couple of good jokes about Hollywood celebs surviving the recession. His crack about Madonna and her break-up with Guy Ritchie drew a few boos and "Oh,why did he have to go there" moans from the crowd.

Give me a break,folks. It was damn hilarious(way better than Alec Baldwin's lame remark about how he used to bring Rumer Willis,Miss Golden Globes,a juicebox)and I'll bet you dollars to doughnuts that Guy Ritchie was in a bar somewhere hearing that and laughing the loudest at that bon mot. Get off your high horses once in a while,gang-you might learn something:





NOW IS THE TIME FOR A RANT

What is the deal with Vicky Christina Barcelona being up for so many noms here? Granted,I didn't see this movie but then again I have no interest in paying good money(even for a rental)for something that should rightfully be titled "Woody Allen's European Sex Fantasy."

Oh,boo hoo,poor Javier Bardem has all of these incredibly beautiful women fighting over him and to make matters worse,they're all trapped in luxurious surroundings in Spain,no less! The horror,the horror!



And,I have to say that Wall-E is starting to turn me off,big time. Another movie that I haven't seen and have no doubt that Pixar did a great visual job with,but I am getting sick of movies that feel the need to lecture me about environmental issues. Nothing wrong with a movie slipping in some social commentary to enrich the subtext but when it appears to be doing so with a sledge hammer approach, it's time to click on something else.



Well,congrats to all of the winners and good luck to those hoping to follow up your victories with some Oscar gold. Hopefully,that awards ceremony will have some of the fun and the funny that the Globes had the other night. Then again,it is the Academy Awards we're talking about here.

One last note: while I do agree that most of the hype about 30 Rock is seriously overdone,with that show getting so much media love that it seems to suck it all away from other programs that do deserve(such as The Middleman),you gotta tip your hat to Tina Fey for calling out the internet folks who having been trash talking her for a while.

Be careful with the bold,Tina-there's an old saying online that goes "Don't feed the troll". It's there for a reason: